COASTAL RESOURCES Chapter 5 Coastal Resources ................................................................................................................5-1 Shoreline Characteristics .......................................................................................................................5-1 Coastal Habitats ...................................................................................................................................5-13 Coastal Access and Recreation ............................................................................................................5-14 Nearshore Water Quality .....................................................................................................................5-15 Coastal Managed Areas and Planning .................................................................................................5-15 Figure 5-1. Coastal Resource...................................................................................................................5-18 Figure 5-2. Coastal Access ......................................................................................................................5-19 DRAFT KAŪ COMMUNITY PROFILE COASTAL RESOURCES Chapter 5 Coastal Resources Huhuluiÿi ka hulu o nä manu I ka ua kakahiaka, Akaka wale no kau mai ka ohu, Ohuohu Punaluÿu i ka wai hü o Kauila, I ka hoÿowali ÿana pau ÿia E ke kai o Kamehame, ÿA ÿohe wahi hemahema o ka pali o Pohina, Kahiko ÿia nei e ka ohu o Waiÿöhinu. Tousled are the feathers of the birds In the morning rain, Clearly on e can see through the mist, Punaluÿu is decked out in the swelling waters of Kauila, Completely stirred up By the sea of Kamehame, (but) The cliff of Pohina lacks nothing. Clothed in the mist of Waiÿöhinu. -untitled mele recorded by Mary Kawena Pukui, 1943 SHORELINE CHARACTERISTICS Kaÿü’s shoreline is over 80 miles in length. Most of the shoreline is rocky low cliffs; where sandy beaches occur, these are usually black or green sand beaches. Many of these sandy beach inlets or embayments were sites of former fishing villages destroyed by the 1868 tsunami or 1868 lava flow. There is a strong alongshore current and high waves cause strong rip currents in most areas. Many areas along the shoreline have brackish water ponds and springs as well as underwater springs. Some of the sandy beaches include: Keauhou, Halapë, Kaluÿe, Kamehame, Punaluÿu, Nïnole Cove, Käwä, Green Sands, Waiÿahukini, Kaÿikikiÿi, Pu’u Hou, Kakio, Kahakahakea, Pöhue, Manukä. The shoreline will be described in sections going from east to west summarizing descriptions from Beaches of the Big Island (Clark 1985) supplemented by input from Ka’u residents: Volcanoes National Park (Keauhou-Halapë-Kaluÿe) to Kamehame. Keauhou, once the site of a Hawaiian fishing village, can be reached by hiking 8.0 miles down the Keauhou Trail in the Volcanoes National Park. A low rocky point divides Keauhou into two inlets. Small tidal pools and pockets of black sand line the foreshore of both inlets, but shallow, rocky bottoms make for poor swimming conditions. Snorkeling is good within the inlets. Seaward of the inlets, the deep water, strong currents, and gusty offshore winds make for hazardous conditions. The Hawaiian village was totally destroyed by the tsunami of 1868. Shoreline fishing at Keauhou is limited to Native Hawaiian residents of Kalapana or their guests. South of Keauhou, is another former Hawaiian village called Halapë, also destroyed by the 1868 tsunami. The violent earthquake of 1975 caused a sudden sinking of the shoreline from Keauhou to Kaluÿe. Two campers died at Halapë from the local tsunami caused by that earthquake. Halapë Beach is a beautiful little cove of white sand speckled with bits of black lava. It offers safe, protected inshore swimming. The DRAFT KAŪ COMMUNITY PROFILE 5‐1 COASTAL RESOURCES ocean bottom is sandy and gently sloping. Pole fishermen report excellent catches of päpio and ulua along the Halapë shoreline. Halapë is accessed by the 7.2-mile Halapë Trail. High cliffs separate Halapë from the next accessible site, Kaluÿe. Kaluÿe is the third shoreline camping site in the Hawaii Volcanoes National park equipped with facilities and drinking water. At a flat pähoehoe point, wave erosion has formed a small inlet bordered by black sand beach tinted with a little red cinder and fine bits of white coral. Black sand and scattered boulders cover the nearshore bottom of the inlet, but the rough surges do not make for safe swimming. Shoreline fishermen and ÿopihi pickers should be particularly careful along the edge of the point in the splash zone, where there are dangerous waves and many boulders covered with kaunaÿoa mollusks (tube worms that if stepped on can cause severe puncture wounds). Halape Kamehame. Kamehame is the name of a littoral cone located on the shoreline directly below Pähala. Fronting this cone is a pocket beach of black cinder sand tinted green with olivines. The shoreline for miles on either side of this beach consists of low sea cliffs. This windy beach is steep and incoming surf often generates a strong undertow and powerful rip currents. Local fishermen use the littoral cone as a mark for offshore fishing grounds. The top of the hill offers a spectacular view inland from Hilina Pali to Ka Lae. Kamehame is a remote wilderness area with no facilities or shade. There is no convenient public access. It is visited primarily by ÿopihi pickers and pole fishermen. DRAFT KAŪ COMMUNITY PROFILE 5‐2 COASTAL RESOURCES Kamehame Punalu’u to Käwä. The beautiful black sand beach of Punalu’u was the site of a major Hawaiian village, also destroyed by the 1868 tsunami, rebuilt, evolved into a thriving village with the growth of the sugar industry in Kaÿü, declined with the advent of the automobile and modern roads where trucking the sugar in bulk proved more economical than shipping in bags, but still supported a sizable population until the 1946 tsunami. The beach lies between Kahiolo and Puÿumoa points. The southwestern point, Puÿumoa, is the site of the County beach park, complete with parking, showers, restrooms, pavilions, drinking water, electricity, and camping sites. Because lava bedrock is exposed at the water’s edge along the northern portion of the bay, swimmers tend to concentrate at the southeastern edge of the bay. This is also the location of a small one-lane boat ramp. Swimmers and snorkelers should be cautious about venturing beyond the boat ramp due to a powerful rip current that constantly runs out the boat channel. From the boat channel to Puÿumoa, a line of lava boulders form an irregular natural breakwater that partially protects the end of the beach near Puÿumoa Point. Occasionally, some surfers and body surfers ride the small waves near the point, but caution must be exercised because the water movement is always toward the boat channel, into the rip current. The inshore waters from Punalu’u to Nïnole have long been a popular fishing area for both pole and throw-net for a variety of reef fish. Koloa, a small pebble beach between Punalu’u and Nïnole, was once famous for its ‘ili’ili hanau, “birthing stones”. Few pebbles remain today as a result of mining (before it was prohibited) and tsunamis. Nïnole Pond, famous for its mullet, received freshwater from icy springs. High storm surf and tsunamis destroyed the pond walls. But the springs continued to flow until 1980, when extremely heavy rains washed tons of soil and boulders down the intermittent stream that empties into the pond, burying the pond and springs. Nïnole Cove is a small public beach park with no facilities developed with the resort complex. A small inlet and several small ponds in the lava rock are shallow and protected for children. Several pockets of black sand also offer some small beach areas for easy entry and exits into the nearshore waters. The otherwise rocky shoreline, high surf, and dangerous currents preclude all swimming in the open ocean. Pole fishermen report some good catches taken from these rough waters. Käwä Bay DRAFT KAŪ COMMUNITY PROFILE 5‐3 COASTAL RESOURCES is known for its surfing. Käwä was also the site of a Hawaiian fishing village, destroyed by the 1868 tsunami. Besides surfing, it is a popular fishing and camping site. The eastern edge of Käwä Bay is a massive ÿaÿa flow, the site of Keÿekü Heiau. The heiau offers a commanding view of the shoreline and points mauka, including Puÿu Makana, the flat-topped hill located directly inland. A black sand beach sprinkled with olivines rims the head of the bay. The northeastern end of the beach consists primarily of pebbles and fronts a small brackish spring-fed pond that marks the seaward end of the intermittent Hilea Stream. Driftwood and wind-blown trash litter most of the southwestern end of the beach. Large sand deposits cover most of the inshore bottom of the bay, over which surf driven by prevailing trade winds break. A rip current usually runs toward the northeastern end of the beach where it converges with brackish water escaping the pond and flows out to sea along the northeastern point of the bay. In the open ocean, strong alongshore current usually pull toward Honuÿapo. Diving is fine during calm conditions, but divers should always be alert for strong currents and sharks, both common in the area. Beyond Käwä toward Honuÿapo are several small ponds and inlets and a large number of springs. The springs well up not only from the shoreline, but from the ocean bottom as well. Honuÿapo was also the site of a Hawaiian village destroyed