New recognition for some ancient heritage

While the next president was fretting over Florida’s bogged down election, the

current president began this week with a great big aloha for Hawaii’s

heritage.

On Monday, President Clinton signed acts granting new protection

for the centuries-old Ala Kahakai trail and giving a thumbs-up to expansion of

Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, both on Big Island. The U.S. Secretary of the

Interior will now oversee the trail’s maintenance and uses, and the federal

government can now acquire land next to the park.

Beginning in 1400, the

175-mile trail was the major land route connecting 600 or more Hawaiian

communities for 300 years, making it a big part of Hawaiian history and

culture. Its new federal designation as a historic trail puts it in the company

of only six other trails in the U.S., including the Lewis and Clark

Trail.

The park, home to Mauna Loa, the world’s most active volcano and

one of the most famous, displays 70 million years worth of eruptive activity

and evolution. The park’s diverse environments highlight Hawaii’s volcanic

heritage.

A few strokes of Clinton’s pen capped the efforts of Hawaii’s

congressional delegation to preserve and celebrate two of the state’s natural

treasures.