SR70 SD1.DOC

WHEREAS, the Kumulipo, the native Hawaiian chant of creation, states: "Hanau ka palaoa noho I kai" — born is the whale living in the ocean; and

WHEREAS, the whale, palaoa, holds a sacred place within native Hawaiian history as illustrated by its inclusion in the Kumulipo; and

WHEREAS, the palaoa and the koholā, both Hawaiian words for whale, are referenced in place names throughout Hawaii, further illustrating their cultural and historical importance to Hawaiians; and

WHEREAS, approximately 10,000 humpback whales, which constitute fifty percent of the Central North Pacific humpback whale population, migrate to Hawaii's waters each year; and

WHEREAS, in 1992, recognizing the importance of the Hawaiian Islands to the preservation of humpback whales, the United States Congress created the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary (HIHWNMS) to be overseen by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); and

WHEREAS, in 1998, the State of Hawaii entered into a Compact Agreement with NOAA for the coordinated management of the HIHWNMS in order to combine resources and share expertise on the protection of the humpback whale; and

WHEREAS, the humpback whale is also protected by the Federal Endangered Species Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act; and

WHEREAS, the State of Hawaii bans the use of thrill craft from December 15 to May 15 of each year in the waters off of Maui to protect humpback whales; and

WHEREAS, there have been 80 confirmed contacts between vessels and whales from 1979 to 2013; and

WHEREAS, from 2008 to 2013, there have been forty-four whale-vessel contacts recorded during the Hawaii breeding season (13 in 2008, 10 in 2009, 4 in 2010, 5 in 2011, 3 in 2012, and 9 in 2013), compared to thirty-six contacts from 1997 to 2007; and

WHEREAS, of the forty-four confirmed whale-vessel contacts recorded in Hawaii from 2008 to 2013, six were considered likely life threatening and twelve were considered possibly life threatening; and

WHEREAS, from January 29 to January 30, 2013, there were three separate whale-vessel contacts within a twenty-four hour period; and

WHEREAS, NOAA'S Pacific Region Enforcement Office prosecuted fifteen cases since October 2007, fourteen of which were for approach violations and one of which was for a ship strike violation; and

WHEREAS, NOAA'S Pacific Region Enforcement Office has collected $40,650 in penalties for humpback whale cases in Hawaii since October 2007; and

WHEREAS, NOAA'S Pacific Region Enforcement Office prosecutes approach violations and ship strikes under the National Marine Sanctuaries Act or the Federal Endangered Species Act; and

WHEREAS, any violation in regards to the HIHWNMS Act is subject to a civil penalty of up to $140,000 per violation per day; and

WHEREAS, amounts recovered under the National Marine Sanctuaries Act and within the areas of the HIHWNMS that are subject to state jurisdiction go to the HIHWNMS and are used in consultation and agreement with the State; and

WHEREAS, amounts recovered under the Federal Endangered Species Act go to NOAA's enforcement asset forfeiture fund; and

WHEREAS, in 2008, NOAA set speed requirements of ten knots or less for vessels sixty-five feet or larger in certain areas of the East Coast to help promote North Atlantic Right Whale safety during their feeding season; and

WHEREAS, the description of the State's and NOAA's efforts to protect the humpback whale, as described herein, is evidence of the progress in efforts to protect, preserve, and perpetuate the humpback whale population with the HIHWNMS; and

WHEREAS, in spite of the aforementioned efforts, there still has been no formalized permanent plan of protection from vessel strikes; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-seventh Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2013, that the Department of Land and Natural Resources and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are urged to collaborate to form a permanent plan to protect humpback whales from vessel strikes within the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Land and Natural Resources, with the assistance of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is requested to report to the Legislature, no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2014, a plan for the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary to address the threat from whale-vessel contacts; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is requested to report annually, beginning June 1, 2014, to the Legislature on confirmed whale-vessel contacts within the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary in the immediately preceding twelve months; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States; Secretary of Commerce; Governor; Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources; Director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of National Marine Sanctuaries; State Co-Manager of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary; Superintendent of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary, Advisory Council of the Hawaiian Islands National Marine Sanctuary; and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.

Report Title:

Department of Land and Natural Resources; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary; Vessel Restrictions

THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	70
TWENTY-SEVENTH LEGISLATURE, 2013		S.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII