The permit was granted in July to Makua Lani, a non-profit group that promotes Hawaiian culture and nature, said DLNR Director Peter Young. High on the list of conditions was the 50-yard buffer, which was pulled word-for-word from guidelines for the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act, Young said.

The state has never imposed a restriction like this because it cannot regulate federal guidelines, such as those enforced by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

NOAA and the state "are working together on it," he said. "If someone violates that condition of the agreement, we ultimately will cancel their concession but we will not attempt to enforce the Marine Mammal Protection Act."

Officials have wanted to impose this restriction for some time, Young said. Makua Lani was the first group seeking to use state land. It needed the permit to launch its tours from Makua Beach and the buffer zone was aimed at giving the dolphins a break, Young said.

Many other groups and individuals that come too close to the dolphins do so from private boats or private property. State marine enforcement officers would need to be deputized by NOAA in order to stop the practice, Young said. An agreement to do that is still under discussion, he said.

Richard Holland, executive director for Makua Lani, said the state's permit condition is fair and the group's tour leaders, himself included, have had no trouble staying in compliance. He said he does not put swimmers in the water with dolphins.

"We won't get as close as we have in the past," he said. "We never touched the dolphins. We know that is not legal. But there are times when the dolphin approaches you. What are you going to do in that experience?"

The contact between humans and mammals takes place as the dolphins come into shallow and relatively protected waters to rest after hunting at night. Because they are closer to shore, people can swim or paddle out to see them, violating the federal protection law, Young said.

"People describe the emotional and spiritual benefits of doing this, but they don't realize there is a physiological impact on the dolphins," he said. "They need to rest. They have been hunting for food all night."

Being friendly by nature, the dolphins often will approach, he said. He advises people to move away when that happens.

His hope is to make the public more familiar with federal protection laws, he said.

Young said the state is working with kayak tour companies on Maui and hopes to do the same on the Big Island. He stressed, however, that businesses are not the sole violators of the law.

So far, the response has been good, although some tour operators were concerned that the law would not be enforced uniformly. Maui business owners were told to continue taking their clients on snorkeling adventures, but to avoid marine mammal resting areas, Young said.

"Just like people are accustomed now to staying away from monk seals, let's get them accustomed to staying away from dolphins," he said. "If they approach you, retreat."

Tori Cullins, owner of a dolphin encounter company called Wild Side Specialty Tours, is critical of the decision to grant a permit to Makua Lani, insisting that the group gets too close to dolphins. Because her company launches from a harbor, it does not need a special permit.

"There are too many people out there," she said. "Too many boats. Too many trips. And there are just no limits on it."

Last week at Makua, for example, she brought eight people on her company's catamaran. She said she found two other boats with 25 people each and 15 kayaks from Makua Lani.

Wild Side, however, does not hide the fact that it puts swimmers into the water with dolphins much closer than 50 yards. As long as her customers do not change the behavior of a dolphin, they're OK, Cullins said.

"They come within touching distance of a swimmer," she said. "We don't touch them, and we tell people not to touch them. It is uncool and rude. But the guidelines are still guidelines."

Holland dismisses Cullins' claims. "They view us as their competitor, and in that light, sometimes they say things that are not true," Holland said.

Tamra Faris, assistant regional administrator for protected resources for NOAA Fisheries, said the agency was "a champion" of the state's decision. But defining harassment of a dolphin isn't easy, she said.

"Just crossing a line doesn't mean we would win a case of harassment. Harassment is measured if the animal changes its behavior, and sometimes they will change their behavior at greater distances than 50 yards. And then proving that the human activity changed their behavior is a hard thing to enforce, but I wouldn't say it is unenforceable."