Paradise lost?

Hawai’i’s Eco-system is not only extremely unique but at the same time is quite sensitive! This is illustrated by the fact that Hawai'i only has 10% of its Native Species left with the rest consisting of endemic/foreign species. Over the centuries when foreign species have been introduced the results have been nothing short of catastrophic to the islands' indigenous species. This threat continues today with the acceleration of globalization where thousands of planes and cargo ships a day are bringing in the constant threat of new foreign invaders who

The Silversword plant native to the island of Maui

could damage this unique land forever. This threat has likely only grown since budget cuts hit both the USDA (US Department of Agriculture) and the Hawai’i Department of Agriculture who both oversee inspection of all things coming into Hawai’i.

Although the arrival of foreign species has been brutal to the Hawai'i Eco-system, the islands still pride itself on the fact that it is snake free. There have been reports in the past of snakes hitchhiking in on landing gear or being smuggled into the state, but luckily the still remains and hopefully will remain snake free. However, all bets are off if the brown tree snake, common throughout Australia, Melanesia and Guam, somehow slips by inspectors (no pun intended) and becomes entrenched in Hawai'i. This nightmare is a very real possibility which could turn paradise into the next Guam, where the brown tree snake has caused extreme environmental damage and has led to frequent power outages. How could a simple brown tree snake result in power outages? From what I have read the snake is able to climb its way up power poles and wrap itself around them thus creating short circuiting and electrical damage. It has become such a problem that brownouts and power outages normally occur once every three days. 

Recently I stumbled upon an article that indicated the US government was prepared to go to war with these pests. How you wonder? By dropping countless number of dead mice stuffed full of toxic painkillers for the brown tree snake to feed upon! I guess the goal is obvious; the snakes eat the dead mice and then get sick and die themselves. Hmmmm…. wouldn’t that make a rather miserable experience if one were hiking out in the middle of a tranquil tropical rainforest and suddenly the heavens open up like a monsoon in the middle of summer, but instead of nice refreshing rain drops pelting you, you are instead assaulted by dozens of dead mice raining down from the skies!

A nice diversion from the thought of toxic mice raining down from the heavens!!!

Compared to other nations/places with sensitive Eco-systems it amazes me just how extremely lax Hawai’i is when it comes to agricultural inspections. Whenever I fly in to Honolulu the only thing required is to fill out a Hawai’i Department of Agriculture Declaration Form asking whether I am bringing in any fruits, vegetables, seeds and plants. All you do is sign the form agreeing that under penalty of law you are telling the truth, hand it to the flight attendant and you’re done! Beyond that, there is no real enforcement except for some local guy sitting at an agriculture kiosk located at baggage claim reading a newspaper. In my countless times of coming over to Hawai’i I am not sure I have ever seen one of those guys do anything more than yawn.

Torch ginger

Contrast this to Australia and New Zealand where agents take an aggressive approach toward guarding their environment against any type of invaders. When one arrives in Australia or New Zealand, you not only are required to hand over to an official your completed agricultural declaration, but also submit all bags to x-rays. As you leave customs agents will not only question you about whether you are bringing the usual plants, seeds, fruit, animals, etc… but they will grill you about any type of food you may have packed away in your bags. And in case this was not enough to scare you from breaking the law, they distribute a scary looking flyer warning you to DECLARE IT OR ELSE! I’ve also had agents ask to see the souls of my shoes to see if they have any large clumps of dirt on them. These strict guidelines not only apply to international travelers, but to those traveling to different Australian states. When you leave the airplane or walk onto the tarmac they have inspectors with trained dogs to sniff out any type of plant, fruit or vegetable you may be bringing with you from that other Australian state.

Bird of Paradise flower

The odd thing about Hawai’i and the agricultural inspection is that the procedure to leave the state for the US Mainland is 100% stricter. You have to submit both your checked luggage and your carry on luggage to inspection. I guess Hawai’i officials figure it may be too much of a bad first impression for the tourist to have to submit their bags to inspection. Plus, HVCB (Hawai’i Visitor’s and ConventionBureau) likely wouldn’t want your average tourist “wasting” time in a line when they could be booking that next golf outing, lame luau, ATV tour, or whatever other lame tourist activity that may be popular today. After all time is money!! I guess they do not realize that if Hawai’i becomes overrun with pests, they may in the end ruin the paradise tourists so love and cherish thus killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. Oh well, that’s America for you, short sighted and not very long-term thinking.

I have hope that Hawai’i will someday do the pono (right in Hawaiian) thing and introduce stricter agricultural rules so it stays pest free for generations to come! Mahalo nui loa kakou (thanks to all) for reading! A hui hou (till next time)!

Ohia Lehua flower and tree

Another Ohia Lehua flower and tree, the official flower of the Big Island of Hawai'i