Governor Kate Brown has proclaimed this Saturday Oregon Native Bees Conservation Awareness Day. There will be eventsin Eugene celebrating the pollinators.
Native bees are threatened by the use of pesticides that include neonicotinoids. This chemical has been banned for use on Eugene city property and the state has restricted its use. But Lisa Arkin with Beyond Toxics says bumblebee die-offs this summer in Portland were attributed to the pesticide-- even though it hadn't been applied for a year.
Arkin: "We have to raise awareness about the fact that native bees are very much in peril. There's been great public education about the fact that honeybees need our help to survive, but little has been talked about so far about the role native bees play in pollination."
According the Xerces Society the economic value of native pollinators to agriculture is about 3-billion dollars per year in the U.S.
Cornucopia Restaurant in Eugene is hosting a bee celebration all day Saturday, August 15th.
11 AM -12:30 PM in Eugene’s Charnel Mulligan Park (block away from Cornucopia @ 17th and Charnelton): Brian Dykstra, bee expert will share fun bee facts and things you can do to help protect bees!
More info at www.beyondtoxics.org
