Five staff members at Hakalau Forest Refuge on Big Island fired by Trump Administration

Editors note: An earlier iteration of this article quoted a Facebook post by Spinger Fyrberg that has now been removed.

Five staff members at the Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge were among the more than 400 employees with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service who were fired earlier this month as part of the drastic downsizing of the federal government by the Trump Administration.

The employees who lost their jobs were in the probationary period for federal workers and do not have civil service protection.

Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge, located on the windward slope of Mauna Kea, was established in 1985 to protect and manage endangered Hawaiian forest birds and their rain forest habitat.

Before the forest became a federal refuge, most of the 32,733 acres were parcels of land with cattle and few trees. In the last 40 years, volunteers and greenhouse staff have planted more than 600,000 native trees in that pastureland, said Debbie Anderson, president of the Friends of Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge.

“Now there are acres and acres of koa, mamane, and ʻohia. It is a remarkable success story for reforestation,” Anderson said. “Native birds are now nesting in those trees and we want to continue reviving higher elevation forests, especially if avian malaria continues to grow with the rising temperatures.” 

But Anderson said at least three of the employees who abruptly lost their jobs had positions that were vital to the future of Hakalau.

One employee who managed the greenhouses that are full of seedlings from native trees. Another employee oversaw invasive species control, ensuring animals like pigs could not disturb the delicate ecosystem of Hakalau. The third employee was a seed technician who would gather seeds from the native trees and get them started as seedlings.

“This huge cut in staff will have immediate impacts on the refuge in terms of ongoing vital projects that help secure the future of our endangered endemic birds and plants,” Anderson said.

“The greenhouse which is full of seedlings will lie fallow; all outplanting will diminish and ultimately cease. The huge progress in reforesting former pasturelands will slow to a halt. Pigs will run rampant throughout the refuge. Gorse will invade the forests. The future is grim.”

Anderson said: “Collectively, all of the staff are passionate about their jobs, so they worked together to save the endangered birds and plants. It is a wonderful ʻohana.

Friends of Hakalau immediately began trying to come up with a plan to find a way to cover these positions, Anderson said.

Several staff members also were fired as part of the same Trump Administration workforce downsizing at the Kauaʻi National Wildllife Refuge Complex.

To help in the meantime, volunteers suggest doing any of the following:

• Call, email, or write to the Hawaiʻi congressional representatives:
  • Sen. Brian Schatz, 202-224-3934
  • Sen. Mazie Hirono, 202-224-6361
  • Rep. Ed Case, 202-225-2726
  • Rep. Jill Tokuda, 202-225-4906
• Become a member of Friends of Hakalau Forest
• Donate the general fund
• Purchase Amazon WishList items
• Subscribe to the regular newsletters