Ko Olina moorings OK'd
| • | Map: Planned location for the moorings |
By Will Hoover
Advertiser Leeward O'ahu Writer
The state has approved a request from Ko Olina Resort to install six offshore boat moorings west of the resort.
Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser
Ko Olina will pay approximately $10,000 for the moorings and will begin putting them in as soon as the permitting process is completed, said a resort representative. The moorings are expected to be in before the end of the year.
William Aila, Wai'anae Boat Harbor master, says the new moorings planned west of Ko Olina would be used primarily by visiting vessels and pleasure boats from the resort's marina.
The resort asked for permission from the Department of Land and Natural Resources' Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation to put in the moorings for use by the general public.
The DLNR granted the request Friday, saying the moorings would reduce damage to coral reefs by vessels that would otherwise have to set and remove anchors from the ocean floor.
A statement released by acting division administrator W. Mason Young said representatives from his office, Ko Olina Resort, and Leeward Coast commercial fishers conducted an underwater survey of several proposed area offshore locations.
"Several sites were determined not to be suitable and removed from consideration due to aquatic resources, importance to near shore fishermen, and depth ... " Young said in the statement.
William Aila, Wai'anae Boat Harbor master, the state's person in charge of coastal waters from Ka'ena Point to the western tip of Honolulu International Airport, said the planning process began more than a year ago.
"This is a perfect example of the right way to do things," Aila said. "Ko Olina Resort approached us real early, and we were able to address any potential user conflicts that might have resulted."
For example, some of the intended mooring sites were in shallow waters off Ko Olina, Aila said. Those positions might have adversely affected the net placement of area akule fishermen. But because the fishermen were part of the planning process, the unsuitable positions were changed.
The process hasn't always worked so well.
"When some of the commercial boaters out of Ko Olina began operating in that area, we asked them to position themselves in a safer, more advantageous area that would also remove them from areas that were fished," Aila said. "Initially, they didn't take the advice."
Aila said the new moorings would be used primarily by visiting vessels and pleasure boats from Ko Olina Marina.
Young said the six moorings will be placed at depths of 32 to 41 feet, and at locations where few reef fish are present.
"We weren't sure the request would be approved," said Russell "R.D." Doane, Ko Olina Marina Harbor Master. "But things turned out really well. We just wanted to make sure that this reef would be protected ... that people don't drop anchor and start pulling up coral.
"This is definitely a good thing for everybody."
Reach Will Hoover at whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8038.
