Thousands of trees were flattened in the Kula Forest Reserve during the recent severe Kona Low storm, though fencing to keep out feral ungulates was intact, according to a news release from the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife. 

What You Need To Know

  • Kula Forest Reserve, Kahikinui Forest Reserve–Papaanui Tract and Polipoli Spring State Recreation Area are closed due to hazardous conditions and obstructed roads and trails

  • Fences keep goats, pigs, deer and cattle from eating vegetation down to the roots, which in turn causes erosion and further destruction of the native habitat

  • There are some 400,000 native plants and trees that have been planted at Nakula and the adjacent Kahikinui Forest Reserve to restore the native landscape

In this area, as well as in many of Hawaii’s forested areas, fences keep goats, pigs, deer and cattle out of forests that are being brought back to their native origins. They prevent the animals from eating vegetation down to the roots, which in turn causes erosion and further destruction of the native habitat.

“In the past, debris rushing down the mountain in these ravines has backed up behind the fences and threatened to break through,” said John Niezman, a DOFAW invasive species technician. It doesn’t take long for goats and other feral animals to start grazing once they find an opening, he said. 

There are some 400,000 native plants and trees that have been planted at Nakula and the adjacent Kahikinui Forest Reserve to restore the native landscape. 

They reported that the cabin at Polipoli Spring State Recreation Area didn’t sustain any damage. However, along the road in the Kula Forest Reserve, they saw potentially thousands of trees flattened. A white pick-up truck was also spotted in a gully. Whether this was due to the storm is undetermined. Niezman believes high winds created by the Kona Low storm snapped the tops of the young pines.

On Wednesday, DOFAW and the DLNR Division of State Parks announced the closure of the Kula Forest Reserve, Kahikinui Forest Reserve – Papaanui Tract and Polipoli Spring State Recreation Area due to hazardous conditions and obstructed roads and trails. Closure signs have been posted, and there’s currently no estimate of when the work will be completed.

“During my time with DOFAW, along Polipoli Spring Road, this is the worst damage I’ve seen with so many trees down and a lot of culverts blocked,” said Niezman.