Pingree Highlights Decline of Monarch Butterfly Population in Congressional Hearing

Press Release

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree took advantage of a Congressional hearing yesterday to highlight the sharp decline in the Monarch butterfly population. In a House Appropriations Committee hearing, Pingree told U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Commissioner Gina McCarthy that the number of butterflies migrating from North America to Mexico has dropped precipitously.

"In 1996 enough Monarchs made the journey from northern states down to Mexico to cover 50 acres of pine forest. Today it's just about a football field," Pingree said. "If you plot that on a chart, you'll see that increased use of Roundup charts about the same way as the decrease in Monarchs."

Roundup, the trade name of the herbicide glyphosate, is sprayed on crops that are genetically modified to resist the chemical. Scientists say the increased use of these Roundup-resistant crops and increased use of glyphosate is correlated with a massive loss of milkweed, the main food for Monarch butterflies.

According to Pingree, in 1996 about 1 billion butterflies migrated to Mexico. Ten years later that number had dropped to 300 million and last year just 30 million migrated totheir traditional spot in Mexico.

In the hearing yesterday, Pingree urged the head of the EPA to focus more on understanding the effects of pesticides on the environment.

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