U.S. Department of Interior Recognizes UH Manoa Conservation Work

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
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Posted: Aug 6, 2009

The U.S. Department of the Interior recently awarded the "Partners in Conservation Award" to the Three Mountain Alliance Watershed Partnership, a program within the Pacific Cooperative Studies Unit (PCSU) of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Watershed Partnerships have been established throughout the state to unite landowners in the common pursuit of protecting the natural resources and preserving valuable watersheds. The Three Mountain Alliance was formed from the ʻOlaʻa Kilauea Partnership, which previously had 14 years of success in partnering. In 2008, it increased its partnership to nine landowners in the three mountains of Kilauea, Mauna Loa and Hualalei on the Big Island to protect and manage over 1.1 million acres.

"It is wonderful that the Three Mountain Alliance is getting this national recognition for their efforts" said Cliff Morden, PCSU deputy director. "This is an incredible acknowledgement of the work being conducted. (Project Manager) Tanya Rubenstein has worked tirelessly to assemble and work with these partners. The management plan being implemented will have far reaching impacts for the betterment of Hawaiʻi's vanishing flora and fauna and the stabilization of the ecosystems found there."

For more information, visit the Hawaiʻi Association of Watershed Partnerships website at http://hawp.org.

For more information, visit: http://hawp.org/olaa-kilauea.asp