Dear NRDC Activist,

What have you eaten today? Odds are, you can thank bees for making it possible, as one out of every three bites of food — including nuts and many vegetables and fruits — rely on bees and other vital pollinators.

But bee populations are plummeting drastically — and scientists largely blame the widespread overuse of toxic pesticides called "neonics".

If we lose our bees, we risk the future of our food supply, which could lead to rising food costs and reduced access to healthy foods that would hit low-income communities and communities of color hardest.

Soon, the EPA will complete a safety review of neonics that only happens once every 15 years. We need to raise a groundswell of public support urging the EPA to clamp down on these noxious chemicals and stop this existential threat to pollinators before it's too late. Will you join us in generating a massive outcry?

ADD YOUR VOICE NOW: Tell EPA Administrator Michael Regan to protect our pollinators and ban harmful uses of toxic, bee-killing neonic pesticides!

After you've sent your letter, I hope you'll consider making a tax-deductible gift to help power NRDC's work to protect pollinators and the planet in and out of court. Until May 25, every dollar you contribute will be MATCHED 5X, up to $100,000.

We know that these deadly chemicals are causing bee populations to decline. But even the EPA is aware that one of the most widely-used neonics — imidacloprid — likely harms more than 1,400 endangered and threatened species, from Karner blue butterflies to whooping cranes and even grizzly bears.

Plus, neonic residue ends up in our waterways and in our food, and there's growing evidence of the harm they cause to human health. Studies report a link between neonic exposure during pregnancy and an elevated risks for birth defects affecting the heart and brain, and other neurological conditions.

But the EPA has allowed Big Ag's skyrocketing use of neonics to go unchecked for years. We'll need to turn the pressure up on the EPA to keep them from continuing to drag their feet. Help us marshal a powerful public outcry that calls on the EPA to impose urgent bee-saving restrictions on neonic use.

We won't have this chance again until 2037. By then, our pollinators and the ecosystems they thrive in may be damaged past the point of no return. To keep our food system from going under alongside bee populations and to protect our environment and our health, we need to act NOW.

We can't wait 15 more years to act. Send your letter to the EPA now and demand an immediate end to deadly uses of neonics.

Thank you for acting on behalf of our pollinators, our communities, and our planet.

Sincerely,

Dan Raichel
Acting Director, Pollinator Initiative, NRDC