Ban on pakuikui fishing remains, for now

The state Board of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR) has settled on a sort-of compromise over reef fish harvesting in the waters off West Hawaii, with a vote Friday to extend a ban on bagging pakuikui, or Achilles tang, that ends this year for another two years.

Reef fish populations in the coastal waters have been in sharp decline because of extensive commercial aquarium harvests, and commercial takes have been prohibited since 2017. In September, BLNR voted to prohibit all pakuikui fishing for an upcoming 12 years, but subsistence fishers protested, and the board relented.