Category Archives: Reefs

Coral Reef Presentation

November 27, 2012
6:00 pmto8:00 pm
Topic:  Wahikuli and Honokowai updates on coral reef research & watershed management efforts
Presenters:  Kathy Chaston, NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program & Tova Callender, West Maui Watershed and Coastal Management Coordinator
 
Date:  Tuesday, Nov.27, 6-8pm
 
Location: Na Aikane Cultural Center, Front St. Lahaina (Maulu’ulu’olele Park across of Tennis Court along Front Street)
 
Format:  Presentations with discussion to follow
 
Background:
 
Coral reefs are declining in many parts of Hawai’i.  In West Maui, nearly one fourth of all living corals have been lost in the last thirteen years alone. Coral reef decline is a critical concern because we depend on them for livelihoods; culturally, economically, and for physical protection.  Many organizations and agencies are conducting research to better understand the condition of coral reefs in Wahikuli and Honokowai.  Researchers are studying the chemistry, biology and physics of our near shore ecosystems.  A summary of the findings will be shared.
 
The State of Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) are sponsoring the development of the plan for the West Maui Ridge to Reef Initiative. This initiative is an all-encompassing approach across multiple agencies, organizations, and jurisdictions to address adverse impacts to coral reefs in West Maui.
 
The proposed 24,000-acre study area extends from Ka`anapali northward to Honolua and from the summit of Pu`u Kukui to the outer reef. It includes the watersheds of Wahikuli, Honok`wai, Kahana, Honokahua, and Honolua.  NOAA has funded the first phase which includes a comprehensive watershed management plan for Wahikuli and Honokowai scheduled for completion by the end of 2012.  An overview of the various planning processes and beginning implementation projects will be given.

man fishing

NOAA Public Meeting on Reefs

October 2, 2012
6:00 pmto8:00 pm

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and its hired consultants will conduct the meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday Oct 2 at the Kaunoa Senior Services center for West Maui at 788 Pauoa St. It’s the second – and final – draft of the plan “to identify sources of land-based pollutants and develop actions to remediate them to reduce stress on coral reefs,” according to the organization’s website, www.kaanapaliwmp.com.

The meeting will focus on the plan, “which contains strategies for management of pollutants, implementation priorities, monitoring recommendations and an education and outreach approach,” according to a news release.

Sediment and other damaging material often run into the ocean’s nearshore waters after storms.

The program is one of a few in the state to look at helping coral reefs from a ridge-to-shore approach, said West Maui Watershed and Coastal Management coordinator Tova Callender.

The plan’s participants include NOAA, Sustainable Resources Group International Inc., U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as well as the state Land and Natural Resources and Health departments, along with some local organizations, according to the website.

For more information or to get involved, contact Callender via email at tovacallender@gmail.com or call 214-4239.


Oluwalu Reef Survey Mile Marker 14

August 14, 2012
12:00 pm
August 18, 2012
8:30 amto10:30 am

Upcoming reef surveys at Olowalu Reef – Mile Marker 14

Tuesday, August 14th – site change, per Darla “I love Olowalu much, but the visibility there is not good right now. The water is beautiful and clear on the west side, so let’s go to Kahekili Beach Park from noon – 3pm instead.” https://www.facebook.com/KHFMA

Saturday, August 19th, 8:30-10:30am. Fish Identification Network, monthly REEF fish count (weather and ocean conditions permitting).
http://www.reef.org/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/maui.fin/


Be a Water Quality Measurement Person

Is the ocean water near you brown from runoff and sedimentation?

Would you like to help document what’s going on via citizen science efforts? The community-based Turbidity Task Force on Maui is a way to do so…

It’s really simple… grab a sample of water, collect some information, and bring it to the Killa Wiffa Surf Shop in Honokowai (West Maui) or the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary (South Maui, 726 South Kihei Rd), where trained water quality monitoring volunteers can read the sample using the turbidity meters housed there and upload the data to the Coral Reef Monitoring Data Portal (http://monitoring.coral.org/).

You can download the Turbidity Task Force form from http://monitoring.coral.org/resources/download

How to take a sample for the Turbidity Task Force:

Water Sampling Instructions (can be downloaded from: http://monitoring.coral.org/resources/survey_help)

Safety First – Do not trespass, enter rough surf or fast moving water
Keep samples on ice or refrigerate (≤4degrees C).
Within 40 hours of sample collection, bring to a meter station for reading, recording and entry into the Coral Reef Monitoring Data Portal-http://monitoring.coral.org/about
Record Location (Example: Honolua Bay rivermouth); full name and phone number
Observe water body and shoreline or stream bank;

Position yourself on shore or in water with sample vial opening facing opposite direction of water movement (facing upstream/up current of your body)
For in water sampling, hold vial in water at desired depth (surface, 2/3 or 1/3 of total depth), remove cap and completely fill vial with no bubbles. Recap at sampling depth
From shore or bank sample surface only, remove cap prior to dipping vial into water at the surface

If sampling a source of water entering a water body (stream, etc.) take two additional samples up and down flow from source

7. Fill out Chain of Custody Record: Bottle number, sample site, date, time, type of water (example Ocean, stream, pond, storm runoff)

8. Provide a sketch or written description of sample location

9. Keep chain of custody and other kit materials with sample, if you give it to someone else to deliver, fill out the sample transfer form.

10. Please return reusable kit including instructions to the meter station and pick up a new kit for next time

The Turbidity Task Force is a community-based monitoring program sponsored by The Save Honolua Coalition, Maui Nui Marine Resource Council and partners including Aquanimity Now, Coral Reef Alliance, Digital Bus, Hawaiian Island Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary in cooperation with local community groups.

Documenting Runoff & Sedimentation Events:

Keep a log with dates and times of observations – rainfall, water levels, stream flow changes, color of stream, presence of debris, etc (See the visual assessment protocol for ideas)

Take photos of upstream and downstream. If there is a tributary flow (contributing stream from natural streams or roads, driveways, sites etc,) take pictures of the stream upstream of it entering and downstream.

Take actual measurements of water lines, debris lines, mudlines, when it is safe to; before the forensic evidence disappears. A picture of a mud or water line with a ruler or tape in the picture is best. Pictures with recorded measurements also good.


Ahihi-Kinau to remain closedHeadline

BLNR votes 2-year extension to draft management plan

The Maui News
July 8, 2010

MAKENA – The Ahihi-Kinau Natural Area Reserve will remain closed to people for another two years, the state announced Wednesday.

The Board of Land and Natural Resources voted last month to extend the closure, which had been scheduled to expire Aug. 1. The restrictions will allow Ahihi-Kinau’s natural resources to continue to be protected while staff members complete a draft management plan for the area.

"This is needed to allow time for completion of a long-term management plan that will provide alternatives on how to preserve resources and provide for public access and use at the same time without damaging natural resources and diminishing the value of the reserve," said BLNR Chairwoman Laura Thielen.

The reserve was closed to people Aug. 1, 2008, after years of escalating conflicts over human use. Large numbers of visitors had been hiking across the lava flows in Ahihi-Kinau in search of coves that had been publicized in guidebooks as snorkel spots called "Fishbowl" and "Aquarium."

The area is technically a reserve, meaning it was set aside to serve as protected habitat for wildlife, not as a recreational area for people. Heavy use had been starting to degrade the environment and drive away birds and sea creatures, wildlife officials said.

Since the closure, surveys have shown some of the resources in the restricted areas have seen improvement, while previously unknown evidence that resources had been degraded by public use were revealed.

Over the past two years, DLNR officers have been conducting surveys and monitoring the area’s marine, geological and cultural resources as part of their efforts to develop a long-term management plan for the reserve.

The plan has taken longer than expected to complete, in part because Ahihi-Kinau has so many more cultural and archaeological sites than other places in the Natural Area Reserve System and also because of the budget and staffing challenges faced by DLNR over the past two years, officials have said.

The plan is expected to be released for public comment this fall.

The northern part of the reserve will continue to be open to the public from 5:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., including the areas known as Waiala or Kanahena Cove, and the coastal area along Ahihi Bay near the "Dumps" surf spot.

"The most popular and well-used portions of the reserve will remain open for use during visitor hours, as they have for the last two years, but other more remote and sensitive areas will remain closed to the general public," Thielen said.

People who enter the closed portions of the reserve can be arrested and face punishment of a fine up to $1,000 and imprisonment for up to one year.

For more information on the reserve or a map of the restricted areas, visit hawaii.gov/dlnr/dofaw/nars or call the Maui office of the state Division of Forestry and Wildlife at 984-8100.