HomeMy WebLinkAboutWard, Deborah
To: counciltestimony@hawaiicounty.gov
Subject: Testimony or Res. 603-26
Aloha e Chair Kagiwada, Vice Chair Kānealiʻi-Kleinfelder, and members of the
Hawaiʻi County Council Committee on Governmental Relations and External
Affairs,
My name is Deborah Ward. I am writing in STRONG SUPPORT of Resolution
603-26, urging the Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity (DAB) to take
seriously the interim “emergency” coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB) rules for
West Hawaiʻi, adopted by the Board of Agriculture and Biosecurity (BAB) in
March.
I have been farming in Kurtistown since 1995. I grow `ulu, kalo, mai`a, and a
host of other crops to provide local families with healthy organic produce.
Each of these crops is at an existential risk if CRB becomes established in
East Hawaii. I contribute food to the food basket, local families in need, and I
sell the surplus at Punachicks farmers market. The County is currently
creating an agrifood summary of needs and plans, but it will all be in vain if we
have no crops to offer due to the damage of the CRB. I have already had to
adapt to the ravages of Queensland Longhorn Beetle, Erythrina Gall Wasp,
Stinging nettle caterpillar, Banana Bunchy Top Virus, Annona leafhopper,
avocado lace wing, feral pig damage and more! The CRB is easily the worst to
threaten our entire agricultural economy!
The CRB situation on Hawaiʻi Island is dire. With CRB detections in a region
that now stretches from Waikōloa to Keauhou, we must do everything we can
to stop or slow its spread - before it is too late. Unfortunately, as outlined in
this resolution, the need for much more timely action by DAB has been and
continues to be a critical gap in this all-hands-on-deck effort.
DAB’s months-long delays in advancing regulations to mitigate high-risk
vectors, such as businesses selling potted plants and other CRB host
material, has contributed significantly to the current crisis. As this resolution
notes, it was only through the initiative of local nonprofits and a groundswell of
public support did DAB put the current CRB interim rules before the BAB.
Now, DAB’s continued foot-dragging in implementing these interim rules,
adopted in March, is leaving the entire island at daily risk of becoming the next
CRB-infested region.
To be clear, the stakes are extremely high, and the threat is imminent. While
the drier conditions in West Hawaiʻi still give us a chance to contain this
devastating pest, should breeding populations of CRB be established in
places like Hilo, Puna, or anywhere else with high levels of vegetation,
containment and eradication may quickly become impossible. The meaningful
implementation and enforcement of DAB’s interim rules will give us the best
chance at preventing such an outcome.
Please help us avoid the tragic consequences now unfolding on Oʻahu and
Kauaʻi, where CRB has become established after years of DAB
inaction. Please pass this resolution and its common sense, extremely
reasonable call for DAB to treat our CRB situation as the emergency it is: by
designating a dedicated staff point of contact for the rules, raising public
awareness of their requirements, and enforcing their provisions as
necessary.
Mahalo nui for the opportunity to testify.
A hou hou!
Deborah Ward