2019-12-29 HCDP Community Action Guide FINAL REV COVER

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4.1 Expand the Local System of Preserves Community Action 2: Establish acquisition priorities, using PONC criteria, and secure priority lands. • Partner with existing Hawai'i Land Trusts to acquire land through conservation easements and acquisition to ensure viewshed protection; • Identify appropriate critical habitat areas needing further protection as priority areas through PONC criteria to protect through easement or acquisition mechanisms Need: Hawai'i has the largest number of federally listed and candidate species under the Endangered Species Act. Native species sacred to the Hawaiian culture are disappearing at the highest extinction rate in the nation because of development, introductions of invasive species, and other threats. Certain resources are valuable and vulnerable enough to merit acquisition, possibly including: mauka forests, stream/watershed corridors, unique geological features, heritage resources, ecological resources, mauka or makai access, trail corridors, park space, buffers, open space and viewscapes, and agricultural lands that are prone to runoff, could be converted to affordable agriculture parks, or are under threat of non-agricultural development. Resources for acquiring easements and land are limited, and Hamakua must compete with other communities locally, statewide, nationally, and globally, so it is important to establish priorities. At a minimum, any land considered for acquisition should serve the achievement of one or more of Hamakua's community objectives. More specifically, it should protect cultural assets and/or mauka or shoreline ecosystems, assure access, and/or preserve viable agriculture lands or viewscapes. Relative priorities should then be established using criteria similar to those used by the PONC: • Level of community support • Identified management /maintenance partners • Benefit to the general public • Urgency • Special opportunity for acquisition exists (e.g., special funding is available, landowner willing, etc.) • Resources can be leveraged through partnerships with other government, private, or nonprofit entities • Land or property entitlements are available for acquisition. For example, two parcels were prioritized by the PONC list in 2010: • Hamakua Springs Agricultural Conservation Easement in Pepe'ekeo • Maulua Gulch in North Hilo Potential Community Lead: Action Committee Potential Community Partners: PONC, the Nature Conservancy and the Hawai'i Island Land Trust, Trust for Public Land (TPL), Land Trust Alliance Updated May 2018 12