On January 10, the USFWS announced that the rusty-patched bumblebee had become the first bee species in the continental U.S. to be declared endangered after suffering a dramatic population decline, according to Digital Journal. And on October 1, 2016, the USFWS added seven species of Hawaii’s yellow-faced bees to the endangered list.
And as we know, after becoming president on January 20, Trump’s first move was to sign an executive order freezing all federal regulations for a period of 60 days to review “questions of fact, law, and policy they raise,” reports Gizmodo. A ruling on the matter of the lowly bumblebee’s status will have to wait until March 21.
While the Associated Press is saying that this is just a freeze and the protections may be added on March 21, environmentalists are still worried, especially because of Trump’s negative views on protecting the environment.
“We don’t think this is just a freeze,” Rebecca Riley, senior attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council, told Popular Science. “It’s an opportunity for the administration to revoke the rule entirely.”
The rusty-patched bumblebee is only one of a huge number of pollinators across the country facing extinction and the future doesn’t look good for them or for that matter, our food supply. These insects pollinate our blueberries, tomatoes, apples, peppers and more, and is valued at between $9 and $15 million a year.
The Endangered Species Act (ESA) was passed into law in 1973, mandating the government “protect and recover imperiled species and the ecosystems upon which they depend.” To date, 28 species have been “delisted” because they have recovered their populations, including the bald eagle.
