HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0088.001 2016-2018Mtrosb,
From the office of- Office: (808) 961-8396
d Fax: (808) 961-8912CouncilMember
District 3 —Hilo and Puna Email: sue.leeloy@hawaiicounty.gov
SUSAN L.K. LEE LOY COUNTY CLERK
COUNTY OF HAWAAWAII
25 Aupuni Street,Hilo,Hawai`i 96720 RECEIVED
Time 3:/oPi4 By Vine_
Date -7/4/4. 3v 2017TO: Valerie T. Poindexter, Chair
and Members of thewai`i County Council
Air
FROM: Sue Lee Loy, Cour
DATE: January 30, 2017
Subject: Proposed Amendments to Resolution No. 61; A Resolution Urging the Hawai`i
State Legislature to Approve Funding to Address the Threat of the Little Fire Ant.
Please find attached proposed amendments to Resolution No. 61. The proposed changes
reference specific bills that have been in the Senate and House, and direct the County Clerk to
send copies of this resolution to the appropriate chair and vice chair of the committees that will
be hearing these bills.
The proposed amendments are illustrated below in Ramseyer format with respect to the contents
of Resolution No. 61; material to be deleted is bracketed and stricken and material to be added is
underscored. A draft copy of Resolution No. 61, Draft 2, is attached with these amendments
incorporated therein, but a copy of"Exhibit A" and "Exhibit B" are omitted to save resources.
1. The title of Resolution No. 61 is amended to read as follows:
A RESOLUTION URGING THE HAWAII STATE LEGISLATURE TO APPROVE
FUNDING] SENATE BILL NO. 656 AND HOUSE BILL NO. 481 TO ADDRESS THE
THREAT OF THE LITTLE FIRE ANT. "
2. The second WHEREAS clause of Resolution No. 61 is amended to read as follows:
WHEREAS, [pending bills] Senate Bill No. 656 and House Bill No. 481 in the 2017
session of the Legislature will fund a project administered by the Hawai`i [County] Department
of[Parks and Recreation] Agriculture to address the spread of LFA; and"
3. The eleventh WHEREAS clause of Resolution No. 61 is amended to read as follows:
WHEREAS, the Hawai`i [County] Department of[Parks and Recreation's]
Agriculture's project includes [the hiring of necessary personnel, purchasing different types of
pesticides, and equipment maintenance;] the distribution of coupons for pesticide treatment and a
mapping of all LFA sites in the County of Hawai`i; now, therefore,"
Comm.NQlRef.To: Y -7 RS QC,
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4. The enacting clause of Resolution No. 61 is amended to read as follows:
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII that the
House and Senate are urged to approve [legislation] Senate Bill No. 656 and House Bill No. 481
to address the threat of the Little Fire Ant in Hawai`i."
5. The BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED clause of Resolution No. 61 is amended to read as
follows:
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the County Clerk shall transmit a copy of this
resolution to the Honorable Governor David Y. Ige, the Honorable Senate President Ronald D.
Kouchi, the Honorable Speaker Joseph M. Souki, the Honorable Senator Jill N. Tokuda, the
Honorable Senator Donovan M. Dela Cruz, the Honorable Senator Mike Gabbard, the Honorable
Senator Gil Riviere, [the Honorable Senator Clarence K. Nishihara, the Honorable Senator Glenn
Wakai,] the Honorable Representative Sylvia Luke, the Honorable Representative Ty J.K.
Cullen, the Honorable Representative Chris Lee, the Honorable Representative Nicole Lowen,
the Honorable Representative Richard P. Creagan, and the Honorable Representative Lynn
DeCoite."
SLL/ps
Att.
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A RESOLUTION URGING THE HAWAII STATE LEGISLATURE TO APPROVE
SENATE BILL NO. 656 AND HOUSE BILL NO. 481 TO ADDRESS THE THREAT OF
THE LITTLE FIRE ANT.
WHEREAS, the continued spread of the invasive species known as the Little Fire Ant
LFA)threatens native biodiversity, alters tropical ecosystems, impairs human health, impedes
tourism, diminishes agricultural productivity, mars horticulture sales, and blinds pets; and
WHEREAS, Senate Bill No. 656 and House Bill No. 481 in the 2017 session of the
Legislature will fund a project administered by the Hawai`i Department of Agriculture to address
the spread of LFA; and
WHEREAS, a December 2016 article published in the Proceedings of the Hawaiian
Entomological Society ("Exhibit A") chronicles how LFA has become established on Hawai`i
Island, and how periodic infestations have been addressed on Kaua`i, O`ahu, and Maui; and
WHEREAS, LFA concentrations can reach 20,000 per square meter, or nearly 1,900 per
square foot; and
WHEREAS, a March 2015 article published in the academic journal "Ecological
Economics" ("Exhibit B") models the growth and spread of LFA on Hawai`i Island and
estimates that an increase of$8 million to manage the ant during the next two to three years
would save $5.496 billion in reduced control costs, $538 million in economic damages, 2.161
billion human sting incidents, and 762 million pet sting incidents over the next 35 years; and
WHEREAS, the "Ecological Economics" article states that"In the next 35 years the cost
of Little Fire Ant under current management will balloon to $6.1 billion. With efforts to suppress
Little Fire Ant populations, under least cost management, net costs drop to $51 million, a
substantial savings to the local economy"; and
WHEREAS, Hawai`i County has continued treating sites infested with LFA at County
parks for the benefit of residents and visitors; and
WHEREAS, Hawai`i County's efforts have been funded by the Hawai`i Department of
Agriculture, the Hawai`i Tourism Authority, and the Hawai`i Invasive Species Council; and
WHEREAS, Hawai`i County continues to seek support to continue funding LFA control
operations; and
WHEREAS, the "Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society" article proves
that multi-agency collaboration and funding are crucial for a biosecurity plan to contain the
spread of LFA throughout the State; and
WHEREAS, the Hawai`i Department of Agriculture's project includes the distribution of
coupons for pesticide treatment and a mapping of all LFA sites in the County of Hawai`i; now,
therefore,
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BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII that the
House and Senate are urged to approve Senate Bill No. 656 and House Bill No. 481 to address
the threat of the Little Fire Ant in Hawai`i.
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the County Clerk shall transmit a copy of this
resolution to the Honorable Governor David Y. Ige, the Honorable Senate President Ronald D.
Kouchi, the Honorable Speaker Joseph M. Souki, the Honorable Senator Jill N. Tokuda, the
Honorable Senator Donovan M. Dela Cruz, the Honorable Senator Mike Gabbard, the Honorable
Senator Gil Riviere, the Honorable Representative Sylvia Luke, the Honorable Representative
Ty J.K. Cullen, the Honorable Representative Chris Lee, the Honorable Representative Nicole
Lowen, the Honorable Representative Richard P. Creagan, and the Honorable Representative
Lynn DeCoite.
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