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Advisory committee urges board to consider interim rule after hearing wide public support to fight coconut rhinoceros beetle
Summary
After extensive public testimony and staff presentations, the advisory committee found existing rules insufficient and approved a recommendation that the Board of Agriculture and Biosecurity consider an interim rule restricting movement of CRB host material on Hawaii Island to slow spread and protect native palms.
The Advisory Committee on Plants and Animals recommended that the Board of Agriculture and Biosecurity consider an interim rule restricting the transport and handling of coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB) host material within a designated infested area on Hawaii Island, finding that existing state rules are insufficient and that circumstances constitute an emergency.
Jonathan Hall, plant quarantine branch manager, outlined the petition filed by community groups and conservation organizations seeking interim rulemaking under HRS 158-9.5 to require permits or compliance agreements for transporting, selling or otherwise moving CRB host materials in the identified Kona area. Hall said petitioners and the branch had worked together to refine draft language and that the committee’s key role was to make the finding that a regulatory gap created an emergency so the board could move forward with an interim rule.
Petitioners and community witnesses provided detailed testimony. "This petition has received hundreds of testimonies in support," said Megan Lamson, program director for Hawaii Wildlife Fund, calling CRB a "catastrophic threat to Hawaii Island's native ecosystems" and urging the committee to send the petition to the board for adoption on March 24. Co‑petitioner Jody Roseanne said petitioners incorporated stakeholder feedback — including adjustments to inspection-to-transport timelines and a proposed designated collection-bin system — and emphasized that the approach is best-management practices rather than a quarantine.
Speakers from affected communities described local impacts. Leila Kealoha, executive director of Pohaku Pele Maka, said the state’s native coconut varieties and cultural practices are at risk and urged using the interim rule period to craft a permanent rule. A farmer and coconut climber representing the Hawaii Oulu Cooperative described severe damage observed on Kauai after an earlier interim rule expired, estimating damage in some areas as "80 to 90%" of palms and saying the movement of breeding material drives spread.
Committee members questioned enforcement and resource limits and discussed procedural mechanics. Justin Rivera (NOAA) and others earlier confirmed a NEPA analysis when NOAA matters were discussed; Tom Eisen and others raised that HEPA (the state environmental review law) may still require separate consideration. Jonathan Hall acknowledged PQB’s limited inspection staff in Kona but said the compliance agreement and interim rule were intended to shift much of the implementation burden to partners, including training and inspections supported by industry and nonprofit partners.
Greg Takashima moved that the committee find existing regulations in HAR chapter 4-72 insufficient and that an emergency exists justifying an interim rule; Patrick Chi seconded. Chair Han Lau clarified that the committee’s vote approves the department working with petitioners to finalize a single compliance agreement and interim-rule text to present to the board. With no objections or abstentions, the motion passed. The branch and petitioners will refine the language before the board considers the interim rule.
The committee adjourned at 2:22 PM.
