Department of Land and Natural Resources

 (HONOLULU) – The Department of Land and Natural Resources is taking immediate steps to comply with a new order issued late Friday from the First Circuit Court, requiring Chapter 343 environmental review for issuance of new or renewed annual commercial marine licenses (CMLs) to be used for aquarium fishing purposes under HRS 189-2.   

(MOLOKA’I) – Forests on the southern slopes of Moloka‘i are about to receive additional protections from threats like wildfires, erosion, and flooding thanks to a new award from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF). The foundation has awarded over $1.8 million to the DLNR to address threats using proven tools such as fencing and removing hooved animals, as well as creating firebreaks.

 (Kahului) – Warning signs are up on either side of Honokowai Beach Park in West Maui after an apparent shark incident this afternoon. Officers from the DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE) put signs up north from Kahana Village Vacation Rentals and south to Papakea Resort, just north of Airport beach. 

(Kailua-Kona) – On November 6, 2020 DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR) staff on Hawai’i Island responded to a report of numerous live coral fragments scattered below the base of a popular manta dive site mooring at Makakō Bay (Garden Eel Cove) in North Kona. DAR Kona staff documented numerous broken coral colonies along the mooring line and approximately 150 broken coral fragments in the sand at the base of the mooring. The definitive cause of the damage could not be determined and likely occurred more than two weeks prior to the report.

(Wailuku) – The DLNR Division of State Parks reopened ʻIao Valley State Monument November 21 on Maui.  The scenic park had been closed during most of the COVID-19 period due to crowding concerns and budgetary constraints.  ʻIao Valley, one of the most visited parks on Maui, contains a short hiking path and iconic views of Kuka‘emoku, popularly known as the ʻIao Needle.  Visitors are reminded to adhere to social distancing rules and wear protective masks when visiting the often-crowded park.  The new hours will be 7am-6pm, daily. 

(Honolulu) – The DLNR State Historic Preservation Division (SHPD) will be transitioning from its current submission process for the review of projects and federal undertakings to digital submission through the Hawaii Cultural Resource Information System (HICRIS).  After the transition is complete, HICRIS will be the only way that submittals for project review under Hawai’i Revised Statues or the National Historic Preservation Act will be accepted. 

(Mākena State Park, Maui) – It’s become a Sunday night tradition that regulars on Maui fiercely defend. Every week, for years, hundreds of people gather at Little Beach (Puʻu Ōlaʻi) to view the week’s first sunset. Long-time participants claim it’s a spiritual gathering. There’s a drum circle and dancing. Drummer George Chyz claimed that drumming is rooted in culture and this is a way for people to show their respect.  

(HILO) – In a steady rain you hear the chorus of native Hawaiian birds. Jackson Bauer, with the DLNR Na Ala Hele Trails and Access Program, identifies the sing-song chirp of the ‘ōma’o and then the ‘elepaio, calling its own name. Such are the sounds of the native forest along the new Kaulana Manu Nature Trail on Hawai‘i island. Add in the natural beauty of ‘ōhi‘a and koa trees, and an intact profusion of native plants, shrubs and insects  -- one even known as the happy-face spider -- and it lives up to its billing as a nature lovers paradise. 

(Makena State Park, Maui) – A team of eight officers from the DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE) conducted a law enforcement operation this evening at Little Beach in Makena State Park on Maui.

 (Honolulu) – The DLNR Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation (DOBOR) announces the launch of a virtual class for thrill craft certification by Windward Community College (WCC). The new and improved virtual certification course for new thrill craft owners and operators will be live on Monday, November 23, 2020.