John,

Sometimes it seems like there's so much bad news about bees that it's almost impossible to keep up.

The endangered rusty-patched bumblebee population has declined by 86%.1 The American bumblebee has disappeared from eight states.2 And last summer, beekeepers reported the second deadliest year on record for bees.3

But wait! It's not all bad news. In fact, if you're looking for signs of hope, then this email is for you.

Ten states -- home to 1 in 4 Americans -- have now enacted restrictions on bee-killing pesticides. That's huge -- as recently as eight years ago, there weren't any.4 And our policy advocates have already identified bills proposed in California, Connecticut and Illinois to provide even more protection for these busy little pollinators.

With the 2024 state legislative sessions underway in state capitols around the country, we need to turn up the heat to save the bees. Will you make a donation to help support our state-by-state efforts to restrict the use of bee-killing pesticides?

One of the primary drivers of the global bee die-off is a class of pesticides called neonicotinoids (or neonics for short).

Neonics are 1,000 times more toxic to bees than DDT, and even sublethal doses cause a lot of damage. These neurotoxic pesticides attack bees' brains, making it harder for them to sleep, forage, fly and even find their way home.5,6

While bees face other stressors, including habitat loss and climate change, phasing out bee-killing pesticides are a key step to recovery for the bee species that are speeding towards extinction.

Will you donate to help save the bees?

Environment America and our advocates in state capitals around the country have been on the leading edge of the fight to stop bee-killing pesticides -- and our work is delivering results.

California has already restricted the consumer sale of bee-killing pesticides, and now it's considering closing a loophole to regulate seeds coated with neonics. Connecticut is working to strengthen its existing policy to limit bee-killing pesticides. And in other states, including Illinois, we're shoring up support for brand new policies for the bees.

With new bills moving forward in state capitals around the country to further crack down on bee-killing pesticides, we are swarming state capitols to save the bees, while we also continue working to tackle plastic pollution, protect America's last wild places, and more.

Donate now to help support our state-by-state efforts to restrict the use of bee-killing pesticides.

Thank you,

Wendy Wendlandt
President

1. Zoe Statman-Weil, "Rusty-Patched Bumblebee (Bombus affinis)," U.S. Department of Agriculture, last accessed January 31, 2024.
2. Elizabeth Gamillo, "The American Bumblebee Has Nearly Vanished From Eight States," Smithsonian Magazine, October 6, 2021.
3. Seth Borenstein, "Nearly half of US honeybee colonies died last year. Struggling beekeepers stabilize population," Associated Press, June 22, 2023.
4. Wendy Wendlandt and Steve Blackledge, "What's being done to save the bees?," Environment America, October 10, 2023.
5. Stephen Leahy, "Insect 'apocalypse' in U.S. driven by 50x increase in toxic pesticides," National Geographic, August 6, 2019.
6. Michael C. Tackenberg, et al., "Neonicotinoids disrupt circadian rhythms and sleep in honey bees," Scientific Reports, October 21, 2020.

Your donation will be used to support all of our campaigns to protect the environment, from saving the bees and protecting public lands, to standing up for clean water and fighting climate change. None of our work would be possible without supporters like you.