Bees on Dalhousie Campus

Abstract

Implementation of an apiary on Dalhousie’s Studley campus would positively impact the biodiversity of the entire Halifax Urban core. Bees are influential to our environment because of their contributions to human economies through the process of plant pollination. Currently, there is a developing raise of concern regarding bees because of detriments to their survival including habitat destruction, loss of blooming food plants, and the spread of parasites. This project is a feasibility assessment of the Dalhousie Studley campus. The feasibility is based on a determined set of criteria. These criteria have been established based on interviews with expert and hobby beekeepers, and document review of bee care and apiary successes. The research results will be listed as established criteria. Explanation of the decision process for determining these criteria is available, and influence of case studies on these decisions will also be described. The discussion shares ArcGIS maps that describe the site-specific situation for apiary feasibility of Dalhousie’s Studley campus. These maps were created as a visual representation of the resulting criteria to place the feasibility assessment on the real world. Application of the criteria will also be made without cartographic representation to describe how we determined the most suitable area for implementation of a bee apiary. The final assessment pointed to the Life Sciences Centre Psychology Department rooftop for a plausible location to implement an apiary. This was determined based on bee protection and preference (environmental considerations), as well as public protection and preference (social considerations).