Nature Conservancy Announces Marine Fellowship Program

Nature Conservancy Announces Marine Fellowship Program

HONOLULU, HAWAI'I — The Nature Conservancy is launching a two-year Marine Conservation Fellowship Program to train recent college graduates to become the next generation of marine conservation leaders in Hawai‘i.

Modeled after the Conservancy’s successful Natural Resource Managers Fellowship Program, its marine counterpart will provide training in all aspects of marine resource planning, management and monitoring. Trainers will include senior Conservancy staff, marine resource experts, kupuna and other Hawai‘i conservation leaders.

O'ahu Marine Coordinator Eric Co (center, facing) with Maunalua Bay community members. © TNC

“Hawaii’s near shore fisheries have declined by 75% over the past century. If we are going to reverse this trend, we need a lot more people working in Hawai‘i to protect, restore and manage our coral reefs,” said Kim Hum, director of marine programs for Conservancy’s Hawai‘i program. “At the end of two years, fellows will have the necessary skills and knowledge to become successful marine resource managers in Hawai‘i. They will be highly competitive in Hawaii’s conservation job market for positions not just at the Conservancy, but at state and federal partner agencies, and other private sector marine-based programs.”

According to Hum, the fellowship program is designed to increase the state’s pool of qualified marine resource managers. “It’s difficult to find qualified candidates to fill mid-level resource manager positions,” she said. “These are the people who work directly with local communities to manage local marine resources, and they are key to restoring our reefs and near shore fisheries.”

The two-year program is designed for four fellows: two will be hired in the first year and two more in the second year, with a one-year overlap. The fellows hired in the first year will help train those hired in the second year. Fellows will be based in the Conservancy’s program offices on O‘ahu, Maui and Hawai‘i Island, and play an integral role in the Conservancy’s marine conservation efforts, working on community-based projects with senior staff, as well as staff from partner agencies.

Manuel Mejia, the Conservancy’s community-based marine program manager, is coordinating the fellowship program. Before joining the Conservancy in 2006, Mejia worked with the Locally-Managed Marine Area Network, coordinating a network of 244 member sites from seven Asia-Pacific countries. In the Philippines, he managed a UNESCO World Heritage Site at Tubbataha National Marine Park for the World Wildlife Fund. He has also worked for USAID evaluating the effectiveness of community- and nature-based enterprises in Indonesia, the Solomon Islands and Fiji.

TNC marine staff (from left) Manuel Mejia, Zachary Caldwell and Eric Co © Rob Shallenberger/TNCAccording to Mejia, by the end of the training program the fellows will:

1) be able to identify Hawaiian species of fish, coral and limu;
2) understand human impacts on marine ecosystems;
3) be familiar with traditional Hawaiian practices and values that support environmental stewardship;
4) be able to identify the major threats to sustainable marine resource use and management;
5) be proficient in marine biological survey methods, data management and analysis of coastal ecosystem health;
6) be familiar with Hawaii’s regulatory framework and policies for marine resource management;
7) have experience in organizing and managing community-based conservation efforts, including project and volunteer management;
8) know how to communicate scientific survey results to communities, decision-makers and the media; and
9) be certified in SCUBA diving and emergency safety protocols.


The Conservancy is now seeking applicants with undergraduate degrees in ecology, biology, natural resource management, Hawaiian studies, environmental studies, geology, geography, conservation or other related fields. Candidates must be proven “self-starters” who have demonstrated initiative and motivation in all of their past experiences (e.g., school, professional or volunteer projects). Preference will be given to applicants who have knowledge of cultural and traditional marine resource management practices, are dedicated to marine conservation, and are likely to seek careers in the marine resources management and conservation field in Hawai‘i.

For more information, contact Jan Eber at jeber@tnc.org or call (808) 587-6269. The deadline for submitting applications is January 2, 2008.
Funding for the Marine Fellowship Program is being provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Atherton Family Foundation.

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at http://www.nature.org/.


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HOW MUCH DAMAGE HAS HUMAN FISHING DONE TO THE OCEAN?

HOW MUCH DAMAGE HAS HUMAN FISHING DONE TO THE OCEAN?

We thought we could fish forever, because the sea was a limitless protein mine. But dawning now is a realization that we were wrong about that. But how naive were we? And what price will be paid? Ocean life is dying back in unexpected ways: although there are fewer fish and other sea animals, more of them are starving, while waves of 'sickness' spread as primitive microbes gain the upper hand. Symptoms include spreading 'dead zones,' harmful algae blooms and a diminished presence of sea animal life in general. Is fishing implicated in all of this?

Atlantic Canada reveals what is probably the clearest evidence anywhere of the ecosystem-effects of persistent human fishing. The early 1990's crash of the once great Canadian cod stock is held up as a global cautionary tale against fisheries mismanagement, against greedy human 'overfishing.' But less well known is that the story is not that simple, that, at the level of scientific detail, so much has gone severely and unexpectedly wrong in Atlantic Canada...that the most basic assumptions underlying the 'science of overfishing/sustainable fishing' must now be questioned.

Zooplankton were unexpectedly and inexplicably lost along with Canadian fish stocks. If, as seems likely, this is part of the ecosystem impact of fishing, then this finding has global significance.

Evidence: a Transformed Ecosystem

As the size and abundance of commercially targeted fish species has plunged in recent decades, populations of smaller, unexploited organisms, the 'foundation' species of the marine ecosystem, have also experienced major downshifts. Oceanic zooplankton is in decline, and NASA/NOAA has recently reported an apparent global declining trend in marine phytoplankton production. Evidence suggesting lowered marine nutrient cycling can also be seen along clean oceanic shorelines.

Example: A clean, rocky intertidal zone in Atlantic Canada was heavily dominated by barnacles (filter feeding animals) in summer, 1948, reflecting relatively high marine productivity at that time. (Photo from Stephenson and Stephenson 1954 J. Ecol. 42:14-70 ) Move mouse over photo to see this site in summer, 2002. Now dominated by rockweed with relatively sparse barnacle cover, with individual barnacles very small, this shift away from dominance by filter feeders, and towards dominance by seaweeds, offers classic evidence of a decline in "nitrogen loading" rates. (Carpenter and Capone, Nitrogen in the Marine Environment (Acad. Press, NY, 1983)) This pattern of shifting dominance from filter feeders to seaweed is also widely evident today in the tropics where mass coral bleaching and infectious coral epidemics signal the failing health of those once dominant filter feeders.


WANNA KNOW MORE??

http://www.fisherycrisis.com/



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From "The Garden Island" Newspaper 2004

From "The Garden Island" Newspaper 2004.

With over a million people living in Hawaii and hundredsof thousands of tourists visiting yearly; Hawaiian huis, environmental groups, community members, and scientists alike are realizing that our marine resources are in trouble.

We need to know what our reefs look like and how abundant they are in different places around the island. Baseline surveys of our Marine Resources are imperative. What this means is that locals and scientists must examine the near shore marine coral reef as well as measure ocean health in offshore areas around each island. Baseline surveys are important to discover the health and abundance of animals on the reef, noting areas of importance and abundance, like where juvenile fish may shelter, turtle or monk seal areas, heavy coral spawning sites, other notable features as well as shoreline activity. Mapping the near shore with GPS (global positioning system), GIS (geographic information systems), as well as video and digital photo documentation can show the community what the reefs look like, provide an archive of the reef health if something was to harm it, and then let the community decide what is best for our reefs.

The state appointed stewards of Hawaii, the DLNR (Department of Land and Natural Resources) and DAR (Division of Aquatic Resources) have a severely limited budget, and their funding is constantly being cut. These men and women, local and introduced, are doing the best they can with what they have, and are working hard tohelp Hawaii protect our ocean and land.

Many local groups here on Kauai like Waipa, Limahuli Valley, Hanalei Watershed Hui, Malama Maha’ulepu, Nawiliwili Watershed Council, Save Our Seas, and Reef Check have seen that their own fish catch sizes decreasing, and less abundance of marine animals. They have already taken action and currently are monitoring and surveying local reefs, while training community members, and high school students in these techniques that support Ahupua’a, MPA (Marine Protected Area) and resource conservation projects. Currently, there are NO Marine Protected Areas on Kauai! All of the other islands have them, but we must ask ourselves why we have none here.

Marine Protected Areas have many different designations, some are Hawaiian Sustenance Fishing grounds where native Hawaiians may fish, some are Fish Replenishment and Management Areas, where fish are left by fisherman and collectors to recover and “seed” other areas as ocean currents take the young of these animals and spread them around the islands. Some MPA’s, like the tourist hot spot Hanauma Bay on Oahu, are Marine Life Conservation Districts and are completely protected areas only open to certain activities and even restrictions about fish feeding, litter, and suntan lotion apply. These areas are created by the community, for the community, and it is up to us to get together and make these Marine Protected Areas places that we all can agree on.

Efforts must be made to further educate fishermen on the successful programs already in place like the Ulua (jack trevally), Oio (bone fish), Opakapaka (pink snapper), and Ahi (yellow fin tuna) tagging programs. These programs show that many fish species move around and leave MPA reserves. Fisherman must also work with the communityto make rules and help enforce rules because our own government can not. Bottom fishing and “gill net task forces” must take action and find ways to create restrictions on themselves so that they may care for fish populations, our resources.

Mike Sakamoto, author and TV personality has proposed “a Fishing Task Force to look into a Marine License, smaller bag limits, slot limits, closed seasons on ulua and other species, an ulua enhancement program (stocking of ulua) and other enhancement programs…” as well as “Spear Fishing Task Forces” so that we the fishermen come up with size and bag limits, tournament restrictions, and night diving regulations. All of these ideas are a great way to increase and monitor populations, and the community certainly will be able to come up with more.

The management of Hawaii’s marine resources must evolve. Hawaii’s marine resources must be protected byus working together, with help from the state and federal agencies, to make sure that areas of high diversity are preserved and that future generations may have plentiful resources, we must create a bounty that will ensure the legacy of those that live on these islands

Come on People Get a clue! (PLEASE)

Come on People Get a clue! (PLEASE)

Moves to impose trawling ban stymied
"a stunning example of dysfunctional decision-making and the unwillingness of the world's nations to stand up and just say 'no' to activity that is destroying the global marine environment."

U.N. says 2005 set greenhouse gas record
Report: Seafood faces collapse by 2048


WASHINGTON (AP) -- Clambakes, crabcakes, swordfish steaks and even humble fish sticks could be little more than a fond memory in a few decades.

If current trends of overfishing and pollution continue, the populations of just about all seafood face collapse by 2048, a team of ecologists and economists warns in a report in Friday's issue of the journal Science.

"Whether we looked at tide pools or studies over the entire world's ocean, we saw the same picture emerging. In losing species we lose the productivity and stability of entire ecosystems," said the lead author Boris Worm of Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
"I was shocked and disturbed by how consistent these trends are -- beyond anything we suspected," Worm said.

While the study focused on the oceans, concerns have been expressed by ecologists about threats to fish in the Great Lakes and other lakes, rivers and freshwaters, too.

Worm and an international team spent four years analyzing 32 controlled experiments, other studies from 48 marine protected areas and global catch data from the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization's database of all fish and invertebrates worldwide from 1950 to 2003.

The scientists also looked at a 1,000-year time series for 12 coastal regions, drawing on data from archives, fishery records, sediment cores and archaeological data.

"At this point 29 percent of fish and seafood species have collapsed -- that is, their catch has declined by 90 percent. It is a very clear trend, and it is accelerating," Worm said. "If the long-term trend continues, all fish and seafood species are projected to collapse within my lifetime -- by 2048."
"It looks grim and the projection of the trend into the future looks even grimmer," he said. "But it's not too late to turn this around. It can be done, but it must be done soon. We need a shift from single species management to ecosystem management. It just requires a big chunk of political will to do it."

The researchers called for new marine reserves, better management to prevent overfishing and tighter controls on pollution.

In the 48 areas worldwide that have been protected to improve marine biodiversity, they found, "diversity of species recovered dramatically, and with it the ecosystem's productivity and stability."

While seafood forms a crucial concern in their study, the researchers were analyzing overall biodiversity of the oceans. The more species in the oceans, the better each can handle exploitation.

"Even bugs and weeds make clear, measurable contributions to ecosystems," said co-author J. Emmett Duffy of the Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences.

The National Fisheries Institute, a trade association for the seafood industry, does not share the researchers alarm.

"Fish stocks naturally fluctuate in population," the institute said in a statement. "By developing new technologies that capture target species more efficiently and result in less impact on other species or the environment, we are helping to ensure our industry does not adversely affect surrounding ecosystems or damage native species.

Seafood has become a growing part of Americans' diet in recent years. Consumption totaled 16.6 pounds per person in 2004, the most recent data available, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. That compares with 15.2 pounds in 2000.

Joshua Reichert, head of the private Pew Charitable Trusts' environment program, pointed out that worldwide fishing provides $80 billion in revenue and 200 million people depend on it for their livelihoods. For more than 1 billion people, many of whom are poor, fish is their main source of protein, he said.

The research was funded by the National Science Foundation's National Center for Ecological Synthesis and Analysis.



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Oceans Conference 2008

"Environmentalism is about saving our communities. It is about the power of the community asserting itself on these environmental issues that will directly affect our future generations."

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., SOS Clean Oceans Conference 1997


We hope to enlist the help of like minded people and organizations worldwide so that we as a whole can make a positive change in conservation practices in Hawaii, Polynesia, and the World. Many places in Hawaii are on the verge of becoming protected areas, and we as a whole can work to implement these changes efficiently and positively!
SOS needs your help, please renew your membership or Join SOS to help us promote and educate people from all walks of life about our precious resource, the ocean.


The link below takes you to a Sierra club summary of our state governments action or inaction on an array of environmental issues during this past session. It is in essence a follow up to the "Common Sense Conservation 2008" briefing book compiled by a coalition of HI environmental organizations earlier this year.

http://www.hi.sierraclub.org/legislative/
Mahalo, Adam Roversi, SOS Advisory Board

Getting your feet wet- First time scuba

By: Amanda W. (Scuba Junkie)
Life of a beginner scuba queen
2/6/08

Being from Iowa, you may not consider scuba diving an option for me. That is, unless you don't know where Iowa is or that we're the land of corn. Not exactly teeming with fantastic vacation dive spots that are flocked with tourists. I want to share my thoughts and experiences as I go through the process of learning to scuba dive. My hope is that fellow novices can learn from my stories, or maybe more advanced divers to gain an understanding of beginners. No matter the reason for your interest in scuba, it has brought you to this point. Some background on myself is that I do not like being in a bathing suit, am not used to being in water, dislike emerging my face in water, and have a fear of drowning. With that said, through the encouragement and passion of a friend, I am preparing to take my first steps toward becoming an Open Water Diver.

I personally had my first experience with snorkeling in April 2007 in Nassau, Bahamas while on vacation. After the first 15 minutes in the water of thinking I was going to drown, I began to relax and focus more on my desire to see the beauty beneath me. I had to practice at breathing through the snorkel underwater, and let me tell you it is a strange feeling to see below and continue breathing. My friend and I had $10 underwater cameras, but the pictures could not do justice for what we could see with our own eyes. I was a bit disappointed in the coral to be honest, but I really had nothing to compare it to. After all, I went for the experience, and the fish didn't disappoint.With Scuba Jay's prompting I began to consider trying scuba, though after almost hyperventilating with just snorkeling I had my reservations. We began with hearing stories and watching videos on YouTube and learning of different types and purposes of diving- wreck/ excavation diving, underwater archeology, underwater ecology, vacation diving, underwater photography, night diving, cave diving, ice diving, rescue diving, search and recovery diving, and for academic or research purposes. For me, I am interested in a few of the aforementioned so I recommend that if you're nervous, find one you can use as a motivator to get your feet wet. I am assured that once you start, you're hooked.

There is a progression to diving certifications and two primary governing bodies NAUI and PADI, though SDI, TDI, WASI, and NASE are also out there.

NAUI:
1. Skin diver
2. Scuba diver
3. Advanced scuba diver
4. Master scuba diver
5. Leadership certifications
·Divemaster
· Skin diving Instructor
· Assistant Instructor
6. NAUI scuba Instructor


PADI:
1. Open water diver
2. Advanced open water diver
3. Rescue diver
4. Master scuba diver OR Divemaster (lead to Course Director)

There are many special certifications you can receive along the way of both NAUI's and PADI's paths. Each level requires varying numbers of dives you must successfully complete, and some coursework as well.




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CAVE DIVING AND YOUTUBE

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=cave+diving&search_type=

Hawaiian Islands

Hawaii, with it's many islands and well developed tourist infrastructure, has numerous diving opportunities.The best places to dive on Oahu are near the famous landmark of Diamond Head. Other popular areas are along the Waianae Coast (outstanding during summer months), the North Shore (not accessible during winter months because of high surf), and Makapuu's offshore Rabbit Island.

Maui offers a host of good to outstanding diving areas all around its shoreline. The best area on the Big Island of Hawaii is along the Kona Coast where there are excellent places to dive to view beautiful reefs, shallow to deep, with coral, shells, large fish, turtles, lobsters, black coral, and fascinating topography resulting from lava flows.Lanai lies Cathedral Reef, 30 to 100ft deep, with colorful coral, shells and big fish such as the 50lb ulua (Crevalle Jack) and lobsters. Molokai's east and west ends are considered by some divers to be unmatched anywhere in the world.

The diving in Kauai is very similar to what you might experience in Maui. On any given day in the summer, you can get great visibility and have access of up to 26 dive sites, many from shore. However, in winter, the seas on the north side of the island are very rough, and those sites are not divable, limiting your choices to only a few on the south (Poipu) side of the island.


Operators

Kauai
Bubbles Below
Sea Sport Divers
Dive Kauai

Maui
Kapalua DiveTropical Divers
Maui Dive Shop

Oahu
Reef Trekkers

Lanai & Molokini
Extended Horizons
Lahaina Divers

Liveaboards
Kona Aggressor

Weather on all of the Hawaiian Islands is very consistent, with only moderate changes in temperature throughout the year. This is possible due to the year-round warm sea surface temperatures, which keeps the overlying atmosphere warm as well. In practical terms there are only 2 seasons here: the summer months (called Kau in Hawaiian) that extend from May to October and the winter months (Ho'oilo) that run from November to April. The average day-time summer temperature at sea level is 85°F (29.4°C) while the average day-time winter temperature is 78°F (25.6°C). Night-time temperatures are approximately 10°F lower.



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