HomeMy WebLinkAboutLindenmann, Noelle
Tsuneda, Kaci
From:Noelle Lindenmann <noelle.royer@gmail.com>
Sent:Tuesday, July 21, 2026 10:57 AM
To:Council Testimony; Villegas, Rebecca
Subject:Testimony on Res. 603-26
Aloha e Chair Kagiwada, Vice Chair Kāneali ʻ i-Kleinfelder, and members of the
Hawai ʻ i County Council Committee on Governmental Relations and External Affairs,
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 Hawai ʻ i, adopted by the Board of Agriculture
and Biosecurity (BAB) in March.
The CRB situation on Hawai ʻ i Island is dire. With CRB detections in a region that
now stretches from Kīholo 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 that the current CRB
interim rules were put before and adopted by the BAB.
Despite their adoption in March, a subsequent months-long delay in the
implementation of these rules is leaving the entire island - and our neighbor islands
as well - at daily risk of CRB introductions. While a handful of compliance
agreements have been issued, there is still no designated DAB point-of-contact to
facilitate continued implementation, much more community awareness is still
needed, and whether and how any necessary enforcement will be carried out is
unclear.
To be clear, the stakes are extremely high, and the threat is imminent. While the drier
conditions in West Hawai ʻ i 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 O ʻ ahu and Kaua ʻ i,
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
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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.
Noelle Lindenmann (she/her/hers)
e. noelle.royer@gmail.com // tallgirl@uw.edu
Kailua-Kona District 7
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