(HONOLULU) – DLNR Chair Dawn Chang listened to and responded to dozens of questions from West Maui recreational boaters and commercial tour operators during a virtual information meeting on Tuesday. More than 450 community members, commercial operators, fishers, and other interested stakeholders dialed into the virtual meeting to get updates from the DLNR Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation (DOBOR) about the status of West Maui’s commercial and recreational vessel activities.

(Kahului, Maui) – Shark warning signs are up from Ho‘okipa to Baldwin Beach Park after a 45-year-old Haiku woman sustained minor scrapes in an apparent encounter with a shark at around 1:00 p.m. today. 

(Lāhainā, Maui) – The 150-year-old Banyan Tree, which shades nearly a full block between Front Street and Wharf Street in downtown Lāhainā, continues to show positive signs of recovery following the August 8 wildfire.  It is not the only tree, however, receiving attention from a group of volunteer arborists and landscapers who have banded together as the Lāhainā Treescape Restoration Project. The title was coined by arborist Steve Nimz who initiated care and watering for the historic Banyan tree. 

(KAUNAKAKAI, MOLOKA‘I) – Of all the main Hawaiian Islands, Moloka‘i is the poster child for the concept of mauka to makai. Barren landscapes and forests laid bare by decades of invasive hooved animals and water diversions have sent sediment from high country erosion onto the Friendly Isle’s fringing coral reef, described as a national treasure. 

(HONOLULU) – October is “Stop the Ant Month” in Hawaiʻi and a multi-agency effort throughout the month will encourage residents to collect and submit ants from their properties to help detect and control the spread of invasive little fire ants (LFA) and other harmful pest ants that may be new to the state.