The Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whales National Marine Sanctuary expansion plan will be discussed at the sanctuary’s advisory council meeting today. But a Jan. 22 letter from Suzanne Case, chairperson for Hawaii’s Department of Land and Natural Resources, was a tell
The Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whales National Marine Sanctuary expansion plan will be discussed at the sanctuary’s advisory council meeting today.
But a Jan. 22 letter from Suzanne Case, chairperson for Hawaii’s Department of Land and Natural Resources, was a tell for how the meeting might shake out.
“As the trustee of Hawaii’s natural resources, cultural resources, and submerged lands, the State of Hawaii supports an ecosystem-based management approach, but cannot endorse federal jurisdiction or enforcement of Hawaiian waters at this scale,” says the letter sent to John Armor, acting director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Case wrote that the DLNR “continues to believe that the Sanctuary should focus on complementing existing state functions and supporting existing management efforts of communities, non-government organizations, partner agencies, and other institutions rather than duplicating existing regulatory authority and programmatic efforts.”
The letter addresses the proposed expansion, made public in March, that would add 235 square miles of state and federal waters around Oahu, Kauai and Niihau, bringing the total area to 1,601 square miles.
Case wrote that the “this letter serves to confirm our agreement that the”Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary will continue in its current form.”
Kauai’s Kohola Leo, a whale conservation and education group, has been involved in the process.
“It’s a shock that the state came down the way they did and I’m really surprised, but I’m also pleased,” said Gordon LaBedz, with Kohola Leo. “Her letter said, ‘We’re not really comfortable with you guys taking the whole ocean on.’”
Carl Berg, chairman of Surfrider Foundation Kauai and a marine biologist on the island, said he was “excited the state has excepted responsibility for the management of these marine resources.”
The letter also says that DLNR has proposed a definition change of sanctuary resources to “any marine mammal within the boundaries of the sanctuary,” which switches the focus from solely on humpback whales.
The letter said that DLNR doesn’t support the broader habitat definition of sanctuary resources, however.
“Including the habitat of all Hawaii’s marine mammals would significantly extend jurisdiction and risk duplication with existing state regulations,” the letter says.
Though there is still much to be discussed today, both Berg and LaBedz said this was a breakthrough for those who have opposed the expansion.
he National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries will be discussing the status of the proposal at the meeting, according to Dan Dennision, senior communications manager for Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources,
