Maui Lānaʻi CRB Alert - Take Action Now!
In May, two adult coconut rhinoceros beetles (CRB) and larvae were found during an inspection and quarantine process in potted plants shipped to Lāna‘i. This was not the first time: two separate shipments to Lānaʻi in 2025 also had CRB. Maui also had a recent CRB detection in April, when an adult beetle was found near the Kahului airport.
Given the clear need for stronger protections against future introductions of this devastating pest, the Lahaina Community Land Trust filed an emergency petition with the Board of Agriculture and Biosecurity, to prohibit the shipment of potted plants or untreated host material to Maui and Lāna‘i. This petition will be considered by the Board next Tuesday, June 23, at 9 a.m. Your testimony is critical to ensuring that the Board moves this petition forward with appropriate urgency.
Notably, after the petition was submitted, multiple adult CRB were found on June 4 and June 8 by Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity staff in Waikapū, Maui. Interagency teams are working quickly to determine the location of a potential breeding site and to follow up on any potential movement prior to detection. This situation underscores the urgency of the Lahaina Community Land Trust petition, especially as resources needed to respond to new CRB introductions are diverted to address this latest potential outbreak.
Without immediate, emergency intervention to prevent new introductions, Maui and Lānaʻi will continue to be at risk of continual CRB infestations that may be impossible to recover from.
Beyond the petition, community education and voluntary action will also be needed in the coming months to help identify any CRB source populations, as well as reduce the movement of CRB host material within Maui, until the extent of any potential infestation in Central Maui is fully investigated.
Advocacy, education, and voluntary protective action are critical now, and in the coming months.
There are two things we all can and must do, to protect Maui, Lānaʻi, and, due to its proximity, Molokaʻi, from experiencing the heartbreaking devastation that the CRB is inflicting on Oʻahu and Kauaʻi.
Please take action now, and spread the word to your friends and networks:
Submit testimony in SUPPORT of the emergency rule petition submitted by the Lahaina Community Land Trust, scheduled for the Board of Agriculture and Biosecurity’s consideration on Tuesday, June 23, at 9 a.m. (and testify verbally via Zoom here, if can). Sample testimony and testimony instructions below!
If you live on Maui,
DO NOT transport any potted plants or untreated soil, mulch, compost, or green waste.
Regularly turn over any mulch, compost or other host material you have on your property to check for larvae and eggs - especially if you or your neighbors may have recently acquired plants or host material from Central Maui.
Treat your home compost pile by heating it to at least 130º F.
Set up a detection trap. A limited supply of detection traps are also available from the Maui Invasive Species Council - contact them here or at crbmisc@hawaii.edu.
Keep any suspected CRB (adults or larvae) in a hard-lined container (they can chew through soft plastic) and report it to 643-PEST(7378) or 643pest.org.
Check palms for CRB feeding damage visible as V-shaped cuts in the leaves or bore holes in the frond and report it (with photos) to 643pest.org or 643-PEST (7378). Learn what to look for here.
A few moments of your time could save generations’ worth of devastation from the ecological, cultural, agricultural, and economic impacts of CRB. Please take action today!
Mahalo nui,
Wayne
Testimony Instructions
Written:
E-mail: DAB.BOARD.TESTIMONY@HAWAII.GOV
Subject line: “Testimony on Agenda Item IV.B.2” (sample testimony below)
Deadline: Sunday, June 21 if can (Monday may be considered “late” but is still okay).
Verbal:
In-person:
Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity Plant Quarantine Branch, 1849 Auiki Street, Honolulu, 96819-3100 at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, June 23.
Remotely:
Zoom link (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87439855230) at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, June 23.
Sample Testimony
TO: DAB.BOARD.TESTIMONY@HAWAII.GOV
SUBJECT: Testimony on Agenda Item IV.B.2
Aloha Chair Hurd and Members of the Board of Agriculture and Biosecurity,
My name is [your name] and [your home] is my home. I strongly urge you to MOVE FORWARD with the emergency and interim rules proposed in the Lahaina Community Land Trust petition, and to direct Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity staff to ensure that these rules are brought to the Board for final approval by your next scheduled meeting.
The CRB situation in Maui County was already alarming enough, with the prior multiple detections of CRB on Lānaʻi and Maui over the past three months. The most recent discovery of several adult CRB in Waikapū has made clear that without agency intervention, Maui and Lāna‘i will continue to experience new CRB introductions that could quickly lead to devastating consequences.
This is an emergency situation. We must stop all potential pathways for additional CRB to make their way to Maui and Lānaʻi - especially now, as Maui frontline workers must focus their education, investigation, and eradication resources on a potential CRB infestation in Central Maui.
These rules are absolutely critical to preventing or mitigating CRB outbreaks on Maui and Lānaʻi before it is too late. Please direct Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity staff to move forward with these rules with the utmost urgency, and to ensure that they are brought back for final approval as soon as possible - and no later than your next regular meeting.
Mahalo nui for your prompt attention to this matter.
[your name]