Hawaiʻi Wildlife Fund (HWF) teams up with the Hawaiʻi DLNR DAR’s Rapid Response program and turns community reports into cleanup action.

DLNR marine debris hotline sticker on display in front of the Old Kona Airport bundle (pre recovery)!

In 2020, the Protected Species Program (PSP) within the Hawaiʻi DLNR DAR piloted a “Rapid Response” hotline and network on the island of Oʻahu with nonprofit partner, Sustainable Coastlines Hawaiʻi. With the success of this program, they were able to expand to Maui in 2021 (picking up more nonprofit partners), and in 2023 they added Hawaiʻi Island partners (including HWF for shoreline debris and Ocean Defenders Alliance “ODA” for underwater events). Then in 2024, they added Kauaʻi (Surfrider Kauaʻi via HWF and Hoʻomalu Ke Kai) and an underwater component on Maui (SHARKastics / HAMER). For a full list of nonprofits involved, please check out this article.

In 2023, the HWF team responded to Rapid Response net reports on six occasions, removing 5,729 pounds of marine debris, including derelict fishing nets, buoys and other hard plastics, and derelict grounded vessel debris. In addition, we collaborated with ODA in August 2023 during our community cleanup (and assisted with their underwater event at Ka Lae) and collectively removed 650 pounds along the shoreline and 600 pounds from the reef.

HWF team (Bev + Lindsey) join community reporters (Logan + Whitney) to respond to this Kohala net bundle.

HWF’s Bev and Meg (plus baby) Teal help to recover a net bundle in Kohala.

In 2024, we responded to five net bundles on four occasions with reports coming from local residents, Rodney K of Kaʻū, Amanda S of Kona, and Whitney & Logan of Kohala, plus an island visitor from California. Net bundles were removed within a week of receiving the reports from the rocky shoreline at Hanalua Bay (May), Waiʻōhinu (September), Old Kona Airport (October), Iliʻilinaehehe Bay (November) and Kapalaʻoa (November) totaling 3,284 pounds recovered year to date. In addition, this year we teamed up with the volunteers of Surfrider Kauaʻi to help support the Rapid Response program expanding to Kauaʻi.

HWF net recovery team member (Lindsey) responding to a second net bundle in Kohala.

This program (and its efforts across the state) is made possible via funding from the Hawaiʻi DLNR, with coordination / removal by nonprofit partners based on community reports coming into the DLNR website and the 833-4da-NETS hotline.

HWF net recovery team member (Bev) is operating our recovery winch to load the second Kohala net bundle.

As of this blog publication, HWF has removed an additional 9,013 pounds of marine debris because of this program!  For more info or to get involved, please see our volunteer page and calendar of events.  The  photos  that  follow  are  of  net  recovery  rapid  response  efforts  from  Kaʻū and Kona earlier  in  2024.

(HWF community cleanups historically have been funded via private donations and competitive grant awards from the NOAA Marine Debris Program – FY05, FY08, FY11, FY13, FY16, FY18, FY21, and a subaward from HPU’s Center for Marine Debris Research via a SeaGrant award in FY23 since 2024. These additional, specific, and “rapid” net recovery events have been supported by this Rapid Response program since May 2023.)

HWF volunteer (Kaʻū) starts removal efforts for net bundle reported near South Point.

HWF volunteer and marine-debris reporter (Rodney) sits atop the net bundle reported in Kaʻū before recovery efforts begin.

HWF crew successfully loads the Kona net bundle into the truck to haul to our storage bin.

Kaʻū net bundle is successfully recovered by our HWF crew of staff and volunteers!

HWF volunteers (Pat + Mike) help to haul the large bundle reported to HWF from a beach in Kona.