Department of Land and Natural Resources

(Honolulu) – Today, the State Board of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR) agreed to a request from the DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR) to reopen four of twelve Bottomfish Restricted Areas (BRFAs) in the Main Hawaiian Islands. These restricted areas were first established in 1998 to provide refuge for what are known as the deep-7 bottomfish species.

(Honolulu) - The carcass of a sperm whale, first spotted off-shore from Kewalo Basin yesterday is now “hard-a-ground” adjacent to Sand Island State Recreation Area. Officers from the DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE), are working with NOAA’s Marine Mammal Response team, and City and County of Honolulu Ocean Safety on plans to try and remove the carcass on Saturday.

(Honolulu) - Jason Redulla, a 15-year veteran of the DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE) and 27-year law enforcement professional, has been chosen as the agency’s new enforcement chief. Redulla currently serves as DOCARE’s Deputy Enforcement Chief and Assistant Division Administrator.

(Honolulu) – On Thursday, officers from the DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE) were on routine patrol in windward O‘ahu when they observed a lay net violation in progress. This was on Kawa Stream, just makai of the Kahana Bridge.

(Honolulu) – The DLNR Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation (DOBOR) has closed the public loading dock at the Maunalua Bay boat ramp in east O‘ahu. Engineers are condemning the dock due to structural failure. They report the concrete pier structure could collapse into the water.

(Honolulu) –The last known Achatinella apexfulva in the Hawaiian Islands, “George,” died on New Year’s Day, 2019. George was approximately 14 years old and his name was derived from the Pinta Island Galapagos tortoise, “Lonesome George,” also the last of its species.

(Honolulu)–A New Year is coming, do your resolutions involve shaping the future of Hawai‘iʻs natural areas, cultural and historical sites, agricultural production, and other public resources? The Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) seeks three volunteers to join the Legacy Land Conservation Commission, for a term of up to four years.

(Kailua-Kona) – The Department of Land and Natural Resources is reminding the public that West Hawai‘i State Parks will close early at 5 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 31, 2018, New Year’s Eve. Parks closing early include Hāpuna, Kīholo and Kekaha Kai (Mahai’ula and Kua Bay sections).

(Kīlauea, Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi) -- In 2018, conservation partners again provided a new home, safe from invasive predators, for some of Hawaiʻi’s most imperiled seabirds. A total of 39 chicks, including 20 endangered uaʻu (Hawaiian Petrel) and 19 threatened ʻaʻo (Newell’s Shearwater), were moved from colonies in the mountains to the translocation site, called Nihokū, at Kīlauea Point National Wildlife Refuge. In this location, they are protected by a predator-proof fence surrounding the Nihokū restoration site.

(Honolulu) – The Waikiki-Diamond Head Shoreline Fisheries Management Area (SFMA), O‘ahu, will be closed to fishing for one year, from Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, 2019.