Success in battling forest-choking weeds can be a long-term proposition. On the island of Molokai, for example, our Nature Conservancy weed coordinator, Wailana Moses, repeatedly returns to the same locations to remove aggressive invasive weeds like clidemia and tibouchina.
One year, she and her crew were back at a familiar spot when they came across a small cluster of a native mint resembling ulihi. When told that the mint was actually a related species thought to be extinct, she smiled and said, “When you see the natives coming back, that’s when you know you’re winning.”
Conservation groups in Hawaii are still a long way from winning the larger battle to protect our native ecosystems. Nevertheless, this year on Earth Day there are significant victories worth celebrating that reflect the collective efforts of federal, state, private and community partners.
After six decades of decline, the population of the critically endangered Hawaiian monk seal has increased 2% a year over the last five years, with almost 200 new pups counted in 2017.
Just two years into a 10-year rest period at the newly created Ka‘upulehu Marine Reserve on Hawaii island, surveys show a 30-60% increase in some important food fish species, as well as improvements in coral cover and health.
On Maui, 250,000 native trees have been planted by partners on Haleakala’s dry leeward slopes, while community-led efforts to create coastal rest areas for opihi have increased populations in some areas 10-fold.
At Oahu’s Kaena Point Natural Area Reserve, installation of a predator-proof fence has been a boon to seabird populations. In 2018, there were 106 breeding pairs of albatrosses, along with a three-fold increase in wedge-tailed shearwater chicks over the last seven years.
Similarly, at the Conservancy’s Mo‘omomi coastal preserve on Molokai, predator control efforts have increased the number of wedge-tailed shearwater nests from two to more than 2,000.
As many of these successes show, when we remove threats, our native species have a remarkable ability to recover and flourish, benefit ting us all.
When seabirds return to the land, their droppings nourish and strengthen the coastal ecosystem. When our watershed forests are healthy, they reduce runoff into streams and the ocean that can destroy reefs and degrade fishing resources. And when coral reefs are free of invasive algae and runoff and have abundant fish populations, they are better able to withstand the effects of temperature increases and acidification.
Perhaps the greatest value of our native species is the life-giving benefits they create for our islands. The collective balance achieved over the millennia has produced forests and reefs that are uniquely adapted to our place in the Pacific and can best weather cycles of flood and drought and the impacts of climate change, while continuing to provide food, clean air and a stable supply of fresh water.
Climate change impacts — higher temperatures, coral bleaching, sea-level rise, more severe storms and less total rainfall — are already increasing. If we expect to be prepared for what’s coming, our focus as an island community needs to be on enhancing the resilience of the natural systems we depend on.
That’s what the state’s 30×30 initiative, which calls for effective management of 30% of our watershed forests and nearshore waters by 2030, is all about. Achieving that goal, and the state’s goal of 100% renewable energy by 2045, will enhance our prospects for food, water and energy security.
While recent successes put us on a forward path, much more is needed. I see Hawaii becoming a state of resilience, with vibrant native ecosystems. But achieving that end will require everyone’s support.
Ulalia Woodside is executive director of The Nature Conservancy in Hawaii.
