The Board of Land and Natural Resources in Honolulu has reached a landmark agreement with a property owner who was contributing to the destruction of coastal habitat.
As part of this agreement, the property owner will donate more than four acres of land at the Marconi Point Condominium on O'ahu's North Shore, according to a news release from the Center for Biological Diversity. The agreement came after the Department of Land and Natural Resources had suggested the board fine the property owner more than $1.5 million for actions against wildlife and habitat protection, which included the death of a female indigenous mōlī, or Laysan albatross.
The donated land will be restored to protect critical habitats, which will benefit native species in the area. "This decision marks a pivotal moment for the protection of Hawai'i's native biodiversity," Maxx Phillips, Hawai'i director and staff attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in the release.
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Protecting critical habitat helps preserve biodiversity and native species. This is important because biodiversity is in decline, yet plants and animals contribute to a host of essential services that humans depend on, including clean air and water as well as quality soil and crop pollination. Protecting biodiversity can also help us adapt to global temperature and weather changes and natural disasters and extreme weather events.
Globally, the importance of biodiversity has been recognized, and there are ongoing conservation efforts to protect a range of critical habitats and prevent species from going extinct. There have been success stories such as the comeback of a rare butterfly in Kent, England, and the first lion cub birth in over 150 years in South Africa's Zululand.
Several groups applauded the agreement reached by the property owner and officials in Hawai'i and emphasized the importance of protecting the environment.
"It's a testament to what can be achieved when communities and the state agencies work together to protect our natural resources," Denise Antolini, a member of the Aloha Marconi Alliance, said.
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