Holomua Marine Initiative seeks community input for Maui nearshore marine management

Maui residents are called to join the conversation and provide feedback on a revised draft proposal developed for Maui’s nearshore waters, ensuring healthy reefs and abundant resources for future generations. The DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources, Holomua Marine Initiative is hosting two upcoming information exchange sessions on the proposal.

The community-nominated Maui Navigation Team has worked collaboratively with DAR for more than two years to create draft management recommendations with the Maui community, which were first shared to the public through a series of Information Exchange Sessions hosted in September of 2024. The navigation team is grateful to everyone who attended these sessions and took time to share their manaʻo and feedback. Based on the comments received during these initial sessions, the navigation team has further revised the proposal to reflect the priorities and needs communicated to it by the Maui community and is seeking additional input.

Please save the date, RSVP at https://bit.ly/holomuarsvp and join one of these upcoming sessions:

• Pukalani: Tuesday, July 29, 2025 – 5:30 p.m. – 8 p.m.
  Mayor Hannibal Tavares Pukalani Community Center
  91 Pukalani St., Pukalani
  
• Kīhei: Wednesday, Aug. 6, 2025 – 5:30 p.m. – 8 p.m.
  Kīhei Community Center
  303 E Lipoa St., Kīhei

The Holomua Marine Initiative first launched on Maui in October of 2022 with a series of public talk-story sessions to learn more about community management priorities and concerns regarding the status of Maui’s nearshore resources. Holomua is an inclusive, bottom-up approach to marine resource management that is community-driven and incorporates local ecological and cultural knowledge. 

When the process first launched, the Maui community nominated members to form a navigation team, which is a 16-member hui of Maui fishers, community leaders, cultural practitioners and scientists who were tasked to co-develop a nearshore management plan with support from DAR. The team members bring decades of experience with Maui’s nearshore resources and knowledge of local fishing practices. The team represents 10 of the 12 Maui moku.   

The navigation team’s management proposal for Maui includes strategies that are centered around the Holomua Marine Initiative’s four main pillars for effective management: 1) place-based planning, 2) pono practices, 3) monitoring and 4) restoration. Some key topics in the draft proposal include fishing rules geared toward reducing unsustainable fishing practices, improved enforcement and strengthening compliance, creating a habitat restoration area and addressing land-based threats to the nearshore reefs such as injection wells and sedimentation. 

The draft recommendations offer a holistic approach to nearshore marine management for Maui, and balance the need for conservation and restoration of resources like fish and corals, while also allowing sustainable harvest to continue feeding Maui families.