Posted on: Monday, March 28, 2005

By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Science Writer

How much do people in Hawai'i care about the shores and reefs? A series of inquiries, including 10 focus groups and a telephone survey of 1,600 people, suggests they care a lot — though those who use the resources care much more than those who don't.

The work, called the Study on Non-Economic Value of Coral Reefs, was done by QMark Research and Polling on behalf of the University of Hawai'i's Coral Reef Initiative Research Program. They did the study to help figure out who's using the coastal resources and what residents think about it.

"Understanding what Hawai'i residents view as the greatest threats to our reefs, as well as the activities they engage in, helps us determine priorities for research and our educational efforts," said Kristine Davidson, the research program director.

They found some predictable results, and some interesting ones.

The five top-ranked coastal activities are: wading and walking on the beach; ocean swimming; picnicking, sunbathing and beach sports; playing in the ocean; and snorkeling. The next five are surfing, tide-pool and reef walking, diving, recreational pole fishing and sailing.

Generally, people who use the shorelines tend to value the coastlines more than those who don't. Neighbor Island residents and those who have lived in the Islands longer gave the coast higher values, while lowest values came from those who have lived in the Islands less than five years and who are males ages 18-34.

The respondents said they believed that pollution was the largest threat, followed by overfishing and coastal development.

There was a fascinating note of self-interest in what kinds of restrictions people thought would be best for improving the coastal environment. "Those who are users of the reefs are less likely to want restrictions of their activities," a summary of the results said.

People who use the shoreline but don't report spending a lot of time in the water are more likely than others to support restrictions that block all human activities. But the folks who use the resources the most, and who presumably would benefit most from restrictions to protect them, are least likely to support such restrictions.

Many said that simply enforcing existing regulations would go a long way to improving the shoreline resources. That, and fine-tuning existing regulations, were deemed considerably better than the options of restrictions on activities.

If you have a question or concern about the Hawaiian environment, contact Jan TenBruggencate at P.O. Box 524, Lihu'e, HI 96766; jant@honoluluadvertiser.com; or (808) 245-3074.