Board Packet Page Number - 89

Interagency Pollinator Protection Team Memo

 Board Packet Page Number - 90

Date: 8/28/2020

To: Environmental Quality Board members

From: Rebeca Gutierrez-Moreno, Environmental Quality Board State Pollinator Coordinator

Update from the Interagency Pollinator Protection Team: 2020 Pollinator

Report & Civic Engagement Framework
Executive Order 19-28 directs the Environmental Quality Board to convene the Interagency Pollinator Protection
Team (IPPT) to “provide operational support, ensure interagency coordination, develop cross-agency policies
and programs, and report on progress toward statewide goals in a report to the EQB by December 1 of each
year.” In addition, the Executive Order 19-28 directs the EQB to develop a civic engagement framework
consistent with the vision for One Minnesota, to ensure public participation in pollinator policy and program
development, and to build cross-sector relationships and partnerships. The pollinator annual report and the civic
engagement framework will be presented for consideration and approval by the EQB in November 2020.
The 2020 State Agency Pollinator Report contains four main sections:

• Outcome: Healthy, diverse pollinator populations that sustain and enhance Minnesota’s environment,
economy, and quality of life
• Goal 1: Lands throughout Minnesota support Healthy, diverse, and abundant pollinator populations
• Goal 2: Minnesotans use pesticides judiciously and only when necessary, in order to reduce harm to
pollinators while retaining economic strength
• Goal 3: Minnesotans understand, value, and actively support pollinators

In the final report, each section will have a scorecard with indicators that inform on progress and opportunities
for action to advance each goal, and will highlight progress, identify new and ongoing challenges, and provide
recommendations for progress. Additionally, although not covered in this memo, each section will have callout
boxes highlighting important projects and programs that are positively influencing pollinator health in the state.
This document will be professionally designed with photos and graphics to illustrate each section.

In this memo, the IPPT presents a preliminary direction for the annual report, including draft scorecards and
topic areas for further development within each section. Additionally, the Civic Engagement Framework is
included for review. The IPPT seeks feedback from the EQB and members of the public on these draft materials.
 Board Packet Page Number - 91

2020 Pollinator Report: Draft scorecards and preliminary content summary

Outcome: Healthy, diverse pollinator populations that sustain and enhance Minnesota’s
environment, economy, and quality of life.
Several stressors threaten wild and managed pollinators in Minnesota: loss of flowering habitat, exposure to
pesticides, changing climate, and parasites and diseases. These stressors interact with each other, amplifying
their negative impacts in different pollinator populations.

Scorecard

Group Indicator Status Trend Summary

Rusty patched Poor ? The status of this federally endangered

bumble bee species in Minnesota remains poor. While
the USFWS reports more sightings, this is
due to more people participating in the
surveys. The USFWS was unable to
determine a trend from the data.

Monarch Fair Getting worse The 2019-2020 overwintering monarch

butterfly population in Mexico was about half the
Imperiled
size of the 2018-2019 population. The
Pollinators
population remains at-risk and small
relative to 20 years ago.

Dakota skipper Poor About the Minnesota Zoo’s breeding program has had
same initial success with the reintroduction of
this endangered butterfly, reporting new
individuals at the 2019 reintroduction site
in 2020. Yet it is too early to determine if
the species will establish in this site.

Park surveys in the Twin Cities Metro from

Common Okay ?
2008-2019 suggest the abundances of the
bumble bees
five most common bumble bee species in
Common the greater metro have remained relatively
Pollinators constant over the past decade. It is
uncertain how well these patterns describe
the status of these species statewide, or
across different habitat or land use types.

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Group Indicator Status Trend Summary

Park surveys in the Twin Cities Metro from

Bumble bee Okay ?
2011-2019 suggest the diversity of bumble
communities
bees has remained relatively constant over
the past decade. It is uncertain whether
these patterns describe the status of these
species statewide, or across different
habitat or land use types.
Managed European Fair About the Honey produced per colony, a measure of
Pollinators honey bee same honey bee health, remains steady, but is
still ~20% lower than the previous decade.

Progress

• Recent investments in pollinator surveys and citizen science projects have begun to address the
pollinator information gap. Although these initial efforts will provide helpful data, further investments
and programs are needed to fully address this need.
• In 2019, the Minnesota Zoo reintroduced adult Dakota skippers, reared through their breeding program,
to an unoccupied prairie in western Minnesota. In 2020, wild adult Dakota skippers were found at the
reintroduction site, an encouraging step toward successful recovery of this once widespread prairie
butterfly.

Main challenges
• We have limited knowledge of the hundreds, if not thousands, of species of pollinators that likely call
Minnesota home.
• We have limited resources to understand Minnesota’s pollinators and the effectiveness of the actions
we are taking to conserve them.
• Some of Minnesota’s well-known imperiled pollinators continue to face challenges.

Recommendations
• Invest in long-term pollinator monitoring to better understand native pollinator population dynamics
and the factors causing their declines.
• Reach out to pollinator scientists to determine priority areas for research to address information gaps.

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Goal 1: Lands support diverse pollinators

Minnesota continues to make progress on establishing pollinator habitat, but more work is needed.

Scorecard

Group Indicator Status Trend Summary

Restoration on state- Okay Getting better The Department of Natural

managed protected Resources annually restores
lands habitat at a steady pace and is
looking for ways to increase the
number of flowering plants in
restorations and monitor the
quality of these habitats in the
Public Lands
long-term.

Restoration on state- Okay Getting better The Department of

managed highway Transportation continues to
rights-of-way increase use of native seed and
prescribed fire along state
managed road rights-of-way.

Restoration on state Good Getting better The restoration of pollinator

private land habitat through Conservation
easements Reserve Enhancement Program
and Reinvest in Minnesota
continues to slowly increase on
private lands.

Restoration on federal Fair About the same The number of acres enrolled in
private land the Conservation Reserve
easements Program (CRP) is similar to 2018
Private Lands
and 2019. The 2018 Farm Bill
provided only a modest increase
in this program over the next 5
years.

Restoration on urban Okay Getting better BWSR’s Lawns to Legumes pilot

and developed lands program assisted residential
landowners (including renters)
with establishing pollinator
habitat at their homes.

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Progress

• Most pollinator habitat we create is through state- and federally-administered programs tasked broadly
with conserving Minnesota’s wildlife and ecosystems that, either directly or indirectly, improve the
landscape for pollinators.
• Minnesota also continues to lead the way in exploring novel ways to restore and integrate pollinator
habitats throughout the state, such as the Lawns to Legumes grant program and Habitat-Friendly Solar
initiative.

Main challenges

• Limited capacity for ongoing habitat management.

• There are still large knowledge gaps in understanding habitat requirements for the diversity of
pollinators in the state.

Preliminary recommendations

• Support efforts to understand the status (quantity and quality) of pollinator habitat in Minnesota.
• Develop solutions to increase availability of native seeds for restoration. For example, spring-flowering
species, for which seed production has historically been difficult.
• Grow workforce for maintaining and adaptively managing pollinator habitat.
• Support for pollinator adaptive management across state, federal, and private lands throughout
Minnesota. Adaptive management for pollinators would measure habitat quality for pollinators over
time, and adjust management practices to improve status and trends.
• Seek ways to accelerate progress in pollinator habitat creation. For example, by requiring pollinator
habitat on any solar developments (meeting Habitat Friendly Solar guidelines) to accelerate the increase
in pollinator habitat on the State’s Closed Landfill Program sites.

Goal 2: Minnesotans use pesticides judiciously and only when necessary, to avoid harm to
pollinators while retaining economic strength
Pesticides can harm pollinator populations. While not the only tool for pest control, pesticides are important
tools for homeowners, growers, land managers, public health officials, and beekeepers to produce food, protect
human health, and to control invasive species. Using an integrated pest management (IPM) approach can
reduce the exposure of bees and other pollinators to insecticides and fungicides.

State agencies are promoting IPM to protect pollinators. Example activities include the promotion of pollinator-
related BMPs and FieldWatch (i.e., DriftWatch, FieldCheck, and BeeCheck).

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Scorecard

Measure Status Trend Summary statement

Development of IPM has remained

About the consistent over the past 4 years. However,
Okay
same more funding is needed to develop IPM
IPM Development strategies for different pests and locations.

Promotion of IPM has increased for a third

year in a row. Innovative education and
Okay Getting better
outreach ideas have been implemented in
IPM Promotion order to continue to improve this metric.

Reports from state and national agencies

vary; additional data is needed in order to
IPM Implementation and Adoption ? ?
fully understand the level of adoption
throughout the state.

Progress
• The Office of the Legislative Auditor (OLA) published a report which evaluated Pesticide Regulation and
found that “[i]n response to its own review of neonicotinoids, MDA has taken a number of actions to
mitigate the impact of pesticides on pollinators.” For example, the development of Minnesota-specific
pollinator stewardship material, neonicotinoid-specific BMPs, the proposal of a Treated Seed program to
the MN legislature, review of top-selling neonicotinoid pesticide products, and increased pesticide use/
post-use inspections.
• In addition, the OLA recommended the Legislature revisit the recommendations made in recent state
reviews of pollinator health.
• The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) and the University of Minnesota Extension have used a
forward-thinking approach for promoting IPM through education and outreach.
• MDA created new materials and presentations on pesticide drift prevention and pollinator protection to
pesticide applicators.

Main challenges
• Integrated pest management is a complex approach to pest management.
• There are gaps in knowledge about IPM strategies for different pests, and locations (e.g. farms, gardens,
and schools). Often, the only solution available is chemical control.
• Adoption and implementation of IPM may involve more time and/or effort compared to pesticide
applications alone, but should save money when managing pests.
• Data that accurately depicts the level of adoption and implementation of IPM is not available for each
crop or use location on a consistent basis across years.
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Recommendations
• Encourage agricultural, residential, and other pest management industries to commit to using and
promoting IPM in the state.
• Increase funding for IPM development, promotion, and implementation through state funding and
public-private partnerships.
• Continue use of IPM in all state agency pest management efforts.

Goal 3: Minnesotans understand, value, and support pollinators

[This goal will include a list of pollinator initiatives and programs that are doing great work to promote
pollinators in the state.]

Scorecard

Measure Status Trend Summary

Pollinator Data Data [Summary to be completed upon

resolutions expected expected receipt of data]
before before
Total Number of Resolutions
release release
Oct. 2018: 38

Oct. 2019: 44

Oct. 2020: ? (will be available at the end

of Sept. 2020)

Community Okay Getting better The number of participants in the

Science Bumble Bee Watch increased to 147 in
2019. This is the highest participation
registered since 2016.

The IPPT is exploring additional

community science programs that
reflect participation more broadly.

Pollinator ? ? Number of new pledges will be

Pledges available in September.

Progress
• Minnesotans continue to be interested in pollinators and finding new ways to help them. Due to COVID-
19 pandemic mitigation strategies, several events that promote pollinators statewide were cancelled.
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However, other events were held remotely, using different video communication platforms and opening
participation to the public. In this way, Minnesotans were able to access webinars, workshops, and
conferences regardless of their location.
• Lawns to Legumes has captured the attention of MN residents to essentially “Bee the Change” for
declining pollinator populations. Over 33,000 residents have accessed the program’s website. Over 126
articles have been published about the program including a feature in O, The Oprah Magazine. The pilot
program has established strong partnerships with over 50 partners involved. Around 2,000 residents are
receiving support and around 100 dedicated coaches were trained around the state to provide one-on-
one assistance to new gardeners.
• The IPPT is working on a civic engagement process that will provide a framework for engaging
Minnesotans in pollinator protection programs and policies.

Main challenges
• Adapting to a “new reality” with social distancing and remote communications made engagement and
public participation challenging.
• Reaching new communities not already engaged with state agencies on pollinator efforts.

Recommendations
• Develop new strategies to increase public participation with COVID-19 safety in mind.
• Help promote initiatives and programs, such as the pollinator pledges and resolutions, as well as
community science activities, to increase public participation throughout the state.
• Explore creative and innovative ways to promote pollinator protection and conservation practices within
urban and suburban communities.

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Civic Engagement Process Framework

Background
Executive Order 19-28 directs the EQB to develop a civic engagement framework. This framework needs to be
consistent with the vision for One Minnesota, ensure public participation in pollinator policy and program
development, and build cross-sector relationships and partnerships.
EQB understands civic engagement as “the intentional effort of government to facilitate meaningful dialogue
with all members of the public in its work and the development of policy. Meaningful engagement means that
relationships and conversations are reciprocal, authentic, and intentional to create opportunities for all
communities to participate in the process.”

Project Scope

Civic engagement inventory

The IPPT identified three focus areas for civic engagement work in pollinator protection in Minnesota: imperiled
pollinators, pesticides, and diversity and inclusion. Additionally, IPPT member agencies conducted an inventory
of their current and past engagement programs related to pollinators. The main purpose of the inventory was to
identify individuals and organizations that are involved in pollinator work, which also helped identify gaps and
opportunities for meaningful engagement.

SWOT Analysis
Based on the inventory results, an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) was
conducted. This analysis was used to think strategically about IPPT’s engagement goals, taking advantage of the
existing resources and identifying areas of growth and change. This was also helpful to identify key strategies to
build trust and relationships around pollinator work and create an action plan with short, medium, and long-
term actions.

Goals
Goal 1. Engagement in the production and distribution of the annual report.
During the production of the annual pollinator report, the IPPT will seek to collaborate with external individuals
and organizations that are working on various pollinator-related subjects. This will contribute to building a
shared public understanding of the status of imperiled and managed pollinators, as well as the related activities
and initiatives that are ongoing in the state.
Goal 2. Building trust, cross-sector relationships, and partnerships.
This process will seek to reach out to key cross-sector individuals and organizations to build relationships and
partnerships. This will allow the IPPT learn about pollinator work by individual and private organizations, invite
input from the public, and establish collaborations on pollinator protection initiatives.

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Action plan
Short-term actions for Goal 1: Engagement in the production of the annual report.
• Identify and reach out to subject matter experts to consult during the development of the annual
indicators and metrics.
• Develop a communication plan to update collaborators on the outcome of their contribution.
• Invite collaborators as subject matter experts to participate in EQB meetings, where the report will be
discussed and approved by the Board, and where interested members of the public will provide
comments and feedback.
• Once the report is finalized and published, send a copy to collaborators with a letter of appreciation
recognizing their participation and contribution to pollinator health in Minnesota.
Short-term actions for Goal 2: Building trust, cross-sector relationships, and partnerships.
• The IPPT recognizes that diversity and inclusion is of paramount importance to achieve a civic
engagement process consistent with the vision for One Minnesota. Therefore, strategies will be focused
on making pollinator programs and policies more inclusive and accessible to all Minnesotans, and to
bring voices to the table that have not participated before.
• The IPPT has identified key individuals and organizations to engage in the pollinator conversation. EQB’s
pollinator coordinator led initial communications. The objective is to establish two-way conversations
that can lead to building trust and potentially new relationships and collaborations.
• The IPPT is currently evaluating these first steps, and will update this framework considering both public
comments and EQB’s feedback.

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