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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES             H.R. NO.              H.D. 1
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                     HOUSE  RESOLUTION

  REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES TO
    CONVENE A WORKING GROUP TO IDENTIFY POTENTIAL SOURCES OF
    PERMANENT DEDICATED FUNDING AND FUNDING NEEDS OF THE
    NATURAL AREA RESERVES SYSTEM.



 1        WHEREAS, the Natural Area Reserves System was established
 2   by legislative mandate in 1970 to "preserve in perpetuity
 3   specific land and water areas which support communities, as
 4   relatively unmodified as possible, of the native flora and
 5   fauna, as well as geological sites, of Hawai`i"; and
 6   
 7        WHEREAS, there are currently 19 Natural Area Reserves in
 8   Hawai`i, totaling 109,165 acres of state-managed land, most of
 9   it ceded, on the islands of Kaua`i, O`ahu, Moloka`i, Maui, and
10   Hawai`i; and
11   
12        WHEREAS, the destruction of native ecosystems by humans
13   and the introduction of foreign plants and animals have
14   resulted in Hawai`i having more endangered species and natural
15   communities than any other place of similar size in the world;
16   and
17   
18        WHEREAS, the Natural Area Reserves System contains some of
19   the best examples of native ecosystems and geological features
20   remaining in Hawai`i, and provides essential habitat for
21   Hawai`i's critically endangered plants and animals; and
22   
23        WHEREAS, these unique resources are an integral part of
24   Hawai`i's cultural and natural heritage, and should be
25   preserved for the enjoyment of future generations and to
26   provide base lines against which changes that are being made in
27   the environment can be measured; and
28   
29        WHEREAS, the 1987 Natural Area Reserves Strategic Plan
30   called for the protection of Hawai`i's "critically imperilled"
31   natural communities and native ecosystems by the year 2000,
32   with priority given to establishing new reserves on suitable
33   state-managed lands; and
34   
35        WHEREAS, since 1987, only one reserve has been added to
36   the Natural Area Reserves System, and dozens of natural
37   communities and native ecosystems on state-managed land remain
38   unprotected; and

 
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                                  H.R. NO.              H.D. 1
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1        WHEREAS, in 1987, the Natural Area Reserves Commission
 2   recommended to the Legislature that a minimum of $1,585,000 be
 3   allocated to manage the existing Natural Area Reserves System,
 4   noting that additional funding would be necessary for an
 5   expanded System; and
 6   
 7        WHEREAS, funding to manage the Natural Area Reserves
 8   System was first provided in 1988, and has never been
 9   sufficient to meet the Legislature's mandate; and
10   
11        WHEREAS, the annual operating budget for the Natural Area
12   Reserves System peaked in 1991 and has decreased steadily since
13   then and is also woefully inadequate; and
14   
15        WHEREAS, the active management and protection of the
16   Natural Area Reserves System for future generations requires a
17   long-term commitment, permanent dedicated funding, and adequate
18   staff; and
19   
20        WHEREAS, the State's Natural Area Partnership Program,
21   Forest Stewardship Program, Wildlife Revolving Fund, and other
22   state programs enjoy permanent funding while there is no
23   dedicated source of funding for the Natural Area Reserves
24   System; now, therefore,
25   
26        BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the
27   Twentieth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session
28   of 2000, that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is
29   requested to convene a working group of representatives of
30   involved agencies and citizen organizations, to identify
31   potential sources of permanent dedicated funding for the
32   Natural Area Reserves System; and
33   
34        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group identify
35   funding and staffing needs for the existing Natural Area
36   Reserves System, as well as an expanded System as recommended
37   in the Natural Area Reserves Strategic Plan; and
38   
39        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Land and
40   Natural Resources is requested to submit the working group's
41   findings to the Legislature no later than sixty days prior to
42   the convening of the Regular Session of 2001; and
43   
44        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
45   Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Chairperson of the
46   Board of Land and Natural Resources, and the Office of Hawaiian
47   Affairs.