Interior’s Office of Insular Affairs Distributes $3,648,875 to Federal, State and Territorial Partners for Brown Treesnake Control Program on Guam

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) today announced that $3,648,875 for the Brown Treesnake Control Program in fiscal year 2023 has been distributed among federal, territorial, and state partners in the ongoing fight to control the Brown Treesnake on Guam and to prevent it from spreading throughout the Western Pacific, including Hawai’i.

“The partnering efforts to control the Brown Treesnake have been successful in mitigating its impact on Guam and preventing its spread to the Northern Mariana Islands and Hawai’i,” said Assistant Secretary for Insular and International Affairs Carmen G. Cantor. “The recent discoveries of the Brown Treesnake on board a plane and cargo ship only serve as an important reminder that we must continue to be vigilant in ongoing efforts to control, mitigate and eradicate the Brown Treesnake where possible.” 

OIA is distributing the fiscal year 2023 funding to the following partners to support efforts to fight the Brown Treesnake:

Since its accidental introduction on Guam after World War II and without natural predators on-island, the Brown Treesnake has caused the drastic decline of native bird populations, causing cascading ecological consequences that threaten forest resiliency and other natural systems on the island.

Every year, the Brown Treesnake cause ground faults and short circuits that result in power outages estimated at $4.5 million in annual losses to Guam’s economy, while toxins from Brown Treesnake bites also present health and safety concerns for infants and young children.

Interior works closely with federal, state, and territorial partners to mitigate the Brown Treesnake threat on Guam and prevent the spread of this invasive species to the Northern Mariana Islands, the State of Hawai’i, and other neighboring islands such as Palau, Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands. Thousands of Brown Treesnake are caught and removed every year from the civilian air and seaport on Guam which is the main U.S. transportation hub in the Western Pacific, thus preventing the snake’s spread. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Wildlife Research Center estimates that the accidental introduction of Brown Treesnake to Hawai’i could result in between $593M and $2.14B in annual economic damage.

For more information, listen on YouTube to the OIA Conversation, The Brown Treesnake – a History.

The Assistant Secretary for Insular and International Affairs and the Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) carry out the Secretary of the Interior’s responsibilities for the U.S. territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Additionally, OIA administers and oversees federal assistance under the Compacts of Free Association to the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. OIA also administers a discretionary Technical Assistance Program for all the Insular Areas.

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