Hawaii advisory committee urges emergency interim rule to bar movement of CRB host materials to Mokai

The State of Hawaii Advisory Committee on Plant and Animals voted Sept. 17 to recommend that the Board of Agriculture find existing regulations insufficient to prevent introduction of the coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB) to the island of Mokai and to forward the petitioner's interim-rule language (Appendix D) for consideration with a suggested severability clause.

The committee's recommendation follows a presentation by Jonathan Ho, plant quarantine branch manager, who briefed members on CRB detections in the state and the scope of the petition. Ho said CRB has been present in Hawaii since 2013, with established breeding populations on Kauai and West Hawaii and detections on Maui and Lanai, and that the petition seeks to prohibit inter-island movement to Mokai of potted or bare-root plants, soil, gravel, mulch, plant propagation media and certain landscaping materials. "CRB has been in the state since 2013," Ho told the committee, and the petition "proposes the banning or prohibition of inner island movement of potted or bare rooted plants, soil, gravel CRB host materials," while listing narrow exemptions such as seeds, cut flowers and rock or coral not mixed with organic material.

Why it matters: testifiers—many from Mokai and allied organizations—said the island has unique subsistence and cultural resources at risk and that permitting programs and inspection processes have not fully prevented spread on other islands. "Please hear the voices of our community and don't succumb to the plant quarantine branch staff's effort to water down our proposed rule," said Maui County Council Member Keani Rollins Fernandez, urging the committee to back the petitioner's version. Multiple residents described century-old coconut groves and food-security impacts that they said justified a temporary prohibition.

What the committee recommended: Committee member Sam Oh Ganon moved—and the committee approved by voice vote—that the committee find the existing regulations (as codified in the referenced administrative rules) are insufficient and that the circumstances constitute an emergency justifying interim rulemaking. The motion asked staff to submit the petitioners' interim-rule language to the Board for its Sept. 23, 2025 meeting, with the committee's recommendation that a severability clause be included so that a legal challenge to one provision would not automatically void the entire interim rule. The committee directed staff to format the petitioner language into the interim-rule template used by the department.

Key points of debate: Department staff and committee members discussed two drafting approaches: PQB's permit-based draft that would allow tightly controlled movement via permits and the petitioner's full prohibition. PQB staff flagged unintended consequences of a total ban (no route for treated commercial shipments or disaster-response materials) and asked for clearer language on staged or transiting shipments. Petitioners and many testifiers argued a prohibition was necessary because treatments and permitting have been insufficient to prevent new detections elsewhere. The committee also identified a legal drafting concern about regulating non-flora goods (gravel, sand, rock) under statutes written for flora/fauna and recommended adding a severability clause to reduce legal risk.

What comes next: The committee's recommendation will be presented to the Board of Agriculture at its meeting scheduled for Sept. 23, 2025. Staff said they will prepare the petitioner's language in the interim-rule format and the Board will determine final language and any clarifying amendments. Committee members also suggested providing a remote in-person testimony location on Mokai for the Board meeting so island residents can attend in person.

Voices from the record: Petitioner Kunani said the ban is necessary to protect cultural trees and food resources on Mokai and asked the committee to rely on the written petition for technical detail. Tara Roas, a community organizer, urged the committee to "do the Nihipali petition. That's it. Don't overthink it." Jonathan Ho warned the committee that larger potted plants currently lack verified treatments and that the proposed language needs clarity on staging/transit and on gravel mixed with organic material.

Limitations and procedural notes: The committee's action is a recommendation to the Board, not an adoption of a permanent rule. Interim rules are temporary (the committee noted a one-year maximum for interim rules) and may be amended, replaced or rescinded by the Board. The committee also recommended a severability clause and clarified that any Board decision could be adjusted to address disaster-response needs or verified treatments.

The Board of Agriculture will receive the committee's recommendation at its Sept. 23, 2025 meeting; staff and committee members said public notice and publication steps would follow any Board action.