It’s been nearly two years since Hawaii’s first statewide lockdown in April 2020. An event that indicated the beginning of a devastating global crisis that altered our reality and left us in a world of turmoil and mourning. The state came to a standstill, but the stagnation of the community brought a positive outcome for Hawaii’s overworked environment.

Hawaii’s marine ecosystem is one of the main attractions for tourists — whether it comes to surfing, snorkeling, swimming with dolphins, or just playing in the waves. Hawaii’s beaches have plenty to offer in aquatic activities and summer fun, but the toll that constant activity has on Hawaii’s marine ecosystem has been evident over the years.

The pandemic, therefore, brought a unique opportunity for scientists and environmentalists alike to study the potential changes from the inactivity of our beaches. The results of one of these studies were remarkable and gave hope to the possible revival of Hawaii’s deteriorating marine ecosystems.

Hanauma Bay is one of the most popular and iconic tourist destinations on Oahu. It saw on average 3,000 tourists daily and approximately 1 million visitors per year. A notable feature that the bay had was as a marine education center that informed all visitors on preservation of marine life and safety procedures with a nine-minute video before entering the park.

During the pandemic, the park’s organization decided to study the effects that no tourists had on the bay’s ecosystem, and conducted a survey on the park’s condition for 35 days completely closed and 15 days at 25% capacity between March 2020 and December 2020. It found an increase in fish population, better water clarity, and less coral bleaching.

All of these findings led to the consideration of how the park should move forward in the ongoing efforts to protect the bay’s ecosystem. Officials decided that they would decrease that amount of visitors to 1,000 daily instead of 3,000, and close the park to the public on Mondays and Tuesdays as a way to preserve the park’s overall state of health. They also disallowed all tourist shuttles and buses from entering, to prevent the bay from being overrun. Bold decisions that would most certainly impact them financially, but one that is necessary for the long-term goal of conservation.

This is just one of many examples of the effects the pandemic had on Hawaii’s environment. There needs to be more done in conserving our ecosystems and prioritizing them over tourism — but we still need to consider Hawaii’s economy, as 21% of Hawaii’s revenue comes from tourism. That’s a lot of jobs that sustain many of our own community members, and conservation actions could lead to a decrease in revenue and potential job loss. But a decrease in the overall health of Hawaii’s ecosystems could very well lead to the same outcome if we do not find a sustainable alternative.

Hannah Kurosu is a university student from Hawaii, studying abroad with a major in political science to better our future.