LIHU‘E — The Department of Land and Natural Resources announced Thursday agricultural producers, land managers and landowners on Kaua‘i are now eligible to enroll in the Hawai‘i Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program. DLNR is encouraging landowners on Kaua‘i to join with
LIHU‘E — The Department of Land and Natural Resources announced Thursday agricultural producers, land managers and landowners on Kaua‘i are now eligible to enroll in the Hawai‘i Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program.
DLNR is encouraging landowners on Kaua‘i to join with their peers on Maui and the Big Island to help meet a goal of enrolling 15,000 acres statewide of degraded lands and other environmentally sensitive areas in actions to restore native forest and riparian areas, states a DLNR press release.
Participants will be eligible for a variety of financial assistance incentives from federal and state partners and will have access to technical experts on native forest restoration, the release states.
A Hawai‘i CREP contract term is 15 years and eligibility requires that the land be adjacent to a natural water course, perennial or intermittent. Those who enroll will plant long-term, resource-conserving covers to improve water quality, control soil erosion and enhance habitats for native wildlife, the release states.
“With Kaua‘i’s high rainfall and numerous stream channels, there is potential for this program to have a large impact on the Garden Isle,” Chairman William Aila Jr. said in the release.
The program began in 2009 with landowners on Maui and the Big Island. The following year, Molokai and Lana‘i were added. O‘ahu will be eligible in October.
DLNR said interest in the program has been encouraging, and to date the program has enrolled more than 450 acres, with the majority of projects focused on restoration of riparian forest buffers or improvement of wildlife habitats.
Through this and other state programs, more than 100 federally endangered plants and animals have benefited from native forest and habitat restoration, 225 different invasive species have been targeted for control, and increased forest cover and improved forest health in upper elevations contributes to state water availability, the release states.
“Conservation of our natural resources is not limited to government-managed lands,” Aila said. “The sustainable management of private lands in Hawai‘i is esswwential to continue our lifestyle in the islands.
Contact Irene Sprecher at 587-4167, email Melissa Sprecher at melissa.i.sprecher@hawaii.gov at the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife or visit www.fsa.usda.gov for more information.
