Land Board Approves Fencing of Ka`u Watershed

The state Board of Land and Natural Resources has approved a plan to construct 22 miles of fencing to protect a key watershed in Ka`u from the negative impact of pigs and other ungulates.

The plan approved unanimously by the board at its meeting Friday in Honolulu is designed to protect 24,000 acres in the Manuka Natural Area Reserve.

In addition to the fencing, the plan includes various methods of invasive species control as well as the planting of native vegetation, according to a report submitted by Department of Land and Natural Resources staff.

The project is part of the DLNR’s “The Rain Follows the Forest” initiative aimed at protecting high-priority watershed and biodiversity areas.

According to the DLNR’s website, the Manuka Natural Area Reserve established in 1983 contains a wide range of habitats, including both wet and dryland forests as well as coastal anchialine pools and what was described as a rare lowland grassland.

The website said the reserve is home to 10 rare native plants and three rare animals, including the endangered Hawaiian hoary bat.