(HONOLULU) – U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today that the State of Hawaii Dept. of Land and Natural Resources is the recipient of more than $485,000 as part of the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). The program’s focus is on public-private partnerships that enable private companies, land owners, local communities and other non-government partners to deliver innovative watershed-scale projects to keep lands resilient, improve water quality and quantity, wildlife habitat, and to promote economic growth in a variety of industries. This award is the second year of the RCPP, and the second year Hawaii’s DLNR has received funding for watershed forest protection.
Forestry & Wildlife
HONOLULU -- The Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) is seeking comments on a Draft Environmental Assessment (DEA) in connection with a proposed Habitat Conservation Plan and Incidental Take License (ITL) for game management at Pu‘u Wa‘awa‘a Forest Reserve and Pu‘u Anahulu Game Management Area.
(LIHUE) – For the last few weeks a large excavator has been digging hole after hole on the steep slopes of state forest reserves in the Kokee area of Kauai. Some 3,000 acres of land were scorched during a series of wildfires there during the summer of 2012. The excavator is preparing the ground for the hand planting of 20,000 foot-tall koa seedlings.
(HILO) – Recent aerial surveys of 810,000 acres of Hawaii Island forests showed that a fungal infestation of ohia trees is much greater than earlier thought. Using a helicopter and specialized survey equipment, surveyors from a collaboration of state, county and federal agencies flew over 81,000 acres, January 11 - 15, 2016. Satellite imagery of ohia forests in 2014 resulted in an estimate of 15,000 acres infected by this newly identified disease. The latest survey, pending ground verification, estimates the infection has now spread to some 34,000 acres of the ohia forest on the Big Island.
LIHU‘E, KAUA‘I -- The latest step in the state’s ongoing efforts to restore the Pu‘u Ka Pele Forest Reserve on Kaua‘i is to protect the newly out-planted koa trees within the previously burned and logged area, by carrying out an animal control hunt within a designated portion of the forest reserve. This animal control will run for two months from Feb. 8, 2016 to April 8, 2016.
HILO -- The Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR), Division of Forestry and Wildlife is holding a public hearing to provide the public the opportunity to present comments on proposed changes to government forest reserve lands on the island of Hawaiʻi.
HILO -- The Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) will conduct animal control activities specifically for trapping mouflon/feral sheep hybrids; staff hunting, and/or aerial shooting from helicopters for feral goats, feral sheep, mouflon and mouflon/feral sheep hybrids within palila critical habitat in the Mauna Kea Forest Reserve (Unit A), Mauna Kea Ice Age Natural Area Reserve (Unit K), Palila Mitigation Lands, and the Ka‘ohe Game Management Area (Unit G) on the island of Hawai‘i.
Hanalei, Hawai’i –The Kauai Nēnē Habitat Conservation Plan (KN HCP) will hold the first in a series of public talks next week on the state bird of Hawai’i the endangered Nēnē. Project Coordinator Dr. Christian Vlautin will provide information about the Hawaiian Goose’s ecology and recovery on Kaua'i at 6 p.m. on Thursday, January 28 at Hale Halawai ‘Ohana O Hanalei Community Center at 5299 Kuhio Highway.
HILO -- The Department of Land and Natural Resources has closed the Muliwai hiking trail on the far cliff side of Waipio Valley and its Waimanu Valley campground, following the closure of Waipio valley access road on Wednesday to residents only by Hawaii County officials following confirmation of two cases of dengue in Waipio residents. Muliwai trail and Waimanu Valley can only be accessed via Waipio valley. Campers with existing permits will be contacted by DLNR’s Division of Forestry and Wildlife. No new permits will be issued until further notice.
HONOLULU – The start of a new year also marks the beginning of the annual Hawai‘i Big Tree Competition. Sponsored by the Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife and American Forests, the Big Tree program focuses attention on the largest trees of particular native species, as a way to raise awareness about the importance of healthy trees and forests.