A sacred fishpond on the Northshore of Kauaʻi will now be officially looked after by a new nonprofit that has a deep history with the stewardship of the area.
At the beginning of the month, Kauaʻi Mayor Derek Kawakami signed Bill No. 2890 to ensure the preservation and public access to Halulu Fishpond with an appropriation of $850,000 from the Public Access, Open Space and Natural Resources Preservation Fund.
The bill also confirms that the nonprofit organization Waipā Foundation will acquire the Halulu Fishpond from the Waioli Corporation.
"This ensures that the Waipā Foundation will fulfill its vision to permanently own and manage Halulu Fishpond as an important resource and living-learning center," said Kawakami.
Although Waipā has been stewarding the area since the 1980s, they haven’t owned it until now.
"They've been conducting a lot of cultural living classrooms at this area, especially at the Halulu fishpond," said Jodi Higuchi Sayegusa, Kauaʻi's deputy planning director.
"When considering the proposal to provide the Waipā Foundation monies for them to acquire the Halulu fishpond, it was sort of a no-brainer to try to allow them to permanently be able to continue the stewardship and the good work that they've been doing," said Higuchi Sayegusa.
The acquisition guarantees that there will be no development on the lands adjacent to the fishpond.
Additionally, The State of Hawai‘i Legacy Land Conservation Fund and State Legislature pitched in an additional $450,000.
