On any given day, padlocks appear on the rusted, mesh-link fence at the highest lookout on the Makapuu Lighthouse Trail in east Oahu.

Sometimes, a dozen or more of these “love locks,” which are meant to express sentiments of love or commitment, pop up during the week, despite a sign informing the public that they will be removed. There are locks of all shapes, colors and sizes, some inscribed or marked with couple’s names and a date, others left blank.

They are part of a problem that stretches from Makapuu to Paris. The love locks became a serious problem for the Pont des Arts bridge in Paris when a chunk of fencing fell under the weight of the locks last summer. City workers in Paris began removing 45 tons of locks last week to prevent long-term damage to the historical bridge.

While the custom seems to have originated in Europe — some believe it exploded in popularity after a film adaptation of an Italian book entitled “I Want You” in 2007 — the trend is now worldwide.

In Hawaii, state officials aren’t happy about that.

“It’s a cute trend, but it contributes to the deterioration of whatever feature they’re attached to,” said Curt Cottrell, a parks assistant administrator at the state Department of Land and Natural Resources. “It’s not really thinking about the next visitor.

“Those features are intended to protect people and provide safety, not serve as their own personal memorial, recreational trend.”

The top Makapuu lookout has been the most popular venue for love locks over the past five years, but other spots, including some structures along the Diamond Head trail, Halona Blowhole and the bunkers above Lanikai, have also become destinations for the love locks.

State trail maintenance staff and volunteers from a nonprofit group called 808 Cleanups, which clears beaches and hiking trails of litter, remove the love locks at Makapuu on a regular basis.

At the same time, state land officials have incorporated new designs in trail renovations to deter love locks.

A $2.7 million improvement project, which began in February and is expected to be completed this summer, includes repaving the asphalt road, and repairing the two lookouts at the top of the Makapuu Trail trail with a new walkway, fencing and railings. The uppermost lookout’s railing will have a lock-deterring design, consisting of steel, vertical bars too thick to latch the locks on to, according to Cottrell.

The state does not track how many locks it has removed, but Michael David Loftin, director of 808 Cleanups, estimates there were about 1,000 last September. Volunteers removed nearly 900 on Sept. 26, returned to remove another 119 the following day and then about 20 to 30 a week in following weeks.

LOFTIN SAID the situation has improved since signs were posted, but new locks still pop up from time to time. On a recent Sunday, only two locks were at the site.

Social media plays a role in perpetuating the practice, with numerous posts on Tripadvisor and Yelp sharing the Makapuu Lighthouse as a “love lighthouse” and reminding visitors to “bring a lock.” There are also companies selling the engraved love locks online.

The problem with these romantic gestures is that the couples typically affix the locks to the fence, then throw the keys over the lookout, which is destructive to the natural environment, Loftin said.

“There’s much better ways to express love,” he said. “Making dinner, giving a massage, donating time or money to charities. The thing about locks is they’re not that romantic. They rust in a couple of weeks up here. The salt just beats them up.”

THE WEIGHT OF 1,000 locks or more would have eventually caused the fence at Makapuu to collapse, just as it did in Paris, he said. There are likely hundreds of keys littering the rock area just above the lighthouse, but it’s too dangerous for volunteers to venture down there to remove them.

Cottrell said leaving the locks would be considered defacing government property, but it would be difficult to track everyone down. Ultimately, he says the locks lead to increased maintenance costs.

“It’s like the straws that break the camel’s back,” said Cottrell. “One lock, no big deal, but 1,000 locks, you’ve got a problem.”