Since completing its first project in Hawai`i in 1979, The Trust for Public Land has worked to preserve the state’s sensitive environment, manifest natural beauty, and threatened unique heritage, protecting more than 40,000 acres to date. Here are some projects that have protected— or will protect—Native Hawaiian heritage sites.
Pu`uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park
¯
Nearly a half-million visitors each year come to this park on Hawai`i Island to attend demonstrations of traditional Hawaiian arts and crafts, hike a historic trail to important archeological sites asso- ciated with the highest chiefs and priests, or just soak up the atmosphere of this sacred place. In 2001, after local residents and Native Hawaiians throughout the islands protested the planned develop- ment of 238 acres on the edge of the park, The Trust for Public Land stepped in and purchased the land. Transferred to the National Park Service in 2006, the addition more than doubled the size of the park while preserving important burial grounds and the ancient fishing village of Ki`ilae.
National Park Service
National Park Service 28 LAND&PEOPLE Spring/Summer 2012