June 2008

Among the measures passed by the 2008 Legislature are ones to increase fines for violations of the Department of Land and Natural Resources’ land use regulations and to beef up the Department of Agriculture’s powers to control noxious plants. By … Continued

The pictures of dead roadside shrubs and tortured, shriveled leaves say it all: If introduced to Hawai`i, myoporum thrips could do to naio what erythrina gall wasps did to the state’s wiliwili trees. At last March’s Natural Area Reserves System … Continued

Recently, I trekked around Kilauea – through lava landscapes where the earth opens up like a crystal ball and we can peer into the past and future of Hawai`i. My first trip descended Hilina Pali, the long slope that stretches … Continued

I’d like to clarify something that Kitty [Simonds, executive director of the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council] misrepresented at the 141st council teleconference: The email that I sent to all council staff consisted of a page from one of the … Continued

In March, Environment Hawai`i reported on the efforts of the `aha kiole advisory committee to award a contract to Leimana DaMate, whose involvement with the puwalu series of workshops sponsored by the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council has generated some … Continued

In partial response to a Freedom-of-Information-Act request by Environment Hawai`i filed last November, the National Marine Fisheries Service Pacific Islands Regional Office in March delivered 254 pages of records relating to Western Pacific Fishery Management Council activities. This is the … Continued

For the second time, Congress has decided to compensate bottomfish and lobster fishers for financial losses associated with federal regulations that limit commercial fishing opportunities in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. In January, President George Bush signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, … Continued