The Nature Conservancy in Hawaii - Lay gill nets restricted in Hawaiian waters

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Honu, Hawaiian green sea turtle, caught in lay gil net.

Lay gill nets restricted in Hawaiian waters

Action widely applauded as vital step to
help restore Hawaii’s nearshore fish populations

The Conservancy and its partners had reason to celebrate earlier this month when Hawai’i Governor Linda Lingle signed new rules severely restricting the use of lay gill nets in the islands. The new rules mean Hawai‘i joins many other Pacific islands and all other U.S. coastal states in restricting the use of this indiscriminate fishing method.

The new rules are the result of a year-long campaign forged by the Conservancy, Malama Hawaii and SeaWeb to promote responsible fishing in the Hawaiian Islands.

Entitled “Fair Catch: Take what you need, not what you can,” the campaign has brought together scientists, recreational fisherman, native Hawaiians and conservation groups calling for strict regulations on the use of lay gill nets, which scientists have declared the worst offenders in the overfishing of Hawaii’s nearshore ocean.

The cornerstone of the campaign was a scientific paper on the case against lay gill nets co-authored by four of the state's top marine scientists, coupled with an independent statewide poll of island residents demonstrating that 76 percent of the public supported the proposed restrictions.

Lay gill nets are now banned entirely around the island of Maui and in three nearshore areas of O’ahu. Elsewhere in the state, net users will no longer be able to set them overnight, and net length can be no more than 125 feet. To aid enforcement, lay gill nets must be registered and marked and cannot be left unattended in the water for more than 30 minutes.