Reef-protection groups are awaiting approval of federal permits to install 52 day-use mooring buoys in a continuing effort to reduce the damage caused when boat anchors crush fragile coral colonies and destroy large swaths of underwater habitat.

Fewer than 200 of the submerged buoys are in use at popular snorkeling and diving spots in Hawai'i, about half as many as are needed, according to Teri Leicher, owner of Jack's Diving Locker in Kona and a founder of the Malama Kai Foundation. Both groups were instrumental in developing the state's day-use mooring buoy program, which relies largely on private donations and volunteers.

The moorings are secured to the seafloor by a sturdy system of anchor bolts set in concrete in holes drilled into rock. They provide boaters with a convenient means of securing their vessels and have proven effective around the world in reducing damage to coral reefs caused by anchors and anchor chains.

Leicher, an avid scuba diver, said that over the past 10 years, she has noticed dramatic changes at some of the dive spots where day-use mooring buoys have been installed.

"In extreme cases such as Puako, the coral has completely grown around the damaged areas and most of the sand patches are covered with coral. In some areas, it's huge," she said.

Reef damage caused by anchors and anchor chains is perhaps the most visible impact of the ocean recreation activities enjoyed by millions of Hawai'i residents and visitors annually.

Other impacts include broken coral caused by beachcombers, kayakers, snorkelers and divers who trample or touch reefs, or drag their dive gear. Fish-feeding can alter fish behavior and increase the number of larger and more aggressive fish that crowd out other species and endanger humans.

Swimmers and snorkelers also can foul the water with suntan lotion and sunscreen, which may interfere with coral growth, while pleasure craft and tour boats can pollute the ocean with trash, human waste and gray-water discharges.

Two recent high-profile cases off South Maui underscore why reducing anchor damage is a high priority among reef conservation groups.

In 2007, Crystal Seahorse Ltd. paid the state a $7,300 settlement for illegally entering the 'Ahihi-Kina'u Natural Area Reserve off South Maui and dropping anchor during a charter snorkeling trip, breaking off at least 11 stony coral heads and chipping or fracturing other coral along a 34-yard stretch of ocean floor.

In the second case, an anchor and chain from a 46-foot catamaran owned by Makena Boat Partners scoured a nearly 3,000-square-foot area in Makena Bay over the course of several weeks in 2007, killing or injuring at least 538 stony coral colonies.

The company is contesting $543,000 in penalties levied by the state Board of Land and Natural Resources.

HAWAI'I 'WAY BEHIND'

With more than 15,000 registered vessels in Hawai'i, Emma Anders of the Department of Land and Natural Resources' Division of Aquatic Resources said installation of day-use mooring systems here "is way behind" places such as Florida, where 400 of the mooring buoys have been installed in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary alone. Anders coordinates public and private efforts to address recreational impacts to Hawai'i's reefs.

Dive and snorkel businesses in Kona were first to recognize the detrimental impact of anchors dropped at favorite dive sites. In the 1980s, the dive operators moved on their own to illegally install mooring eye bolts on the rocky ocean bottom to which vessels could directly tie a rope.

The state got on board in the 1990s, gaining Army Corps of Engineer approval for a five-year plan to install 277 day-use mooring buoys throughout the Islands. But lack of funding, a lengthy permit process and the fact the program relies largely on volunteer support slowed the effort.

Today, there are 180 day-use mooring buoys in Hawaiian waters: 82 off the Big Island; 47 off Maui, including 30 at the Molokini Shoal Marine Life Conservation District; 25 off O'ahu; 16 off Lana'i; and 10 off Kaua'i.

Anders said it takes an average of two years to obtain approvals from the state and Army Corps of Engineers to install day-use mooring buoys at a single location. Once installed, the moorings are available at no charge to both commercial and recreational boaters on a first-come, first-served basis. There is a 2 1/2-hour time limit when another vessel is waiting to tie off.

Although the state is supportive, it has provided little funding for the program because of limited resources, Anders said. Charging user fees is one option, but an unpopular one, according to Leicher.

"That would change what (day-use mooring buoys) are intended for; they're for everybody. It's to protect the reefs," she said. "As much as I would love to have the state have money to do maintenance, I don't know where it would come from without charging user fees."

So far, private contributions have paid for buoy hardware and equipment, which cost approximately $1,000 for each mooring, and installation and maintenance have been performed by volunteers from dive companies.

Anders said a team of four divers can install three mooring buoys per day. Without the volunteers, the cost would be $150 an hour per diver, or a total of $4,800 per day. And there are additional costs for monitoring and maintaining the moorings.

The program also has received assistance from the University of Hawai'i Sea Grant Program and UH's Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics, which developed the "Hawaiian eyebolt" day-use mooring buoy based on a Florida design.

LIMITED MOORINGS

Even if funding was available, the remedy to anchor damage is more complicated than simply installing as many day-use mooring buoys as possible at as many locations as possible.

Opposition to specific mooring locations has included concerns about possible damage to underwater cultural and archaeological sites, intrusion on traditional fishing grounds, overcrowding, and attracting tour boats to new sites best left alone.

"There's always the concern that if you build it, they will come," Anders said.

Leicher said the moorings are installed only at sites heavily used by boaters and divers.

"People don't really understand their purpose, and they have concerns that if mooring buoys are put in, boats are going to go there," Leicher said. "The moorings are specifically designed to prevent anchor damage in places where boats already are dropping anchors."

Anders said the Division of Aquatic Resources is in the process of hiring a contractor to develop a statewide day-use mooring buoy plan.