City of Austin certified as official Bee City USA affiliate
AUSTIN, Texas - The Austin City Council has unanimously passed a resolution supporting the certification of Austin as an official Bee City USA affiliate Thursday.
Council members Leslie Pool (District 7) and Vanessa Fuentes (District 2) brought forth the resolution to amplify the work of Austin Parks & Recreation Department (PARD) staff and the community to protect Austin’s bees and other pollinators and enhance their natural environment.
The Bee City USA application was initiated over two years ago by a coalition of Parks staff and community experts to develop a work plan to meet the obligations of the Xerces Society’s certification program, says Pool's office.
The program goal for Austin is to protect and provide healthy native habitats to pollinators on public and private lands. Pollinators, including native bees and introduced honey bees are responsible for the reproduction of almost 90% of the world’s flowering plants, including many fruits, nuts, and vegetables.
PARD staff are joined in the certification effort by Pollinate Austin, a coalition with members that include Travis County Balcones Canyonlands Preserve, Texas Student PIRG, Bat Conservation International, Raise Design Studio, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Desert Door Texas Sotol, Wild Spirit Wild Places, and Me and the Bees Lemonade.
The passage of the resolution supporting the certification of Austin as an official Bee City kicks off a series of Spring 2022 community activities focused on habitat installations for bees and other pollinators.
On Saturday, March 5, Pollinate Austin will install bee and bat pollinator gardens at the Austin Nature & Science Center followed by an educational speaker at 1:30 p.m. to share with other community members how they can create pollinator habitats in their own yards.
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