| This page last revised 05 September 2018 -- S.M.Gon III | |||
Home Introduction Ecoregion Conservation Targets Viability Goals Portfolio TNC Action Sites Threats Strategies Acknowledgements ▫ Tables Maps & Figures CPT Database Appendices Glossary Sources Removal of incipient weeds is conducted by invasive species committees on all islands. Significant increases in state funding for natural area management will build needed capacity. We have a tool to assess the risk for potential alien plant introductions to become weeds. | Strategies | Maui Invasive Species Committee (MISC) Miconia control field team (continued from previous column) Strategy 3. Prevention of Alien Species Establish a system to effectively prevent new introductions of invasive alien species, deal with incipient introductions, and contain/control established pests. Build additional capacity in all above areas. Major achievements to date: » In 2003, the State Legislature formed a cabinet-level Hawai‘i Invasive Species Council (modeled after the National Council); » State funding secured for HISC prevention, early detection/rapid response, control, research, and outreach programs: FY05 $4M; FY06 $4M; FY07 $2M; » Five
island invasive species committees (ISC) were established, covering early detection, rapid response, and control on all main islands. » Hawaiʻi State Department of Agriculture (HDOA) received $2.9M and authority to hire 56 new staff positions in FY07 to implement a biosecurity strategy to prevent invasive species introductions through Hawai‘i ports of entry; » Hawai‘i Weed Risk Assessment protocol moved from research to demonstration phase to assess invasive potential of new plant introductions; » A pilot demonstration of model Codes of Conduct for minimizing noxious weed introductions with selected nursery/landscape industry leaders; » Congressional legislation was introduced to provide Hawai‘i exemption from federal agriculture quarantine preemption on movement of potential pests. » Legislative authority for HDOA to collect a cargo inspection fee to increase support for inspection and quarantine programs at ports. » A portion of oil tax revenue to HDOA, to support invasive species prevention, and biocontrol research programs. » The 2008 economic downturn drastically affected HDOA, which lost 25% of inspector and technician positions; positions are slowly being rebuilt as economy improves. » Legislative support of $5M in FY15 general funds for HISC prevention, control, outreach and research programs. Next steps: » See our Hawaiʻi TNC website for the latest! We use a TNC standard process, Conservation Action Planning (CAP), to identify the most important conservation goals and urgent actions for each specific conservation area:. The common actions include: Acquiring lands/waters purchase or conservation easement membership in a management partnership Managing conservation areas protective fencing of priority areas feral ungulate control priority weed control predator control (e.g., rats, feral cats) other threat control (e.g., wildfire) Building capacity staffing for specific goals growth toward needed level building partner capacity Engaging partners landowners within conservation area agencies with conservation mandates joint conservation planning Building conservation support community involvement field visits to conservation areas preparation of advocacy media Measure conservation progress establish monitoring system assess results against CAP Conservation strategies and actions for each conservation area are described in the Appendices. | ||