West Hawai’i Integrated Ecosystem Assessment Ecosystem Status Report

West Hawai‘i is home to a dynamic and productive marine ecosystem. Economic and socio-cultural value is provided to residents through numerous ecosystem services, such as commercial and non-commercial fishing, cultural and traditional practices, recreation, tourism, and coastal protection. However, ecological communities across West Hawai‘i—particularly, coral reefs—have suffered recent and unprecedented declines. Marine ecosystem degradation can compromise underlying ecosystem functions and processes and undermine the numerous goods, services, and benefits upon which local communities depend.

This report summarizes a suite of ecosystem indicators that track the status of the region’s marine ecosystem and help assess the efficacy of management’s decision-making in West Hawai‘i. In total, 30 indicators are presented that include climatic and oceanic drivers of ecosystem change, the states of ecological communities, and the activities and relationships of people with marine resources in West Hawai‘i. Ecosystem indicators were identified through a collaborative and participatory process led by the West Hawai‘i Integrated Ecosystem Assessment (https://www.integratedecosystemassessment.noaa.gov), a NOAA program dedicated to providing robust scientific information that meets current and future marine management needs in the region.

Gove JM, Lecky J, Walsh WJ, Ingram RJ, Leong K, Williams I, Polovina J, Maynard J, Whittier R, Kramer L, et al.. 2019. West Hawai`i integrated ecosystem assessment ecosystem status report. Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC Special Publication, SP-19-001, 46 p. https://doi.org/10.25923/t3cc-2361.