Press Releases

(Washington, DC) – Congressman Ed Case (HI-01), recently re-appointed to his third two-year term as a member of the U.S. House Committee on Appropriations responsible for all federal discretionary spending, today announced a combined total of $10 million in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) to implement four natural resource conservation projects under DOD’s Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration Program (REPI).

The funds will be matched with $18.5 million in private partner contributions to work towards improving coastal, forest and watershed resilience on military-utilized lands and nearby communities.

“Our military’s operations in Hawai‘i are critical to our country’s national security and a major contributor to our local economy, but require a constant commitment to full partnership in our present and future and full stewardship of our communities and resources,” said Case. “The REPI program is a key avenue for our military to fulfill this commitment.

“As just one example, I recently accompanied Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth as we toured the Pōhakuloa Training Area on Hawai‘i Island and viewed the Army’s REPI-funded conservation efforts to protect and recover native Hawaiian plants and animals, including our state bird, the nēnē goose, and several endangered endemic plants, all located on the military’s owned and leased lands.”

Through REPI, DOD works with state and local governments, conservation organizations and willing private landowners to implement compatible uses of lands for both the military mission and conservation. Case said that, because of the unique partnerships and funding opportunities for natural resources protection facilitated by REPI, the program has been among his top areas of focus on the Appropriations Committee. For the current Fiscal Year, Case helped secure $175 million for the national REPI program.

The DOD REPI awards this year will go to the following projects in Hawai‘i:

·        $2.9 million to increase the resilience of endangered wildlife on Lāna‘i Island. (To be supported by $4.8 million in partner contributions.)

·        $1.3 million to mitigate impacts on rare plants on Hawai‘i Island. (To be supported by $1.3 million in partner contributions.)

·        $2.7 million to preserve threatened and endangered species and enhance watersheds on O‘ahu Island. (To be supported by $6.8 million in partner contributions.)

·        $3.1 million for the detection and management of land and water-based invasive species near military installations on Kaua‘i, O‘ahu and Hawai‘i Islands. (To be supported by $5.6 million in partner contributions.)

Since 2021, the REPI program in Hawai‘i has matched $30.2 million in federal funding and $35.2 million in partner contributions for projects at eight locations restoring critical habitats and native forests, protecting island aquifers, climate adaptation efforts, and promoting compatible land uses.

Attachments:

-      detailed explanation of the 4 projects awarded

-      pictures of Congressman Case and Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth at Pōhakuloa Training Area: 

·        Pictures at Pōhakuloa Training Area greenhouse courtesy Tiffany DeMasters/Big Island Now

·        Picture with Congressman Case and Secretary of the Army posing together courtesy U.S. Army

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