Crop Herbicides Play A Role In Shrinking Monarch Population

(AP) — A butterfly being considered for federal protection is emblematic of the plight that pollinating insects face in part because farmers, enticed by ethanol mandates, are growing more herbicide-resistant crops, which has stripped millions of acres of crucial plant habitat. Herbicide makers say they're committed to helping the black-and-orange insects, whose numbers have plummeted by more than 90 percent in the past two decades. [...] environmentalists seeking protection for monarchs under the Endangered Species Act said restoring milkweed habitat would help other pollinating insects, too, such as honey bees, whose numbers of managed colonies have dropped by more than 4 million beehives since 1947. Sarah Stokes Alexander, who oversees the center's policy programs, says it's planning a meeting this spring with food companies, grain buyers, the herbicide industry, farming organizations, federal agencies, conservationists and university researchers. "The idea is to better engage the agriculture community in the rural areas of the Midwest in monarch conservation and recovery," she said, adding that one goal is to discuss the possibility of a collaborative conservation plan to be implemented at the national and state level. The Natural Resources Defense Council and Center for Food Safety's legal action raises concerns the herbicide could harm the monarch and cause broader environmental damage.

BING NEWS:
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    Crop plants absorb little of the chemical. Selective herbicides are biodegradable and do not cause harm to the soil. Systemic herbicide Systemic herbicides enter the weeds vascular system.
    06/12/2023 - 4:02 pm | View Link
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