A Massive Effort To Manage Hawaii’s Nearshore Waters Just Launched On Maui 1 The process is beginning six years after Gov. David Ige first announced the initiative to manage 30% of the state’s nearshore waters by 2030.
In front of more than 100 people, the vast majority of them fishermen, Darrell Tanaka took the microphone and made something clear: This is just the start of a process that people need to show up for if they want their voices heard as the state makes big plans to manage certain Hawaiian waters.
He knows how things have changed in the waters surrounding Maui, because he’s been fishing there since he was young. Today, he also considers himself an activist and conservationist who has pushed for certain regulations to keep reefs healthy and always tried to make sure that fishermen had a seat at the table.
He was one of three storytellers invited to kick off the first meeting to gather community input in what some say is among the most important planning processes for Hawaii’s nearshore waters in recent history. It’s called Holomua Marine 30×30, a state-led initiative to effectively manage marine resources by establishing at least 30% of each island’s waters as a network of marine management areas by 2030.
