Wildcoast-USA News: 2 Sep 2010 at 9:48am
Earth News looks at rocks, global warming and extreme weather to get the lowdown on what the Earth is trying to tell us.

Wildcoast-USA News: 2 Sep 2010 at 9:30am
Latest headlines from WN Network

Instead of producing reports 3,000 pages long, the IPCC should focus only on the key questions that everyone is interested in If the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change didn't exist, would we need to invent it? Many people find it helpful to have a single point of reference on the big, global questions that everyone is interested in: can we detect human influence on climate, how large are changes expected to be in future, what are the main impacts likely to be and what can (not should) be done about it? These are questions on which the level of scientific consensus is far higher than most non-scientists believe, so an institution like the IPCC clearly has a role to play to assess and...
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change must keep its eye on the ball 2 Sep 2010 at 9:45am

Large and powerful Hurricane Earl continued on a steady north-northwest track toward the U.S. coastline Thursday morning, moving around 18 mph. The storm was sitting less than 24 hours from making a possible landfall on North Carolina's Outer Banks. As of 8 a.m. EDT, Hurricane Earl...
Hurricane Earl's path could include two U.S. landfalls over busy Labor Day we... 2 Sep 2010 at 9:41am

Maalaea Bay’s once-vibrant reefs suffer decline at an alarming rate By CHRISTIE WILSON, The Honolulu Advertiser

The best place to see vibrant coral reefs in Maalaea may be at the Maui Ocean Center. The popular aquarium displays an abundant range of marine life that no longer exists in the adjacent bay, which has experienced a total collapse of its underwater ecosystem in recent years, due largely to human impacts.

Coral coverage in the bay was estimated at 50 to 75 percent in 1993 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, similar to that found in the nearby Molokini Shoal Marine Life Conservation District. In 2006, a survey found only 8 percent coral coverage at Maalaea.

The alarming speed at which the marine landscape has deteriorated offers an important lesson in coral reef conservation, according to Russell Sparks, an education specialist with the state Division of Aquatic Resources.

"When these reefs degrade, when they go off the edge, it happens very quickly," Sparks said. "When we see signs of it, we need to be willing to make changes, sometimes major changes, and do it very quickly."

The causes of coral reef decline at Maalaea are complex, but severe overgrowth of invasive algae is one indication the ecosystem's natural balance is seriously out of whack, he said.

"We're not sure if it's the cause of the reef degradation or just the symptom. When you have a healthy reef, there's no place for that algae to grow," he said.

Shallow reefs in Maalaea and neighboring Kihei are almost totally overgrown with Acanthophora spicifera (spiny seaweed), Ulva spp. (sea lettuce) and reddish or brownish Hypnea musciformis (hookweed), which can double its biomass in just two days. Growth rates of the limu in South Maui are among

the highest anywhere in the world.

The economic impact of the Kihei seaweed invasion has been estimated at $20 million annually from lost hotel revenue, reduced property values and removal costs.

The ecological impact is incalculable.

"Algae is a natural part of the reef, but what happens when it's growing out of control is that it smothers some of the corals and acts as an irritant," Sparks said. "Healthy corals are not going to be affected by algae, but when you have everything else stressing out the ecosystem, it can become a big problem."

University of Hawaii studies have found a correlation between severe algal growths and coastal areas with high human population densities. There also is evidence that concentrations of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus are highly elevated in nearshore areas where algal blooms are found. These nutrients, from fertilizers and wastewater, are believed to accelerate seaweed growth.

Maalaea Bay is in close proximity to vast agricultural fields and golf courses, which are sources of fertilizer runoff, and the area's extensive coastal development is served by injection wells that discharge treated sewage into the ocean.

"Maalaea is in a wetland coastal area where you have groundwater and surface water funneling down there from the entire Central Maui isthmus," Sparks said.

Unmonitored grading of a major commercial development in Maalaea in the late 1990s resulted in tons of sediment being deposited into the bay, further stressing the reefs, and piles of rotting seaweed encourage bacteria hostile to corals.

As a result of these multiple impacts, Sparks said, Maalaea Bay has changed from "a dynamic, actively growing coral reef ecosystem" into eroding and relatively flat areas that don't provide structurally complex habitat for the herbivorous fish that can keep algae growth in check. Instead, the fish stocks are in poor condition, dominated by small wrasses, triggerfish and puffers.

It may be too late for Maalaea's reefs to recover, but the state Department of Land and Natural Resources took action this year to prevent the same kind of swift decline off north Kaanapali, which also suffers from algal blooms.

The newly created Kahekili Herbivore Fisheries Management Area bans removal of rudderfish (nenue), parrotfish (uhu), surgeonfish and sea urchins, all important limu-grazers.

Featured Coastline: ENGLAND

Past news: WASHINGTON - President Bush created the world's largest marine protected area — a group of remote Hawaiian islands that cover 84 million acres and are home to 7,000 species of birds, fish and marine mammals, at least a quarter of which are unique to Hawaii.

At a White House ceremony, the president designated the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands the United States’ 75th national monument. The islands have been described as “America’s Galapagos” and as the most intact tropical marine region under U.S. jurisdiction.

“To put this area in context, this national monument is more than 100 times larger than Yosemite National Park,” Bush said. “It’s larger than 46 of our 50 states, and more than seven times larger than all our national marine sanctuaries combined. This is a big deal.”     Bush continued:

WAILUKU — State land and natural resources officials on Maui are already discovering problems with the new lay gill net rules and regulations, The Maui News reported.

They restrict lay gill net fishing around Maui and apply new rules to fishermen on Molokai and Lanai.

    Help Keep it Clean

"What we are finding to be problematic is that many within the public currently believe the (lay net) gear is restricted, period," said Randy Awo, Maui branch chief of enforcement for the state Department of Land and Natural Resources.

But lay nets can still be possessed by fisherman who are doing surround net fishing, Awo said.

It's the lay net practice that is prohibited, he added. more...

• New lay net rules in effect statewide

Gov. Lingle has approved amendments to HAR Chap 13-75, restricting the use of lay nets and prohibiting their use in certain waters. The new rules are now in effect. Included are requirements for lay net registration, limits on dimensions and soak times, requirements for attendance and inspection, and prohibitions on use in streams and stream mouths. Lay net use is also prohibited around the entire island of Maui, and in certain waters off Oahu, including Kaneohe and Kailua Bays, and the south shore between Koko Head and Pearl Harbor. More details can be found by downloading the following pdf files:

HAR 13-75: Rules regulating the possession and use of certain fishing gear (3 MB):

http://www.hawaii.gov/dlnr/dar/regs/ch75.pdf

Lay net rule summary sheet (84 KB) : http://www.hawaii.gov/dlnr/dar/pubs/laynetsumm.pdf

News release links:
New Rules For Lay Gill Nets In Effect: http://www.hawaii.gov/dlnr/chair/pio/HtmlNR/07-N024.htm

DLNR Announces Procedure For Lay Net Fishers To Register Their Nets:

http://www.hawaii.gov/dlnr/chair/pio/HtmlNR/07-N028.htm

Gill Net ban progresses in Maui, part of Oahu

Cousteau to plan a 434 acre complex in Ha'u Hawaii with Sea Mountain 5.  The project will include a marine conservation program and Hawaiian cultural center. More     Monk Seal caught in gil net

President Bush signs: Establishment of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument

Seaside snorkel area - great for exploring and relaxation - Wailea, Maui

Green sea turtles abound - view the vast sea life at Wailea, Maui, Hawaii - accommodations right on the sand and by the reefs. Polo Beach Club.
7/26/2006 3:30:00 PM [A Plus Resorts- Information]

Release from:   Maui News

Little Hope For Reef Fish  2/2 The good news is that most everyone is ready to admit that Maui's inshore fisheries need regulations and protection. The bad news is that nearly everyone involved thinks it is "the other guy" who needs to be regulated. Hawaii is the only state in the nation that allows the use of lay nets, also known as gill nets, on inshore reefs. In 1998, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources set up at Gill Net Task Force. Some of the task force recommendations were written into regulations which were given a round of public hearings in 2002. During the course of collecting public testimony for lay net regulations, it became apparent that the DLNR should consider a ban on the nets. That required a new round of public meetings which are now being conducted. The DLNR's Division of Aquatic Resources held one of those sessions last week in Kahului. Nearly everyone agreed there were fewer fish in the waters around Maui. Most said they weren't to blame because they only took what they needed. They didn't specify if what they needed was for food for the family or cash to pay for the boats, motors, fuel and monofilament nets. That same argument has stalled effective marine life conservation despite decades of anecdotal and scientific evidence the islands' inshore reefs are being turned into coral deserts. As usual, the latest meeting heard plenty of testimony that the real culprits ranged from windsurfers to developers who allowed reef-smothering runoff. The suggestion that a konohiki (manager) be named for each ahupuaa (a sea-to-mountain-top land division) to decide how much and what kind of fishing the ocean could handle at any given time was greeted warmly and might be cause for the DLNR to set off in yet a new direction, requiring another two years or so of analysis, rule writing and hearings. Besides, the old maps show Maui alone had more than 60 ahupuaa. The DLNR's administrative rules allow it to establish temporary fishing bans on individual reefs at any time, allowing fish populations to be replenished naturally. It worked off Waikiki's Kuhio Beach, but in Maui waters it would require more enforcement than the state has been willing to fund in the past. Meanwhile, the reef fish disappear, and no one seems willing to do what needs to be done to save them. New law prohibits taking of female lobsters and crabs On May 4 Gov. Lingle signed into law Act 77, which prohibits the taking or killing of female ula (spiny lobsters), Kona crabs, and Samoan crabs. The law took effect the same day. Closed season for spiny lobsters and Kona crabs continues through the end of August, but there is no closed season for Samoan crabs. For information on how to tell the difference between males and females of these species, http://www.hawaii.gov/dlnr/dar/fish_regs/mvf.htm. ------------------------