Wai‘anae Ecological Characterization

Ahupua‘a Management and the WEC

In recent years, the concept of watershed, ecosystem-based management has gained in popularity as communities strive for sustainability. Increasing pressure on natural resources and a greater understanding of environmental systems has encouraged a more holistic approach to resource management. Whereas typical resource management efforts tend to address individual environmental issues separately, watershed management recognizes the interconnectedness of ecological components, such as the relationship between deforestation, soil erosion, and poor water quality. As part of its holistic approach, watershed management encourages the input of stakeholders and the public, with the recognition that natural resource management plans cannot succeed without acceptance and commitment from community members. Community leaders and resource managers have realized that this approach can save significant time, money, and effort in developing sustainable, appropriate environmental management plans for their communities.

In Hawai‘i, communities have rediscovered a traditional Hawaiian concept of managing land and natural resources known as ahupua‘a management. Ahupua‘a management is similar to watershed management in that ahupua‘a are land divisions based on natural features such as mountain ridges and streams, much like watersheds. Ahupua‘a encompass the land, water, and elements in the sky from mauka to makai, from the tops of the mountains into the sea. Beyond the watershed management concept, however, ahupua‘a management integrates natural resource concerns with cultural, human, and spiritual resources.

The concept of ahupua‘a was the foundation of traditional Hawaiian land and resource management. An ahupua‘a, according to Pukui and Elbert (1986), is a "land division usually extending from the uplands to the sea, so called because the boundary was marked by an ahu (heap) of stones surmounted by an image of a pua‘a (pig)." Traditional ahupua‘a management was defined as a "principle that land should run from the sea to the mountains, thus affording to the chief and his people a fishery residence at the warm seaside, together with the products of the high lands, such as fuel, canoe timber, mountain birds, and the right of way to the same, and all the varied products of the intermediate land as might be suitable to the soil and climate of the different altitudes from sea soil to mountainside or top" (Hawai‘i Supreme Court 1879).

Ahupua‘a management evolved in Hawai‘i, in recognition of the interconnectedness of its natural resources, social environment, and land – including submerged lands, coral reefs, and islets. Wholly recognizing the processes of land from the mountains or uplands through the sea provides a powerful study and management unit that integrates ecological, geographical, geological, and cultural aspects that have generally been regarded as separate entities in our modern land-use planning system. Using the ahupua‘a concept, communities can begin to assess the health and vulnerability of their surrounding environment, and can formulate best management practices for sustainable, long-term land and natural resource management.

Modern ahupua‘a management focuses on fostering stewardship of the land and sea and understanding of the interconnectedness of the health of our environment and ourselves. It provides opportunities to promote community-based efforts with localized knowledge to take an active part in decisions about the use of the ahupua‘a. Partnerships and the active involvement of stakeholders are essential for integrating ahupua‘a principles and practices within a modern government organizational and legal framework.

Cumulative and Secondary Impacts Program

The Wai‘anae Ecological Characterization (WEC) was developed as a component of CZM Hawai‘i's Cumulative and Secondary Impacts (CSI) initiative that was undertaken to address the negative impacts of human-based activities on Hawai‘i's ocean and coastal resources. The Wai‘anae moku was selected as the project site due to its strong community-based management ethic that is a prerequisite for moku and ahupua‘a management. The data and information compiled for the WEC provides a site-specific picture of the Wai‘anae region's ecosystems, including its human elements. The socioeconomic and cultural history captured in the WEC, as well as the inventory of terrestrial and marine resource data, are an integral part of the planning process of the Wai‘anae moku management strategy.

Overall, the WEC will help the CSI program to:

1. Identify priority resource issues, concerns, and challenges;
2. Promote collaborative solutions to address identified resource priorities;
3. Facilitate the discussion of watershed management practices that could be integrated into coastal zone management enforceable policies;
4. Educate communities about the impact of land-based activities on their water and coastal and marine resources, such as coral;
5. Assist communities in making better decisions about land use activities;
6. Provide a mechanism for cross-sector education between government, business, and the community to foster consensus amongst groups; and
7. Provide a practical basis for the formation of a Wai‘anae Watershed Management Strategy to address CSI.

References Cited

Hawai‘i Supreme Court. 1879. "Boundaries of Pulehunui." 4 Haw. 239, 241.

Pukui, M.K., and S.H. Elbert. 1986. Hawaiian Dictionary, Hawaiian-English, English-Hawaiian. University of Hawai‘i Press. Honolulu, HI.

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