CNMI tightens Guam cargo inspections following brown tree snake sighting on Rota

By Jayvee Vallejera

Alarmed by recent reports of two stowaway brown tree snakes found on Rota, the CNMI has strengthened efforts to screen all cargo arriving from Guam to prevent further entry of these invasive pests into the Northern Mariana Islands.

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Gov. David M. Apatang last week issued an executive order establishing emergency biosecurity measures that reinforce existing regulations and duplicate the inspections to interdict brown tree snakes from Guam.

The emergency measures will be in place for 30 days.

The directive also requires the CNMI Department of Lands and Natural Resources to work with the CNMI Division of Customs and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to seal any openings through which brown tree snakes from Guam might slip through.

Two brown tree snakes were spotted on Rota in July. One was dead when found, while another was spotted live and was reportedly killed, but the CNMI Division of Fish and Wildlife was unable to find its body later.

Brown tree snakes hiding in military cargo reached Guam during World War II, causing an ecological disaster that wiped out many of the island's native birds.

Efforts to eradicate the invasive reptile have been unsuccessful.

Guam receives an annual federal grant of $3.5 million for a brown tree snake control program.

There are no brown tree snakes in the CNMI.

The screening process for all Guam cargo and vessels entering the commonwealth already goes through a double inspection process—first, before leaving Guam and upon arriving in the CNMI.

Apatang’s executive order adds another layer of biosecurity, directing the CNMI Division of Customs to verify that arriving cargo and vessels from Guam have the necessary pre-screening paperwork as a condition of entry into the commonwealth.

The division is authorized to hold any vessel or cargo arriving from Guam without valid documentation.

This new requirement adds another layer of inspection to the process already conducted by the CNMI Division of Fish and Wildlife at the port of entry.

The division’s Brown Tree Snake Section will handle the actual inspection of vessels and cargo arriving from Guam. If a snake is ever found, it shall coordinate the response efforts.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture conducts inspections on Guam.

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DLNR and the CNMI Department of Finance are directed to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. DOA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to establish recognition of inspection certificates.

DLNR is mandated to report to the governor within 30 days on the status of the new interdiction efforts.

With so many relief and reconstruction goods being shipped to Rota after supertyphoons Sinlaku and Bavi hit the CNMI, the odds of brown tree snakes stowing aboard these cargo have increased substantially.

The Guam Department of Agriculture urges a double inspection of cargo, vehicles, or vessels before leaving Guam and upon arrival in the CNMI.

The inspections cover not just vessels, vehicles and airplanes, but also pallets of goods, loose boxes, containers filled with goods, and bundles of construction materials such as rolls of metal sheeting, stacks of plywood or boards, PVC pipes, or any other material with small, dark crevices where snakes may hide.

Brown tree snakes are an invasive species blamed for wiping out all birds on Guam and causing power outages when they slither up power poles.

The entry of brown tree snakes into the commonwealth is expected to cause severe and irreversible harm to the native wildlife, including species listed under the Endangered Species Act, and to public infrastructure and safety.

Another invasive species from Guam, the coconut rhinoceros beetle, has already infiltrated Rota and is infesting and killing coconut trees in areas like Talakhaya. So far, efforts to control the infestation’s spread have been successful, with the number of beetles being collected dropping this year.

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