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<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><b><span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; color: rgb(230, 120, 3);">American
Farmers Create 41,000 Acres of Wildflower Habitat for Bees in 2010</span></b></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; color: rgb(51, 51, 0);">For Immediate Release: November 29th, 2010</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; color: rgb(230, 120, 3);"></span></b></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; color: black;">Contacts:<br>
<strong><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Kathy Kellison</span></strong>,
Executive Director, Partners for Sustainable Pollination, <a href="mailto:k.kellison@earthlink.net" target="_blank" shape="rect">k.kellison@earthlink.net</a>,
(707) 321-4711<br>
<br>
<strong><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Eric Mader</span></strong>,
Assistant Pollinator Program Director, The Xerces Society for
Invertebrate Conservation, <a href="mailto:eric@xerces.org" target="_blank" shape="rect">eric@xerces.org</a>, (503) 232-6639</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; color: black;">PORTLAND, Ore. - Responding to the ongoing decline of honey
bees and wild pollinators, in 2010 American farmers enrolled in a USDA
program to plant 41,231 acres of wildflowers.<br>
<br>
This effort, a nationwide attempt to increase the availability of pollen
and nectar for beleaguered pollinators, is made possible by new financial
incentives established as part of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP).
Nearly 4,600 farmers signed up for the incentives, which were offered for
the first time in the program's 25 year history.<br>
<br>
CRP is the largest private landowner conservation program in the United
States, with up to 32 million acres eligible for enrollment in long-term
conservation easements. In exchange for annual rental payments,
participating farmers agree to take highly erodible land out of crop
production, and establish permanent vegetation to protect topsoil and
provide wildlife cover. The program, which is administered by the USDA's
Farm Service Agency (FSA), typically contracts with farmers to maintain
these easements for 10 to 15 years.<br>
<br>
"The new wildflower planting incentives represent a monumental shift
in CRP," said Eric Mader, Assistant Pollinator Program Director at
The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, a pollinator advocacy
group based in Portland, Ore. "In the past, most CRP land was
maintained in non-native grasses, which had limited value to wildlife.
This change will help pollinators, provide shelter for pheasants,
songbirds and endangered butterflies, and can provide global
environmental benefits by encouraging deep-rooted prairie wildflowers
that help sequester carbon."<br>
<br>
Under the current CRP application process, landowners who want to
participate are ranked against one another to prioritize enrollments that
offer the most conservation benefits. By agreeing to plant at least 10%
of the CRP acres in native wildflowers, farmers receive a higher score
and are more likely to be selected as program participants.<br>
<br>
As a result, nearly 20,000 acres of new CRP pollinator habitat is being
established in Colorado alone, with total commitments in Idaho, Iowa,
Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota and Washington ranging
from 1,200 to 3,200 acres.<br>
<br>
This added emphasis on pollinators makes CRP the largest bee conservation
effort in North America. While diseases and pesticide use have been
implicated in the decline of honey bees, native bumble bees and
butterflies, experts also point to habitat loss as a major factor.
Organizations like the Xerces Society and the California-based Partners
for Sustainable Pollination (PFSP) hope that CRP can help reverse that
trend.<br>
<br>
To meet a similar anticipated demand for new pollinator habitat
enrollments in 2011, the USDA is consulting with groups like the Xerces
Society, PFSP and the University of Minnesota's Dr. Marla Spivak, a honey
bee expert and 2010 MacArthur Fellow, to identify the best wildflowers
and planting methods for each region of the country.<br>
<br>
The annual value of bee pollinated crops in the U.S. is estimated at $20
billion, and includes alfalfa, sunflower, canola, apples, almonds,
citrus, berries, pumpkins and other economically important commodities.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; color: rgb(230, 120, 3);">ABOUT THE XERCES SOCIETY</span></b></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; color: black;">The Xerces Society 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 worldwide, harnessing the knowledge of scientists and the
enthusiasm of citizens to implement conservation programs. To learn more
about our work or to donate to the Society, please visit <a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=tnjebhdab&et=1103997921612&s=4347&e=0016YuG8qGZiVUSk6qudYax_hF7ioOo7js7-Zy2C0tsiH1qr7GjBfHj4rlm9vwZwB0EBxcx3M19NscWTByQ3HNj7bBmIqeu8JXinQQjslmJQAA=" target="_blank" shape="rect"><span style="color: black;">www.xerces.org</span></a>.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; color: black;">By: Katharina Ullmann</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><span style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">The
Xerces Society • 4828 SE Hawthorne Blvd. Portland, Oregon 97215 USA • tel
503.232.6639<br>
<a href="mailto:info@xerces.org" target="_blank" shape="rect"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">info@xerces.org</span></a> • <a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=tnjebhdab&et=1103997921612&s=4347&e=0016YuG8qGZiVUSk6qudYax_hF7ioOo7js7-Zy2C0tsiH1qr7GjBfHj4rlm9vwZwB0EBxcx3M19NscWTByQ3HNj7bBmIqeu8JXinQQjslmJQAA=" target="_blank" shape="rect"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">www.xerces.org</span></a><br>
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