The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is inviting the public to comment on the draft comprehensive conservation plan and environmental assessment for Pearl Harbor National Wildlife Refuge on O‘ahu. When final, the plan will guide management of the refuge for the next 15 years.
“Pearl Harbor National Wildlife Refuge’s three small units are key habitats for numerous endangered species,” said Dave Ellis, project leader for the O‘ahu National Wildlife Refuge Complex. “Our focus in the draft plan is to protect, restore, and maintain the habitats upon which these species depend for survival, while providing limited opportunities for environmental education and wildlife observation.”
Tucked amidst naval facilities and urban development, the Honouliuli and Waiawa Units on Pearl Harbor’s West and Middle Lochs are managed under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Navy to provide wetland habitat for four of Hawai‘i’s endangered waterbirds: a‘eo (Hawaiian stilt), ‘alae ke‘oke‘o (Hawaiian coot), ‘alae ‘ula (Hawaiian moorhen), and koloa maoli (Hawaiian duck), as well as a variety of migratory shorebirds and waterfowl. The refuge was established in 1972 as mitigation for construction of the Honolulu International Airport’s reef runway.
Located west of Honolulu on the ‘Ewa Plain, the Kalaeloa Unit was established on the former Barber’s Point Naval Air Station in 2001 to protect and enhance the habitat for the endangered plants ‘Ewa hinahina and ‘akoko.Kalaeloa is an area of raised limestone coral reef with ancient coastal dryland plant communities that were once widespread throughout the ‘Ewa plain. It also includes numerous anchialine pools,
