Bill Text: HI HCR75 | 2018 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Urging State Agencies To Collaborate With Farmers, Other Landowners, And Private Organizations To Mitigate The Impacts Of Invasive Animals On Kauai.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 12-0)

Status: (Passed) 2018-05-01 - Resolution adopted in final form. [HCR75 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2018-HCR75-Introduced.html

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	75
TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2018
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

requesting the department of agriculture to establish a Kauai Invasive Species Task Force to study the issues of invasive animals in Kauai.

 

 

 

     WHEREAS, invasive animals, such as pigs, goats, and deer, can have detrimental impacts on people, native species and habitats, and the environment and have been the subject of significant community concerns, including concerns about damage to personal property and effects on public resources; and

 

     WHEREAS, species native to the State evolved on the islands in the absence of some of the world's more competitive species, such as sharp-hooved ungulates and carnivorous predators, and because island species do not have to defend themselves against such threats, they lose, or fail to evolve, the defensive mechanisms often found in their distant mainland relatives; and

 

     WHEREAS, the introduction of non-native animals that may not be able to coexist with native species can bring competition in Hawaii's ecosystems and reduce the native species population; and

 

     WHEREAS, invasive animals can also have an effect on resources, such as the axis deer, which eat a variety of native plants and agricultural goods of the State, and whose hooves break up soil and increase erosion; and

 

     WHEREAS, an entity is critically needed to comprehensively review, prioritize, and make recommendations for invasive animals, and develop a strategy that can be implemented statewide; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-ninth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2018, the Senate concurring, that the Department of Agriculture is requested to establish a Kauai Invasive Species Task Force that will study the issues and impacts of invasive animals in Kauai and recommend a comprehensive plan that addresses those issues; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature requests the following persons to be members of the Task Force:

 

     (1)  The Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture, or the Chairperson's representative who shall have knowledge of agriculture in Kauai, who is requested to serve as the Chairperson of the Task Force;

 

     (2)  The Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, or the Chairperson's representative who shall have knowledge of Kauai's natural resources;

 

     (3)  One representative from the Planning Department of the County of Kauai;

 

     (4)  One representative from the Kauai Visitors Bureau;

 

     (5)  One representative from the Kauai Invasive Species Committee;

 

     (6)  One representative from the Kauai Humane Society;

 

     (7)  One representative from the Kauai Hunting Association;

 

     (8)  One representative from the Kauai County Farm Bureau; and

 

     (9)  Other persons, as deemed appropriate by the Chairperson of the Task Force; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that in developing its comprehensive plan, the Task Force is requested to:

 

     (1)  Collect data in Kauai on who is impacted by invasive animals and what the impacts are on those affected;

     (2)  Develop strategies and establish priorities in addressing the issues raised from the collected data; and

 

     (3)  Pursue any options to create a value-added opportunity in addressing invasive animals, such as using meat from those invasive animals as a commodity; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Task Force is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including its comprehensive plan and any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2019; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture; the Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources; the Director of Planning of the County of Kauai; the Executive Director of the Kauai Visitors Bureau; the Committee Chair of the Kauai Invasive Species Committee; the Executive Director of the Kauai Humane Society; the Chairperson of the Kauai Hunting Association; and the President of the Kauai Farm Bureau.

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Kauai Invasive Species Task Force