From Guidance to Innovation: addressing uncertainties in a pesticide risk assessment for bee pollinators from a decade of research

The Pollinator Research Task Force (PRTF) was established in 2015 with the mission of reviewing existing knowledge and generating new data to enhance the risk assessment framework for bee pollinators. The current pesticide risk assessment framework used by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was introduced in 2014 and is supported by the Bee-REX screening-level risk assessment tool. Since then, advancements in honey bee testing methodologies—such as adult and larval chronic toxicity assessments—have been incorporated into current data requirements to strengthen the regulatory framework for assessing risk to bee pollinators. The 2014 EPA bee guidance on pesticide risk assessment highlighted key uncertainties and, recognizing the importance of protection, has spurred research since 2015 to better characterize pesticide toxicity and exposure.

This project highlights scientific advancements over the last decade, including a review of PRTF studies conducted between 2015–2025 that assess and summarize data relevant to addressing knowledge gaps and uncertainties identified in the 2014 US EPA bee guidance.