Did you miss the 2009 Hawaii Conservation Conference? Have you heard the latest information on climate change, cultural practices, invasive species, the economic crisis, and where Hawai`i is heading? Do you want to hear from islanders from Hawaii and Micronesia in their own words? Would you like to hear for yourself Dr. Stephen Schneider, Nobel Peace Prize winning climatologist on what can be done to mitigate the effects of climate change and sea level rise. Do you care about these Hawaiian Islands; our people, our biodiversity, our culture, the awesome power of our oceans, volcanoes, coral reefs and traditions?

Then you should check out the HCC presentations. They’re online. And free.

The link for the conference index is http://hawaiiconservation.org/2009hcc_presentations.asp

Or you can get one or all of the podcasts on your itunes. Make sure that you are connected to the internet and that itunes can access the itunes store. In itunes, choose Advanced – then Subscribe to Podcast  and then copy and paste this URL into the dialogue box:

http://hcc09.blip.tv/rss/itunes

The podcast directory will load, and you can download one or more of the presentations complete with abstract (in the lyrics section of the podcast).

Enjoy

Waikiki beach has been steadily declining for most of the past 30 years. Photo: Supplied

Whether it’s Kailua Beach, or Waimanalo Beach, or Waikiki Beach, the issue is clear; our beaches are eroding at an alarming rate and we, the users of these precious beaches, could be better stewards if we just had the information necessary to protect these invaluable trees. Just wanted to make sure that this issue gets addressed in our Assessment.

See this front page article in Wednesday’s Honolulu Advertiser.

“DLNR has already cut back on some of its efforts due to budget shortfall

By Dan Nakaso
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawaii’s struggling real estate industry could have an unanticipated consequence on the Islands’ fragile environment because money to guard against foreign plants and animals is tied to the state’s dwindling conveyance tax levied on home sales.
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Some managers with the state Department of Land and Natural Resources are telling their enforcement staffs that their efforts to wipe out everything from noisy coqui frogs to carpets of invading algae to domineering miconia plants could disappear as lawmakers struggle to close a nearly $1 billion budget shortfall.”

See this front page article in Wednesday’s Honolulu Advertiser.

Photo of Hawai`i S Kona Forest Reserve, Big Island

Hau’oli Makahiki Hou to all on this first week of the New Year (Gregorian Calendar). Welcome to the weblog of the Hawai`i State Assessment of Forest Conditions and Long-Term Resource Strategy. This weblog currently has one blogger; me. I’m Ron C, forester with the Hawai`i Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife Administrative Office in Honolulu, Hawai`i (DLNR and DOFAW).
The purpose of this blog is to document my experience in developing two documents; 1) Hawaii’s State Assessment of Forest Conditions and 2) Our Long-Term Resource Strategy. Each US state, territory, commonwealth and Pacific Freely Associated State must submit these two documents in order to qualify for a significant number of USDA programs reauthorized by the 2008 Farm Bill.

Our main partners for these programs are the USDA Forest Service (USFS), and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).

The 2008 Farm Bill requires that the each State submit theirAssessment and Long-Term Resource Strategie, be submitted by the State Forester to the USDA Secretary of Agriculture no later than June 18, 2010, two years to the date of the enactment of the Farm Bill.
But the reality of today is that we live in uncertain times. Exciting, uncharted, dangerous, and inevitably transformative times. But hard times. And so, as a forester and as a civil servant, and like so many of us in this world, I am losing key staff positions, working through budget cuts, doing more with less (read: “increase efficiency”), and being thankful for what I do have.

I love my job, I am proud of my profession, I have great colleagues (and we know who you are), and I am truly thankful and humbled to play a part in caring for these extraordinary islands, serving to protect our common heritage, and play a small part in perpetuating our unique lands and our people.

I am the section head of the Planning & Information Services of DOFAW, a tropical botanist and forester by training a computer guy with a passion for maps (now called GIS) and the Web.

Official Disclosure: This blog, and the main Hawaii SWARS website are *not* official web sites. They may be one day, but as of today, they are registered, paid for and run by myself. Not a problem. I know for a fact that our local school teachers spend way more each year on pens, markers, stickers, . . . but, hey, you just  get the project done and done right. So if I gotta spend a few bucks and work at home, so be it. I’m 50, single and yeah, I do have a life. But I have pretty much dedicated the next two years of my life to this project and so it will be so.

This website is an experiment and a work in progress. Please send comments (sorry to make you register but otherwise the spambot zombie machines really overwhelm your humble blogger) and let me know what you need to make these documents work for you, and I will do my best to accommodate.

OH, AND VOLUNTEERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO CONTACT ME IF YOU WANT HELP MAINTAIN AND EXPAND THE FUNCTIONALITY OF THIS SITE.

OK, goodnight.

Here we go.

Ron Cannarella
January 6, 2009
Honolulu, Hawai`i