Proposals to stop coral bleaching pitched

KANEOHE, OAHU — Hawaii officials on Thursday proposed a series of steps to fight coral bleaching that’s threatening the state’s reefs, including new marine protected areas, limits on fishing and controlling polluted runoff from land.

Bruce Anderson, the state Division of Aquatic Resources administrator, said some measures will be more effective than others off the west coast of Hawaii Island, one of the target areas in the state where up to as much as 50 percent of corals have died.

Runoff, which has been primarily caused by urban development, isn’t as serious of a problem in West Hawaii with the exception of a few areas affected by sewage and runoff caused by storms. Fishery management, however, is crucial to the resurrection of coral reefs in the area.

“The presence of fish, sea urchins and other herbivores that eat algae is critical to the health of reefs,” Anderson said. “Parrotfish are particularly important because they are large fish and they eat a lot of algae. They are considered scrapers and excavaters. They eat dead coral, and as they eat, they leave a denuded surface where new corals can settle and grow.”

Hawaii’s ocean temperatures have been rising as greenhouse gases in the atmosphere have increased, forcing corals to expel algae they rely on for food. Vast stretches of reef have turned white over the past two summers, increasing the risk that the coral will get sick and die.

It’s a serious concern for the health of the ocean because coral reefs provide habitat for fish and other marine life, scientists say. Severe or concurrent years of bleaching can kill coral reefs, as has been documented over the past two years in oceans around the world. Scientists expect a third year of bleaching to last through the end of 2016.

Anderson said addressing polluted runoff is difficult, noting it would cost millions of dollars to create artificial wetlands that would help control runoff. Fishermen in the past have also resisted moves to limit their catch.

But Anderson said the coral bleaching crisis presents an opportunity.

“We are going to have future bleaching events, and the water is going to get warmer. And it’s going to happen again and again,” he said. “So our challenge is to prevent the impacts of bleaching as much as we can and also to help the reefs recover.”

Another idea is to ban lay gill nets that fishermen leave in the water. Anderson said these types of nets are harmful because they kill all the fish caught in them, not just the species targeted by the fisherman. The nets work because the mesh is large enough for a fish’s head to go through but too small for its body to escape.

The state will hold public meetings on its proposals before any are adopted.

Anderson said the state came up with the proposals after surveying more than 80 scientists around the world about what steps are most effective at helping coral reefs.

Warmer ocean temperatures bleached coral in Kaneohe Bay off Oahu in 2014. Last year, they bleached corals off the west coast of the Big Island and off Maui.

Hawaii Fishermen’s Alliance for Conservation and Tradition President Phil Fernandez said he looks forward to working with Anderson and the state on the proposals.

The no-take zones may be problematic, depending on where they would be, he said, but his group is open to discussing them.

As for potential catch limits on parrotfish, a popular reef fish, he said the species needs to be managed but the question is to what degree and how. Parrotfish help coral by eating algae and preventing it from smothering the reef.

“We want the reef to come back. We fish, and the health of fish is completely dependent on habitat. When the habitat is decimated, the fish goes away,” he said.

The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii’s marine science director said he’s excited and encouraged the state is taking on the issue and that it recognizes it needs to think strategically about coral bleaching.

Eric Conklin called the proposals ambitious and noted the state will need to get feedback and input from the community. He said the proposals face a long road to approval through a public process.

“It’s really easy to say ‘the science tells us these are the best things to do.’ It’s really tricky to figure out the best way to be guided by that science but develop up a plan that still meets the needs of the people who rely on the resource,” Conklin said. “That’s the real challenge in front of us.”

The West Hawaii Today contributed to this report.