Hawai‘i Ocean Resources Management Plan Update

PBR HAWAII supported the State Office of Planning Coastal Zone Management Program (CZM) with an update to the Statewide Ocean Resource Management Plan (ORMP). The work involved statewide public and stakeholder information sharing sessions, incorporation of Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), and enhanced graphics.

Updated every five years, the ORMP facilitates compliance with CZM objectives and policies by improving inter-agency collaboration across natural resources rather than jurisdictional boundaries. The goals for this update of the ORMP are to:

• Increase the plan’s utility to state agencies, plan partners, and the community, recognizing the Plan’s primary purpose is as a State Comprehensive Plan intended for use in inter-agency collaboration.
• Distill the number of focus areas to a few (1-3) that appear to be ripe for interagency collaboration for the greatest impact and unify future implementation efforts.
• Develop a project list that is focused and achievable.
• Integrate Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) in the planning process, focus areas, and project list.
• Enhance readability of the document through streamlining and graphic enhancement.
• Capitalize on technology and one-on-one connections to reach a broad audience to capture and carry forward implementation.

In 2021 the American Planning Association, Hawai‘i Chapter recognized the excellence of the completed Statewide Ocean Resource Management Plan with its Environmental Planning Award.