Citizens And Conservation Groups File Suit to Protect Hawaii's Reef Ecosystems

State Issuance of Aquarium Collection Permits Without Environmental Review Poses Danger to Already-stressed Coral Reefs

HONOLULU— Citizens and conservation groups took legal action today to require the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources to protect Hawaii’s reefs and coastal areas from unlimited collection of fish and other wildlife for the aquarium trade. Specifically, the groups are asking DLNR to conduct environmental reviews — including an examination of cumulative damage to the state’s reefs — before granting permits that allow unlimited aquarium collection of marine wildlife in coastal waters.

Earthjustice filed the complaint under the Hawaii Environmental Policy Act in the 1st Circuit Court on behalf of Rene Umberger, Mike Nakachi, Kaimi Kaupiko, Willie Kaupiko, Conservation Council for Hawaii, The Humane Society of the United States and the Center for Biological Diversity.

“DLNR owes it to the people of Hawaii to take a hard look at the effects of aquarium collection on our coral reefs before it allows these ecologically valuable animals to be shipped to the mainland for private profit,” said Earthjustice attorney Caroline Ishida.

Aquarium collectors capture hundreds of thousands of fish and invertebrates from Hawaii’s reefs every year. Alarmingly, DLNR has stated that this should be considered a minimum estimate because it does not verify the accuracy of submitted catch reports.

The collected animals are primarily herbivorous reef-dwellers that serve unique functions in the coral reef ecosystem, such as helping to control algae growth. Studies have shown that reducing diversity of reef fish and shellfish affects a reef’s ability to respond to stresses or disturbances. This is vitally important as reefs come under serious pressure from global threats, including climate change and ocean acidification. DLNR has not conducted any studies showing how its policy of handing out permits for the asking will affect Hawaii’s reefs over time.

The complaint seeks a court order to force the state to comply with the Hawaii Environmental Policy Act’s requirement to examine aquarium collection’s effects on the environment before issuing collection permits. The complaint also asks the court to halt collection under existing commercial aquarium permits and to stop DLNR from issuing new permits until the environmental review is complete.

“Our coral reefs are among Hawaii’s most precious resources, and DLNR should have all of the available information about aquarium collection before deciding whether to issue these permits,” said Marjorie Ziegler, of Conservation Council for Hawaii.

There is currently no limit on the number of aquarium permits that DLNR can issue and no limit on the number of animals a commercial collector can take under a permit. Aquarium collection can occur anywhere in the state, except in designated protected areas, but primarily occurs in waters around Oahu and along the west coast of the island of Hawaii. DLNR has expressed concern in official reports over the increasing number of collectors in the state and the growing number of animals harvested from the reefs by the aquarium trade.

“I have done thousands of scuba dives on reefs around the state over the years, and I have seen a noticeable difference in reef health between areas that are open to collection and those where collection is prohibited,” said Rene Umberger. “DLNR needs to fulfill its basic public duty to examine this practice before issuing permits that allow collectors to remove many thousands of animals from the reefs every year, particularly because of the global stresses reefs are facing.”

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Earthjustice is a nonprofit, public-interest, environmental law firm. The Mid-Pacific office opened in Honolulu in 1988 as the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, and has represented dozens of environmental, native Hawaiian, and community organizations. Earthjustice is the only nonprofit environmental law firm in Hawai‘i and the Mid-Pacific, and does not charge clients for its services. For more information, visit www.earthjustice.org.

Conservation Council for Hawaii is a Hawaii-based, nonprofit environmental organization with over 5,500 members and supporters dedicated to protecting native Hawaiian species and ecosystems for future generations. CCH was formed in 1950. For more information, visit www.conservehi.org.

The Humane Society of the United States is the nation’s largest animal protection organization. For more than a half-century The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education and hands-on programs. It is supported by more than 11 million Americans, more than 50,000 of whom reside in Hawaii. For more information, visit www.humanesociety.org.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 450,000 members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places. For more information, visit www.biologicaldiversity.org.