KAILUA-KONA — Manta ray tour operators would need special “manta viewing” permits, given out exclusively to tour companies that have operated since June 2015 or earlier under a new proposed set of rules released by the Department of Land and Natural Resources earlier this month.
The department has scheduled a meeting Saturday at the Palamanui campus of Hawaii Community College to go over that and other proposals governing the popular excursions. The meeting will be held in room B-126 from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
One operator, however, has already come out against the proposed new permitting rule. Hawaii Island and Ocean Tours owner and operator Jonathan Droge said changing up the rules on permitting for already operating businesses would be unfair.
“It would be like saying your current drivers license is only good for daytime and weekdays, so if you want to drive at night or on the weekends, you have to buy another license,” he said in remarks addressed to the Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation.
The department included in its rules a list of 28 operators who would be eligible to apply for manta-viewing permits, including Hawaii Island and Ocean Tours. Operators who believe they were erroneously excluded from the list should contact the Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation before Oct. 14.
The DLNR has been looking for ways to control the increasing crowds at Keauhou Bay and Makako Bay, also known as Garden Eel Cove. The recently released proposals include several rules that would limit the number of boats that could run at any given time. One way to do that would be to flat out restrict commercial access to only those with a manta ray permit.
Being on the list of eligible operators, however, “does not guarantee issuance of a permit.”
“If a permitting method that limits issuance of permits is selected, not all operators currently in operation will receive a permit,” stated the draft rules.
Companies will also be restricted to one permit each and will only be granted access to either Makako Bay or Keauhou Bay waters, according to the proposal.
While the specifics about how permits will be distributed haven’t been nailed down, DOBR has said what they won’t do.
There won’t be a lottery, for instance. They’ve also nixed an auction, “first-come, first-serve” and “no permit” proposals.
The government also is still working to determine the exact fee, if any, for a manta permit.
Proposals include foregoing a fee entirely, adjusting the fee for vessel size, charging a passenger fee and charging a flat fee regardless of vessel size or capacity.
The draft also proposes rules specific to each of the two popular manta ray viewing sites.
At Keauhou, for instance, the new rules would prohibit all manta-related scuba activities.
The draft cites a lack of a sandy area that would allow divers to sit at the bottom without damaging coral. Surveys of the site have shown “there is no such area that can be utilized without coral damage.” Because tour companies can only get a permit for one site, permits issued for Keauhou will only be able to do snorkel tours.
The prohibition wouldn’t prevent snorkeling at any time or scuba activities during daylight hours.
Scuba would be allowed at Makako Bay, though only at the designated “campfire area,” where there is an established rubble area.
The department also proposed installing additional moorings at the bay, though the exact number and locations are still being determined.
At the high end, the department is proposing a total of 12 commercial and one recreational mooring at each site. At the low end, they’re considering a total of 7 commercial and one recreational mooring at each site.
Currently, the two sites have “approximately five to eight moorings available.”
In remarks addressed to the department, Droge said the proposed actions “do not make any sense.”
Droge said in his remarks that DBOR is, instead, “making impractical, generic rules that you think would generate more revenue for DBOR.”
He said installing new moorings could actually lead to the mantas abandoning the sites or, at the very least, a reduction in their numbers.
“If you riddle the bays with obstructions like mooring lines, why would the mantas continue to come?” he asked.
Deborah Ward, a communications specialist for the Department of Land and Natural Resources, declined to respond to Droge’s concerns for this report, saying Saturday’s meeting will provide an opportunity for dialogue among all stakeholders.
Kirstin Kahaloa, executive director of the Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber is concerned about the impact their enactment would have on the ocean recreation industry.
“Before rules are created, the state should consider those impacts,” she said. “It doesn’t seem likie an economic impact study has been done.
Kahaloa added that she hopes the DLNR moves forward on the rules cautiously and makes “decisions based on data, not just on conjecture.”