Protecting & Preserving Paradise

Driven by a desire to create a world where both nature and people thrive, The Nature Conservancy of Hawai‘i has made great strides in safeguarding Hawai‘i’s environment. The goal is to support our culture, island life and economy. From mauka to makai.

Since its inception in 1980, TNC Hawai‘i has helped protect more than 200,000 acres of Hawai‘i’s best natural lands, including a statewide system of preserves totaling 40,000 acres. Its work is rooted in science, collaboration and innovation. These approaches help public and private landowners keep 2.2 million acres of Hawai‘i’s native forests and watersheds healthy, thereby protecting the source of our islands’ fresh water supply and the living coral reefs that protect our shorelines from storms, and provide food, jobs, spiritual renewal, and recreation.

The Big Warm Up

In response to increasing temperatures and extreme weather events, TNC Hawai‘i is investing in communities, partnerships, science and innovative technologies. For example, to protect dwindling native bird habitat in forests threatened by weeds, feral animals, and changing rainfall patterns, they are using drones, infrared binoculars, as well as heat and motion-sensing cameras to observe activity remotely. These measures have enabled more efficient use of staff time and resources. Another efficiency measure is the use of microwave communications technology to monitor and close gates on animal traps from their offices miles away.

The Conservancy has also installed high-elevation cameras and signal repeaters to enhance remote communications and help partners, including the state and county, to monitor and prevent damaging forest and grassland fires. Land and native forest management have helped to improve ocean health by reducing sediment and nutrient runoff.

TNC is working with community groups and government partners to restore and protect coral reefs and fisheries, conducting cutting-edge resilience surveys, and pioneering citizen science for water quality research.

In fact, from June 2015 through October 2016, the Pacific Ocean experienced 16 consecutive record-breaking months of high water temperatures. Corals rely on tiny algae that live inside them to get energy from the sun. When there is too much energy, such as when the water is too warm, the symbiotic algae inside the coral burst and the coral expels them, revealing the white, or ‘bleached’ skeleton. If conditions don’t improve before corals run out of energy, they die.

Over the last two years, the Conservancy’s science team has conducted surveys of West Hawai‘i’s reef systems. Their first reef resilience surveys took place at 20 reefs in West Hawai‘i during the peak of severe coral bleaching in 2015. Their team returned to these same reefs in 2016 and 2017 to measure recovery and mortality.

The Conservancy’s surveys revealed that at least 50% of the corals in West Hawai‘i were bleached as a result of rising water temperatures, and in some areas, up to 90% of the corals had died. Not surprisingly, working with communities and scientists to identify reefs that have the best chance of survival in warming seas, and focusing conservation actions in those areas is at the very top of the Hawai‘i Island marine team’s priority list.

Reef Resilience

“Although coral reefs can only survive in a relatively small thermal and chemical range, we are finding that some reefs along the Kona Coast are more resilient – they are doing better than their neighbors,” Wiggins says. “Reef resilience is an indicator of how well coral reef ecosystems respond to major impacts such as warming temperatures and changes in chemical composition of the water.

“Our data show that every coral reef was hit hard by bleaching, but resilience science teaches us that some coral reefs can withstand stress better than others. For example, near Kīholo, where clean, abundant fresh water provides a foundation for healthy corals, corals bleached less and are recovering faster. Near degraded landscapes where sediment and pollutants are going directly into the ocean, such as farther up the coast in Kohala, we see the opposite,” Wiggins added.

Understanding where reefs are doing better, and why, sets a positive framework for working with business, government, community and non-profit partners to take action to reduce the local impacts we can control, such as erosion and pollution. Scientifically measuring the benefits of these actions is also an essential tool in the process.

“We have excellent partnerships with communities that want to help manage their resources, as well as with coastal resorts that want to keep reefs healthy. We can connect communities and managers to our science and work together on actions that benefit Hawai‘i’s lands and reefs,” Wiggins says.

This type of partnership supports the establishment of marine reserves, including the one currently helping to restore reef fish at Ka‘ūpūlehu (location of the internationally renowned Hualālai Resort) and Kūki‘o.

With this 10-year “rest area” in place, fish that dwell on the reef will grow larger and become more abundant, producing more offspring that will help to improve fish populations in adjacent areas. Communities and agencies around the state are watching for results, and the Conservancy is providing technical and scientific support to assist them.

“Surveys demonstrating and documenting changes in the fish community here, now that the reef is protected, are more important than ever,” says Wiggins.

Simple Solutions

Today, the Conservancy is focused on the basics - cleaner water, healthier reefs and more fish. “If we want to protect coral, we need clean water; if we want to protect fish, we need to fish responsibly. And to protect reefs, we have to manage what happens both in the water and on land. We can’t do it alone and we need to use all the tools at our disposal,” Wiggins says.

According to the Conservancy, simple solutions like adding rest areas, managing erosion and landscapes, and measuring outcomes are not new concepts, but ancient ones. Native Hawaiians fished and farmed in these islands for hundreds of years, meeting the needs of a pre-contact population of 400,000 to 1,000,000 people who intimately understood how to balance their needs with a respect for nature. Today, the Conservancy is engaging with people and providing science across Hawai‘i to restore sustainable fisheries and corals, refurbish vibrant native forests, build resilient communities, and ensure a supply of clean, fresh water.

“By working together, we can grow more fish, help coral survive heating oceans, and restore native forests and fresh water supplies," says Wiggins. "These are things we can all enjoy.”

You Can Help

Contribute. In 2015, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) designated West Hawai‘i Island’s reefs along the Kona Coast as a national priority. NOAA is matching private contributions there nearly threefold. NOAA’s grants enable the Conservancy to conduct science and work with communities to assess the highest priorities for managing marine resources and for replenishing fish stocks and coral reef health along the Kona Coast. In addition, the local TNC Board has launched a “Science, Innovation and Technology Fund” to continue leadership in this area. For more information, please contact Sven Haarhoff at shaarhoff@tnc.org.

Volunteer. TNC Hawai‘i hosts monthly volunteer workdays at Kīholo fishpond on Hawai‘i Island on the third Saturday of each month. Volunteer days are open to residents and visitors alike and are coordinated by Rebecca Most. Please contact her at rmost@tnc.org.

Follow. Wiggins added, “We rely on support from others who love nature and understand the work we are doing to care for our lands and waters. I encourage people who are interested in supporting our work or finding out more to visit www.nature.org/Hawaii, or follow us on social media (@TNCHawaii, nature_hi), or contact me at cwiggins@tnc.org.”