the past And present of kawainui

He Kaʻao no Hauwahine lāua ʻo Meheanu
(A tale of Hauwahine and Meheanu)

​




 (Kirch, 1)            
In the pool
Kawainui lived in the cave
lightweight woman Hauwahine.
He is the guardian of this place
in Kailua, O'ahu.
Haughty was a mottled gray
lizard living in Kailua, O'ahu.
She was the guardian of
the Kawainui Pond.

He is a companion
Meheanu,
the white white. Of Meheanu
the guard of the He'eia fishpond.
Her companion was long, white
puhi named Meheanu. Meheanu was
the guardian of He'eia fishpond.

---

At the end of the visit
Melanie to Hauwahine.
One day, they also had salt
the fish-you are the fish,
You are the king, and you are the dog.
Meheanu often visited Hau
at Kawainui. One sunny day they
shared some fish: manna, me,
and ugly.

He ate very well
the stomach
of the guard. They dropped on
Rocky stones are rocky stones
of Hauwahine.
The two guardians ate until
they were full. Then the guard
rested on the large rocks at
The Stone of Hau
bask in the warmth of the day.

Take me away
This place is here
a fisherman is preparing
for throwing out his crop.
His name is Kanakapī.
On the top of them, they saw a
fisherman preparing to throw. ​

continued story in English and ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi can be found here:
http://www.ulukau.org/elib/cgi-bin/library?e=d-0hauwahine-000Sec--11en-50-20-contact-book--1-010escapewin&a=d&d=D0&toc=0

Past

• In historic times, the land is known to have been highly productive and favored by the Ali'i, or high chiefs. Kailua had one of the most extensive continuous loʻi (taro patches) or pond-field systems on Oʻahu. (Drigot 1)
• With the arrival and settlement of the Hawaiians, the 450-acre lagoon was used as a fishpond. (Sharing, 1)
• The pond itself was known for its large awa, milkfish, its wild ducks and nene, Hawaiian goose.  (Drigot 1)

​​​​​(Hofschneider, 1)

• Not long after the Great Māhele (1860-1900), Chinese rice farmers were the major inhabitants of the Kawainui area (Drigot 1).
• One of the pieces of land leased for rice farming was in the lowland area next to a dig site. This suggests that there may have been a residential region where the Chinese rice farmers might have been living around the study area at one point in time (Drigot 1).

​​(China, 1)

• Kailua continued to be a rural agricultural area, where truck farming, sugar cane, and dairying were the major cash crops for the next 50 years (Drigot 5).
• Several Japanese-American families are known to have lived in this area (Drigot​​ 2). In 1959 much of the Kukanono area became a housing development as well. 

Land Uses

• During the "pre-European" days, Kawainui was called Kawainui Loko, meaning “the big freshwater fishpond. ”It was the largest freshwater marsh in the Hawaiian Islands (Drigot 7)
• Core samples from underneath Kawai Nui Marsh revealed marine coral and calcium containing deposits of organic sediment. These findings indicate that from approximately six thousand to four thousand years ago, Kawainui Marsh was an open saltwater marine bay, similar to the present day Kaneohe Bay (Drigot 7).
• Archaeological and geological evidence from Kawai Nui and nearby areas indicate that O'ahu was one of the earliest areas occupied by these polynesian voyagers, as early as the fourth century A.D. (Drigot 7)
• When the earliest polynesian occupants arrived in this formerly open marine lagoon at Kawai Nui, canoe fishing most likely provided the main source of fish protein, while the growing sand accretion barrier gave access to line fishing (Drigot 13)

Present

• Kawai Nui is the largest remaining freshwater wetland in the State of Hawai‘i. Of the more than 300 Hawaiian chants, or mele, about Kailua, Kawai Nui is featured in most of them. ​
• Following World War 2, Kailua rapidly developed into an urban residential area.​
• In 1979, Kawai Nui became eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places as a “major component of a larger cultural district. . . .” (Kawai, 1)
• In 2005, the Kawai Nui-Hāmākua Marsh Complex was brought to the attention of the world when it was designated a Ramsar Convention Wetlands of International Importance; only the twenty-second wetland area in the United States with this distinction.
• By Executive Orders in 1997 and 2007/2008, Hāmākua and Kawai Nui, respectively, were designated as State Wildlife Sanctuaries to protect the wetlands as wildlife habitat (Kawai, 1).

The Kawainui-HAmAkua Complex Master Plan

Taking into consideration of the residents' wishes and concerns for the future of the Kawainui Marsh, the Kawainui-Hamakua Complex Master Plan was created by the State of Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) and Division of State Parks (DSP) as a call for community action for appropriate land use. (Helber Hastert & Fee 2)​. Despite this plan being made with good intentions, many Kailua residents disagree with some of the ideas the plan proposes. For example, one resident says, “The only way to preserve the marsh for its historic and cultural worth is to NOT build anything there, but rather to protect and maintain the existing marsh properly” (Hofschneider, 1). Today, the lush, 986-acre marsh is full of invasive plants and is polluted by runoff from trash dumped along the side of nearby Kapaa Quarry Road. The Kailua Neighborhood Board and environmental organizations have argued that any buildings or pathways will despoil the marsh and open the door to flocks of tourists. More than 2,000 people signed a petition urging the state to discard the plan. Still, the wetland is a valuable part of the ecosystem, helping to control flooding and serving as home to four species of endangered birds. 

Bibliography

Allen, Jane. "The role of agriculture in the evolution of the pre-contact Hawaiian state."
               Asian Perspectives 30.1 (1991): 117-132.
Anderson, Brittany, et al. "Sedimentary Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics Reveal Impact of      
               Human Land-Use Change on Kawainui Marsh, O ‘ahu, Hawai ‘i." Pacific Science  
               71.1 (2017): 17-27.
Athens, J. Stephen, and Jerome V. Ward. "Environmental change and prehistoric
​               Polynesian settlement in Hawai'i." Asian Perspectives (1993): 205-223.
“China's Age of Invention.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service,  
               www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ancient/song-dynasty.html.
Drigot, Diane C., and Muriel B. Seto. "Ho'ona'auao no Kawai Nui (Educating about Kawai  
               Nui)-A Multi-Media Educational Guide." (1982).
Hofschneider, Anita. “Clash Over State's Kawainui Marsh Plan Divides Kailua.” Honolulu
               Civil Beat, 19 Aug. 2014, www.civilbeat.org/2014/08/clash-over-states-
               kawainui-marsh-plan-divides-kailua/.
Kawai Nui Marsh Master Plan, Oahu, Hawaii. Dept. of Land and Natural Resources, 1994.
​Kirch, Patrick V. "The impact of the prehistoric Polynesians on the Hawaiian ecosystem."
               (1982): 1-14. http://www.ulukau.org/elib/cgi-bin/library?e=d-0hauwahine-
               000Sec--11en-50-20-contact-book--1-010escapewin&a=d&d=D0&toc=0
Neller, Earl. "Archaeological Investigations at Kawainui Marsh, in the Kukanono Area,
               Kailua, Oahu." (1982).http://www.kailuachamber.com/Resources/Document  
               s/Kawainui%20Outreach%20Flyer_29July11.pdf
Turse, Jason. Sunset. 17 Dec. 2006, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PC170019.JPG.