[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 104 (Thursday, June 20, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4185-S4186]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 747--RECOGNIZING THE IMPORTANCE OF POLLINATORS TO 
 ECOSYSTEM HEALTH AND AGRICULTURE IN THE UNITED STATES BY DESIGNATING 
     JUNE 16 THROUGH JUNE 22, 2024, AS ``NATIONAL POLLINATOR WEEK''

  Mr. MERKLEY (for himself and Mr. Braun) submitted the following 
resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 747

       Whereas pollinators like native bees, butterflies and 
     moths, birds and bats, and beetles play a vital role in 
     agriculture throughout the United States and help to produce 
     a healthy and affordable food supply while also maintaining 
     the health and diversity of ecosystems;
       Whereas various native pollinator species help to reproduce 
     at least 80 percent of flowering plants, making pollinators 
     indispensable for sustaining the biodiversity of natural 
     ecosystems;
       Whereas enhancing native pollinator and honey bee 
     populations can result in improved and essential pollination 
     services for neighboring land, including agriculture and 
     wildlife ecosystems;
       Whereas it is in the strong economic interest of 
     agricultural producers and consumers in the United States to 
     help ensure healthy, sustainable, pollinator populations, as 
     pollinators add more than $18,000,000,000 in revenue to crop 
     production in the United States each year, including more 
     than 100 crops that either need or benefit from native 
     pollinators;
       Whereas pollinators also contribute to clean air and water, 
     stable soil, and a diversity of wildlife needed for healthy 
     and productive natural ecosystems;
       Whereas more than \1/4\ of North American bumble bees are 
     facing risk of extinction, while iconic species like the 
     North American migratory monarch butterfly and the American 
     bumble bee have declined by 85 percent and 90 percent 
     respectively due to dwindling habitat, disease, and other 
     threats;
       Whereas the Western monarch butterfly population has 
     significantly declined from nearly 10,000,000 butterflies in 
     the 1980s to fewer than 2,000 butterflies in 2020, and while 
     numbers have made modest gains in the last

[[Page S4186]]

     few years, the population of this iconic species remains 
     perilously small and vulnerable to yearly fluctuations;
       Whereas nearly 70 native pollinator species are listed by 
     the Federal Government as threatened or endangered, with the 
     rusty patched bumble bee, the Powesheik skipperling, and the 
     Dakota skipper listed within the past decade; and
       Whereas declines in the health and population of native 
     pollinators potentially pose a substantial threat to global 
     food webs, ecological diversity, and human health: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) expresses support for the designation June 16 through 
     June 22, 2024, as ``National Pollinator Week'';
       (2) acknowledges the significance that all types of 
     pollinators play in sustaining agriculture, promoting 
     biodiversity, and maintaining the overall health of natural 
     ecosystems;
       (3) encourages the people of the United States to observe 
     Pollinator Week with appropriate ceremonies and conservation 
     and educational activities; and
       (4) intends to--
       (A) continue working to conserve native pollinator species 
     and their various habitats; and
       (B) work to improve the overall understanding of the 
     importance of native pollinators.

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