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NEW TSUNAMI VIDEO GIVES INSIGHTS, ANSWERS ON HOW TO PREPARE April is Tsunami Awareness Month in Hawai‘i.  The University of Hawaiʻi Sea Grant College Program (Hawaiʻi Sea Grant) partnered with organizations across the state to promote tsunami preparedness by creating a new 2024 Hawai‘i Tsunami Preparedness video.  This year marks 78 years since the deadly ...
Read More April is Tsunami Awareness Month in Hawaii

If you are interested in applying for a mooring in a harbor or an offshore mooring, if you are a long-time tenant of a DOBOR facility, or if you are a commercial tenant, there are three newly-published resources that provide valuable guidance on the rules and regulations that apply to you.  “Applying for a Mooring ...
Read More The Harbor User Handbook

HAZARD TO NAVIGATION IN OUR WATERS Attention boaters, a section of a dock approximately 8×8′ in size has been sighted in our waters.  It was last seen Sunday, 1/9/22, within three miles of land off the island of Oahu.  Coordinates: 21 28.276 N; 157 47.344 W.  It was described as being 1000 feet south of ...
Read More HAZARD REPORT

IF YOU’RE ALWAYS ON THE LOOKOUT FOR TURTLES, MAYBE YOU’VE SEEN SOME HAWKSBILLS! Click on an image to enlarge. Although rare to find, Hawaiian hawksbills (Eretmochelys imbricata) inhabit the same coastal waters with our more common green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas).  If you’re lucky enough to discover one, please send your sighting information to Hawaiian ...
Read More Have You Seen this Turtle?

Upcoming Rule Amendments Bulletins on Severe Weather Facility Closures Construction Alerts Sign up for email and text alerts on DOBOR updates.    

Keehi Small Boat Harbor office will be closed to the public on Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning Thursday, October 1, 2020 until further notice.  Staff shortages have prompted the change.  The office will be in operation but closed to the public so DOBOR staff can keep up with necessary paperwork and administrative duties to maintain harbor ...
Read More KEEHI SBH OFFICE – NEW PUBLIC HOURS BEGINNING 10/1/20

MONDAY – FRIDAY PUBLIC ACCESS RESTORED.  DOBOR’s Hawaii District Office and the adjacent Honokohau Harbor Office will again be open to the public Mondays through Fridays (except State holidays) from 8am to 4pm beginning Monday, March 1, 2021. Customers can still mail in any payments, gross receipt forms and permit renewal documents to the harbor ...
Read More Hawaii District and Honokohau SBH – Days of Operation Changing

The DLNR Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation is inviting the public to sign up for email and text notices of division plans and actions that may impact the public.  Those who visit the signup page can enter their e-mail address and/or phone numbers (for phones capable of accepting text messages). Data charges will apply.  ...
Read More DOBOR INVITES THE PUBLIC TO SIGN UP FOR EMAIL AND TEXT NOTICES

If you launch a boat from one of O‘ahu’s small boat harbors you’ll see one. If you start hiking up one of the island’s popular trails you’re bound to see one. By the end of today, 25 large, conservation messaging signs will have been installed at various locations under the jurisdiction of the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR). Another five signs are portable and will be used for various outreach and education purposes.

Hawai’i’s small boat harbors, under the jurisdiction of the DLNR Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation (DOBOR), serve as the ocean gateways for thousands of kamaʿāina and visitors every year. In addition to maintaining 2,000 berths statewide and registering some 12,000 boats, DOBOR and its small boat harbors are used for a large variety of purposes. Boating, obviously, but also snorkeling, diving, touring, fishing and kayaking are among the frequent uses of our sixteen small boat harbors. All of these harbors and their ramps, piers, moorages, wash downs, comfort stations and parking lots require constant maintenance. While many boaters and commercial operators pay fees, any private boat owner can acquire an annual launch ramp decal for $50. These harbors also serve literally, as “safe harbors” during storms. These facilities are constantly exposed to the corrosive effects of salt air and salt water. This means, in addition to regular maintenance, the frequency in which you have to replace structures is greatly accelerated.