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Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0907.001 2012-2014 Margaret Wille tV OF N Phone No. Hilo: (808)961-8027 Council Member Phone No. Waimea: (808) 887-2043 District 9-North and South Kohala Fax No.: (808)887-2072 E-Mail: mwille @co.hawaii.hi.us •p •r i� M�MOW i•'\\ ,rdo►•N�.N HAWAII COUNTY COUNCIL County of Hawai'i Hawaii County Building Holomua Center West Hawaii Civic Center Bldg,A 25 Aupuni Street 64-1067 Mamalahoa Highway, Suite C-5 74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Hwy. Hilo, Hawaii 96720 Waimea, Hawaii 96743 Kadua-Kona, Hawai'i,96740 C-3 .a O C-) TO: J Yoshimoto, Chair ' And Members of the Hawaii County Council :r__ I>rn N FROM: Margaret Wille, Council Member r DATE: June 3, 2014 SUBJECT: Resolution 444-14 Additional Information Please find attached a copy of Resolution 816-08 for reference during the Resolution 444-14 discussion at the Council Meeting on June 4, 2014. Thank you. MW/dh att Comm. Ref.To•.r 0 bE°atl.1L1�LlL�2o14... Serving the Interests of the People of Our Island Hawaii County Is An Equal Opportunity Provider And Employer K COUNTY OF HAWAII STATE OF HAWAII RESOLUTION NO. SIG 08 A RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE COUNTY OF HAWAII TO IMMEDIATELY INITIATE A CAMPAIGN TO PROTECT HAWAII ISLAND FROM THE INVASIVE LITTLE FIRE ANT. WHEREAS, section 2.1 of the Hawaii County General Plan, Economic; Introduction and Analysis, states, in part: "The opportunities for the expansion of agriculture on the Big Island seem to be immense. The demand for fresh, locally grown products continues to grow as restaurants, grocery stores and hotels seek the highest quality products for their guests. Export . products grown mostly on the Big Island, such as coffee, papaya,macadamia nuts, and flowers, also continue to expand. These commodities and others, such as ginger, guava and other tropical fruits, have potential for growth.... Concerns regarding the transmission of plant pests and diseases during export have or could be adequately addressed by current treatment or processing technologies. The development of new protocol and processing facilities for quarantine treatment will assure the further expansion of the agricultural industry." (pages 2-3 and 2-4); and WHEREAS, the Puna, Kona, South Kohala, and North Kohala community development plans provide for stewardship of the environment consistent with the County's public trust responsibility, protection of agriculture, and protection of the health and safety of residents; and WHEREAS, the Hawaii County Council acknowledges that county government should take an active role in the effort to protect tourism, commerce, specialty crops such as Kona coffee and taro, growth of a viable local food supply, and the quality of life of the people of the island from the devastating effects of the Little Fire Ant; and WHEREAS, according to "Field Suppression of the Invasive Ant Wasmannia auropunctata (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in a Tropical Fruit Orchard in Hawaii" published in 2008 in the Journal of Economic Entomology, Volume 101, pages 1068-1074: • The Little Fire Ant (Wasmannia auropunctata), a native species of Central and South America, was introduced to Hawaii Island approximately nine years ago, and in the absence of natural predators, now threatens to blanket the island; • Little Fire Ants (LFA) dominate other ant species, covering every square inch of vegetation,Including trees and shrubs, in areas they colonize,particularly in the district of Puna; • LFA are easily dislodged by wind, pruning of trees, or fruit harvesting so that they drop onto the clothing of farm workers,where they become trapped and inflict painful bites resulting iri a variety of symptoms including intense itching, swelling, and blistering; • LFA bites have been known to cause blindness in animals and decimate populations of birds and soft-bodied organisms, and many myrmecologists (ant scientists) regard the LFA as the worst possible species of invasive ant; • It has become difficult to find labor to harvest fruit in other areas that have LFA infestations, such as the citrus groves in Florida, due to the swarms of stinging ants; and • Without immediate and decisive action on the part of the county, LFA infestations could have a disastrous impact on Hawaii Island's fruit and coffee industries, tourism, the local food supply, and the quality of life of county residents; and WHEREAS, incidences of persons having been severely bitten have been reported not only in Puna but also across the island in other districts; and WHEREAS, failure to take a proactive stand to minimize the impact of the LFA infestation on Hawaii Island will likely require a far more costly program to address the foreseeable damage to the island economy; now, therefore, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII that, by March 1, 2009, the county administration is strongly urged to designate a person or persons to coordinate efforts to control LFA infestations on the island. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the county administration is requested to create a LFA taskforce to provide management oversight for the county response to this crisis, and ensure that information from farmers who have been actively working to control large LFA infestations is considered by this taskforce. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the county administration, through its designated LFA taskforce, is requested to update the mapping of LFA infestations on the island. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the county administration, through its designated LFA taskforce, is requested to advocate at the State level for inspection of landscape materials, including green waste mulch and plants translocated around the island, as well as inspection and testing of all nurseries for the presence of LFA infestations,followed by quarantine and treatment of infected nurseries. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the county administration, through its designated LFA taskforce, is requested to mount a LFA public education campaign that provides direction on how to prevent and eradicate LFA infestations. 2 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED the county administration, through its designated LFA taskforce, is requested to seek State and Federal assistance for its efforts concerning the LFA, including public education, control, and researching viable solutions for containment of LFA infestations. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, by May 1, 2009, the county administration is requested to present a progress report to the Hawaii County Council on county efforts to control LFA infestations on the island, including an assessment of possible state, federal, or private funding sources for research and containment of this invasive species. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, should county funding be deemed necessary for LFA research, education, containment, and possible monetary reimbursement for bait acquisition to private individuals addressing LFA infestations on their lands, the county administration is strongly urged to allocate the necessary funding in the 2009-10 Operating Budget, BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED,that the County Clerk shall forward certified copies of this resolution to the Mayor, the Director of the Department of Research and Development, and Sandra Lee Kunimoto, Director of the State of Hawaii Department of Agriculture. Dated at Kona , Hawai`i, this 17th day of December _' 2008. INTRODUCE _BY: COUNCIL M ER, CO F AWAI` COUNTY COUNCIL ROLL CALL VOTE County of Hawaii AYES NOES ABS EX Hilo, Hawaii (ENRZQUES X 'FORD ' X I hereby certify that the foregoing RESOLUTION was by ;GREENN]EI,I X the vote indicated to the right hereof adopted by the COUNCIL of the County ofHawai'ion December 17, 2008 X JIKEDA ; x NAEOLE x —i ATTEST: PILAGO x YAGONG X i YOSHIMOTO X I 8 1 0 1 1 0 J Reference: C-1566/EMC-20 OUNTY CLERK CHAIRMAN&PRESIDING OFFICER RESOLUTION NO. 8i6 48 3