People for Environmental Protection, or PEP, is aiming to save the bees by building a pollination garden at St. Paul Academy and Summit School. A pollination garden is planted with a variety of flowers that provide nectar and pollen for certain species. In the case of the SPA garden, the plants will be aimed at bees.

“In the last few years there has been a drop in the Bee population along with other pollinator species and we are hoping to provide a safe haven for them,” freshman Sonja Henze said.

Although it may seem like a falling bee population will not have a major effect, that is not the case. Bees are a vital part of the ecosystem and pollinate crops that account for 1/3 of the worlds food. To hand pollinate is extremely time consuming and costly. According to Greenpeace, the world saves $288 billion because the bees pollinate and hand pollination can be avoided.

“We hope to put [the pollination garden] in next spring, because that is the best time for the plants we hope to have. It is going to go over by the middle school, in between the side walk and the building,” Henze said.  “There is a spot of land by the electrical box that maintenance said would work.”

The pollination garden will be a step in the right direction, creating a nice habitat for bees and informing the community about the declining bee population.

“We believe the community will benefit in many ways from the pollination garden. It will help create awareness for people in our school and our neighbors about the issues we are currently facing around pollinators. The garden can serve as a teaching tool for students to learn from and help our school become more Eco friendly,” Henze said.