Maunalua Bay Cleanup Gets Stimulus Boost
By Kerry Miller
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Del.icio.usMaunalua Bay will get some much-needed TLC thanks to stimulus funds from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, along with the efforts of The Nature Conservancy and Malama Maunalua, who are partners on the Invasive Algae Removal Project.
“We’re thrilled to death,” said Jennifer Taylor of Malama Maunalua. “This is probably going to have the single largest impact on the bay as anything we’ve tried to do in the last few years.”
They are getting $3.4 million from NOAA to pay 60 people to work over a 14-month period to remove mudweed from the bay as well as to pay for equipment, supplies and scientific studies. While the grant agreement is not yet finalized, TNC is making preparations to start the work.
“We are poised to hire people and are in the process of interviewing for project manager and posting requirements for a proposal for a contractor to manage the project itself,” explained Suzanne Case, executive director of TNC Hawaii. “We’re working closely with Malama Maunalua. We’re hoping to get people in the water in September.”
In the past few decades, mudweed has built up a presence in the bay and is harming the reef, the fish and plant life. It thrives in mud, blocks light, smothers coral and traps sediment in the bay, rather than filtering out to sea. This creates an environment in which plants can’t get light and fish stay away because there’s no food. During the past 18 months volunteers with two groups have removed nearly 25 tons of the stuff.
“We’re not sure how it got to the bay - it’s in some other places and really dense,” said Taylor.“It’s in 57 acres of Maunalua Bay. When we clear a patch, it stays clear. The mudweed does not quickly regrow. It gives you high hopes that the bay could actually start to restore itself.
“If you think about the state of this poor bay, it looks so pretty on top. But if you got out kayaking or walking on the edge, all you see is gray mud, and a lot of that is being trapped by algae. That’s what we’re going to clear out of there.”
Taylor added that in addition to hiring workers through the grant, the partners will continue welcoming volunteers to help in the mudweed removal because it was volunteers’ efforts that won the grant in the first place. “If we hadn’t had the volunteers working for the last two years proving that the removal would take place - and work with the scientists - that’s the whole basis for the proposal we made.”
Case agreed, calling the project historic and cited its many benefits.
“We’re totally excited. The big picture here is we’ve a got troubled economy and Congress and the administration are creating jobs through stimulus money, and those funds are being distributed in various ways. NOAA had an amount to spend on jobs, on projects to get the economy going around the country, and Maunalua Bay is one of those projects. It’s the economy and the environment together that’s what’s so great about it.
“NOAA is a terrific partner in this as well, they’re excited too about it,” she added.“We’re working closely with them. The fact that NOAA has allocated stimulus funds for this project is a real strong statement for their stewardship of Hawaii’s waters.”
To volunteer or for more information, visit www.malamamaunalua.org or www.nature.org/hawaii.
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