By settling on a compromise that further restricts aquarium fishing in Hawaiian waters but does not ban the practice, a state House committee has made headway on a contentious issue of significant interest this legislative session.

The original version of House Bill 873 was too extreme to survive, since it would have issued an outright ban on the harvesting of marine life to sell for display in aquariums, decimating a regulated industry that has long existed in Hawaii.

The rewritten version that passed out of the House Committee on Ocean, Marine Resources and Hawaiian Affairs last week deserves support moving forward. It would prohibit the issuance of new aquarium-fishing permits and require current permit-holders to follow stricter rules.

This measure and three others related to aquarium fishing in Hawaii have generated more than 3,500 pages of written testimony already this session, highlighting intense interest in the issue. Also on view: a gaping divide between those who abhor the taking of marine life from Hawaiian reefs for display in aquariums in homes and businesses around the world, and those who collect and sell the fish and defend the way they make their living.

Critics say collectors engage in inhumane practices that degrade marine ecosystems, while collectors insist they are careful stewards of shared ocean resources.

In amending the bill, legislators wisely relied heavily on scientific evidence rather than giving in to the emotion of the highly charged topic. It is indeed important to protect the present and future health of Hawaii’s fragile marine ecosystems, and valid information indicates this goal can be achieved short of an outright ban on aquarium fishing.

Years of marine research, including a recent survey conducted for the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, have found that current industry practices do not adversely affect West Hawaii fisheries, where most aquarium fishing in the state occurs.

Furthermore, the new rules proposed in the latest draft of House Bill 873 are intended to limit the industry’s growth, not to promote it.

The bill would prohibit the issuance of new aquarium-fishing permits by the DLNR’s Division of Aquatic Resources; require annual recertification for permit renewals, with standards such as mandating that 99 percent of the marine life collected for shipping to the continental United States or abroad survive the journey; and establish "bag" limits on how much a permit-holder can take.

The bill is silent, however, on whether existing permits can be transferred, a question that should be answered before this bill gains final approval.

Also, more exact information is needed on the number of existing permits, and the number that are active. Officials said that from 300 to 500 businesses or individuals hold aquarium-fishing permits now, but only 70 to 90 permit-holders actually engage in the activity.

Those ranges are too broad, when precise figures are needed. Proponents of an outright ban are correct to worry about the impact on Hawaii’s oceans and reefs if all those permit-holders suddenly began taking fish, or sought to transfer permits to an active collector.

As with any compromise, neither side gets all that it wants via the revamped House Bill 873.

The two sides on this issue are so far apart, however, that this fresh version amounts to real progress.