Sat, May 10, 2008 (2:07 a.m.)

The new buzz about bees is that air pollution interferes with their ability to locate flower scents, which undermines the pollination process for a variety of plants, including those used for food.

The Washington Post reports that researchers at the University of Virginia studied how long it takes for flower scents to come in contact with ozone and other air pollutants, which destroy them.

Bees have poor eyesight and rely on their sense of smell to find flowers, which provide their food. In going from flower to flower in search of food, bees carry out the process of pollination, which is essential for the proliferation of many plants — including fruits and vegetables.

Jose Fuentes, the professor leading the research project, told the Post that before the 1800s — before the Industrial Revolution — a flower’s scent could travel 3,200 to 4,000 feet.

Today that same scent might dissipate after only 1,000 or even 650 feet when released in areas where ozone levels are high, Fuentes said. Much of the pollination process happens during the warm spring and summer months, when ground-level ozone levels are highest.

The researchers said this could be one reason that honeybee and bumblebee populations have been dying off worldwide — a phenomenon that has created a pollination crisis for a variety of crops and has stumped scientists since 2006.

Scientists who have been studying the declining bee population told the Post that although scent interference could be a factor, it is not believed to be the main reason that adult worker bees have been abandoning their hives — an occurrence for which a main reason has not been determined.

Still, this new research on the olfactory habits of bees shows that increasing air pollution is affecting crucial natural processes in many ways. And it means that from the personal decisions people make for themselves to the policy decisions that political leaders make for them, society must find ways to reduce the pollutants that are released into the air.