HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0880.002 2008-2010July 31, 2010
County of Hawaii
Hilo, Hawaii
Honorable Committee Members;
Thank you for your time and allowing me to share my thoughts with you. My name is
Bertha Basabe. I have appeared before you twice in the past 2 months, in June to
oppose Resolution 308 and in July to oppose Resolution 363.10.
I have been thinking about the testimony I heard from various people from my
community. I have been upset as I listen to people disparage our group, but as I
left the council meeting in July, I realized that I was also confused. We heard
numerous supporters testify about that lack of fish they are seeing, or that
visitors are asking where the fish have gone after diving and snorkeling. The
majority of these areas have been closed to fish collection since 1996. My
confusion comes from the fact that in the areas we are allowed to collect fish,
there are more fish on the reef then arty of us "old timer? can remember,
especially the yellow tangs. This topic was discussed in the bAR report that our
group shared with you at the July meeting.
As you might have noticed, in recent years there has been education for the public
and visitors about protecting the coral reefs. The fish prefer to be in areas where
there are not people swimming near them day after day. They also leave areas
where the reef is damaged and does not provide protection from predators.
Aquarium fish collectors rotate where they go and may not return to a reef for 3
months. Are the areas around the moorings and the reefs frequented by
recreational divers also studied? I wonder why transects to monitor fish counts
for this area have not been reported or discussed. I personally have been diving
near moorings in Kailua Kona and the coral was completely destroyed, just coral
rubble within 180 feet of the mooring.
I am not claiming to be an expert, but I have been diving the reefs along the west
side of this island for 24 years and wanted to share these observations. Thank you.
Sincere Regards,
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Bertha F. Basabe
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