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Special diving gear to help
state respond to pollution

By Pat Gee
Star-Bulletin

The state Division of Aquatic Resources is awaiting final approval to spend $20,000 on specialized diving equipment to protect an emergency response team from marine pollutants.

That's less than half the federal funds it requested to equip the team to assess damage to the marine environment, said David Gulko, an aquatic biologist with the state Department of Land and Natural Resources.

At this point, the "Hawaii Coral Reef Emergency Response Team "exists only on paper," he said. But once the funds are approved, in about a month, the training of personnel from several federal and state agencies can begin, he said.

The team would not be able to act on resolving a problem immediately, although it would try to respond within 48 hours, Gulko said.

He estimated the team would be activated only four to five times a year.

"The team was never envisioned as a cleanup agent; it would just suggest ways to mitigate or decrease the impact" of any damage by notifying the appropriate federal, state or local agencies, he said.

Only $20,000 was approved of a grant request for $55,000 from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, an agency in Washington, which disperses federal funds.

Final approval must come from the National Oceanographic Atmospheric Administration. That should be "no problem," Gulko said.

The money would be used to purchase three wet suits, which are actually called "dry suits," designed originally for cold water climates and to keep water from penetrating the suit with the aid of special gloves, boots and a helmet.

The suits would be used in case a chemical or other kind of pollutant could not be detected in samples on the surface of the ocean.

"The only way to take a look is to go down" into the polluted water. "No one wants to take a chance now ... that's why assessments aren't being done," Gulko said.

According to a draft proposal, the response team would be made up of several federal and state agencies from the Department of Land and Natural Resources, state Health Department, deputy attorney general and liaisons from the U.S. Coast Guard, Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Navy. It would be supplemented by University of Hawaii researchers specializing in ecological assessment.

But so far, only the Land and Natural Resources and Health departments have made commitments to being a part of the team, "though hopefully, when we get the NOAA approval, we will very quickly come together," he said.