Hanauma Bay - preservation is key

by Michele Van Hessen
*Archived January 2006 article

When King Kamehameha conquered Oahu, his wife Queen Ka'ahumanu visited a bay at the foot of Koko Crater. She was so taken by its beauty, history records say, that the Queen stayed in the area for a month. Hula dancers and hand-wrestlers entertained her with performances and uma competitions, and Hanauma Bay became a favorite fishing spot for other royalty. The Bay and the surrounding lands came into the possession of Bernice Pauahi Bishop whose estate is known today as Kamehameha Schools. A deed restriction limited the land's use to public parks and rights of way. By buying the deed for one dollar, the City and County of Honolulu established Koko Head Regional Park, which encompasses Koko Head, Hanauma Bay, and Koko Crater.

In 1967, the State Division of Fish and Game declared Hanauma Bay a Marine Life Conservation District, prohibiting the taking of marine life, shells, coral, rocks, or sand. The city dredged rubble from the bottom, which increased small fish communities and larger fish established habitats inside the reef. A new boulder pile sheltered the original swimming area from incoming waves, making it more habitable for marine life and the bay became a glorious shallow snorkeling area. Tourists brought in by the busload shortly began to outnumber residents. The number of fish in the natural lagoons and artificial swimming areas increased enormously as people fed them bread, peas, and human snack foods. Tossing a handful of fish food into the water caused large and small, fast-moving fish to swirl around the visitors. The area became overcrowded. Visitors left their vehicles on lawns, roadways, and highways. The commercial tours monopolized the facilities. Park authorities realized they had to minimize the impact on the bay both by reducing the number of visitors and by teaching conservation.

The Friends of Hanauma Bay (FOHB) was incorporated in 1991, in response to a decision by the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation to tighten rules on access to the Hanauma Bay Nature Park. A few Hawaii residents came together to help protect the fragile marine ecosystem. At the same time, a group of marine life experts and educators at the University of Hawaii's Sea Grant Extension Service developed the Hanauma Bay Education Program that includes on-site interpretive talks, tours for visitors and residents, plus an outreach program to schools and interested organizations. The City is responsible for the preserve aspect; the State is responsible for everything in the water; U.H. Sea Grant is responsible for the educational program; and the FOHB assists in the operations, with the cooperation and approval of the other three. The effort of these groups helps to protect Hanauma Bay, which is a world-renowned Marine Life Conservation District.

The formation of FOHB, a grass-roots community group, adopted Hanauma Bay, Kalanianaole Highway from Keahole Street (Hawaii Kai) to the Shooting Range Road under the Park Department's Adopt-a-Park program. It conducts the required quarterly cleanups of the Preserve and assists in maintenance. Members testified at City Council meetings supporting a parking fee and an entrance fee for non-resident visitors to the Bay. And when he was on the City Counsel, Mayor Mufi Hannemann, at the urging of FOHB members, voted to have the Bay's funds kept separate from the general funds of the City. This has allowed the Bay to have its own budget and to purchase equipment critical to maintaining the Bay in an excellent manner. The FOHB impacted the testimony at the State Department of Land and Natural Resources Board meetings, which led to the ban of feeding the fish in the Bay resulting in Rudderfish and Mullets leaving the Bay. This allowed the remaining species to revert to natural feeding practices of a typical marine environment.

Cynthia Bond, President of FOHB, has set long- and short-term goals for the thriving organization. "First, I want to say that the real heroes of FOHB are the volunteers who have stood outside in the sun for the last 15 years working to get the word out about how to protect this fragile ecosystem." Bond, who is a woman with a vision, continued to say, "In the short term, we need to stop the illegal 'taxi vans' circumventing rules to bring people to the beach. I am hoping for a better balance between tourists and local residents at the nature preserve and would like to see a 15 percent increase in locals returning to enjoy the state-of-the art education center." Hanauma Bay is now a beautiful and interesting place once again. There is the multi-language video that every visitor must view and wonderful staff are at the Information Desk, the Video Theater and the beach Kiosk to assist in enhancing useful and education aspects of the facility.

FOHB is supported mainly through membership dues, the Board of Directors and a few other interested parties who are part of the operations of the renowned facility. Visit the website at: www.friendsofhanaumabay.org and support Bond's long-term goal to have Hanauma Bay be part of the global effort to teach everyone respect for the marine environment.


Hanauma Bay Education Program presents:

Educational Lecture Series
When: Every Thursday, except Holidays
Where: Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve theater
Costs: Free and open to the public
Time: 6:30-7:30 P.M.

January, 2006-Exploring Hawaii's Abyss

Thursday, January 5th: "Getting There! The Use of Submersibles in Research around Hawaii and the Western Pacific" by Dr. Rachel Shackelford of the Hawaii Undersea Research Laboratory and the University of Hawaii.

Thursday, January 12th: "The Sea of the Imagination" by the Films for Humanities and Sciences (Film).

Thursday, January 19th: "Unusual Deep Water Animals" by Dr. Christopher Kelley of the Hawaii Undersea Research Laboratory and the University of Hawaii School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology.

Thursday, January 26th: "Volcanoes of Island Arcs" by Dr. Patty Fryer of the University of Hawaii.

Parking is free after 5:30 P.M. For more information, call (808) 397-5840.

Hanauma Bay Education Program, UH-Sea Grant Extension Service, 100 Hanauma Bay Road, Honolulu, HI 96825. Email: hanauma@hawaii.edu