Seventy-five percent of Hawai'i's reef fish are depleted or in critical condition, and unregulated lay gill net fishing could be the primary culprit, local fishing enthusiasts say.

The state Department of Land and Natural Resources implemented rules regarding lay nets last year, but some who say they have witnessed frequent violations complain the rules are not being properly enforced.

Colin Takashima, who said he has been fishing on O'ahu's southern shores for more than 25 years, believes that illegal lay net fishing is responsible for Hawai'i's depleting reef fish stocks.

"Some guys go and lay a couple hundred yards of nets across the reefs — whole schools of fish can get caught in that before they have the chance to reproduce," said Takashima, a medical representative for an insurance company. "If an entire school of mature, reproducing fish are harvested by one setting of a lay net, how is it supposed to recover?"

The steep decline of reef fish populations in recent years has called attention to the damaging effects of lay-netting.

A recent National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration report showed that of 55 reef fish species studied in the main Hawaiian Islands, 42 percent were in critical condition and 33 percent were depleted.

The study compared fish populations around the main Hawaiian Islands with those around the relatively unfished Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, which was used as a baseline.

Populations of important native food fishes in the main Hawaiian Islands, such as moi, kumu, ulua and 'o'io, have declined 75 percent or more over the past century, according to the International Coral Reef Initiative, organizers of the International Year of the Reef.

Overfishing is one of the main causes behind the declining fish populations, said Alan Friedlander, one of the NOAA study's lead authors. Other factors contributing to a decline are growing human populations and coastal development, which have disrupted reef habitats, he said.

Friedlander said that irresponsible use of gill nets is an especially destructive fishing practice because the nets are "indiscriminate," meaning that all types of fish could get caught in them.

"Illegal gill-netting activity certainly contributes to overfishing," Friedlander said. "There probably are some sustainable uses of lay nets but there is a lot of abuse of the system."

The NOAA report calls for "additional restrictions on overly efficient gear types such as gill nets and SCUBA fishing, bag limits and larger area closures" in order to preserve fish populations.

John Randall, a Bishop Museum senior ichthyologist, said that unregulated lay net fishing is "definitely a problem."

"The existing rules are clearly not being effectively enforced," said Randall, who co-authored a 2006 study, "The Case Against Lay Gill Nets," which argued for a complete ban on gill nets in Hawai'i.

The nets not only contribute to overfishing, but also create marine debris and damage fish habitat, the report states.

114 OFFICERS EMPLOYED

DLNR officials say they are doing everything they can to stop illegal lay-netting.

The department employs 114 enforcement officers statewide — 43 on O'ahu — who are in charge of protecting Hawai'i's natural area reserves, public lands, waters, forests and other resources. In addition to daily field patrols, enforcement officers are in charge of responding to 50 to 100 calls per day from people reporting violations of conservation rules, according to Guy Chang, supervisor for the Department of Conservation and Resource Enforcement.

Efforts have been made to increase the number of enforcement officers in recent months, Chang said. Five additional enforcement officers are undergoing training and will soon join the O'ahu staff.

"We're doing our best to handle every case," Chang said. "There are no calls that go unanswered. There might be a little time lapse, but all cases need to be answered," he said.

There are 2,200 registered lay nets in the state, 550 of which are on O'ahu. To date, eight stolen lay nets have been recorded, according to DLNR public information officer Deborah Ward.

Chang said that enforcement officers have retrieved a few abandoned lay gill nets in the past few months. However, because the nets are unregistered, there is no way to track them back to the people who laid them, he said.

In recent years, Takashima has reported five to seven incidents of illegal lay net fishing. Gill nets must have at least two surface buoys — each with registration numbers and reflective tape — placed at both ends of the float line.

People can report illegal use of gill nets to the DLNR's Division of Conservation and Resource Enforcement. Callers can leave their name and phone number with an enforcement officer to receive a follow-up report.

Although the division documents all complaints, the number of complaints regarding gill net violations was not readily available, Ward said.

Takashima is disappointed with the responses he has gotten after reporting violations.

"There is a 50-50 chance that an officer will come" to take care of the problem, he said. "I've waited for easily two, three or four hours. They did show up a couple times, but most of the time no one shows up," he said.

"It's frustrating to try to do something good and get it under control when there's no response," he added.

MESH NETS WITH FLOATS

Lay gill net fishing is a method of capture using rectangular monofilament mesh nets with floats on the top and weights on the bottom. Gill nets are often set in one location and left unattended as fish get caught in them.

The effectiveness of lay gill net fishing has prompted strict rules regarding their use, which were signed into law last year. Nets must be registered with the DLNR, and cannot exceed 125 feet in length and 7 feet in height. They must not be set for more than four hours at a time or left unattended for more than 30 minutes, according to state law.

Lay gill nets have been banned entirely on Maui, in West Hawai'i, and selected areas on O'ahu, including Portlock Point to Keahi Point, Kailua Bay and Kane'ohe Bay.

Violators can face fines of up to $3,000.

Still, commercial and recreational fishermen are laying unregistered nets in areas where lay-netting is banned after the sun goes down, witnesses say.

"They do it on off hours, normally during the night. I came across one of the guys who lays nets, and he told me that he goes when it's really stormy," said Robert Balala, an O'ahu programmer who has been fishing twice a week for more than four years.

"These guys are laying nets where theyre not supposed to be. On top of that they leave it in for more than the allotted amount of time."

Takashima is most concerned about popular game species such as 'o'io and papio, but notes that lay nets affect all species because there is no way of targeting what gets caught.

Balala and Takashima's experiences highlight the challenges that the state's conservation enforcement division faces, especially in tough economic times when resources are limited.

Mark Fox, director of external affairs for the Nature Conservancy and a supporter of gill net restrictions, understands that "there can't be an enforcement officer on every mile, every point throughout the day."

"We'd all like to see more and better enforcement.," he said. "As with any resource rule, there seems to be pretty universal agreement that conservation regulation needs to be coupled with strong enforcement."

Fox is involved with Fair Catch, a campaign by the Nature Conservancy, Malama Hawai'i and SeaWeb to restore Hawai'i's reefs.

While campaign supporters agree that the state has made great strides in implementing "good rules," more needs to be done to stop illegal lay net fishing, Fox said.