Scientists checking health of Kaua'i reef
By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Kaua'i Bureau
PILA'A, Kaua'i — A team of volunteer diver-scientists yesterday began a two-day reef survey of scenic Pila'a Bay, where a massive mudslide in November 2001 turned nearshore waters the color of chocolate and left a layer of sediment on the bottom.
Divers specializing in coral health, algae and coastal geology are working with Sam Lemmo, administrator of the Office of Conservation and Coastal Lands, an agency of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources.
"We're going into a contested case in July or so, and want to get a sense of the status of the reef," Lemmo said.
The DLNR has filed conservation district violation charges against landowner Jimmy Pflueger in connection with the mudslide.
Pflueger has admitted conducting earth-moving without permits on the bluff overlooking Pila'a Beach, and that a November 2001 rainstorm caused large amounts of mud to run down the steep hillside to the shoreline.
Pflueger, 78, is under EPA and state Department of Health orders to take action to minimize further sediment flow to the reefs. He is cooperating with state and federal agencies in conducting remediation work, which has included construction of water diversion structures, settling ponds and sediment screening devices. An engineering firm is developing a runoff management plan for the entire area. Pflueger is paying for the work.
Pflueger last month pleaded no contest to 14 felony water pollution counts in connection with the case. He is to be sentenced on those violations in September.
Last year, he pleaded no contest to county grading ordinance violations and was assessed a $3,000 fine and required to perform 450 hours of community service.
Several of the marine experts at Pila'a yesterday have been on the reef during the past two years, and they will check earlier baseline data to identify changes in the reef ecology.
Paul Jokiel, a researcher with the Hawai'i Coral Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program, dove on the reef in the summer of 2002 and reported that clouds of mud would rise from the sand around coral heads when he waved his hand over them. Jokiel also reported that many large corals were dead or dying as a result of the mud.
Jokiel was among the divers back at the scene yesterday.
Back, too, was coastal geologist Chip Fletcher, who said he located a layer of mud under the sand when he last visited. The research team would not speculate on what they might find this time, although Fletcher said he doubted the mud layer would still be present.
Observations yesterday indicate the beach and reef have recovered significantly. The sand appeared clean, and a deep hole dug by a dog on the beach showed no sign of mud. Swirling the sand near the shore and in pockets on the reef raised white clouds of coral dust, but not red-brown mud.
The reef has large sections of old coral overgrown by algae, but there were also healthy-looking corals in vibrant yellow, purples and whites.
Powerful winter storms have scoured the reef, removing most of the obvious evidence of the mudslide in the water.
"The winter storms really pound this place. Most of the mud was gone after the first big storm," said Marshall Rosa, a Pflueger employee.
Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 245-3074.
