(BIVN) – The battle to stop the spread of coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB) on Hawaiʻi island continues, with recent fumigation and treatment operations in Kona.  

The Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity (DAB) reports the CRB Response teams are using drones to treat palm trees in the Kohanaiki area. 

Photo shows a drone treatment over Kohanaiki, courtesy the Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity

There was also another fumigation at the Keāhole Agricultural Park, which was identified as a major CRB breeding site in July. 110 late-stage CRB larvae and three adult CRB were found in Keāhole Ag Park green-waste piles. The piles were “covered with a fumigation tarp to prevent further spread and later fumigated and removed for additional processing,” the State said. 

DAB detailed the latest fumigation effort in a news release: 

On Aug. 25 to 26 and September 3 to 5, the team fumigated and hauled away 144 tons of potential CRB breeding-site material from a nursery in the Keāhole Agricultural Park (KAP). This massive fumigation operation follows up on the previous fumigation of green-waste material at the ag park site in mid-August. CRB had not been detected in green waste at KAP after the first fumigation and this recent fumigation was conducted as a safeguard in case CRB had moved into other nearby green-waste piles. 

The operation was again coordinated by the Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity (DAB), Plant Pest Control Branch and included the Hawai‘i Department of Transportation (HDOT), Highways Division, which provided heavy equipment in the form of excavators, loaders, and dump trucks. The County of Hawai‘i (Department of Public Works, Department of Environmental Management [Solid Waste Division]) also assisted in hauling the fumigated material to a green waste processing facility where the green waste was taken for further processing. The fumigation services were provided by a private pest-control operator contracted by DAB. 

“Treating and hauling 144 tons of green waste is a colossal task,” said Sharon Hurd, chairperson of the Hawai‘i Board of Agriculture and Biosecurity. “But the work crews, both private and public, were committed to eliminating CRB from this site and we truly appreciate their collaboration and hard work, especially in the summer heat.”

Suspected CRB on Hawai‘i Island should be reported immediately to the state’s toll-free PEST HOTLINE at 808-643-PEST (7378) or reported online to 643pest.org, DAB says.