KAPA‘A — After several years of testing and surveys, Kapa‘a Elementary School students decided they wanted to do more for the Kealia Stream. When the new bike path was built over the Kealia estuary, large ironwood trees were cut down
KAPA‘A — After several years of testing and surveys, Kapa‘a Elementary School students decided they wanted to do more for the Kealia Stream.
When the new bike path was built over the Kealia estuary, large ironwood trees were cut down and dumped over the bank, said Karen Cole, a Kapa‘a Elementary School teacher, in an e-mail.
“A lot of natural vegetation was also disturbed and invasive species quickly moved in,” Cole said. “Students from Kapa‘a Elementary School fourth and fifth grade classes have done plant surveys and water quality testing at this site for several years.”
That work familiarized the students with the estuary area and as the school year closed, the students decided to do a restoration project as a community service, Cole said.
Through grants from a National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration-Wet grant and a Chevron Hawai‘i Education Fund grant, the students could obtain transportation and materials for the project.
One of the first steps involved a field trip to the National Tropical Botanical Garden in Lawai to learn about doing a quality restoration to the area, Nicole Shores of the NTBG providing a tour of McBryde Gardens and more specific area guidance and suggestions on restoring the Kealia estuary.
Additionally, the students secured contributions of ‘ahu‘awa, or Hawaiian sedge, and a‘ali‘i, an indigenous shrub, to plant in the area.
All of this came together on May 13 when 20 Kapa‘a Elementary School fifth graders spent a day of labor in the estuary.
Woodie Cole contributed a chainsaw which took the downed trees to a more manageable size so students could haul the debris uphill to an area where county crews could remove them.
Other teams of students removed wedelia to make room for the native naupaka which was being crowded out by the invasive, and the cleared area was planted in ‘ahu‘awa.
The a‘ali‘i was planted in the area closer to the bike path.
“These are only fifth grade students, but they really put their heart into the project,” Cole said. “The students were astounded by the difference they could make by working together. We are so grateful for the community partnerships and grants that made everything take place.”
