Alert : Support Pollinator Habitat on UH Campuses
PC: Tumblr
Sample Testimony
Aloha,
Hawaii’s native pollinators are facing the threat of extinction. Decreasing populations of native pollinators have cascading impacts on Hawaii’s environment and biological diversity. While non-native pollinators are important, native species of essential pollinators- like the Nalo Meli Maoli (Yellow-faced Bees)- are able to cross-fertilize better with native plants that are facing similar threats of extinction. Nalo Meli Maoli, as well as other native pollinators, have very close plant associations, and display strong morphological and behavioral adaptations to native plant species. The loss of these native pollinators therefore further endangers native plants and ecosystems that are already vulnerable, and in a dangerous cycle, the loss of native plant habitats further impacts native pollinator populations.
Preserving native ecosystems is crucial for the perpetuation of Hawaiian culture, as flora and fauna play important roles in ceremony, medicine, food, and other cultural practices.
State institutions must play a role in nurturing ecosystems that support both native plants and pollinators. The University of Hawaii is well positioned to create these ecosystems on its campuses.
This work is aligned with the University’s 2023-2029 Strategic Plan which highlights sustainability as a foundational principle and upholds the University system’s “responsibility to the ‘āina, to steward its natural resources, and to develop solutions to the complex challenges of sustainability, resilience, and climate change”.
Pollinators are also vital to our local food security. According to the Xerces Society, “pollinators, including bees, flies, beetles and moths, help in the production of nearly 75 percent of crops and roughly 80 percent of all flowering plants.”
Please support HB876 to assist the revitalization of native pollinators by requiring the University of Hawaiʻi to create native pollinator habitats on campuses across the University system.
Mahalo,
Your Name, Residence/Town
Hawaiʻi’s native pollinators are facing the threat of extinction. Decreasing populations of native pollinators have cascading impacts on Hawaiʻi’s environment and biological diversity.
Please take a moment to submit testimony in support of HB876 to help revitalize our native pollinators.
Pollinators are also vital to our local food security. According to the Xerces Society, “pollinators, including bees, flies, beetles and moths, help in the production of nearly 75 percent of crops and roughly 80 percent of all flowering plants.”
HB876 - Native Pollinator Habitat on UH Campuses
Requires the University of Hawaiʻi to develop native pollinator habitats to be deployed on all campuses in the University system.
HB876 will be heard before the House Committee on Water and Land on Tuesday, February 7, 2023 at 9:30am in Conference Room 430 and via zoom.
