The Hawaiian islands are seriously threatened by invasive little fire ants, which can inflict painful stings on people, pets and livestock, as well as the destructive coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB), which destroys coconut and oil palms. However, the Hawaii Department of Agriculture (HDOA) and our state’s Legislature have fallen short in supporting adequate campaigns against these invaders.
Aggressive action is required to prevent the spread of these insidious pests. Both pests have been found in nurseries and garden shops — more than 20 years ago in the case of little fire ants — but no action has been taken by HDOA throughout this period to prohibit sales of infested plants or plant material. The responsibility now falls to HDOA Director Sharon Hurd. What’s still missing is a quarantine process, so that when pests are discovered at a certain site, no potentially infested products will move from there.
Administrative rules are quickly required to enable expanded restrictions on nursery sales, but rules that were drafted early this year were stalled at Hurd’s direction, awaiting a yet-to-be-scheduled public hearing. Noting that industry representatives had objected to tighter restrictions, Hurd said the rules would be revised further in 2024. That prompted a rash of complaints, rightly.
During a Nov. 22 state Senate Informational Hearing on Invasive Species, Hurd acknowledged the growing outcry, and said HDOA would move forward with new rules, returning to modifications later. But she also raised concerns about placing restrictions on nurseries without firm evidence that they harbored the invasive species. HDOA must find a way forward that is not overly obsequious to nurseries, because the potential harm is so great. The state could invest more resources into inspections to guard against infestations, for one.
An alarming rise in sightings of damaging coconut rhinoceros beetles should also spur action. CRBs have infested more areas of Oahu since they were first spotted in 2013. Neighbor islands in the state have been on guard against them, but less than a month ago, 17 larvae were spotted in Kihei, Maui, by an arborist cutting down coconut palm trees; this after a dead beetle was found in compost on Maui shipped from Oahu in the weeks after the Maui fires. CRBs were seen on Hawaii island on Oct. 11, and have also been spotted on Kauai this year. The beetle attacks and kills palms by boring into their crowns to feed, then creates a hazard as the palms may topple. It can also attack banana and papaya.
Coconut beetle sightings on Oahu can be reported at crbhawaii.org, but the beetles are so widespread now that calling a pest hotline is no longer advised as effective.
On Oct. 4, the HDOA established a new interim rule, valid for one year, to help keep CRBs from infesting new parts of the state. The interim rule restricts shipping palm plants over four feet tall or plant material that CRBs breed in, such as compost, wood chips, mulch and potting soil, from Oahu to any other part of the state. Violators can be charged with a misdemeanor and fined.
That is a welcome step, but the fight to contain CRBs should not end there, either on Oahu or neighbor islands.
Meanwhile, House Bill 1149, which would have funded state invasive pest control with $1.44 million over two years and also serves to leverage more federal assistance, passed through both legislative bodies last session but languished in conference committee in April.
There is simply no more time to waste, and no more excuses in failing to act on response efforts. In the face of the growing threats, the Legislature must appropriate ongoing funding to control these destructive pests, and demand effective action by the state’s administrative bodies.