Instead of blue, Hawaii’s conservation officers will be wearing tan and green in 2020.

The state Department of Land and Natural Resources announced that its Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE) officers, who have worn blue for years, will be switching to new uniforms as they enforce Hawaii’s natural and cultural resource laws.

New uniforms also will help distinguish DOCARE officers from police officers.

“As DOCARE continues to improve its capacity and professionalism, as a law enforcement organization, I believe these new uniforms will set them apart from the other dedicated men and women working in municipal or other state law enforcement agencies,” said DLNR Chairwoman Suzanne Case in a news release. “We want people to be able to easily spot DOCARE officers and approach them if they need help, to ask questions, or to report resource and/or cultural violations.”

She added that during combined law enforcement operations, it’s important for the public to be able to readily recognize a DOCARE officer.

In the field, DOCARE officers will wear green cargo pants and tan polo shirts, with an emblem patch on one shoulder, and “Conservation Police — Dept. of Land &Natural Resources,” written on the back.

“Colors that blend with the natural environment tend to be the standard for conservation police in most U.S. states,” said DOCARE enforcement chief Jason Redulla in a news release, “so this is the reason we decided on green pants and tan shirts.”

For formal occasions, including ceremonies and court appearances, DLNR said officers can wear a button-down, long-sleeve shirt with a black tie or a short-sleeve shirt with epaulettes, but no necktie. Both will have DOCARE patches on the shoulders.

When DOCARE was formed 40 years ago, Redulla said, five different DLNR divisions had their own law enforcement officers.

Today DOCARE is a statewide law enforcement organization with more than 100 certified officers with full police powers to enforce a broad set of resource laws, rules and regulations on land and in the ocean.

DOCARE also maintains a statewide reporting hotline the public can use to report violations at 643-DLNR (3567) as well as the DLNRTip app.