U.S. Rep. Ed Case has introduced legislation proposing to acquire three parcels of land at Kilauea to expand the Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge by up to 219 acres. Congressional approval of the House bill would help protect pristine wilderness
U.S. Rep. Ed Case has introduced legislation proposing to acquire three parcels of land at Kilauea to expand the Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge by up to 219 acres.
Congressional approval of the House bill would help protect pristine wilderness areas from urbanization in Kilauea and protect endangered bird species, Case, D-rural Oahu-Neighbor islands, said in a news statement.
“The (existing) Kilauea refuge and these invaluable adjoining lands represent all that we want to preserve of our Hawaii,” Case said.
The additional lands would prove to be an asset to the refuge, said Gary Smith, chairman of the Crater Hill Association, a committee of the Kilauea Neighborhood Association that successfully lobbied in the past for the expansion of the refuge.
“Any additions to the Kilauea Wildlife Refuge would be greatly supported and appreciated,” Smith said.
The major expansion of the refuge came in March 1988 when the Kilauea Neighbor Association and the Crater Hill Coalition ceremonially transferred coastal lands known as Crater Hill and Mokulea Point to the federal government. The heart of the refuge is Kilauea Point, a peninsula that juts out to sea and is topped by the historic Kilauea Lighthhouse, which was dedicated in 1913.
The proposed expansion would take place on the eastern boundary of the existing 203-acre North Shore federal wildlife refuge, Case said.
The lands now being sought include parcels on both sides of the Kilauea River. All three parcels are available for sale, and include a site where Native Hawaiians once cultivated taro using a complex loi system. Also included in the parcel is what could be the deepest estuary in the Hawaiian Islands, an area some consider ideal for supporting endangered Hawaiian water birds. Some dune areas near an area commonly known as Rock Quarry Beach are part of the proposal.
The largest section being sought is the 161-acre Kilauea Falls Ranch, which is for sale for $5.5 million. A second parcel is 45 acres and known as Kilauea Vistas property. The third piece is the 12-acre Kilauea Bay property.
Kilauea resident Gary Blaich, who helped with the proposal, said, “a lot of people would like to see it stay as it is, but having the federal government take over is better than having homes built there and access limited.”
In a statement sent to Congress, Case said the owners of the three parcels have expressed a desire to “see the land protected from development.”
“But given rampant urbanization on Kauai ( and elsewhere in Hawaii) and the high demand for waterfront property, we could very well lose this remarkable opportunity to add high quality wildlife habitat to our national refuge system,” Case wrote.
The Kilauea River runs through the three parcels, which contain extensive loi patches which could be restored to support endangered Hawaiian waterbirds, Case said. They include the Koloa duck, Hawaiian coot, Hawaiian stilt and Hawaiian moorhen.
There exists a high-quality estuarine ecosystem at the lower reaches of the river that includes habitat for endangered birds and native stream life, Case said.
The proposed additional land would provide an excellent shelter for the nene, Hawaii’s state bird, Case said. In addition, the beach area is occasionally used by Hawaiian monk seals and nesting sea turtles, he said.
Case said the Kilauea community supports the protection of the area from development.
Case said the federal refuge is a model for the management of federal refuges nationwide. He praised volunteers for their help and others who work at the Kilauea Point Natural History Association, which operates a small store at the visitor center at the refuge and holds educational programs at the refuge.
The existing refuge was established in 1985 with 31 acres once manned by the National Lighthouse Service. In 1988, 37 acres at Mokulea Point were added to the refuge with $1.6 million in federal funds secured by U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii.
The U.S. government acquired the point in 1909 from Kilauea Sugar Plantation for $1 and construction of the lighthouse was completed in 1913. The light was used by ships sailing the trade route to the Orient and to and from Honolulu. The lighthouse was run by the U. S. Coast Guard when the last of Kilauea Lighthouse’s keepers left in 1976.
As a condition for the development of a subdivision, landowner Dorn Schmidt donated another 90 acres to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Smith said.
Through the impetus of Inouye, federal funds were used to buy another 20 acres from individual owners that were added to the refuge.
Kauai County Councilwoman JoAnn Yukimura supported the expansion of the refuge when she sat on the council in 1988 and served as mayor from 1988 to 1994.
TGI Editor Chris Cook contributed to this report.
