The city of Newport News and the Newport News Green Foundation announced that Newport News is now a Bee City USA affiliate. The announcement event took place at the Green Foundation’s Chatham Trail property in Newport News where the city’s first Bee City USA sign was installed and unveiled yesterday, Oct. 18.
Bee City USA’s mission is to galvanize communities to sustain pollinators by providing them with healthy habitats, rich in a variety of native plants and free of insecticides. While bees are the most important pollinator, butterflies, moths, beetles, flies, wasps, bats, and hummingbirds also contribute to pollination. According to Bee City USA, there have been significant declines in native pollinator population sizes and ranges globally as a result of habitat loss, the use of harmful pesticides, and climate change. As a Bee City USA affiliate, Newport News is working to become more “P-C” (pollinator conscious) and expanding on our pollinator-friendly community, while encouraging residents to follow the four simple steps to bring back pollinators – grow pollinator-friendly flowers, provide nest sites, avoid pesticides, and spread the word.
Two local avid gardeners and supporters of bees and other pollinators, Rebecca Fass and Dale Banning, brought the idea of becoming an affiliate of Bee City USA to the city’s attention. The two will now be serving as co-chairs of the Newport News Bee City Committee, which will focus on habitat development, education, and information. The Newport News Green Foundation, whose mission is to preserve, transform and promote green spaces throughout the city, designated the perfect pollinator spot at Chatham Trail as the site of the first of many Bee City USA signs that will be posted throughout the city.
For more information about Bee City USA, visit https://www.beecityusa.org/. For information about four simple ways to help pollinators, visit https://xerces.org/bringbackthepollinators/.
