New Maui Conservation Program Launch

A new conservation program with a $67 million budget has been launched for Maui and the Big Island. Ranchers and farmers who qualify will recieve a portion of this money to facilitate an effort to protect stream forest buffers, wetland buffers and to aid in reforestation by controlling invasive species and planting native vegetation such as koa and ohia trees.

With economic stability in question, certain state officials worry that farmers and ranchers will be forced to carve up and sell the land that they own to developers. The concern is two-fold. Both eonomic and ecological security will be supported by the program. We're seeing a significant push for increased sensitivity to ecological issues in the islands. This includes the need to restore habitats which have been decimated by human influence. If farmers and ranchers are getting financial support for cooperating with the program, hopefully they will view the state's conservation efforts as a benefit to their livelihood rather than an obstacle.

The project is called the Hawaii Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program, and is primarily federally funded, but is not part of the economic stimulus package. Farmers and ranchers need to check with their local Farm Service Agency office to find more information, such as whether or not they are eligible to participate.

The program will be limited to the Big Island and Maui for the first two years, while its success is evaluated, and if all goes well, it will move on to Molokai and Lanai for year three before ending on Kauai and Oahu in years five and six.

All in all, it looks like a very good idea for the economy and also a a vehicle to meet Hawaii's special ecological needs in protecting over 300 species of wildlife. A nice feature is that unlike on the mainland where only perennial streams are protected, intermittant streams will be protected under this program as well. That little feature applies especially to the typical water flow fluctuations that are so charactaristic of our islands.

There are certainly many other good incentives for buying land on Maui. If this is something that interests you in particular, there are some spectacular land sales in Kula and also the vacant land for sale in Haiku offers a wide selection of choices. As always, don't forget that you can use our online search tool to find property that meets your specific requirements.