Merkley, Wyden Announce Monarch Butterfly, Pollinator Funding

Last week, senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley announced a total of $758,810 in funding for two projects that will work to increase and improve pollinator habitats in Oregon.  The funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Monarch Butterfly and Pollinators Conservation Fund is part of $5.2 million in nationwide grants.

“Monarch butterflies are crucial pollinators on the West Coast, where much of America’s food is grown,” Wyden said. “This investment will support a vital component of our food ecosystem while also helping to preserve a species that symbolizes the rebirth and resiliency Oregonians are known for.”

“We’ve all experienced the moment of excitement when we spot a monarch butterfly fluttering through the air. If we allow the iconic western monarch butterfly to go extinct, we will not only lose this beautiful species, but a critical pollinator forever,” said Merkley. “Groups and communities across Oregon and across the West are stepping up to find sustainable solutions, from planting pollinator-friendly gardens in their yards to providing resources and habitats for them. This funding, which includes the federal funding I secured, will further fuel our collective efforts to save this species before time runs out.” 

How will the funds be used in Oregon?  Here is how those funds are earmarked:

• $458,810 for the Pollinator Partnership to support Partner Biologists in planning climate-smart voluntary conservation efforts for private working lands that benefit the monarch butterfly and other pollinators across Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. The project is expected to restore 100 acres, improve 500 acres, develop 80 conservation plans, reach 720 people, and host 30 events. 
• $300,000 for The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation to sustain their Monarch and Pollinator Habitat Kit Program that supports monarch butterfly and other pollinators on public and private lands in Oregon’s Willamette Valley and Klamath-Siskiyou ecoregions, eastern Washington, and California. The project is expected to improve 500 acres, reach 200 people, and host 16 events. 

Both senators say these efforts are critically needed, as the western monarch population has declined over 95%, from as many as 10 million in the 1980s, to just over 233,000 counted last winter.  These low populations are dangerous for humans, as 75% of the world’s flowering plants, and about 35% of the world’s food crops depend on animal pollinators to reproduce.

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