JOSH GREEN, M.D.GOVERNOR DAWN CHANGCHAIRPERSON FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 27, 2023 DEMOLITION OF FORMER UNCLE BILLY’S HOTEL SET TO BEGIN Click on photo to view video (HILO, HAWAI‘I) – Asbestos abatement work on the former Uncle Billy’s Hotel along Hilo’s historic Banyan Drive, will begin next week. Isemoto Contracting Company, Ltd., a locally owned Hilo company, is the demolition contractor that began mobilizing equipment today. Over the past two and half months, officers from the DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE) have maintained a constant, around-the-c ..read more

JOSH GREEN, M.D.GOVERNOR DAWN CHANGCHAIRPERSON FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 21, 2023 STATE BOATING DIVISION FOLLOWED THE RULES IN AWARD OF KAHULU‘U SURF PERMITS Click on photo to view video (HONOLULU) – Four surf instruction companies received permits last week in a lottery conducted by the DLNR Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation (DOBOR), for the right to operate in Kahalu‘u Bay on Hawai‘i Island. It is a step toward better management of large crowds of surfers and commercial instructors. Commercial surf instruction at the popular bay has been contentious for years because of unpe ..read more

JOSH GREEN, M.D.GOVERNOR DAWN CHANGCHAIRPERSON FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 17, 2023 FOUR SURF SCHOOLS WIN LOTTERY FOR COMMERCIAL PERMITS AT KAHULU‘U BAY Click on photo to view video (KAILUA-KONA, HAWAI‘I ISLAND) – In an effort to better manage large crowds of surfers and commercial instructors in Hawai‘i Island’s Kahulu‘u Bay, four surf instruction companies were awarded permits in a first-of-its-kind lottery, this morning. Commercial surf instruction at the popular bay has been contentious for years because of unpermitted companies and overcrowding. The DLNR Division of Boating and Oc ..read more

JOSH GREEN, M.D.GOVERNOR DAWN CHANGCHAIRPERSON FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 16, 2023 ONE COMMUNITY IMPACTED BY REPEATED WILDFIRES HONORS FIRST RESPONDERS Click on photo to view video (WAIMEA, HAWAIʻI ISLAND) – The same day as four wildfires sparked on Maui, including the Lahaina fire, firefighters were also battling seven hurricane wind-driven fires on Hawaiʻi Island. Every year recently, major fires have happened: Mana Road in 2021, Leilani in 2022, and the series of fires this year, on August 8. The conditions that day were described by Hawai‘i County Assistant Fire Chief Eric Moller ..read more

JOSH GREEN, M.D.GOVERNOR DAWN CHANGCHAIRPERSON FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 13, 2023 SIXTEEN LIVE SHEEP FREED AFTER POACHERS TRAP THEM ON HAWAI‘I ISLAND (HILO, HAWAI‘I) – Alleged sheep poachers were cited on Hawaiʻi island by alert officers from the DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE). Being in the right place at the right time paid off for a pair of DOCARE officers last Thursday morning. While traveling on Daniel K. Inouye Highway (Route 200/Saddle Road) at 4:30 a.m. officers encountered a pair of men and found they were in possession of three live, male sh ..read more

JOSH GREEN, M.D.GOVERNOR DAWN CHANGCHAIRPERSON FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 9, 2023 WILDFIRES IMPACT FOREST WATERSHEDS AND PEOPLE IN MULTIPLE WAYS Click on photo to view video (HONOLULU) – Native trees including Koa, ‘Ōhi‘a, and the native fern Uluhe were burned within the 1,600-acre scar left by the still-smoldering Mililani Mauka fire. While flames are no longer visible, the landscape is a mosaic of blackened native trees interspersed with invasive ones, like Albizia. During a survey flight this week, DLNR State Protection Forester Mike Walker with the Division of Forestry and Wildlif ..read more

JOSH GREEN, M.D.GOVERNOR DAWN CHANGCHAIRPERSON FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 8, 2023 NINE HONOLULU MEN CITED FOR FISHING ILLEGALLY IN MARINE LIFE CONSERVATION DISTRICT (HONOLULU) – Nine men were cited by DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE) officers for illegal fishing in a North Shore marine conservation district on Saturday. Just before 9 p.m., Nov. 4, the DOCARE officers noticed dive lights in the Pūpūkea Marine Life Conservation District (MLCD), on O‘ahu’s north shore. An hour and a half later DOCARE officers approached nine men as they came out of the wat ..read more

JOSH GREEN, M.D.GOVERNOR DAWN CHANGCHAIRPERSON FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 8, 2023 $5 MILLION IN FUNDING HEADED TO HAWAI‘I TO ENHANCE FORESTS Federal funds will support tree planting and forest management on private lands Click on photo to view video (HONOLULU) – Communities in Hawaiʻi rely on fresh water from our mauka forests to maintain homes, farms,and businesses. A new federal grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA NRCS) will provide $5 million for forest enhancement in Hawaiʻi under the Regional Conservation Partnership Program ..read more

JOSH GREEN, M.D.GOVERNOR DAWN CHANGCHAIRPERSON FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 7, 2023 COMMUNITY MEETING TO DISCUSS DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR NORTH KAWAIHAE SMALL BOAT HARBOR IMPROVEMENTS Click on photo to view video (HONOLULU) – The DLNR Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation (DOBOR) is hosting a public meeting on Monday, November 13 to discuss the draft Environmental Assessment (EA) for the North Kawaihae Small Boat Harbor improvements project on Hawaiʻi Island. The proposed improvements are designed to repair and strengthen the compromised breakwater that has been damage ..read more

JOSH GREEN, M.D.GOVERNOR DAWN CHANGCHAIRPERSON FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 2, 2023 NOVEMBER EVENTS HIGHLIGHT SEVENTH ANNUAL ʽŌHIʽA LOVE FEST To view video please click on photo (HONOLULU) –Conservation hui throughout the state will host events this month to share information and encourage the planting and protection of ʻōhiʻa lehua, a keystone species of our native forests and State Endemic Tree of Hawaiʽi. Although known for picturesque flowers ranging from scarlet red to vivid yellow, ʻōhiʻa lehua can be appreciated for more than its beauty. ʻŌhiʻa comprise 80% of Hawaiʻi’s native fo ..read more