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By having bees within the city boundaries plants of all types will benefit and garden crops will have much higher yields. Bees are also responsible for pollinating cotton for much of the clothes we wear. Bees have been declining in great numbers for decades and threatened with Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). There are a number of factors contributing to this decline, changing weather patterns, loss of forage, bee pests (specifically the Varroa mite), pesticides use to name a few. Santa Ana will help bring back up the bee population by allowing urban beekeeping. The city would like to educate the public and put forth a set of Best Management Practices (BPM) which will allow beekeeping yet at the same time safeguard neighbors and the public in close proximity to where the bees are kept. Those wishing to take up beekeeping should review the BPMs to see if they can conform to these practices before starting this endeavor. By conforming to these practices Santa Ana can become a Bee Sanctuary City which other cities can emulate. Unfortunately there are those who will not be responsible beekeepers, not follow Best Management Practices and as such will be asked to correct problems resulting from their bees or if sever enough will be asked to remove the bees from the property entirely by code enforcement. Enforcement issues will be covered at the end of this document. The City of Santa Ana believes education is the best policy. If you are interested in keeping bees in Santa Ana or just wish to know more about bees please read further to educate yourself. The various Best Management Practices have been summarized below with a more detailed explanation even further down or you may click on any item to go directly to the expanded explanation. BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES SUMMARY 2. Make sure you have enough time to manage your bee hives before taking on beekeeping 3. Keep bees with docile genetics 4. Hives should be of the removable frame type to allow inspection of the hive. 5. Inspections should be done on a sunny day when possible when the fewest number of people are around and when machinery is not being operated. 6. Permission should be obtained by the land owner before placing hives 7. Placement of the bee hive should be in a manner which will keep bees from infringing on neighbors properties or the public at large. 8. Apiary area should be cleared of flammable material to prevent fires 9. Apiary should be away from lights to prevent bees from being attracted lights at night 10. It is preferable to paint bee hives a light colors to keep the hive cool during the summer and reduce swarming tendencies. 11. A constant water source should be provided for the bees for hydrating and cooling their hive 12. Hives should be managed by splitting, frame manipulation and/or requeening to significantly reduce or eliminate swarming 13. Number of hives allowed will not be limited provided your bees do not become a nuisance to others or infringe on your neighbors ability to use their property or the public at large. 14. Varroa mite inspection should be done and treated when necessary to prevent spreading this insidious pest to other hives in the area. 15. Disease control — Any hive found to be diseased should be dealt with in the appropriate manner. 16. The City of Santa Ana encourages beekeepers to register their hives with the County of Orange Department of Agriculture to keep bees safe from pesticide spraying by getting notified ahead of time of any planned spray. 17. The City of Santa Ana encourages continued education through clubs, mentors, videos, magazines and books to be better beekeepers.