2013-05-13 Game Management Advisory Commission Minutes

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Hawaii Game Management Advisory Commission Meeting Minutes - May 13, 2013 think it’s really important, especially when we get into this - in a little bit – with compliance issues – it’s really important to be able to speak the language of some of the agencies that I think you guys have had trouble with in the past. And it’s nothing against any agency. It’s just, I think, it’s good to have some of those – some of that experience and some of those skills. I work statewide – I’m based on Maui. I’ve got projects from Kauai all the way down to Kau. And I’ve got a PowerPoint that really just - is kind of highlighting the Big Island projects that I’m working on, and again, this isn’t all the projects – all the hunting related projects that this branch is engaged in – it’s the project that I started taking on again in the last year or so. Started PowerPoint: OK. So, I think more than any of the other islands – you know land use has really changed throughout the State of Hawaii – it’s like most of the lands – a lot of lands that were here – Hamakua – Kau – were in sugar and I think there’s a lot of agreement that the communities – those local communities that exist around the plantations – a lot of agreements were accessing the forests – were with the plantations – and since the plantations have gone out – I think you guys were losing a lot of the access routes that you have – through the cane fields – and a lot of those agreements I’ve looked – find anything - very few things that I can find that are formal and in writing that say, “Yes, the public can access,” you know, “this piece of forest on this road.” And I think that’s a real problem for you guys because it doesn’t secure anything for you guys in the future. And a lot of that land now is for sale. You know there’s pictures like this – I’ve taken everywhere – throughout the State – especially, you know, on this island, on the Hamakua side – where a lot of the land is for sale – and what happens is – you the land – these big plantations have been sold – are subdivided – there’s a lot of new owners and those guys – don’t allow – those new owners don’t want to provide access across their lands. And you guys see it now – and I’ve driven up all of these roads that go mauka from the highway – between Hilo and Honokaa – and most of those roads – and you’ll see a picture of that – you see gates and no trespassing and I know that really jams you guys up because you’re not used to seeing that – you’re not used to being locked out. So, what I did was – one of the first things I did is – I went statewide through all the different islands – and I 3