AREAS OF CONCERN

While more than 31 percent of the land in Hawai‘i has been set aside for protection by the State or Federal government or is managed as part of a watershed partnership, these lands are subjected to differing levels of conservation or management effort.

In Hawai’i there are 44 marine managed areas including Marine Life Conservation Districts, Fishery Management Areas, Fisheries Replenishment Areas, Wildlife Sanctuaries and Natural Area Reserves.

Regardless of their jurisdiction and management goals, both marine and  land managers face similar constraints, such as multiple use mandates, insufficient funds for day-to-day management, infrastructural challenges, regulatory hurdles, high numbers of visitors, and increasing demands for public access.

Historical examples

1950s
-Oppose sand extraction from leeward O’ahu beaches
-Clear vegetation and protect UlupōHeiau in Kawainui, Oʻahu

1960s
-Raise awareness about suburbanization during the post-statehood development boom
-Advocate for public parks, soil conservation, and land stewardship
-Host first two Annual Conservation Conferences focusing on outdoor recreation and conservation in public parks and forest areas, and on Progress and Planning for Hawaiʻiʻs Future
-Advocate for the successful passage of the State Land Use Law establishing Conservation, Agricultural, Rural, and Conservation land use districts and Hawaiʻiʻs 2-tier system of land use management

1970s
-Sue to stop a housing subdivision from being developed in Kawainui Marsh, Oʻahu

 

1980s

-Expose illegal koa logging on “ceded” public lands at Puʻu Waʻawaʻa in Kona, Hawaiʻi Island and force state enforcement of land lease

-Support establishment of Puʻu Waʻawaʻa Forest Bird Sanctuary in Kona, Hawaiʻi Island

-Support farmersʻbid for a grant for agricultural and ecological studies in Hanalei, Kauaʻi

 

1990s

-Organize Hawaiʻi’s 20th Annual Earth Day Celebration at Kapiʻolani Park, Oʻahu

-Organize grassroots campaign to force federal regulation of tourism aircraft over national parks and wilderness areas

-Appeal approval of a golf course and residential subdivision in Puʻuanahulu Homesteads, Kona, Hawaiʻi Island

 

2000s

-Build a boardwalk in the Kahuku Ranch section of the Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park