Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 28, Number 9, 1 Kepakemapa 2011 — Turning challenge into opportunity at Papa He'e Nalu Forest [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Turning challenge into opportunity at Papa He'e Nalu Forest

Afew years ago, Hawai'i experienced a fast-mov-ing infestation of wiliwili trees by the Erythrina gall

wasp. This infestation was a serious threat that could lead to the extinction of the wiliwili. Finding a solution became the primary focus, and three years later an effective one was found: a predator wasp from Tanzania known as Eurytoma erythrinae. After successfully dealing with the threat, it beeame apparent that efforts should shift to preserve the wiliwili. Bill Garnett, who

has an affinity and love for the wiliwili tree, is one person who took on this mission. Bill is a seasoned botanist, ecologist and horticulturalist with more than 25 years of experience in Hawai'i and 20 years of field experience on Moloka'i. He created a company called Wiliwili Hawaiian Plants, whieh is a naturalresource management and environ-mental-services business based on the island of Moloka'i. Its mission is to preserve and restore the natural Hawaiian environment, educate people on the importance of conserving our native ecosystem and promote the understanding of our unique Hawaiian environment. His team also includes Patti Pali and independent contractor Wayne Kaauwai. The wiliwili is endemic to Hawai'i and is found primarily in dry areas. It is an important resource with a variety of uses: the llowers of the wiliwili are used for medicine, the seeds are strung to make lei, the ash from the wood is a dye, and the wood is used to make the ama of the eanoe, fishnet floats and papa he'e nalu (surfboards). Most wiliwili trees have red or orange seeds, but soon you will find in Mo'omomi a forest of rare yellow-seeded wiliwili trees that onee were abundant on Moloka'i. Bill and his team started a project in 2009 with a goal to re-establish the rare yellow-seeded wiliwili tree along with other native Hawaiian plants that

existed in or around Mo'omomi. The achievement of this project would be the restoration of a coastal dry forest that used to exist there. The Nature Conservancy agreed

to provide a site for the project in their Mo'omomi Preserve and also provided the seeds for the yellow-seeded wiliwili tree. This project has benefited from the support of many members of the Moloka'i conununity. Currently the project oecupies half an acre. Other plants grown there are the nanea, 'ilima, nehe, pili grass, pā'ū o Hi'iaka and 'ohe makai. Ultimately, Bill and the team hope to

grow enough wiliwili and 'ohe makai trees to be able to harvest some wood to create the first papa he'e nalu made on Moloka'i. Henee, they have named the restoration plot Papa He'e Nalu Forest. This project is an excellent model that balances conservation and culture - preserving our native forests and ensuring the availability of culture resources for use by present and future generations. Papa He'e Nalu Forest is also a seedbed for students. Teachers bring their students to the forest to get hands-on experience solidifying what students learned in the classroom. This is a very Hawaiian way to learn following the wisdom of our kūpuna, whieh is rooted in this 'ōlelo no'eau: Ma ka hana ka 'ike - Knowledge is gained through work (Hearn by doing). The challenge to stop the threat of extinction of the wiliwili trees beeame an opportunity to restore and preserve our cultural resources and provide a learning environment for teachers, students and volunteers. Maybe one day you will see surfboards made from the wiliwili like in the days of old. There are volunteer opportunities to help with Papa He'e Nalu Forest, including assistance with the web site. For more information, please visit www.wiliwilihawaiianplants. org. ■

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