News Releases

(Honolulu) – The grounding of the sailing vessel Hawaii Aloha off Hualalai on the Big Island’s Kona Coast on Jan. 3, 2015 caused limited resource damage. This is the determination of a team from the DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR) that conducted an in-water assessment of the area offshore of the grounding on Jan. 13.

HONOLULU – U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today that the State of Hawaii Dept. of Land and Natural Resources is a recipient of more than $467,000 as part of a new Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). The program’s focus on public-private partnerships enables private companies, land owners, local communities and other non-government partners to keep lands resilient, water clean and promote economic growth in a variety of industries.

HONOLULU – The Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) and several of its divisions responded to reports of at least six vessels adrift or grounded, as a result of a short, but severe winter storm on Jan. 2 and 3.

Honolulu – Officers from the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE), along with staff from the DLNR Division of State Parks, closed the Kua Bay section of Kekaha Kai (Kona Coast) State Park today after an unidentified object was found in the water.

Honolulu – Sunrise on this first day of 2015 was foiled by heavy cloud cover, but an estimated 500 early morning hikers still made the one and a half mile trek to the Makapu’u Lookout in Kaiwi State Park in East Oahu, as part of the annual First Day Hike.

KAILUA-KONA – The Department of Land and Natural Resources is reminding the public that West Hawaii state parks will close early at 5 p.m. Dec. 31, 2014, New Year’s Eve. Parks closing early include Hapuna, Kiholo and Kekaha Kai (Mahaiula and Kua Bay sections).

HONOLULU -- The Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) announces the closing of the Waikiki-Diamond Head Shoreline Fisheries Management Area, O‘ahu, to fishing for one year beginning Jan. 1, 2015, and ending Dec.31, 2015.

HONOLULU – An access gate at Ka’ena Point State Park Reserve, Mokule’ia section was locked at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 18, 2014. Only people who applied for permits under the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) new vehicle access system can now drive on designated roads within the park. Pedestrians and bicyclists do not need a permit.

WAILUKU –Division of Conservation and Resources (DOCARE) Enforcement Officers and Makai Watch volunteers with the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR), Community Fisheries Enforcement Unit (CFEU) will be at the Maui Mall this Saturday, December 20, 2014 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to help educate fishers about the new Maui Island fishing rules that became law on November 1.

HONOLULU -- Fans of the annual State Historic Preservation Division (SHPD) photographic calendar will find an unique historic journey in the 2015 edition, which highlights the evolution of Hawaii’s financial institutions. Built in an era of expanding prosperity, these institutions represent the optimism and confidence of the new and exciting world dramatically emerging in Hawai‘i, as well as an abiding faith in the future.