#Department of Land and Natural Resources

Environmental Court Judge Peter Cahill has ordered the Department of Land and Natural Resources not to issue or renew commercial use permits for state waters in Kāʻanapali until it can complete environmental assessments for their use or determine such permits are exempt from environmental review under Hawaiʻi law.

The Maui Hotel & Lodging Association will distribute 5-pound bags of rice on Lānaʻi as part of its annual Rice for the Holidays event, Nov. 23. The program began in 2008 when MHLA partnered with Jim Coon of Trilogy Excursions in their annual giveaway of turkeys to island residents. MHLA joined in by adding the rice to go with each turkey.

Conservation divers have successfully removed and relocated nearly 11 years’ worth of coral growth from a decommissioned offshore fish farm pipe ring that was towed into Honokōhau Small Boat Harbor last week on Hawai‘i Island.

The US Coast Guard plans to build a new, nearly 18,000-square-foot, three-story station on state-owned property with renovations to its existing station at Māʻalaea Small Boat Harbor, according to a draft environmental assessment.

Keiki, teens and young adults are encouraged to attend the Youth Climate Summit on Saturday at the Hawaiʻi State Capitol. Students will engage with policymakers, community and government organizations, as well as other youth leaders to promote climate policy action in Hawaiʻi.

Hunters are invited to participate in the collection of crop samples from birds harvested on Hawaiʻi Island. The crop is part of the bird’s digestive system where food is stored before it is digested.

Conservationists are taking their first “baby steps” toward the dream of Summit-to-Sea restoration of the reef at Olowalu.

Arbor Day in Hawaiʻi is Nov. 2, and it will be celebrated in Maui County with two events: one at the Maui Nui Botanical Gardens in Kahului with is annual Arbor Day Garden Expo & tree giveaway; and another by the Molokaʻi Land Trust, which will host its second annual native tree giveaway in Kualapuʻu.

V.R. Hinano Rodrigues, a native of Olowalu, has been appointed to serve on the state Commission on Water Resource Management, which determines who gets water resources statewide.

The community meeting to gather feedback on a new proposed site to rebuild King Kamehameha III Elementary School has been rescheduled to Tuesday, Nov. 19 at 5 p.m.

Illegal and harmful marine aquarium species are being set loose on Hawai‘i’s reefs, according to the state departments of Agriculture and Land and Natural Resources. And, the threat of non-native species to nearshore ecosystems has led to the launch of the “Don’t Let It Loose” campaign.

The Maui County Department of Environmental Management and US Army Corps of Engineers have released a third quarterly report on ongoing activities at the Olowalu temporary wildfire debris disposal site.

The “ʻIke Kaiāulu,” or “Community Knowledge,” series—produced by the DLNR’s Division of Forestry and Wildlife and Division of Aquatic Resources—aims to tap into the rich history of mālama ʻāina (caring for the land) and kai (the ocean).

Five ʻalalā (Native Hawaiian crow) were gingerly and ceremoniously transferred last week from their sheltered home at the Maui Bird Conservation Center in Olinda to a temporary field aviary on the slopes of Haleakalā.

With October declared as “Stop the Ant Month” in Hawaiʻi, a multi-agency effort has been launched to collect and control the pesky critters.

Since hosting community feedback sessions over the summer, the Hawai‘i State Department of Education continues to explore options for a permanent location to rebuild the fire-damaged King Kamehameha III Elementary School. A decision to move forward has not been made at this time. The original three sites being considered each presented challenges, and community feedback on the site that appeared most promising showed it was least preferred by stakeholders.

More than 100 coral fragments were rescued from the bay over a year ago and coaxed back to life in the Maui Ocean Center Marine Institute’s saltwater tanks.

A Kalaupapa Informational Briefing will be held at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 5 at the Kaunakakai Elementary School cafeteria on Molokaʻi.

There is much uncertainty about the rebounding of the Lahaina fishing industry with only two of the commercial fishing boats docked in the harbor having survived the fire and a timeline of at least two more years before the damaged harbor can reopen.

Hawaiʻi’s remarkable forest birds and the incredible conservation efforts to save them through the Birds, Not Mosquitoes (BNM) partnership are featured in an upcoming documentary entitled, “Vanishing Voices: Saving Our Hawaiian Forest Birds.”