To discuss a topic described as long overdue—the current status of Hawaiʻi‘s streams—a diverse group of researchers, resource managers, educators and community members were brought together in August by Yinphan Tsang, an associate professor of hydrology at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
This gathering on the ʻIolani School campus was a chance for scientists, community members, and government officials to come together, share their work and offer solutions. It was funded by the Hawaiʻi Fish Habitat Partnership and cohosted by ʻIolani School’s Office of Community Science and the Tsang Stream Lab within the UH Mānoa College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience.
Importance of freshwater streams
While much of the focus in conservation is on land and coastal areas, “streams are the ‘arteries’ that connect every ecosystem from ma uka to ma kai (from the uplands to the sea),” said Tsang.
The meeting showcased proactive work on streams, from endemic species protection, long-term stream monitoring, restoring streams and their shores, invasive species removal, stream survey methodology, to estuaries inventory, and how water flow is affected by restorations.
The goal is to provide the opportunity to connect efforts that, according to Tsang, are often “so busy and not actually able to come together or sometimes not have time to document or share these amazing efforts.”
Next steps
The meeting’s success led to the formation of several working groups to help continue the work, including:
- Using methods like environmental DNA (eDNA) to track species, and create clear rules about who owns the data and how it can be accessed.
- Focus on preserving natural connections from ma uka to ma kai to support diverse life and how species migrate.
- Restoring and managing habitats, streamflow, and along the banks of rivers.
- Controlling and removing invasive species, and addressing threats such as pollution that harms ecosystems.
- Collaborating with government agencies, researchers, communities across generations on conservation goals.
Tsang hopes to make these meetings a regular occurrence, perhaps every other year. She noted that the event “helped connect like-minded people, who all care about our streams and the systems they are connecting. They all have been in different parts of the watershed, maintaining the health of the streams connecting ma uka to ma kai.”
