Don Thornburg of Kapa‘a and Jeanne Russell of Lihu‘e have been appointed to serve on the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council. Members of the council are tasked with making recommendations on how to best manage and
Don Thornburg of Kapa‘a and Jeanne Russell of Lihu‘e have been appointed to serve on the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council.
Members of the council are tasked with making recommendations on how to best manage and protect the federally protected North Pacific humpback whales.
The species numbers between 3,700 to 5,000 whales, and roughly two-thirds of the whales migrate each winter to warm, near-shore Hawaiian waters for mating, calving and nursing.
Thornburg will serve as an alternate on the 16-member board. He previously held the ocean recreational alternate seat on the council.
Thornburg has experience working with marine industries and participating in efforts involving coastal-zone issues.
Russell, a high-school teacher at a private school on Kaua‘i, will serve as a primary member in an education seat with the council.
Russell has had a long-time interest in marine conservation, and has volunteered to work in a sanctuary in the past.
Also named to the council were Cheryl Sterling of Maui, who will fill a Maui County seat; and Michelle Yuen of O‘ahu, who will fill a primary Native Hawaiian seat on the council.
Primary and alternate members on the council serve two-year terms. The advisory council meets bi-monthly in public sessions.
The council was established in 1986, and is composed of 16 government and 15 non-governmental representatives. The group brings matters of community interests and concerns to sanctuary officials and leaders of the federal National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Sanctuaries are found off all the main Hawaiian Islands, and extend seaward to a depth of 600 feet, according to Keeley Belva, a spokeswoman for the NOAA office on O‘ahu.
The Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary is administered through a partnership between NOAA and the state Department of Land and Natural Resources.
Staff Writer Lester Chang may be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 225) or mailto:lchang@pulitzer.net.
