Nature Conservancy buys Ka'u land
By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Science Writer
The Nature Conservancy of Hawai'i has bought four large parcels of Big Island conservation land from C. Brewer and Co. for $2.1 million.
It is rugged, generally steep forested land, most of it covered with native forest and comparatively little weedy infestation, although weeds from neighboring abandoned canefields threaten it.
The forest acreage purchased from C. Brewer is rugged and heavily vegetated land in three parcels adjacent to the Ka'u Forest Reserve. "It's a biologically rich area," said a Nature Conservancy official.
"It's a biologically rich area, very much in intact condition," said Suzanne Case, acting executive director of the Nature Conservancy.
The 3,548 acres lie adjacent to the state's Ka'u Forest Reserve and are part of what the conservancy called the largest and most intact stretch of native koa and 'ohi'a forest in the state.
The purchase was made possible by an anonymous donation to the conservancy's Hawaiian Forest Campaign, Case said.
The property lies on the southwest side of Mauna Loa, mauka of Wai'ohinu and Pahala. It ranges between 2,160 feet and 5,770 feet in elevation, and includes steep ridges, some with narrow plateaus on them and deep valleys between.
In addition to the land, the conservancy bought access easements through Mauna Kea Agribusiness lands below. Mauna Kea Agribusiness is a C. Brewer subsidiary.
The easements also will allow the state to gain access for management of its 100,000-acre Ka'u Forest Reserve.
Ironically, cultivation of sugarcane immediately adjacent to the lands had helped to protect natural resources, because the burning of the crop every couple of years killed off weeds that might have spread into the forest, said Kim Hum, conservancy director of land protection.
But with sugar gone, weeds are invading the old canefields and threatening the forest.
Case said weed control is an immediate priority.
"We hope to manage it in cooperation with the community of Ka'u and with the (neighboring) public and private landowners," she said.
The Ka'u land joins the conservancy's 10 preserves that cover 27,000 acres across the state.
