Maui’s watershed partnerships work to protect the aina – Maui News

The Mauna Kahalawai crew of (from left) Daniel Tanaka, Jackson Lausterer, Nicole Ferguson, Kyle Alreck, Taylor Fernandez, Marcus Richter and Justin Sandler work on building a fence within the watershed, which helps to keep out goats, deer, pigs and other animals from trampling on native habitats. MKWRP photo

Kimberly Thayer of the Mauna Kahalawai Watershed Partnership is often thinking of ways to improve Mauis precious native ecosystems and freshwater systems, which have taken a village to protect and conserve.

Even when Im driving to work in Olowalu and Im looking at the Pali the whole time and thinking, this used to be forest, this whole thing, and how do I make it be forest again?,' Thayer said with a laugh.

Whenever I drive to Hana or backside, Im like how do I make this be all native forest again? Pretty much everywhere I go, thats what Im thinking about.

Laughs aside, though, there is some frustration behind her voice knowing that the Valley Isle was once thriving with native trees, plants, insects and birds.

Thayer remains hopeful that the ongoing collaboration between Mauna Kahalawai, East Maui Watershed Partnership and Leeward Haleakala Watershed Restoration Partnership will help to fight back against intentional or unintentional introductions of invasive species, climate change, urbanization, and unmanaged feral ungulates.

Members of the Leeward Haleakala Watershed Restoration Partnership crew collect koa tree seeds for replanting. LHWRP courtesy photo

By working together and creating these partnerships, we can do more large-scale conservation efforts across large lands and really kind of work as a united front, said Allison Borell, East Maui Watershed Partnership outreach and education liaison.

Borell and others spoke during a Maui Invasive Species Committee webinar series recently to kickoff Hawaii Invasive Species Awareness month.

These forests are essential for capturing water that we all drink and rely upon, said Thayer, who has worked with the MKWP for about nine years.

Mauna Kahalawai otherwise known as the West Maui Mountains, feeds about 75 percent of all Maui County Department of Water Supply customers, she added.

A team of 11 full-time staff leads efforts to protect and preserve about 50,000 acres within the Mauna Kahalawai Watershed, which is home to a variety of trees, plants, ferns and mosses as well as native insects, birds and snails.

A native koa tree is overwhelmed by the invasive strawberry guava trees. One of the main efforts by the Mauna Kahalawai crew is to remove nonnative plants from the watershed. MKWP photo

Many of which are found here and nowhere else on the whole entire planet, Thayer said.

Much of the landscape is flooded with nonnative shrubs and grasses, which can suffocate native ohia lehua trees. Goats, deer and sheep, and sometimes people, trample fields and dry out the soil.

Barren landscapes, like in Ukumehame, can ignite potential wildfires or sediment runoff during a rain event, Thayer said.

These arent just problems far out in the mountains because things that happen up mauka, will inevitably affect us down makai, she said. So this not only affects our quality of life and our natural spaces, but also affects our water supply.

Created in 1991, the East Maui Watershed Partnership includes six major land holders and contains about 100,000 acres in total of conservation lands, but only about half is being actively managed properly, said Borell.

This side of the island brings different challenges where the crew of seven full time staffers, with four in the field, handle different terrain, native species and varying threats. According to EMWP, the worlds greatest concentration of endangered birds lives within this habitat.

East Mauis watershed collects water for Upcountry neighborhoods and businesses, which is distributed by East Maui Irrigations system. According to the website, the watershed includes seven reservoirs that can store 274 million gallons and has 74 miles of ditches, tunnels and pipes that transport 450 million gallons of water per day.

Borell said the mission is to protect the watershed as well as educate the public and local community about conservation and other issues relating to watershed protection.

Similarly to the other watersheds, years of overgrazing by cows, pigs and goats as well as the introduction of invasive plant species and disease has degraded native ecosystems within the Leeward Haleakala Watershed, said Kailie Aina, outreach coordinator and cultural programs liaison.

Only less than 10 percent of historical forest cover remains on the slopes of Haleakala, she said, which is why their main goals are to restore and preserve the native forests and creatures that live within them, as well as to be able to perpetuate cultural resources and practices.

Were dealing with a much drier situation, said Aina, noting how Maui is experiencing greater numbers of consecutive dry days, especially at higher elevations, which can increase the risk of fire.

Stretching across Makawao through Ulupalakua to Kaupo, LHWP covers just over 43,000 acres.

Aina said that about 77 percent of groundwater recharge comes from watershed partnership lands, so its really important that we restore those areas in order to keep our water supply good for generations.

Dirty work to make the dream work

Mitigation strategies among all the watershed partnerships include building conservation fences to keep out animals; removing and weeding out invasive plants; planting native species; and offering education and volunteer opportunities.

Its super hard work, but theres signs of hope, said Thayer, pointing to photos during her presentation of koa tree saplings and ohia lehua sprouts growing within the watershed in West Maui.

So far, MKWP has built 25.2 miles of fence that protect over 30,000 acres of land above the fence, 23,310 acres of which are critical habitats for endangered plants.

According to their website, 126 species of rare plants, animals and communities are protected within the boundaries and nearly 104 miles of perennial streams have been restored within the partnerships lands.

In the Leeward Haleakala Watershed, about 122,000 native seeds have been planted, about 12,000 seed balls have been made by Maui students, and 13.5 miles of fences have been maintained to protect the native habitat.

You either do nothing or you do something, and to do something, we are seeing results, Aina said. The only way to get there is to keep moving forward, to be hopeful, and to see that with just the work were doing now and seeing those forests surviving, they wouldnt be there unless someone stepped in.

The East Maui Watershed team constructed over 7 miles of fencing in the remote areas of the watershed, implemented a hunting program to increase access for hunters, developed a monitoring and management plan, and initiated animal control and invasive plant species programs above the fence lines, according to Borell.

Its the small wins, sometimes, that help and thats what keeps you going because if we dont take one step forward, even if its small, then nothing gets done, Borell said.

Getting the community involved by offering volunteer opportunities, workshops and partnerships for youth to learn about Mauis ecosystem is totally my passion, she added.

Its really going to be up to them to really create the changes and keep the threats from coming, she said.

From cleaning shoes after a hike so as to not spread seeds, to planting natives in the yard, to supporting and advocating watershed management efforts, Thayer said that small actions by the community in general can lead to big impacts.

Every yard, place and school should have native plants growing in it, Thayer added. I look at, like, the medians of the highway and Im like why arent natives growing in the median of this road and in this little grassy area, in this parking lot or strip of land right in front of the mall?'

For Aina, being open to learning about the islands culture and environment will inspire a ripple effect for more positive impacts.

Hawaii isnt Hawaii without these plants and these animals and insects, Aina said. For me, I just like to think about whatever ways are possible to educate, it doesnt matter whether youre from here or not. If you become educated, you can become a catalyst for change.

Funding for restoration work for each watershed organization often comes from various public and private grants, small donations, and partnerships.

Still, Thayer noted that theres never a guarantee that funding will be granted each year to support their efforts.

Borell added: Were all small crews, so I would love it if the state had 1 percent, even just 1 percent of their funding to go towards conservation efforts would make a huge impact in our ability to grow our crews and the work that we can do. But in the meantime, if we cant have that, I would love to get more of the people involved in understanding that these places exist and changing some of their daily habits.

* Dakota Grossman can be reached at dgrossman@mauinews.com.

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Maui's watershed partnerships work to protect the aina - Maui News