In the 2012 President's Budget Request, the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) is terminated. As a result, all resources, databases, tools, and applications within this web site will be removed on January 15, 2012. For more information, please refer to the NBII Program Termination page.
Syrphid or flower flies [Photo: David Cappaert, Michigan State University, Bugwood.org]
Currently, intense agricultural practices used in conventional agriculture are known to have several negative environmental impacts including soil erosion and degredation, water quality implications, as well as a loss of biodiversity, which directly affects pollinators. Populations of pollinators, including bees, butterflies, birds, and other animals, are declining worldwide. Many important crops produced for food, fiber, and fuel could not exist without pollinators, therefore they are vital to agriculture. It has been noted that rotational diversity as well as the inclusion of unmanaged habitat in agricultural land can better support pollinating insects and animals.
Pollinators: Imperative for Crop Biofuel Production
Insect pollination [Photo: U.S. Department of Agriculture]
Pollinators have exceptional value to the agricultural community, and also to biofuel production. Many oilseed crops such as rapeseed
(Brassica napus)
and canola
(Brassica campestris)
that are used to produce biodiesel require pollination by animals. When there is a shift in land cover and land use as can be expected with the cultivation of land for biofuel crops, there can be a decline or change in native pollinator populations. As many biodiesel sources depend on pollinators, pollinator conservation strategies may be in the best interest of biomass crop producers.
Pollinators
Butterfly pollinators [Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]
Pollinators, including birds, bats, and insects, are essential to the reproduction of hundreds of thousands of the world's flowering plants. They are of special importance to agriculture, since most of the foods that we eat, the plant materials that we and other organisms use, and some of the fuel that we power our modern lives with would not exist without the work of pollinators. Certain forms of renewable energy have been known to affect pollinators:
Biofuel production can affect pollinating insects and birds by altering land cover and native ecosystems.
Solar energy development can cause injury or death to pollinators that fly into a concentrated beam of sunlight.
Wind energy development can be detrimental to pollinator populations, especially migratory birds and bats, because of collisions with turbines that result in mortality and injury.
Bird and Bat Mortality
Bird near Big Horn Wind Farm, Wyoming. [Image: NREL Image Library]
Wind energy has many benefits as a clean, renewable energy source, but it is also associated with several environmental impacts. One of these impacts is bird and bat mortality from wind turbine collisions, especially a concern in areas with sensitive bird and bat species and high collision rates.
The total estimated annual avian collision mortality rate from wind turbines is low (0.01 - 0.02 %) when compared with fatality rates due to collisions with communication towers (1 - 2%) and with vehicles (15 - 30%) (Erickson et al., 2001 [PDF])]. However, these collisions are still a cause of concern, and recommended Wind Turbine Guidelines for assessing and minimizing impacts to wildlife, including collisions, are now available.
Bat collisions with wind turbines are also a potential negative environmental impact of wind energy, and can be high in some site specific locations.
Many birds and bats serve important ecological roles as pollinators. As wind energy development continues to grow, more research, monitoring, and planning will be needed to determine the best methods to reduce bird and bat mortality from wind turbine collisions.
Featured Pollinators Resource
Thanks to the wonderful work of bees, butterflies, birds, and other animal pollinators, the world's flowering plants are able to reproduce and bear fruit, providing many of the foods we eat, the plant materials we and other organisms use, and the beauty we see around us. Yet today, there is evidence indicating alarming pollinator population declines worldwide.
The NBII Pollinators Project coordinates efforts to address the need for information and technology to support monitoring, management, and conservation of pollinators and pollinator habitats.
The NBII Program is administered by the Biological Informatics Program of the U.S. Geological Survey
![Syrphid or flower flies [Photo: David Cappaert, Michigan State University, Bugwood.org]](https://cybercemetery.unt.edu/archive/nbii/20120111165816im_/http://www.nbii.gov/portal/server.pt/gateway/PTARGS_0_2_26933_1956_7168_43/http%3B/cbi-lap7.cbi.cr.usgs.gov%3B7097/publishedcontent/publish/ecological_topics/renewable_energy_project/agricultural_impact_on_pollinators/renew_conventional_agricultural_and_pollinators_highlight__narrow__1.jpg)
![Insect pollination [Photo: U.S. Department of Agriculture]](https://cybercemetery.unt.edu/archive/nbii/20120111165816im_/http://www.nbii.gov/portal/server.pt/gateway/PTARGS_0_2_26935_1956_7168_43/http%3B/cbi-lap7.cbi.cr.usgs.gov%3B7097/publishedcontent/publish/ecological_topics/renewable_energy_project/pollinators_imperative_for_crop_biofuel_production/renew_pollinators_imperative_for_crop_biofuel_production_highlight__narrow__1.jpg)
![Butterfly pollinators [Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]](https://cybercemetery.unt.edu/archive/nbii/20120111165816im_/http://www.nbii.gov/portal/server.pt/gateway/PTARGS_0_2_26788_1956_7168_43/http%3B/cbi-lap7.cbi.cr.usgs.gov%3B7097/publishedcontent/publish/ecological_topics/renewable_energy_project/pollinators/renew_pollinators_3.jpg)
