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  Printable Version A Sustainable Hawai‘i The Hawai‘i Community Sustainability Initiative A microcosm of other coastal communities, Hawai‘i possesses a range of coastal conditions and impacts that are present worldwide, including urbanization, population growth and increased pressure on the natural resource base. Hawai‘i can serve as a model for communities by developing the ability to use resources in a regenerative manner that does not harm future generations’ quality of life. As the state is forced to find ways to develop compatibly with limited land and scarce resources, it will provide a model for other coastal communities to develop. Working collaboratively with the different actors in the development process and bringing together the experts from the university and community will assure that the solutions created will have real world applicability. In partnership with the UH Office of Sustainability, this project proposes to continue to develop the Manoa campus as a model coastal community demonstrating state-of-the-art building environmental systems, sustainable water use and local waste treatment and recycling. Specific goals are 1) to plan, develop and coordinate an outreach program to bring business, academia, government, and the public together to move Hawai‘i to a sustainable future; 2) to develop the University of Hawai‘i and its Hawai‘i Institute of Marine Biology as models for sustainable coastal community development and resource use; 3) to further develop the Center of Smart Building and Community Design to assist communities in Hawai‘i in designing buildings that are less resource intensive and to build communities that use fewer resources, protect open space, less automobile dependent and remain livable.
 Sustainable Aquaculture Airlift Bioreactor Based Production, Preservation, and Collection of Copepod Eggs Worldwide growth in the seawater aquarium industry and a decline in wild populations have generated an international call for cultivation of ornamentals. This has been a challenge - many reef fishes produce small eggs, which hatch into tiny larvae, which in turn require very small, yet very nutritious first feeds. Copepods, microscopic crustaceans, relatives of shrimp and lobsters, are the dominant fish food in the open ocean. Their nauplii are considered an optimum food source early in the growth phase of ornamentals. Our research goal is to develop mariculture technology through the development of stable and continuous production systems of live copepod nauplii. In the past two years we have been studying the biology of these copepods and optimizing culture conditions. We have designed a bioreactor, and have started to test the various components. In this current phase we will build a bioreactor prototype and test its efficacy in maintaining healthy copepod cultures, maximize egg production, and harvest and store eggs for future use.
The Role of Bottom Sediments in Nutrient Cycling in He'eia Fishpond Human activity in coastal areas often leads to enhanced erosion and accelerated delivery of sediments and nutrients to the coastal ocean. We have chosen to examine the effects of increased sedimentation on nutrient loading and nutrient cycling in a coastal salt-water pond, He'eia Fishpond, on the island of O'ahu. Native Hawai'ians perfected the art of aquaculture in fishponds such as He'eia, but the health of this and other fishponds have declined due to human activity in the adjacent watershed. Historical records indicate that negative impacts in pond ecology coincided with the onset of enhanced sediment delivery to the pond. This site provides a controlled experimental site for quantifying the ecological effects of accelerated sediment and nutrient delivery to the coastal ocean. Through focused studies we aim to quantify nutrient cycling pathways, the role of sediments in nutrient availability to biological organisms, and link these to historical changes in pond ecology. Findings from this study should be illuminating for other coastal areas that receive anthropogenically enhanced sediment and nutrient loading.
 Marine Biotechnology Identifying Indicators of Land Based Pollution Stress in the Biology of Corals Managing the health of coral ecosystems on local scales is essential to maintaining reefs in optimal condition to face the global threats posed by global climate change. This involves monitoring and mitigating the very deleterious local impacts of land-based pollution on coral health. Corals possess bacterial and algal symbionts that are central to the functional health of the coral itself and that are very sensitive to exposure to pollution. This sensitivity manifests in changes in the types and quantity of specific symbionts found in the corals tissues and these changes therefore provide an avenue for developing diagnostic tools that are informative about the health state of the coral. To evaluate their utility as monitoring tools, we are assessing the composition of the symbiont assemblages found in corals sampled at several sites in the Hawaiian Islands that are characterized by very different exposures to land based pollution. At each site, we are assessing land-use patterns and characterizing the relationship between symbiotic assemblages, the level of exposure to pollutants and the health state of the corals. We anticipate that this research will lead to the development of a set of biomarkers that will provide detailed information on the pollutant exposure states of corals and serve as rationale for implementing management practices aimed at mitigating land-based pollution across the state of Hawai'i.
This project proposes to identify shallow water marine plants in coastal waters of Hawai'i that use natural compounds to inhibit the formation of microbial biofilms. Outcomes from this work could provide some basic, interesting knowledge of anti-fouling potential of local plants that could possess commercial potential for Hawai'i. Aquaculture for shellfish and other invertebrates would also benefit since if we have a better understanding of mechanisms that prevent settlement, it may indicate means by which we could enhance settlement in some culture organisms where this is problematic.
 Nearshore Resources Impacts of coastal zone productivity driven by land inputs on carbon dioxide exchange between Kane'ohe Bay and the atmosphere Nutrient inputs derived from land runoff (rainstorms) affect the chemistry and biological productivity of coastal waters, and ultimately affect the transfer of gases such as carbon dioxide and oxygen between the ocean and atmosphere. The relationship between nutrient inputs and gas exchange in coastal waters has not been studied extensively and understanding this coupling is important because uptake of anthropogenic carbon dioxide by oceans causes acidification of sea water and can affect the ability of various organisms (e.g., plankton, corals) to produce calcium carbonate. Various factors make it difficult to establish whether coastal waters are sinks or sources of carbon dioxide on annual time scales, and various scientists examining this problem have produced contradictory results. A lack of long-term continuous data in coastal waters has hindered a better understanding of these systems in tropical to subtropical areas. Our study is key to understanding how ocean acidification affects coastal reefs ecosystems and their health. Our overall objective is to develop a detailed understanding of how freshwater runoff containing nutrients fuels biological production in coastal waters, and how water column productivity affects the air-sea exchange of CO2 in Kane'ohe Bay. In this project we will determine how seasonal changes in runoff impact freshwater and nutrient inputs to Kane'ohe Bay, how physical processes such as wind, waves, and currents impact the fate and transport of the freshwater plumes, and finally determine annually averaged amounts of carbon dioxide gas exchange between our study area and the atmosphere.
Reproductive and Population Biology of Scarus rubroviolaceus in Hawai'i Parrotfish play an important role in coral reef environments as both algal consumers and in sand production. These fish are also economically valuable in fisheries throughout the tropics. Among the seven Hawaiian parrotfish species, the redlip parrotfish (Scarus rubroviolaceus) is the largest and most heavily targeted species in the local fishery. We currently lack the biological data necessary for the effective management and conservation of this species. This project addresses this need by conducting research on the movement and resource use of this fish (which is crucial for effective management via Marine Protected Areas) as well as its social structure and reproductive biology (such as age at first reproduction, which is needed for setting appropriate minimum size limits of catch). It is our hope that this research will aid parrotfish conservation and management efforts locally and throughout the Pacific.
Ecology of Symbiodinium in its free-living stage Coral reefs exist in an ecological paradox that has fascinated scientists for decades. Coral reefs are found in nutrient deprived waters of tropical seas, yet they are the most diverse and productive of all marine ecosystems on earth. Such apparent ecological discrepancy has been attributed to the mutualistic symbiosis between coral reef invertebrates and dinoflagellate endosymbionts belonging to the genus Symbiodinium. A wide variety of marine invertebrates reap the benefits nutritionally from their symbiosis with Symbiodinium. These invertebrates, however, can expel Symbiodinium if conditions disallow the symbiotic relationship to be sustained. For example, under physiological stresses, corals release Symbiodinium cells into the surrounding water, leading to a well-documented phenomenon called 'coral bleaching'. Furthermore, some of these coral reef invertebrates are do not contain Symbiodinium in their larval stage, but acquire them from the environment when they become juveniles. These lines of evidence indicate that the free-living populations of Symbiodinium are very important for the life cycles of coral reef organisms. We know a lot about Symbiodinium when they are living within invertebrate hosts, yet we know next to nothing about the free-living stage of these dinoflagellates. Searches through the water column have found very little evidence that Symbiodinium are suspended mid-water when they are free. So, where could they be? Another possible habitat for the free-living Symbiodinium is in the marine sediment. Many other species of marine dinoflagellates do live in the upper part of seafloor, and it is a likely habitat of Symbiodinium also if they were to be acquired by juvenile invertebrates that settle on the substrate. In this project, we propose to use molecular genetic techniques to detect and characterize the abundance and distribution patterns of Symbiodinium in sea floor sediments around the Island of Hawai'i. Our study will thus assess the ecological importance of protecting the sediment biot a in order to ensure sustainability of coral reef communities in Hawai'i.
Relationship between individual abundance and genetic variation for the purpose of designing Marine Protected Areas Spatial management schemes, such as MPAs, have gained rapid support throughout the scientific community as an alternative to traditional catch limit fisheries management. However, the question of how populations are spatially distributed and the use of that information in preserving genetic diversity in a spatial management scheme is poorly understood. In the proposed study, we seek to understand the relationship between individual abundance and the degree of genetic diversity among geographic locations across the Hawaiian Archipelago. The primary goal of this work is to understand how and where to consider reserve placement if a goal of such conservation is to preserve genetic diversity of populations. To date, the question of whether individual density and genetic diversity are well correlated remains unanswered in virtually any system. This work will further our understanding of spatially explicit population structure in marine systems and provide information of direct use to managers seeking to conserve coastal resources.
Acoustic monitoring of long-term movement patterns, habitat use and site fidelity of coral reef fishes: Implications for Marine Protected Area design Overfishing is widely believed to have drastically reduced reef fish populations in the Main Hawaiian Islands. Marine Protected Areas (areas where fishing is prohibited) can help to reverse overfishing by allowing fish to grow to maturity in a protected environment, and produce larvae to replenish surrounding areas. However, to prevent fish simply roaming into fished areas and being captured, MPAs must be large enough and contain appropriate habitats to keep resident fish inside protected area boundaries. Despite this very basic MPA design requirement, we actually know very little about the scale and patterns of movements of most coral reef fishes. We are tracking the movements of reef fishes captured inside Kealakekua Bay Marine Life Conservation District (Hawaii) by implanting them with small transmitters and deploying small underwater listening devices inside Kealakekua Bay and along 100 km of the adjacent west Hawaii coastline. We are asking three specific question! s about reef fish long-term movements at Kealakekua Bay: (1) Are reef fishes permanent residents of Kealakekua Bay?, (2) Do their daily movements take them back & forth across the MPA boundary? and (3) Does a wide sandy channel inside Kealakekua Bay function as a natural barrier to reef fish movements? The fish movement data obtained in this study will be used to produce simple guidelines for designing effective MPAs.
Benthic ecosystem functioning under natural and anthropogenic stressors in the Hawaiian coastal zone The Hawaiian coastal zone is impacted by a variety of anthropogenic stresses including species invasions, which can stem from climate change and/ or species introductions (e.g. mangroves), pollutants, and aquaculture. Each of these stressors has the potential to substantially modify essential ecosystem functions, including nutrient recycling, energy flow, and biomass production at the seafloor. Pulse chase experiments, using environmentally benign stable isotopes, provide a new and powerful approach to evaluate the effects of anthropogenic stressors on ecosystem functioning. We will use this approach to explore biogeochemical cycling and food-web structure in a range of anthropogenically perturbed Hawaiian coastal ecosystems, from sediments recently invaded by mangroves, to those found beneath open-ocean aquaculture cages. Our results will have major significance to Hawai'i and beyond by evaluating how a range of anthropogenic stresses alter normal ecosystem function. An understanding of biogeochemical cycling and energy flow in these stressed habitats should be extremely useful to evaluation of wetland restoration practices (e.g., mangrove removal), and coastal management strategies (e.g., the siting of fish cages).
Along island coasts, high surf results in the overwash of beaches and coastal barriers, causing road closures, property damage and coastal erosion. The capability to assess and predict coastal inundation for a given set of wave and water level conditions is needed for the steep beaches and rough offshore bathymetries found at Hawai'i and other tropical islands. We propose to determine what combination of ocean factors (e.g. waves, sea level, winds) leads to over-topping and coastal inundation along the the north shore of O'ahu and how the presence of rough bedforms, notably coral reefs, affects runup. A field and modeling study of wave-driven runup will be carried out at different topographic sites on the north shore of O'ahu to determine a relationship
Oceanic gyres, a natural sea level laboratory to forecast shoreline stability Sea-level rise in the Hawaiian Islands threatens the stability of sandy shorelines that form the basis of our tourism economy, cultural practices, access to the ocean, and coastal ecology. Oceanic gyres that form in the eastern Pacific continuously migrate through the Hawaiian Islands and produce extreme tides measuring 10 to 20 cm above normal high tide lasting from a week to a month at a time. These offer a chance to investigate the role of higher sea level in shoreline processes and provide a modeling opportunity to forecast the impact of future high sea levels on shoreline stability. We will forecast the impact of these high sea level conditions on shoreline stability in coincidence with other marine events such as high swell, kona storms, and accelerations of the trade winds that are erosive on various Hawaiian beaches. Agencies tasked with managing the shoreline need an improved basis for predicting future erosion hazard zones that is independent of (but builds on) historical trends and therefore offers a basis for true forecasts of shoreline stability. The rationale for this study is that it will improve understanding of shoreline vulnerability to sea-level rise using modeling that incorporates the natural complexities found on our sandy beaches.
 Environmental Education and Literacy Graduate Trainee Program In the past, the University of Hawai‘i Sea Grant College Program (UHSGCP) has supported graduate students whose research was directly linked to projects funded through the biennial Omnibus award from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Beginning in March 2003, students supported by this program have been known as UHSGCP Graduate Trainees. The goal of the Trainee Program is to continually develop methods to enhance student effectiveness and use UHSGCP resources to add value to these efforts. Program components include a welcome meeting for Trainees at UHSGCP, a more formal mid-year orientation program at UHSGCP, 15 hours of extension service conducted by the trainee, and an article written by each Trainee to be included in the quarterly UHSGCP magazine, Ka Pili Kai. Ultimate project results will include 1) Sea Grant-supported research of high excellence, 2) enhanced strong and positive academic interactions between principle investigators and their graduate students, 3) enhanced awareness and execution of outreach activities, and 4) Marine and coastal scientists and professionals who understand, value, and contribute to the realization of the greater Sea Grant mission.
Development of Sustainability Case Studies - Part II The growth of the world's population, the subsequent need for natural resources to sustain this growth, and the various impacts of this resource use is as complex and difficult as any problem facing today's society. There are no simple solutions to remediate issues associated with current and future human population demands for natural resources and the impacts of using these resources on the environment. In particular, Pacific Island states face unique challenges regarding resource use, subsequent impacts, and sustainability.
Regional Extension Network Support In collaboration with the American Samoa Community College and the University of Hawai‘i, the UHSGCP’s Regional Extension Network will continue to offer expertise and extension assistance in aquaculture and marine science. The on-island extension specialist based at the American Samoa Community College (ASCC) is an instructor in marine sciences at ASCC and initiates and coordinates student research projects, internships and service learning programs for students. The extension program facilitates and provides opportunities for collaboration between University of Hawai‘i and ASCC faculty, and American Samoa communities and agencies in areas currently defined by the regional aquaculture industry. In addition to these efforts, the Regional Extension program continues to provide technical assistance to local tilapia farmers in the development of the aquaculture industry, and is the on-site liaison for the development of the giant clam village training program.
 Tourism and Ocean and Coastal Related Activities Noise and the Acoustic Environment of Baleen Whales Humpback whales are both a natural and economic coastal resource in Hawai‘i through coastal activities such as whale watching. However, concerns regarding the affect of the ocean’s increasingly complex acoustic environment on large whales have been postulated. The goal of this research is to determine the effect of sound and anthropogenic noise on baleen whales through characterization of their natural baseline acoustic environment with respect to conspecific sound. Specific objectives include the monitoring of song chorusing sounds on a long term basis that covers days, weeks, and months; characterization of the acoustic properties and behavioral contexts of humpback whale social sounds, and; inferring the potential for acoustic disturbance of baleen whales by differentiating between natural and anthropogenic noise. Whale song will be measured using four remote monitoring units spaced along the Maui coast, and an acoustic model of cumulative chorusing energy levels will be developed. Social sounds will be studied through close tracking of humpback social groups, combining a towed hydrophone array with new digital acoustic tags on focal animals. Tags will attach via suction cup and record sound and dive behavior for the duration of the several-hour attachment. This combination of methods will allow localization of vocalizing animals and full characterization of the sounds they are producing. This project includes an education outreach component through collaboration with the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. This public education component will include public talks and development of outreach media. The acoustic data will also assist regulatory agencies in establishing anthropogenic noise limits in the oceans, helping to ensure the continuance of Hawai'i’s coastal and economic resource for future generations.
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