NOAA: Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve Seeks Advisory Council Applicants

Papahânaumokuâkea Marine National Monument/Courtney Couch file image.

Five seats on NOAA’s Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve Advisory Council are looking to be filled.

The council is seeking applicants for five primary and alternate seats.

Council members ensure public participation in reserve management and provide advice to the sanctuary superintendent.

“Community representatives on our advisory council are an extremely important part of our team,” said Athline Clark, NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries superintendent for Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. “Their input is an integral part of managing this special place.”

Applications are sought in both primary and alternate commercial fishing, alternate Native Hawaiian, and primary and alternate Native Hawaiian elder.

Candidates are selected based on their expertise and experience in relation to the seat for which they are applying, community and professional affiliations, and views regarding the protection and management of marine resources.

Applicants who are chosen as members or alternates should expect to serve a two-year term or until a different advisory body is created pursuant to Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument’s management plan.

Fifteen primary and alternate members who represent a variety of public interest groups make up the advisory council. The council also includes 10 governmental seats representing the Department of Defense, Department of the Interior, Department of State, Marine Mammal Commission, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Science Foundation, U.S. Coast Guard, Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council, Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, and Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary.

To obtain an application kit, or for further information, contact Allison Ikeda, policy and program specialist, via e-mail at [email protected]; by phone at 808-725-5818; or by mail at Allison Ikeda, NOAA Inouye Regional Center, NOS/ONMS/PMNM, 1845 Wasp Boulevard, Building 176, Honolulu, HI 96818. Application kits can also be downloaded online.

Applications are due May 31.

The reserve encompasses an area of the marine waters and submerged lands of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, extending approximately 1,200 nautical miles long and 100 nautical miles wide. It is managed by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce pursuant to the National Marine Sanctuaries Act and the Executive Orders that established the reserve in 2000. The reserve is within Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, which was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2010.