2551 Waimano Home Road Pearl City, Hawaii 96782 Ph: (808) 453-6112 Fax: (808) 453-6113 

www.oahuisc.org 

October 29, 2010 

Susan L. Kurland 

Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

Office of the Secretary 

Washington, DC 

RE: Hawai‘i Inspection Fee Proceeding, Docket: DOT OST-2010-0243 

Dear Secretary Kurland: 

The O‘ahu Invasive Species Committee (OISC) is a partnership of public agencies 

committed to protecting the island of O‘ahu from invasive species. We fully support 

Hawai‘i’s Act 173—a sensible law that protects our state from invasive species. We hope 

the U.S. Department of Transportation will recognize that the cargo fee established by 

Act 173 is not meant to be a tax, rather it funds invasive species inspections—a service 

meant to mitigate the risk presented by the airlines every time cargo is unloaded at an 

airport. 

The Airline Transportation Association (ATA) is incorrect in stating that inspections by 

the State of Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture (HDOA) duplicate those of the United 

States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). 

They do not. APHIS does not inspect cargo from the U.S. mainland. Many invasive 

species that are common on the U.S. mainland have not yet entered Hawai‘i. If these 

pests arrive and establish, they could devastate Hawaii’s ecosystems and agriculture. The 

only entity that will stop pests from the U.S. mainland from entering Hawai‘i is the 

Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture’s inspectors. 

For example, a major portion of the cut flowers that are imported into the State of 

Hawai‘i are from South and Central America and may be infested with a rust disease 

called Puccinia psidii that attacks plants in the myrtle family. The dominant tree of 

Hawaii’s forests—‘Ōhia (Metrosideros polymorpha)—is also a member of the myrtle 

family. ‘Ōhia covers one million acres of forests in Hawai‘i, provides essential watershed 

functions and provides food and habitat for Hawaii’s endangered birds. Losing this 

species will mean losing Hawaiian forests forever. 
A strain of this myrtle rust has already entered Hawai‘i and luckily ‘Ōhia does not seem 

susceptible to it. However, other strains have been found in South and Central America. 

If a strain of myrtle rust that causes death in ‘Ōhia is introduced to Hawai‘i, we will lose 

our forests. There is no treatment for myrtle rust disease, the only way to ensure ‘Ōhia 

will be around for our children to enjoy is to prevent new strains from coming into the 

state. 

Cut flowers from Central and South America are the highest-risk pathway for myrtle rust 

disease. Cut flowers from overseas destined for Hawai‘i are inspected for the disease, but 

flowers destined for other states are not. Flowers shipped in bulk to Florida, repackaged 

and then shipped to Hawai‘i are not inspected for myrtle rust disease in Florida. The only 

line of defense against myrtle rust disease entering Hawai‘i are inspections conducted by 

HDOA. 

Plants and animals that are illegal to import into Hawai‘i because of the threat they post 

are most likely to arrive by air cargo because they are live animals and would not survive 

a journey by sea. Illegal introductions of species such as snakes, piranhas and aquatic 

plants are more likely because air cargo services are available. State inspectors are 

absolutely necessary to protect Hawai‘i from these threats. 

Airlines provide a service to Hawai‘i, but they also bring great economic risk every time 

cargo is unloaded. It is hideously expensive to eradicate invasive species. Even when 

infestations are caught early, eradications can cost several million dollars. OISC is 

currently attempting to eradicate a tree that threatens the watershed functions of O‘ahu. It 

costs approximately $350,000 a year and will likely take several more decades. 

Infestations of certain species can shut down entire industries, as when the Light Brown 

Apple Moth caused the closure of plant nurseries on O‘ahu. Inspections offer a low-cost 

alternative to these expensive consequences. 

If invasive species are not caught early enough, they establish and must be continually 

controlled adding a cost that citizens must pay forever. The economic burden to small 

business owners and to Hawai‘i citizens of controlling and living with invasive species is 

much greater than what is being asked of the airlines. 

We also disagree with ATA’s assertion that the cargo fee is a tax or fee on the “sale of air 

transportation” as prohibited by the Anti Head Tax Act. We believe the Act allows for 

such fees under § 40116 (e) that allows states to levy and collect “reasonable rental 

charges, landing fees, and other service charges from aircraft operators for using airport 

facilities of an airport owned or operated by that State or subdivision” (49 U.S.C. § 40116 

(e)). Inspections for pests that threaten the agriculture, natural resources and public health 

of the State of Hawai‘i are a service that keep Hawai‘i a desirable tourist destination and 

protect Hawai‘i citizens from the consequences of unwanted introductions. 
There is precedent for recognizing that air traffic is inexorably linked to invasive species. 

Mitigation for the airport expansion on Maui several years ago involved funding for 

HDOA inspectors to ensure the increased air traffic would not harm Maui’s environment. 

The cargo fee is not an unreasonable tax or fee, it is a charge for the service of inspecting 

cargo for plant pests that could ruin crops, biting insects that threaten public health, forest 

pests that can irrevocably damage Hawai‘i’s water supply and pests that push federallylisted endangered species to extinction. These inspections are a service, provided by the 

state of Hawai‘i, that ensures air commerce can continue to flow freely. 

Sincerely, 

Rachel Neville 

Operations Manager 

O‘ahu Invasive Species Committee