Lot Scheduled to Close at Volcanoes National Park to Treat LFA

The Steam Vents parking lot in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park will be closed tomorrow for little fire ant treatment.

The closure is slated for 8 a.m. to noon. Only the Steam Vents parking lot and the trail from the parking lot to Wahinekapu (Steaming Bluff) will be closed. Wahinekapu and Crater Rim Trail will remain open.

If it rains, treatment will take place the next day, Nov. 20, at the same scheduled time. This will be the seventh treatment cycle at Steam Vents.

LFA detections have decreased by at least 99% at Steam Vents since the park began treating the area in February, according to a press release from the national park. In 2018, LFA were abundant and readily observed on vegetation and along the edge of the parking lot. In September, park pest control workers found LFA on just 0.1% of bait stations.

The goal is to completely exterminate the ants from the area. Visitors can help by checking their gear and vehicles for LFA before coming to the park.

For more information on LFA, how to control them and how to prevent spreading them, visit http://www.littlefireants.com/.