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<header class="HeadlineBlock headline_block span24"
style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-size:
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<h1 class="headline featured_image_headline" style="background:
transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 30px; margin: 0px; outline:
0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-weight: 700;
color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Lawmakers reintroduce plan to save the
bees</h1>
<section class="byline" style="background: transparent; border:
0px; font-size: 12px; margin: 0.25em 0px 0px; outline: 0px;
padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; display: block; color:
rgb(85, 85, 85); font-weight: 700;"><span class="authors"
style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 12px;
margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align:
baseline;"><a
href="https://www.eenews.net/staff/Jacob_Wallace"
style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; font-size: 12px;
vertical-align: baseline; background: transparent; color:
rgb(153, 0, 0); text-decoration: none;">Jacob Wallace</a>,
E&E News reporter</span><time style="background:
transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 12px; margin: 0px;
outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;
font-weight: 400; font-style: normal;">Published: Friday, June
25, 2021</time></section>
<aside class="ImageAsset image_asset_layout span24 left"
id="image_asset_layout_104339" style="background: transparent;
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outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; display:
block; box-sizing: border-box; float: left; max-width: 940px;
width: 940px; position: relative;"><img
src="https://www.eenews.net/image_assets/2021/06/image_asset_123181.jpg"
alt="Bees. Photo credit: Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images"
style="background: transparent; border: 1px solid rgb(255,
255, 255); font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px;
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<p class="caption" style="background: transparent; border: 0px;
font-size: 12px; margin: 5px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;
vertical-align: baseline; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><span
style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size:
12px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;
vertical-align: baseline;">House Democrats are leading new
legislation to protect bees.<span> </span></span><span
class="credit" style="background: transparent; border: 0px;
font-size: 11px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;
vertical-align: baseline; color: rgb(153, 153, 153);">Lisa
Maree Williams/Getty Images</span></p>
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<section class="StoryContent span16" style="background: rgb(255,
255, 255); border: 0px; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; outline:
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<p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 14px;
margin: 1em 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align:
baseline;">Democratic Reps. Earl Blumenauer of Oregon and Jim
McGovern of Massachusetts yesterday reintroduced legislation
to investigate the collapse of native pollinator populations,
an effort that they hope will "save the bees."</p>
<p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 14px;
margin: 1em 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align:
baseline;">The<span> </span><a
href="https://blumenauer.house.gov/sites/blumenauer.house.gov/files/BLUMEN_022_xml.pdf"
style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px;
vertical-align: baseline; background: transparent; color:
rgb(153, 0, 0); text-decoration: underline; font-weight:
700;">bill</a>, the "Saving America's Pollinators Act of
2021," would suspend the use of neonicotinoids pending further
study. The chemicals are a commonly used pesticide that are
also one of the top suspects in the widespread die-out of bees
and other pollinators.</p>
<p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 14px;
margin: 1em 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align:
baseline;">"Pollinators are the very definition of keystone
species. They hold our food system — and entire ecosystems —
together," McGovern said in a statement. "We can no longer
afford to put the interests of pesticide manufacturers ahead
of the safety of pollinators, people, and the planet."</p>
<p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 14px;
margin: 1em 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align:
baseline;">Studies have shown that bee populations are
declining everywhere: Up to a quarter of bee species haven't
been recorded at all since 1990, according to one report (<a
href="https://www.eenews.net/stories/1063723303"
style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px;
vertical-align: baseline; background: transparent; color:
rgb(153, 0, 0); text-decoration: underline; font-weight:
700;"><em style="background: transparent; border: 0px;
font-size: 14px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;
vertical-align: baseline;">Greenwire</em></a>, Jan. 22).</p>
<p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 14px;
margin: 1em 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align:
baseline;">The Department of Agriculture has also noted that
U.S. honeybees account for $700 million a year in products and
services.</p>
<p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 14px;
margin: 1em 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align:
baseline;">But the bill's authors say that U.S. beekeepers
lost between 35% and 46% of their hives annually between 2012
and 2018, and populations have been slow to recover since.</p>
<p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 14px;
margin: 1em 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align:
baseline;">To better understand their recovery, the proposed
legislation would also implement a "state-of-the-art"
monitoring network for native bees to track their populations.</p>
<p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 14px;
margin: 1em 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align:
baseline;">"We must use every tool at our disposal to provide
pollinators with much-needed relief from toxic pesticides and
monitor their populations to ensure their health and
survival," Blumenauer said.</p>
<p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 14px;
margin: 1em 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align:
baseline;">The bill would also establish a Pollinator
Protection Board, which would be staffed with scientists,
beekeepers, farmers and conservationists who do not have ties
to pesticide companies.</p>
<p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; font-size: 14px;
margin: 1em 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align:
baseline;">That board would ultimately be responsible for
evaluating and approving the safety of pesticides.</p>
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