2021-12-14 Game Management Advisory Commission Minutes

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PS: Right now much of it is no use – this is Peter Simmons, ah, Tony – I agree – I really do agree, especially second generation weeds following in – that’s an enormous challenge – but right now, if you go up to those areas – you can pretty much see the future in the lower elevation – you know, if you can go through sideways – you’re OK – it takes a long time to get through those patches – and you know that the native forest is not coming back unless it has some help fairly soon – it’s still seed source there – and I don’t really want to argue your points cause I think you have very good ones – in general – but I think that to do nothing and to know the consequences are so catastrophic… TS: Tony: Catastrophic to what, Peter? There’s rarely any native birds in these areas – what are we actually trying to save or do? That’s the part I’m trying to understand because man’s advancement along the Hamakua Coast – with homes and houses and everything that are blocking all this – it’s even more difficult now than it was ten years ago – in 1994 was the last time you could even pretty much move around on plantation roads and hunt pig and have access and all that – so that has gone away, and yes, you know, waiwi has gotten so ridiculous in places, especially up in Mountain View and areas like that – which I’m well familiar with – there’s no amount of money or resource to do this – you can’t get logging trucks in there – you’re gonna burn this stuff – power plant – I’m sorry guys – I mean, I’ve heard this stuff so much before – and there’s so much opposition even to the old Honua that the people don’t even want that plant to exist and most of those trees and things are as Stan said on Kamehameha School lands bordering other areas – it’s very difficult. I applaud you guys for trying such a monumental task but, I mean, you got to focus on one area and try something and get some results – I think – instead of looking at these 600,000 acres and all this stuff – there’s no way – I manage 5 acres and I can barely do it. PS: Well, Tony, I agree – this is Peter Simmons, I agree with you very much on starting small and getting it right and that’s what the first stage is – is to really define the tools – understand the consequences, etc. and, of course, every area is going to have its own problems and its own benefits and to start small is exactly what we’re trying to do. TS: Well, a good place to start is this Kaupakuea, Pepeekeo. I’ve been trying to get in there for ten years. Can’t even get a parking lot to park if you go hunt or even go hiking or anything. It’s a beautiful area – if you can get in there – but you’ve got to park along a drop off which is very dangerous and then the landowners have put fences right up to the road so you can’t even get off the road – I think it’s a great place to start – it’s on the agenda for tonight – we’re gonna talk about it – maybe you all can focus on that – see what we can do there – it’s just outside of Hilo – above Pepeekeo by the old gears – nice area – I went there with US Fish & Wildlife Service, Forest Service – we all went through the whole thing before. Nice forest in there – right next to Finance Factors owns 10,000 acres, I don’t know if they sold it. AA: No, they sold it, Abraham. TS: Yeah, yeah, so… I mean it’s my suggestion – it’s a great place. I tried for years – had all the passion trying to get that area opened up… AA: Yeah, Tony, stay on for that discussion later on. 6