A push to ban commercial aquarium fishing in Hawaiʻi originally came from Hawaiʻi County, where it received nearly unanimous support. Now at the state level, the movement has received dozens of testifiers against it.
A 2017 circuit court order put the practice on hold until an environmental impact study was conducted. The Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council later submitted its EIS to the state’s Board of Land and Natural Resources, which accepted the study in 2021.
Three years later, the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court ruled the EIS adequate, allowing the industry to start up again through permits issued by BLNR. Fast forward to today, and HB2101 would ban the commercial practice altogether.
“The legislature finds that the capture and sale of Hawaiʻi's native reef wildlife for ornamental display and commercial profit are unsustainable and contrary to Hawaiian values, including mālama ʻāina, aloha ʻāina, kuleana for the surrounding environment, and pono fishing practices, such as taking only what is needed for family or community subsistence,” the bill reads.
Those in support of the ban say the practice is unsustainable and depletes native fish populations and natural resources. But those against the ban say the practice is the foundation for their livelihoods and how they support their family.
Eric Koch, a commercial fisher from Hawaiʻi Island, expressed his confusion and frustration with the proposal. He explained that the state already requires him and fellow fishers to go through the Hawaiʻi Environmental Policy Act in order to be granted authority to continue their practice.
“Does the HEPA process mean nothing to the Legislature that writes the HEPA laws? We were told to do it, and we did, so why are we here for a ban bill today? Why would you even consider banning the only commercial fishery in Hawaiʻi that has ever proven itself?” Koch said.
“Is this how the system is supposed to work? Seems unethical and inhumane. This fishery provides great livelihoods for many local families throughout Hawaiʻi. The science is clear, the management is solid – don't ban us after we've been put through hell.”
HB2101 defines commercial aquarium fishing as “the taking of aquatic life for profit, gain, or as a means of livelihood for sale into the aquarium trade to be held in a state of captivity as a pet or for ornamental display.”
The bill states that the ban would not infringe on lawful fishing for consumption or bait, lawful management, or capturing for scientific, educational, or propagation purposes.
ʻAlohi Nakachi, marine program manager at The Nature Conservancy, has been supporting the ban since she was 5 years old, following her father, who has been a longtime advocate for the ban. Nakachi said Native Hawaiian voices have been ignored and underappreciated in this longstanding debate.
“The aquarium trade largely exists and benefits those outside of the pae ʻāina, with only marginal benefits in Hawaiʻi to a small number of participants, and the cost is held by everyone else,” Nakachi said.
“The trade is completely culturally unacceptable and disrespectful to remove fish for a hobbyist industry and send them outside of ʻāina systems, particularly with compounding environmental stressors, struggles to feed Hawaiʻi, and increasing diaspora.”
The current version of the bill applies to counties with a population between 200,000 and 300,000 residents, which is only Hawaiʻi County. The bill passed the House Committees on Energy and Environmental Protection and Water and Land. It will be heard next by the House Committee on Finance.
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