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Forest Recovery Project Update

Planned Projects on Moloka'i and Kaua'i Set to Begin

HONOLULU, HAWAI'I — March 6, 2008 — The Nature Conservancy announced today that it is in the final stages of work on its Forest Recovery Project on Maui and is beginning its planned projects on Moloka‘i and Kaua‘i over the next few weeks.

The Forest Recovery Project is designed to research and test new methods and technologies to protect Hawaii’s endangered native forests. This short-term project is being conducted primarily on Nature Conservancy preserves and private lands with the help of the New Zealand firm, Prohunt, after a year of statewide community outreach.

On Maui, threats from destructive non-native feral animals have now been further reduced on more than 7,500 acres of remote private conservation lands, including the Conservancy’s Waikamoi Preserve on East Maui and Kapunakea Preserve on West Maui.

On Moloka‘i, projects will protect 4,600 acres of steep, remote terrain in the Conservancy’s Kamakou and Pelekunu preserves, as well as adjoining private conservation land in the higher elevations of the island’s eroding south slope.

“The community has asked us to limit the project to the steep, upper elevations of the south slope, and only the mauka portion of Pelekunu Valley,” said Ed Misaki, director of the Conservancy’s Moloka‘i program. “As a result, this project is mainly focused on the 2,500-foot back cliffs of Pelekunu and the remote upper parts of the Kamakou watershed, where cliff heights range from 3,000-4,000 feet. We’re excited to get started testing these new strategies to protect our native forests in some of the most inaccessible areas of Moloka‘i.”

“We’ve held more than 30 meetings with the community on Moloka‘i over the last year and spoken with hundreds of people who support this project,” Misaki added. “We all want the same thing for Moloka‘i – to sustain our lifestyle, protect our water supply, and to have healthy forests and reefs.”

On Kaua‘i, surveying and monitoring work will be conducted on 2,000 acres of the island’s remote mountainous central interior.

The Nature Conservancy of Hawai'i is a local affiliate of The Nature Conservancy, a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. Since 1980, The Nature Conservancy of Hawai`i has established a statewide system of 11 preserves that directly protect 40,000 acres of native Hawaiian forests. As a member of eight watershed partnerships, the Conservancy also works closely with public and private partners to help preserve nearly one million acres statewide. More recently, the  Conservancy has extended its work from the forests to the reefs and is engaged in marine conservation in the nearshore waters of the main Hawaiian Islands. Visit us on the Web at www.nature.org/hawaii.