![]() ![]() The nonprofits pointed to a “series of correspondences” released by state Sen. “Alarmingly, proposed rules for business best practices and the quarantine and treatment of plants and other products with LFA and other pest infestations have been held up for eight months,” the alert continued. ![]() “Little fire ants, coconut rhinoceros beetles, the hala scale - these invasive pests and others could wreak havoc for our ecosystems and native species, cultural practices, agriculture and food security,” said the alert, “and even things like public health, tourism, and our overall economy, if they are allowed to proliferate across our islands.” The Conservation Council for Hawaii, along with the Sierra Club of Hawaii, on Thursday sent out an alert asking their members to provide testimony at the meeting today. ![]() “It was completely watered down,” said Christy Martin of the Coordinating Group on Alien Pest Species. The previous draft also made an effort to regulate emerging pests of concern, including the two-line spittlebug and hala scale, which affect agriculture. These appear to have been scrapped, with a focus instead on only preventing their interisland movement. This is of great concern for Oahu, with more than 30 active sites now identified from Kahuku down the entire Windward coast to Kahala.Īlso, the new draft offers no rules regulating the movement of infected plants and materials, including green waste and mulch, within an island. This new draft no longer addresses what environmentalists are most concerned about, with no rules to prevent nurseries from selling plants infected with invasive species such as little fire ants until they are treated to prevent further spread. These rules were also approved by the Small Business Regulatory Review Board in May with no opposition, but then never scheduled for a public hearing.īut as of Thursday, what appeared to be an entirely new draft of rules for Chapter 72 was posted online, along with the committee’s agenda. The agenda does not, however, include any reference to a detailed draft of rules that were already in place for other invasive species of concern, including little fire ants, that could wreak havoc on the isles.Ī number of environmental groups, concerned about the extensive spread of the ants across Oahu, still seek a public hearing - one they say has never been scheduled - on rules that were already drafted and unanimously approved by the same committee in February. today to discuss, among other items, making rules for the quarantine of the coconut rhinoceros beetle permanent. The Agriculture Department’s Advisory Committee on Plants and Animals is scheduled to meet at 1:30 p.m. Concerns over how to control damaging invasive species, including little fire ants, continue to intensify as the state Department of Agriculture discusses rules for the pests. ![]()
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