Community groups on Hawaiʻi Island are pushing the state Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity to take steps to contain the spread of invasive coconut rhinoceros beetles.
The Hawaiʻi Wildlife Fund and Pōhaku Pelemaka submitted a joint petition earlier this month asking for officials to regulate the movement of CRB host materials around the island.
Under the proposed rules, businesses in areas of West Hawaiʻi where beetles or their larvae have been detected must agree to certain protocols in order to move green materials like compost and mulch elsewhere on the island or in the state.
Jodie Rosam with the Hawaiʻi Wildlife Fund said such measures are necessary to ensure that CRB isn't accidentally introduced to new communities.
The infested area on Hawaiʻi Island includes the Keāhole Agricultural Park, home to many nurseries and landscaping businesses. The state-run ag park has been the epicenter of the Kona coast's CRB outbreak.
Rosam said the rules are not intended to be "too cumbersome" for businesses.
"We're by no means trying to enforce full quarantines, or trying to have businesses stop running, or people be put out of work," she said.
The containment measures sought by Hawaiʻi Wildlife Fund and Pōhaku Pelemaka are modeled after interim rules that were first put in place on Oʻahu in 2022.
Last fall, advocates successfully petitioned the state Board of Agriculture and Biosecurity to adopt stringent restrictions on the shipment of materials to Molokaʻi, the only island where CRB has not been found.
The board will review this latest petition during a public meeting on Tuesday.
Submissions for written testimony are closed, but the public can give verbal testimony during the meeting.
