Stop unfettered aquarium fish harvest

As a Hawaiian lawai‘a (fisherman) I am inspired by the teachings of my kanaka maoli ancestors. Their cultural values are responsible for the maintenance of abundant sustainable natural resources in Hawaii for hundreds of years. For millennia our reefs were aina momona, fat with abundant marine life that fed a population nearly as large as what exists today.

Kanaka maoli ancestors were deadly serious about sustaining Hawaii’s natural resources — so much so that violators of sustainable resource management could be punished by banishment or death. The ancestors understood that unsustainable harvesting of Hawaii’s natural resources was a direct threat to the survival of their future generations.

But today the state of Hawaii administration is demonstrating its inability to regulate public trust resources by protecting the coral reef species for future generations. The people of Hawaii are the beneficiaries of the public trust, yet the current administration treats Hawaii’s natural resources like commodities put here for private profit and exploitation, rather than the life-sustaining public trust resources that they are. Our coral reefs must survive if we wish to survive. This is not just a kanaka maoli philosophy; it is a global reality that we must embrace.

Many of Hawaii’s public trust resources are placed at risk by the state of Hawaii’s failure to implement real solutions that actually serve the people as the state Constitution requires. The unlimited commercial extraction of aquarium species from our coral reefs must stop.

The many reef species that serve as the stewards of coral reefs are now viewed by many as dollar bills swimming in the ocean to be scooped up for personal enrichment. Coral reefs are suffering globally because of this view. Because of global climate change, increased acidification of the oceans, and support for commercial extraction of coral reef marine life, coral reefs face a bleak future. As beneficiaries of the public trust resources sustained for hundreds of years by kanaka maoli, we must come together and be the kia‘i, protectors of our coral reefs.

Commercial aquarium fishers’ primary targets, such as yellow tangs, are herbivorous fish that maintain the resiliency of coral reefs by grazing on limu (algae), thereby preventing algal overgrowth that could smother and kill Hawaii corals if left unchecked. The narrow fringing coral reefs of Hawaii protect us from storm waves and provide tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of residents with recreation. Our coral reefs also provide low-cost traditional food resources to Hawaii’s host culture and others who call Hawaii home. The greatest economic benefit of healthy Hawaii coral reefs is their support of ocean-related tourism, a low-impact, billion-dollar no-take industry.

Commercial capture of marine wildlife for aquarium use is poorly regulated by State agencies responsible for protecting the public trust. Nothing can be sustainable if there are no limits on take and no environmental impact considerations. Combined with a lack of sufficient regulation and enforcement, this is a disaster in the making that we are witnessing even as I write this. The state is still allowing aquarium fish harvesting although the court has required an environmental review of this activity.

If there is such a strong desire by the state to support profit over people and to supply aquarium fish from Hawaii to the world, land-based aquarium fish aquaculture is the answer. Broad public opposition to commercial aquarium fish capture in Hawaii is overwhelming but the state remains complicit.

Training existing commercial aquarium fishers in marine aquaculture and providing them with technical and financial support to develop the aquarium aquaculture industry could help lessen the impact on fishers while upholding the public trust resources for the real beneficiaries — the greater public and our keiki and future generations. The time to stop the rape of our coral reefs is now. Please join us in taking our reefs back today.

Isaac “Paka” Harp, of Kona, is a kanaka maoli fisherman; he authored the draft management plan that led to designation of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve in December 2000.