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A series of focus area maps finalized in January 2011 are an important
new addendum to the Joint Venture's Strategic Plan for Wetland Conservation
in Hawaii (Strategic Plan), first released in January 2006. Prepared with
input from Hawaii Wetland Joint Venture technical partners throughout the
islands, the new focus area maps provide a way to direct efforts toward
places with the highest ecological value and immediate habitat benefit for
waterbirds.
Identifying focus areas increases the likelihood of partnership
collaboration within these areas and adds benefit when partners apply for
project funding. This combination helps us to better conserve essential
wetlands before they are further degraded or lost. The focus area polygons
do not include all wetland areas but rather those areas that are considered
most important and urgent at the present time. This does not mean that other
wetlands within the Strategic Plan are not of interest to the Joint Venture.
Wetlands outside the focus areas are still important sites for conservation
but are not the highest immediate priority within the plan.
Focus areas encompassing full watersheds were specifically identified as
beneficial for the endangered Koloa maoli. This endemic Hawaiian duck uses
both wetland areas and stream corridors to meet its life history needs.
It is important to note that both the Strategic Plan and this focus area
addendum are a starting point for further quantitative revisions to the
plan. The Strategic Plan for Wetland Conservation in Hawaii will be revised
on a regular basis and therefore these maps represent a starting place for
further refinement as additional resource information becomes available.
In the future new information will be incorporated from updates to the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service's National Wetland Inventory (NWI.) The NWIs for
two Hawaiian Islands (Oahu and Kauai) are already complete, with Maui Nui
(Maui & closest small islands) expected in mid-2011 and Hawaii Island
to follow. These updates will feed into the next full revision of the
Strategic Plan.
In addition, the Pacific Islands Climate Change Cooperative (of which the
HWJV is a partner) will obtain research data on sea level rise impacts to
the islands of Oahu and Maui in the very near future. That data, and any
other information from the PICCC research on climate change impacts to
wetlands, will be integrated into the next revision of the Strategic Plan.
At that point there may be some further clarification of sea level rise
adaptation for coastal versus upland wetland systems.
The Joint Venture Strategic Plan for Wetland Conservation in Hawaii
is intended to guide partners in collaborative efforts that protect the
best and most important wetlands first, with an eye toward long-term
habitat sustainability and adaptation in the face of climate change.
The criteria used to qualitatively identify the focus areas, as well as
the full detailed maps by island, can be viewed on the right column of this page.
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Maps in PDF Format
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