[Pollinator] The Xerces Society Applauds the White House for Newly Released Strategy to Protect Pollinators and Their Habitat

[Matthew Shepherd]

*For Immediate Release*



Tuesday, May 19, 2015

CONTACT:

Scott Hoffman Black, Executive Director, The Xerces Society for
Invertebrate Conservation

(503) 449-3792, sblack at xerces.org





*White House Releases Historic Strategy to Protect Pollinators and Their
Habitat *



*The Xerces Society applauds this effort and hopes it will lead to better
habitat protection and management as well as better regulation of
pesticides*



PORTLAND, Ore.---The Xerces Society applauds the White House for the
National Strategy to Promote the Health of Honey Bees and Other
Pollinators released
today. Pollinators are an essential part of both productive agriculture and
a healthy environment and the White House’s action places their protection
squarely on the national stage. Protecting, restoring, and enhancing
habitat for bees and butterflies, including the monarch, is a major focus
of this national strategy.



“Pollinator conservation is an issue of national importance and I am very
pleased that the White House has taken a leadership role,” said Scott
Hoffman Black, executive director of the Xerces Society and an ex officio
member of the U.S. Monarch Butterfly High Level Working Group. “The success
of this strategy lies in adequate funding and appropriate implementation.
We will continue to work with and support the White House and federal
agencies as they move forward.”



The Xerces Society has long-established partnerships with several of the
key federal agencies tasked with implementing the National Strategy to
Promote the Health of Honey Bees and Other Pollinators. Our work includes:

·         A team of pollinator specialists working jointly with the USDA
Natural Resources Conservation Service to provide technical support and
training to NRCS staff nationwide;

·         Conservation biologist working jointly with the Fish and Wildlife
Service on the conservation of monarch butterflies and milkweeds in the
Pacific Northwest;

·         Multi-year partnership with the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of
Land Management to manage land for rare butterflies, work which led to the
partners receiving the Wings Across the Americas 2012 Butterfly
Conservation Award;

·         Collaboration with NatureServe to write a report, “*Conservation
Status and Ecology of the Monarch Butterfly in the United States,” for the
U.S. Forest Service;*

·         Participation in the U.S. Geological Survey Powell Center Monarch
Butterfly Workshop to work toward a conservation plan for the monarch; and

·         Membership of the U.S. Monarch Butterfly High Level Working Group.



“Working closely with the NRCS and other agencies has shown me that these
agencies are full of highly skilled and motivated staff,” noted Mace
Vaughan, pollinator program co-director at the Xerces Society and Joint
Pollinator Conservation Specialist at the NRCS. “I am confident that
implementation of the White House strategy will be in good hands.”



One area where the pollinator strategy falls short is protecting
pollinators from pesticides, especially systemic insecticides like
neonicotinoids. Neonicotinoids are the most widely used insecticides in the
world and there are demonstrated links between their use and declines in
bees and other wildlife. The Xerces Society had hoped that the
Environmental Protection Agency would take strong comprehensive action to
address the risk that these insecticides pose to pollinators.



“The national strategy includes valuable long-term plans that could, over
time, strengthen the pesticide regulatory system," stated Xerces Society
pesticide program coordinator Aimee Code.  "But, it fails to offer
pesticide mitigations to address issues currently facing pollinators.”



For over forty years, the Xerces Society has worked to protect
invertebrates and their habitat, and in the last twenty years has built an
internationally respected pollinator conservation program. The Society now
has the largest pollinator conservation team in the world.



###



*For More Information*



Xerces Society Pollinator Conservation Achievements:
http://www.xerces.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/PPR_Summer14_web.pdf



Xerces Pollinator Conservation Program:
http://www.xerces.org/pollinator-conservation



Bring Back the Pollinators campaign:
http://www.xerces.org/bringbackthepollinators



Monarch Conservation: http://www.xerces.org/monarchs



Bumble Bee Conservation: http://www.xerces.org/bumblebees



Reducing the impact of pesticides: http://www.xerces.org/pesticides





*About The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation *

Protecting the Life that Sustains Us



The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation is a nonprofit
organization that protects wildlife through the conservation of
invertebrates and their habitat. Established in 1971, the Society is at the
forefront of invertebrate protection, harnessing the knowledge of
scientists and the enthusiasm of citizens to implement conservation
programs worldwide. Over the last two decades, the Society has built an
internationally respected pollinator conservation program that works with
farmers, land managers, and agencies on three continents. To learn more
about the Society’s work, please visit www.xerces.org.
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