HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	230
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

requesting the department of land and natural resources to convene a panel to study the relationship between THE INTERISLAND TRANSPORTATION OF gill nets OR LAY NETS and THE SPREAD OF FOREIGN MARINE species.

     WHEREAS, generally, the term "gill net" refers to a curtain-like net suspended in the water with mesh openings large enough to permit only the heads of the fish to pass through, ensnaring them around the gills when they attempt to escape; and

     WHEREAS, in lay gill net fishing, a person uses a stationary gill net in a certain location and retrieves it from the same location after passage of a sufficient time period to allow for the capture of aquatic life; and

     WHEREAS, lay net fishing generally does not include akule nets, bait nets, lobster nets, and throw nets; and

     WHEREAS, lay nets rest at the bottom of the ocean and besides fish, also catch other types of marine life including coral and seaweed that become entangled in the net; and

     WHEREAS, it is not uncommon for lay nets to become encrusted with barnacles and other forms of marine growth that are not easily removed from the net; and

     WHEREAS, the ecological balance of the water surrounding each of the Hawaiian islands is unique from any other island and is the result of millions of years of evolution; and

     WHEREAS, each island is a balanced ecological system unto itself that supports and maintains not only marine life, but commercial and sports fishing, water recreation, and other marine-related industries; and

     WHEREAS, the introduction of foreign marine life from one Hawaiian island to another could have devastating effects on the delicate balance of the host marine ecological system; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2007, the Senate concurring, that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is requested to convene a panel to study the relationship between lay gill net fishing and the interisland spread of foreign marine species; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department is requested to consider the different methods and modes of transportation that owners of lay gill nets might employ to transport their nets interisland; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department is requested to select a sufficient number of panel members from the government and business sectors and the community with expertise or an interest in marine life, ecology, and the transport of unwanted marine life; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is requested to report its findings and recommendations, including any suggested legislation to the Legislature, no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2008; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, who is requested to transmit copies of the Concurrent Resolution to prospective members of the panel and any other interested party.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

DLNR Study; Lay Gill Nets