MauiSea has decided to run this story for one simple reason: we are nearing a critical point of no return to save these reefs. Every one of us who cares about Maui should watch this interview and listen carefully to what Russell has to say.

For those of you who may not have sound or video on your computer, we have included a transcript of this interview, which you can read right here:

Jade: So the state is in the process of establishing the Kahekili Herbivore Fisheries Management Area. What does this do?

Russell: The Kahekili Herbivore Fisheries Management Area is being established because the data we have from fifteen years of studying the reefs in the area is that the coral is declining. About fifty percent of the living coral that was on the bottom of the reef has disappeared. The reef is still intact and still looks much like a normal reef, but because of the declining coral cover, we're starting to see a lot more problems with seaweed growth, and that's further stressing out the reef. And the herbivore protection area is being established to help protect fish and sea urchins that eat that seaweed, that graze on the seaweed, and as a result, help protect the coral and allow the coral to do better.

Jade: And which fish and urchins will be protected by this new rule?

Russell: Well we're proposing to protect three families of fish, and that.. in each family there may be several different species, but the surgeon fish family are the fish that have little scalpels near their tail and that's why they call them surgeon fish. They include things like manini or kala or unicorn fish, things of that sort. The parrot fish family are also known locally as uhu, are, you know, parrot fish, bright colorful fish with beaks that feed on the algae on the rocks. And then the chubs or the nenue are grey colored fish, fairly common, that feed on a lot of seaweed as well. So those three families of fish, and then all sea urchins.

Jade: All of them?

Russell: All of the sea urchins species, yes. Sea urchins actually feed by grazing the scraping off the ground.

Jade: So, describe a healthy coral eco-system.

Russell: A healthy coral reef eco-system would have... most of the energy that comes into the system is stored in large animals, like coral, large colonies of coral that may be a hundred years old or more. Large fish populations are out there feeding on things, and that's supported by a healthy reef. And then ultimately on the top you have large populations of predators, like sharks and jacks like uluas and so forth. And that's where the bio-mass is stored. Now when that reef starts to be stressed out or degrade, we may not see a whole lot of differences in the health of the reef, but things are occurring that make the reef a lot more vulnerable to collapse. For example, we as people are starting to impact the reef from pollution, too much nutrients, fertilizers, and things like that, or maybe dirt washing into the ocean. That'll start to kill some of the coral, open up spaces where the seaweed will start to grow, and the nutrients then fuels a lot of growth of seaweed. And the seaweed holds a lot of nutrients and other things that the bacteria starts to thrive on, and that bacteria starts to further kill the coral.

Jade: Now, Russell, describe the magnitude of this issue on Maui.

Russell: The magnitude is huge, and I think the important thing that people need to understand is that as that reef becomes degraded and comes out of balance it may still look fairly normal and healthy for a lot of us, but these protective mechanisms are cut back. There's not as much coral there, there's not as much homes for the animals. And at some point all we need to do is affect things a little bit more and it shifts really quickly to rather than a structured growing coral reef environment to one that's overgrown with seaweed.

Jade: There's obviously not a lack of nutrients for these fish to thrive off of, so where does the fish go?

Russell: A lot of the concern we have and the reason we're establishing this management effort the way we are is that we feel a lot of these fish have been overfished, have just been fished below the level that they need to be on the reef to keep the reef healthy.

Jade: And what are you hoping to achieve with this new rule?

Russell: What we hope to achieve is ultimately that the coral reef will start to become healthier and go back to a natural state. To get there, we're hoping that these management efforts will allow the fish populations, these important grazing fish, to move up in abundance.

Jade: There's got to be some simple things. What can we do as local residents to help our reef?

Russell: I think the first and most important thing is people need to become aware, okay? They need to become educated about what's going on, understand that these processes are occurring and there's things that we do on land as well as what we do in the ocean that help contribute to them. And then once people become more aware of what's happening, they need to educate others. They need to spread the word because unfortunately there's a lot of people here in Hawaii who don't even get out into the ocean and experience what's going on. Or, these changes occur slowly enough where they don't see them happening and realize what's going on. So people really need to understand how it should be, how it used to be, and how we need to get it.

Jade: And what can visitors do?

Russell: Visitors, same thing. Visitors need to become aware of what's going on, what the natural system is. They come here to enjoy the ocean, enjoy our natural beauty of Hawaii, yet they're very much unaware of what's going on. And maybe there's not as much education opportunities for them, but those that are out there they need to seek out. One of the portions of this rule is banning the practice of feeding fish, and the whole reason there is, you know, these fish are feeding on the seaweed in a natural environment. If we fill them up with peas and other types of fish food, they're not going to feed on the seaweed, so even though we may have the fish there, they're not going to be doing the job they need to do.

Jade: How has this problem affected you personally?

Russell: I grew up here in Maui and I used to always go spear fishing and stuff, and I remember some of the areas around the island and how they used to be. And so now as part of my job I'm out there all the time looking at this and I see how bad it's gotten. And I understand from my past experience how it used to be. So it really bothers me the way it's going and it's really difficult because it's a public process, you know. Managing the resources is a public process. The public's not aware enough, and as a result, they don't demand enough change from their elected officials, or they don't support what we're trying to do because they don't understand the reason for it. So it affects me because I see how quickly it's happening but I see how slow the process is to make changes. And I think this proposed rule here at Kahekili is an important first step.

Jade: One last question, Russell. What would an ideal modern Maui look like to you?

Russell: Maui in the future should have the natural processes that help protect corals put into place or rehabilitated. There should be setbacks from the ocean where, maybe a couple hundred yards, where there's no irrigation, fertilizing in lawns and things, but it should be zero scape native plants, kind of these natural dune systems. There would be things like waste water treatment plants. The water that's treated would be re-used for agricultural uses and not disposed of in the ground where it ultimately comes up in our near shore waters. The corals would become healthier, thriving. There'd be more structure on the reef and in turn that would support a whole lot more fish life and other types of animals. So you would see that diversity and that abundance of marine animals out in near shore waters.

Jade: Thank you so much for taking the time for us today, Russell.

Russell: No problem.

Jade: And I'm Jade Moss with Maui Sea. All the best, all the time.
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