Polis makes a pitch to protect Colorado’s native pollinators

As vivid groups of butterflies flitted above his head Wednesday, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis produced a plan the state’s scientists and wildlife officials hope will head off an “insect apocalypse.”

The 308-page Colorado Native Pollinating Insects Health Study is the first-of-its-kind probe into pollinator health in Colorado. The study was authorized under SB22-199, sponsored by state senators Sonya Jaquez Lewis and Kevin Priola, and representatives Cathy Kipp and Meg Froelich.

The study gauges the health of Colorado’s native pollinators and makes recommendations on how to protect native pollinators in Colorado, Polis told a crowd at the Butterfly Pavilion in Westminster on Jan. 3. 

“This is a landmark event,” Polis said. “This will help us with a path forward to preserving the state’s pollinators.”

Colorado is home to various native insects and bats who pollinate the state’s farms and ranches, flowering plants and the state’s ecosystem, Polis said. Pollinators are also key to the state’s economy.

“From Crested Butte’s beautiful spring meadows to Palisade peaches and Rocky Ford melons, Colorado’s pollinators sustain our flora and enable many foundational industries in every corner of the state,” Polis said in a news release. “As our climate changes, we must safeguard the pollinators that generate and regenerate the Colorful Colorado we love.”

Colorado is home to over 1,000 species of bees – nearly 30% of North America’s and about 5% of the world’s bee species – and nearly 300 species of butterflies. That represents over 40% of the diversity of butterflies in North America north of Mexico, some of which are already listed under the federal Endangered Species Act, according to the news release. 

Many pollinators – including bees – are facing worldwide extinction from loss of habitat and from the harmful use of pesticides, Richard Reading, vice president of science and preservation at the Butterfly Pavilion.

“So much of our food comes from pollinators and I don’t think many people know the implications,” Reading said. 

After years of ignoring the problem, some work is being done to preserve pollinators, he said. The European Union has banned some pesticides that wipe out bees and other key insects.

“There is real effort to apply pesticides more precisely so that whole groups of helpful insects aren’t killed,” Reading said.

Pollinator districts are also emerging to allow the insects to thrive in pesticide-free zones, Reading said.

“There is work going across the world …to restore their habitats,” he said. “If nothing is done, all pollinators will die off in a few generations.

“It will simply be an insect apocalypse,” Reading said.

The state already promotes policies that benefit native pollinating insects including enhancing pollinator-friendly native plantings along I-76 following its designation as a Colorado Pollinator Highway by the Colorado Department of Transportation, according to the news release.

Areas of immediate action and priorities highlighted by the Pollinator Report, according to the news release, include:

• Priority 1: Protect imperiled native pollinating insects.
• Priority 2: Protect, restore and connect pollinator habitats.
• Priority 3: Mitigate environmental changes that negatively impact pollinators and their habitats.
• Priority 4: Reduce the risks from pesticides to pollinating insects.
• Priority 5: Monitor and support native and manage pollinator health.

Polis’s annual budget includes $100,000 to support education and incentives to encourage the use of pesticide alternatives in agriculture production and residential or commercial landscaping, according to the news release.

Colorado’s First Gentleman Marlon Reis, who also serves as the honorary chair of the Butterfly Pavilion’s Board of Directors, said the pollinator report will work as a guide as the state pursues pro-pollinator policies.

“We haven’t always seen how linked we all are,” Reis said. “This gives us a roadmap to make things better.”