Activists File Suit Against Hawaiian DLNR to Stop Aquarium Collection

[Aloha Corals]

Aloha,

This seems to be flying under the radar, so i wanted to be sure everyone was aware what is going on lately in Hawaii.

Anti-Aquarium Activists Sue DLNR to Stop Aquarium Collection | AquaNerd

Groups sue DLNR over fish collecting | West Hawaii Today, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii

Actual Complaint: http://earthjustice.org/sites/default/files/aquarium-trade-complaint.pdf (.pdf file)

Groups sue DLNR over fish collecting


The Department of Land and Natural Resources should have conducted environmental reviews before issuing aquarium fish collecting permits, environmental groups and several Hawaii residents say in a lawsuit filed Wednesday in Oahu’s 1st Circuit Court.

Earthjustice, the Conservation Council for Hawaii, the Humane Society of the United States and the Center for Biological Diversity joined with Maui resident Rene Umberger, Milolii residents Kaimi Kaupiko and Willie Kaupiko, and West Hawaii resident and business owner Mike Nakachi to file the complaint. The complaint seeks a declaratory judgment ordering the state to perform reviews under the Hawaii Environmental Policy Act. The plaintiffs say the act applies to the permits because they regulate an activity that happens within state waters.

“DLNR has never examined under HEPA the impacts of issuing permits allowing fish and invertebrate collection for the aquarium trade on the scale that has been occurring, yet in its 1998 State of the Reefs Report, the agency admitted that, ‘studies to characterize the effects of removal of reef fish on the coral reef ecosystem are necessary if this activity is to continue,’” the complaint said.

Umberger said the best possible outcome for the lawsuit, which she said should not result in lengthy court proceedings, is an order for the department to undertake the review.

“Collection stops in order for assessments to be made,” Umberger said. “How does (removing the fish) affect the entire ecosystem? Then the decision is made from there: Is collecting something we want to allow?”

DLNR Chairman William Aila said the Attorney General’s Office was reviewing the complaint. He declined, via email, to make any additional comments.

The 1998 State of the Reefs Report concluded removing fish and invertebrates from the reef may affect the long-term stability of the reef ecosystems, the complaint said. DLNR’s alleged failure to comply with the state’s environmental policy act, which the plaintiffs claimed requires environmental assessments before the collecting permits may be issued, harms the plaintiffs’ environmental, aesthetic, recreational, educational, cultural and economic interests.

Hawaii is the country’s largest exporter of species intended for the aquarium trade, and the majority of aquarium fish collected in Hawaii comes from West Hawaii’s waters, the lawsuit said.

“Due to the shift in aquarium fish collection activities from Oahu to west Hawaii in the 1980s, DLNR data shows that the total reported aquarium fish catch in west Hawaii increased 813 percent between 1983 and 2003,” the complaint said. “A study conducted in West Hawaii in the late 1990s found that aquarium collectors had significant effects on the populations of seven of the 10 aquarium collection fish species examined.”

The complaint listed 50 aquarium permits approved in the last 120 days. The complaint also challenged any permit DLNR renewed or granted before that time period.

Umberger said the lawsuit is a last resort after years of trying to get DLNR to follow what she and other plaintiffs believe the state’s laws require.

“It’s just been a constant recognition that the coral reef ecosystem is being negatively impacted,” Umberger said. “We kept running up against a wall with it.”

DLNR estimated it would cost about $200,000 per species to get baseline population counts, Umberger said.

“The state has not done a single, statewide population assessment,” she added.


By Erin Miller
West Hawaii Today
[email protected]

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My personal thoughts...

- Prove to me there is a problem and i will stop at once. I tend to trust the data from the DLNR over the activists.
- If an EIS is needed for aquarium collecting, i believe we need the same for all commercial industries that use Hawaiian waters. This includes Snorkel Tours, Surfboard Rentals, Charter Fishing, Spear Fishing, Catamaran Rides on Waikiki Beach, etc...
- Unfortunately we have no say in the matter. The suit is against the state, not us business owners.

Now the good part is that this is a court of law. They will have to prove the mis-information and skewed data they have been toting for years.

Aloha
Kevin

 

[revsgirl]

Thanks for sharing..

 

[Titus]

I am surprised that Snorkel Bob isn't one of the named complaintents... I guess this is not extreme enough for him. I wouldn't mind seeing Hawaii look in to implementing something like PNG with catch limits set based on regular reef surveys. It looks like this lawsuit could get things pointed in that direction, but sadly it could also take a turn much worse for the trade.

 

[revhtree]

Is there anything we can do?

 

[z1107]

Correct if I'm wrong, but isn't it we "ornamental" fish keepers that are breeding these same fish for the purpose of not using wild caught specimens and to reintroduce species to areas where they are severely depleted?

 

[Norcalreefer]

what's everyone unhappy about? this will make them get better numbers on what is going on out there. As a surfer and someone that deals with the ocean in a lot more ways than my fish tank I think this is great. I agree with aloha coral that other trades should be regulated as well, but I think people are working on that too. I have a friend that is a diver and she is very passionate about educating her fellow divers about the impact they have.
Let me put it this way. If this was your big aquaculture tank you would want to regulate what is taken out of it. If you let people just buy as much as they want you won't have coral or fish left to grow out. I think the Banggai cardinal situation is a good example of the recognition and change that we need in this industry. The ocean is not as big as a lot of people think. We need to know the numbers of what is out there and what is being taken and step up more on aquaculture coral and fish.