PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 20, 2022
My plot is overflowing with cabbages, spinach and cilantro up at the community gardens overlooking Portland, but there is no buzzing; no butterflies, no moths, no dragonflies, no bumblebees, no other bees or wasps, not even mosquitos. A massive international research effort proved declining populations in as much as 80% of insect species worldwide. This study identified four main factors in the decline of insects. Number one was habitat loss combined with new intensive farming methods allowing fields to be drenched in the herbicide glyphosate, exterminating all the host and nectar plants (“weeds”) needed by insects. Pollinator Week starts today, June 20 (pollinator.org). ~ Grace Nichols, Portland