Target 6: Protect at least 75% of key areas within each ecological region with effective management to conserve plants and their genetic diversity.

An Important Plant Area (IPA) can be described as a site containing extraordinary botanical richness, or one that supports an outstanding assemblage of rare, endemic, threatened and/or endangered plant species of high conservation value. The IPAs in Hawai’i need to be reviewed to consider the Species of Conservation Importance. Laukahi addressed this by completing an In Situ Assessment with assistance from partners at Wailupe Ecological. They utilized datasets from the Hawaiʻi Conservation Alliance Foundation, USGS, the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, USFWS, and DOFAW. Target 6 is based on areas that are known to be biodiversity hot spots based on spatial data of rare and federally threatened listed species and have existing conservation mandates.

This analysis utilized the protection mandates described in the Conservation of Our Native Biocultural Legacy in Hawaiʻi: 2022 Status Report published by the Hawaiʻi Conservation Alliance, which are:

• Strong protection areas with permanent mandates for biocultural resource conservation (e.g., National Parks and Wildlife Refuges, State Natural Area Reserves and Wildlife Preserves)
• Moderate protection areas with short-term protection designation and mandates for multiple use including conservation (e.g., State Forest Reserves, private conservation areas)
• Watershed partnership which have strong commitments for conservation management but may include areas with limited or no long-term commitment for conservation protection

This analysis determined that 77.2% (table below) of Hawaiʻi’s most diverse plant areas have a protection mandate. This is great that partners across Hawaiʻi are meeting and exceeding the global goal (75%). 

Future work includes assessing IPAs of have rare, endemic, and/or endangered plant assemblages.