The RIR LAS/Division of Aquatic Resources has partenered with the CORAL Reef Alliance and other organizations to promote an anti-fish feeding conservation intitiative.

It is hoped that through societal pressure, this campaign will influence the businesses selling fish food and result in the cessation of fish food sales. In addition, the visitor and community feedback captured through the postcards may be used to leverage support for regulatory action towards the banning of fish feeding. At this time, the first round of postcards have been distributed and collected and project leaders have begun preliminary outreach efforts with recreational use fish food providers to try and persuade marketers to voluntarily cease the sale of fish food.

Fish feeding is already banned in several of Hawaii’s Marine Protected Areas and along large sections of the Kona Coast. The goal is to have additional sites on Maui regulated so fish feeding can be banned at these sites as well. The anti-fish feeding project will help to fulfill the outreach objective and the management objective by encouraging voluntary compliance using market pressure while educating commercial operators as well as the general public about the dangers of fish-feeding.

Visit CORAL Reef Alliance fore more information on this campaign.

Changing Tides - Promoting Responsible Behavior in the Marine Recreational Industry

The Changing Tides Campaign fulfills the outreach objective in the RIR LAS by engaging marine recreation providers and users in the development of informational guides that encourage good coral reef etiquette. However, because recreation activities are often non-extractive, if they are conducted and managed responsibly, they have the potential to increase public awareness and understanding of marine issues. This project will help to create awareness both within the industry member and consumer groups and will promote sustainable behavior to mitigate impacts from use on reef health.

Providing commercial recreation operators with accurate and geographically specific information will increase awareness among businesses operating in Hawaii’s coral reefs and will give them the tools to reduce the impacts to reefs caused by recreational use. These businesses will, in turn, pass the information provided to them to their customers who will also become more educated ocean users.

Hawaii Day-Use Mooring Buoy System Background, Site Selection Criteria, Installation, and Maintenance Procedures Manual

Diver preparing a site for buoy installation

The coral polyps that make up a coral reef are very delicate animals. Anchor damage is one of the most important physical threats to corals. Half a centimeter of coral broken off in a matter of seconds can take up to 25 years to grow back.

Day-use mooring buoys have proven to be an effective tool around the world in reducing the damage to coral reefs caused by anchors. They eliminate the need to drop anchor on coral reefs by providing boaters with a convenient means of securing their boats. (To continue reading about day-use mooring buoys, please visit Malama Kai Foundation.)

A manual on the Hawaii Day-Use Mooring Buoy System is being distributed to Harbor Masters throughout the State and to other relevant managers. An electronic copy will be available upon request in early 2009; please contact the coordinator.

A day-use mooring buoy

Recreational Carrying Capacity Study

This project will develop and implement a methodology for assessing and setting carrying capacity limits for various marine recreation activities at any given coral reef ecosystem in Hawai‘i. Through extensive literature review and site monitoring, a consultant will determine how different site conditions affect the resource impact caused by a certain amount of use. The consultant will develop a tool that managers can use to calculate thresholds of use at any site for specific activities, which can better inform them on how to restrict use to safer numbers and activities. (Due to the large file size of this report, please contact the coordinator if you are interested in a copy.)

Making a Difference: An Action Guide to Marine Conservation in Hawai‘i: What to do and who to call concerning ocean issues

This action guide has been designed as a community tool to provide key information, guidelines, and contact information for marine resource conservation. The goal is to empower Hawai'i's ocean users to take an active stewardship role in the preservation and protection of the marine environment. This action guide outlines key rules and regulations on a variety of topics and provides general ecological information and guidelines to follow such as actions to take, if any; what information to record; what agency to contact; and where to go for more information and guidance.

Printed materials will inform users how to minimize impacts from misuse or overuse of fragile environments. The campaign will attempt to minimize impacts caused by trampling or breaking of coral, fish-feeding, and litter; it will also aim to increase community reporting of sightings of endangered species such as the Hawaiian monk seal. Educating and engaging recreation users is essential as the number of daily ocean visitors increases and is identified as a key objective of the Recreation Impacts to Reefs Local Action Strategy.

Download a copy of the Action Guide.