[Pollinator] Fwd: From Greenwire -- AGRICULTURE: White House pushes back official release of pollinator report

[Tom Van Arsdall]

Forwarded with permission.

R. Thomas (Tom) Van Arsdall
Pollinator Partnership
TVA at pollinator.org
(703) 509-4746
tom at vanarsdall.com
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "tstecker at eenews.net by E&E Publishing" <email_this at eenews.net>
Date: Oct 23, 2014 9:52 AM
Subject: From Greenwire -- AGRICULTURE: White House pushes back official
release of pollinator report
To: <tva at pollinator.org>
Cc:

    White House pushes back official release of pollinator report   *This
Greenwire story was sent to you by:* tstecker at eenews.net

*Personal message:* Hi Tom, here you go. Thanks for your patience. Best
wishes, Tiffany    [image: Greenwire] <http://www.eenews.net/gw>  AN E&E
PUBLISHING SERVICE      AGRICULTURE:
White House pushes back official release of pollinator report    Tiffany
Stecker, E&E reporter   Published: Wednesday, October 22, 2014

*Updated at 9:05 a.m. EDT Oct. 23.*

The White House is pushing back the scheduled Dec. 20 release of a report
on pollinators ordered by President Obama.

The report -- which aims to cull studies on honeybees, wild bumblebees, and
other insects and animals considered crucial in agriculture -- will be
released after the holidays, said Michael Stebbins, assistant director for
biotechnology in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.

Stebbins also announced that both the General Services Administration and
the Council on Environmental Quality will release a guidance today for
agencies to integrate pollinator-friendly landscaping on federal
facilities, the first fruits of Obama's June memorandum on pollinators (
*Greenwire* <http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1060001713/>, June 20).

"The dead of winter is not a good time to be sending a message on
pollinators," Stebbins told the annual North American Pollinator Protection
Campaign conference in Washington, D.C. He declined to clarify when the
report would be released.

A staff member later clarified Stebbins' announcement, saying that agencies
are still on track to submit their reports to the White House for the
National Pollinator Health Strategy on schedule but that the report's
release to the public has yet to be determined.

The GSA and CEQ guidance intends to show federal agencies how to use spaces
like walkways and pathways to integrate plants that will provide food for
bees. The White House is currently working on guidance for larger tracts of
federal land, Stebbins said.

"We wanted to get these guidances out so that planning for these facilities
in the spring will benefit from these guidances," he said.

Stebbins also announced that the White House would hold public listening
sessions on pollinators.

Managed honeybees, wild bumblebees, and other pollinators like butterflies
and bats are essential to agriculture, as they aid fruit and vegetable
production by carrying pollen between plants. The number of managed
honeybee colonies in the United States has decreased by 58 percent since
1947, according to the Agriculture Department.

Laurie Adams, the executive director of the Pollinator Partnership, called
Obama's memorandum "the most significant terrestrial restoration effort."

"We're talking about millions of acres," she said, adding, "The White House
has set the bar high."
EPA sets time frame for neonicotinoid decision

U.S. EPA will make a decision on how to regulate neonicotinoids in 2016 or
2017, Jim Jones, the agency's head of chemical safety and pollution
prevention, said this morning.

Jones said EPA will begin analyzing and releasing data from its long-term
study on the effect of neonicotinoids on honeybee populations next year,
with a conclusion on the pesticides expected one to two years later. This
moves the date up from a earlier time frame of 2017 to 2018.

Neonicotinoids, a class of insecticides to control chewing pests, have been
linked to widespread bee deaths. Discussion on EPA's regulation of
neonicotinoids has become central to efforts to restore bee colonies. Jones
acknowledged the lengthy process the agency has taken to reach a conclusion
on the chemicals.

"We are frustrated with the pace," he said. "But at the end of the day we
need to recognize the science."

As assistant administrator, Jones oversees EPA's Office of Pesticide
Programs, the body that approves and regulates pesticides.

EPA is conducting a multi-year study on the effect of low levels of
neonicotinoids on bee health. The agency formed a working group more than
seven years ago on bee health.

The European Union placed a two-year moratorium on neonicotinoids last
year. Last week, EPA found that neonicotinoid treatments on soybean seeds
provide little added benefits to the crops. The review did find that the
seed treatments provided more benefits to corn, Jones said.

While environmental groups have long pressed EPA to restrict
neonicotinoids, scientists maintain that the pesticides are but one of many
factors that have contributed to honeybee declines. Other stressors include
the parasitic *Varroa* mite that transmits bacteria and viruses to bees and
loss of forage plants on which bees feed.

There are several theories on how neonicotinoids affect honeybees,
including that the insecticides wear down bees' immune systems, leaving
them susceptible to disease.

EPA is also looking to develop an approach that would coordinate
contractor-provided services to avoid pesticide exposure when bees are out.
For example, the agency would work with almond growers to plan a pest
control schedule with commercial beekeepers during pollination season.
Several states, including Mississippi, Colorado and Florida, are working to
develop plans to protect pollinators.

"We're looking at both potential regulatory solutions and [solutions] in
the contractor service provider context," Jones said.
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