Moratorium on aquarium trade continues

A decision by the state Environmental Council last week effectively continues a moratorium on commercial aquarium collection along the Kona Coast, an activity long opposed by some Native Hawaiians and marine conservation groups.

The state council on Thursday upheld a decision by the Board of Land and Natural Resources to reject an environmental impact statement on a proposal to reopen the nearshore waters of West Hawaii to the aquarium fish trade.

The decision was praised by groups who have been demanding closer state scrutiny of the million-dollar trade.

An official with the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council, the Virginia-based trade group that submitted a final EIS on the proposal in April, expressed disappointment with the council’s decision “to ignore the evidence and support the Land Board’s flawed decision.”

“We are amazed that during these trying times state governing bodies continue to ignore the substantial science supporting the sustainability of the fishery and eliminate a livelihood that has supported Hawaiian families for generations,” said Bob Likins, PIJAC vice president of government affairs, in a statement Friday. “We will continue to work with the fishers to find a solution that will return them to employment responsibly collecting aquarium fish.”

The proposal would have allowed taking of commercial aquarium fish by 10 collectors, including by the use of fine-mesh nets, with restrictions that included size and bag limits on various fish species and a reduction in the daily bag limit of Achilles tang (pakuikui) from 10 fish per day to five.

In a report to the BLNR, Division of Aquatic Resources Administrator Brian J. Neilson had recommended acceptance of the EIS, saying it complied with applicable law and adequately disclosed the environmental impacts of the proposed issuance of commercial aquarium fish permits for West Hawaii waters.

Hundreds of testimonies on the EIS were received, and at its May 22 meeting, the BLNR voted unanimously to reject the study for reasons that included a failure to provide reliable estimates of future take amounts or to adequately analyze sustainable levels of fish stocks; not examining whether the proposed fishery would have greater or unanticipated effects on climate change impacts on reefs; and not adequately addressing cultural concerns.

The trade group appealed the BLNR decision to the Environmental Council, under the Office of Environmental Quality Control within the state Department of Health. In its order issued Thursday, the council said PIJAC failed to produce adequate proof the board was “arbitrary” and “capricious” in determining the EIS needed further documentation.

“The Council’s historic decision to affirm the Land Board reinforces that Hawaii’s bedrock environmental review law is not merely a paper exercise,” Earthjustice attorney Kylie Wager Cruz said in a statement Friday. “It’s about engaging with communities, providing an honest assessment of impacts, and taking steps to minimize harm. The industry simply didn’t do that, and now two separate state agencies have unanimously agreed.”

The nonprofit environmental law organization has been working with community members, the Center for Biological Diversity, the reef wildlife advocacy group For the Fishes, and others to challenge what they claim is the state’s failure to examine the aquarium pet trade’s impacts on nearshore ecosystems.

“Anytime you get good news for the practice of malama aina it is beneficial for all the people of Hawaii, not just the commercial interests such as with the aquarium trade, which is just wildlife trafficking of our natural resources,” Mike Nakachi, a Native Hawaiian cultural practitioner from Waikoloa who has been involved in the case, told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Friday.

“From a sustainable point of view, especially in these COVID times, it allows people to enjoy their ia (fish) and do it in a lawaia pono (righteous fishing) way.”

In 2017 Earthjustice secured a Hawaii Supreme Court ruling that commercial aquarium collection permits are subject to environmental review requirements under the Hawaii Environmental Policy Act. A lower court subsequently voided existing permits and placed a moratorium on commercial aquarium permits until environmental reviews were completed.

However, the DLNR has been issuing commercial marine licenses that allow for the collection and sale of aquarium fish outside of West Hawaii so long as fine-meshed nets or traps are not used.

Although the Environmental Council’s order effectively extends the moratorium on aquarium collection in West Hawaii, Earthjustice has filed a parallel lawsuit seeking to halt the trade throughout the state.