“I don’t trust the Planning Department – even now” said Hawai`i County Councilmember Margaret Wille. Wille, whose district includes a seven-lot gated subdivision known as Kohala Kai along the coast north of Kawaihae harbor, made the comments March 7, as … Continued
DLNR Rule Amendments Expand Protection of Live Rock and Coral The state Board of Land and Natural Resources has amended its rules protecting coral and live rock to improve the board’s ability to prosecute violations and impose penalties for damages. … Continued
Deep Percolation: Will an aquifer recharge more quickly under a forest than a grassland? The answer, according to research carried out on leeward Haleakala, is an unambiguous yes. Researchers with the U.S. Geological Survey simulated rainfall events at two areas at … Continued
Under rules proposed by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Forestry and Wildlife, transporting or releasing introduced wildlife without a permit would be a petty misdemeanor. In addition to a minimum fine of $100, first-time offenders … Continued
Maui Mouflon? Investigations into how axis deer arrived on the Big Island have turned up one intriguing theory: that at least some of the deer were brought from Maui in exchange for mouflon from the Big Island. Lending credibility to … Continued
It’s not a done deal yet, but the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is on its way toward clearing south Maui’s `Ahihi-Kina`u Natural Area Reserve of unexploded ordnance deposited during the 1940s, when the Navy used the area for target … Continued
The 2011 session of the Hawai`i Legislature won’t go down as a great one so far as the environment is concerned. Robert Harris, executive director of the Sierra Club, Hawai`i Chapter, has called it “deeply disappointing.” Still, several of the … Continued
As the group of scientists filed out of the room, Bob Nishimoto, a state aquatic biologist, clamped his arm around Greta Aeby’s shoulder and gave it a pat. After five years of exile, Aeby was finally going to resume her … Continued
How do you restore Hawai`i’s dryland forests? The question is a hard one to answer. Because so little is left of the forest types that once blanketed the islands’ leeward slopes, any restoration is bound to involve a level of … Continued
In the next decade or so, the Honolulu Board of Water Supply will introduce desalinated water into its municipal supply for Wai`anae, not because the island is short of groundwater, but because it’s cheaper than drilling new wells in wetter … Continued