Take time to deliberate, but when the time for action has arrived, stop thinking and go in. ~ Napoleon Bonaparte No problem can withstand the assault of sustained thinking. ~ Voltaire Life's short. Anything could happen, and it usually does, so there is no point in sitting around thinking about all the ifs, ands and buts. ~ Amy Winehouse

1. STATE OF HAWAII
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
CABINET̶LEVEL DIRECTION ‖EFFECTIVENESS ̶ EFFICIENCY
Your environment is everything around you̶the air you breathe, the
water you drink, the community around you, the places where your
food is grown or prepared, your workplace, and your home.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC), National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH)
State Fact Sheets: Hawaii https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/information/state_factsheets/hawaii.htm
The semi-slug Parmarion cf. Martens was frst discovered on Oahu, Hawaii, in
1996 and then on the island of Hawaii in 2004.
The Hawaii Invasive Species Council (HISC) was established in 2003 by the
Hawaii State Legislature.
In 2017 the Hawaii legislature granted the State of Hawaii, Department of Health
a million dollars in funding, nominally for work on the parasite but with no specifc
earmarks. MOST OF THE MONEY WAS SPENT ON TELEVISION AND RADIO ADS
HAWAII INVASIVE SPECIES COUNCIL (HISC)
CABINET-LEVEL DIRECTION ON INVASIVE SPECIES ISSUES
http://dlnr.hawaii.gov/hisc/about/
INVASIVE SPECIES AS A PROBLEM IN HAWAII
http://dlnr.hawaii.gov/hisc/info/
Hawaii is a very unique place, due in part to its geographic isolation and
volcanic origin. What we refer to as Hawaii's native plant and animal
species are those that arrived here without the assistance of humans:
seeds for Hawaii's frst plants arrived here by foating on the waves, being
blown by the wind, or transported by traveling birds.

2. Likewise, Hawaii's native animal species are those that few here on the
wind or swam here on the water. Introduction events like these are very
rare, and so the species that made it to Hawaii lived here in relative
isolation over the 70 million years of Hawaii's volcanic history. Those
original introductions spawned, through the course of evolution, native
Hawaiian species that are often found nowhere else in the world. Our ohia
and koa forests are uniquely Hawaiian, as are the hoary bats, `i`iwi, and
‘apapane that once flled those forests.
Species that evolve on islands do so in the absence of some of the world's
more competitive species, such as sharp-hooved ungulates, carnivorous
predators, or thorny or toxic plants. 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.
The result is a relatively benign environment: the koa is a thorn-less
species of the genus Acacia, distantly related to the more prickly acacias
found elsewhere in the world. Likewise, birds in pre-contact Hawaii could
nest on the ground, since they didn’t have to worry about predators.
The problem, then, arises when we bring nonnative, competitive species
from other parts of the world into our Hawaiian ecosystems. In today's
globalized society, it's easy for humans to move species from one place to
another, and this has resulted in the introduction of species such as deer,
goats, ants, coqui frogs, miconia, and others into Hawaii. Hawaii's native
species haven't evolved to compete and coexist with these species, and the
result is that these new introductions become “invasive.”
The efects of invasive species are wide ranging. Miconia, an invasive
plant from South America, quickly spreads throughout forests and
prevents the growth of other plants, increasing the risk of erosion with its
shallow root systems. Axis deer browse on a variety of native plants and
agricultural goods, and their hooves break up soil and increase erosion.
Little Fire Ants infest beach parks, homes, and habitats for native species,
resulting in painful stings, lost crops, and injured pets.

3. If brown tree snakes were introduced to Hawaii, they could potentially
cause the extinction of our native bird species, and could cost an
estimated $2.14 billion a year in damages to electrical infrastructure and
medical costs associated with snake bites.
The HISC membership:
Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources (HISC co-chair)
Hawaii Department of Agriculture (HISC co-chair)
Hawaii Department of Health
Hawaii Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism
Hawaii Department of Transportation
University of Hawaii
STATE OF HAWAII, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
DISEASE OUTBREAK CONTROL DIVISION
http://health.hawaii.gov/docd/
The Disease Outbreak Control Division (DOCD) comprises the Disease
Investigation Branch, Immunization Branch, and Public Health Preparedness
Branch. These programs work together to monitor, investigate, prevent, and
control infectious diseases in Hawaii, especially those preventable through
immunizations, and to ensure Hawaii’s ability to respond to emergencies that
threaten the public’s health. Toward these goals, DOCD works to strengthen
the relationships between the Department of Health and other partners
including laboratories, hospitals, schools, emergency response agencies, private
organizations, and the military.
MOSQUITO-TRANSMITTED DISEASES
Arboviral Disease ̶ Chikungunya
Dengue ̶ Malaria ̶West Nile Virus ̶ Zika Virus

4. PEST-TRANSMITTED DISEASES
Angiostrongyliasis (Rat Lungworm)
Arboviral Disease ̶ Spider Bites
____________________________________
RAT LUNGWORM, THE TROPICAL PARASITE
THAT TOOK HAWAII BY SURPRISE
By Alissa Greenberg. The New Yorker
June 12, 2017, accessed March 27, 2018
https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/rat-lungworm-the-tropical-parasite-that-took-hawaii-by-surprise
FACT OR FICTION?
Human angiostrongyliasis caused by Angiostrongylus cantonensis, a rat
lungworm, has been reported globally. Human infections are acquired by
ingestion of raw or undercooked snails or slugs, paratenic hosts such as
prawns, or contaminated vegetables that contain the infective larvae of
the worm.
Source: Distribution of Parmarion cf. martensi (Pulmonata: Helicarionidae), a New Semi-Slug
Pest on Hawaii Island, and Its Potential as a Vector for Human Angiostrongyliasis . 9 January
2007. By Robert G. Hollingsworth, Corresponding author, U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Pacifc Basin Agricultural Research Center, Hilo, Hawaii;
Rachel Kaneta, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia; James J.
Sullivan, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia*; Henry S. Bishop,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia*;Yvonne Qvarnstrom, Atlanta
Research and Education Foundation, Atlanta Veterans Administration Medical Center,
Decatur, Georgia*; Alexandre J. da Silva, Atlanta Research and Education Foundation,
Atlanta Veterans Administration Medical Center, Decatur, Georgia*; and David G. Robinson,
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Plant
Protection and Quarantine, Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. {* The
fndings and conclusions in this report are thoseof the authors and do not necessarily
represent the views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/theAgency of Toxic
Substances and Disease Registry.]

5. In 1961, the rat lungworm, Angiostrongylus cantonensis, was recovered in
Hawaii at an autopsy on the brain of a Filipino with a history of
eosinophilic meningoencephalitis (Rosen et a!., 1961, 1962). This fnding
followed the discovery by Ash (1962b; see Parasites of Rat) of the adult
stage of A. cantonensis in the lungs of local rats, and confrmed the
speculation originally made by Alicata (1961, 1962a) that this parasite
may be the causative agent of eosinophilic meningoencephalitis in the
Pacifc (see also Alicata and McCarthy, 1964). A case of this disease, also
referred to as parasitic meningoencephalitis and cerebral
angiostrongylosis, occurred in a Japanese laborer in Hawaii following
ingestion of two garden slugs, Veronounicella alte (see Horio and Alicata,
1961).
Source: Parasitic Infections of Man and Animals in Hawaii. Technical Bulletin 61.
By Joseph E. Alicata. Hawaii Agricultural Experiment Station, College of Tropical
Agriculture, University of Hawaii. November 1964, accessed March 27, 2018
https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/tb-61.pdf
___________
Human beings and non-human primates can be accidental hosts for A.
cantonensis, but the parasite is unable to complete its development
and usually dies in the central nervous system, causing eosinophilic
meningitis or even death.
Source: Human angiostrongyliasis. By Qiao-Ping Wang, MPA De-Hua Lai, MPA;
Zhao-Rong Lun, PhD Department of Parasitology, College of Veterinary
Medicine, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China - Xing-Quan
Zhu, PhD Department of Parasitology, College of Veterinary Medicine, South
China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China - Xiao-Guang Chen, PhD
Department of Parasitology, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine,
Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China. October 2008. CTAHR.
Accessed March 27, 2018 http://manoa.hawaii.edu/ctahr/farmfoodsafety/wp-
content/uploads/2011/01/Wang_2008_The-Lancet-Infectious-Diseases.pdf
___________

6. Although rats brought the disease in 1959-60 by ship from China to the
Pacifc islands, the introduction of the semi-slug to East Hawaii in 2004
coincides with the sudden rise in rat lungworm disease. “That’s when we
started seeing an increase (in rat lungworm disease), too, so it's probably
not a coincidence. Semi-slugs have been spreading around the island, and
have been on Oahu since 1996.” ~ Professor Susan Jarvi, University of
Hawaii at Hilo.
The Health Department's website at one time called it a “lifestyle disease”
due to unsanitary conditions, as in a developing country, frustrating and
infuriating to the Hawaii island community, particularly in Puna.
“We were in a situation where we were concentrating on dengue, and
Vector Control was fghting dengue,” so rat lungworm did not get the
funding. “The governor was interested in this particular initiative,” he said
of dengue. “With dengue the state needed to be in front of this instead of
waiting for it to become a big problem and become reactive.” ~ Wil
Okabe, The Health Department and the Governor’s East Hawaii liaison
Source: State establishes task force on debilitating, sometimes fatal rat
lungworm disease. By Leila Fujimori. Honolulu Star-Advertiser. June 6, 2016,
accessed March 27, 2018 https://www.pressreader.com/usa/honolulu-star-
advertiser/20160606/281517930384938
STATE OF HAWAII DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Posted January 15, 2018
On August 2, 2017, Governor Ige, the Department of Health, the
Department of Agriculture and a Joint Task Force announced new eforts
to prevent rat lungworm disease in Hawaii.
Governor's news release and video of the news conference:
http://governor.hawaii.gov/newsroom/governors-ofce-news-release-gov-ige-announces-
stepped-up-eforts-to-prevent-rat-lungworm-disease-and-expanded-role-of-joint-task-force/
＞ PONO ＜