View of Hualalai thru mamane forest from N Kona Mana Loa

Three Mountain Alliance

History & Mission

The beginnings of Three Mountain Alliance watershed partnership reside with ‘Ōla‘a-Kīlauea Partnership (OKP), which formed with 8 members and 30,000 acres on Hawai‘i Island in 1994. A major focus for the group was protecting Kīlauea Forest, considered a pristine old growth montane native forest with acreage held by multiple landowners. Instead of splitting responsibilities and actions along ownership boundaries, OKP members worked together to identify activities and strategies that would maximize the forest’s health in its entirety.

Building on their success, OKP expanded to 11 members in 2007 and became Three Mountain Alliance, the largest Watershed Partnership in the State of Hawai‘i covering 1,116,300 acres. Guided by its partners, Three Mountain Alliance works toward the goal of sustaining the multiple ecosystem benefits of Kīlauea, Mauna Loa, and Hualālai by responsibly managing its watershed areas, native habitats and species, historical, cultural, and socio-economic resources for all who benefit from the continued health of the three mountains.

While older islands or parts of Hawai‘i Island have perennial water sources such as streams and waterfalls, the three mountains of TMA are young and have no overland water flow. Our task is to protect and increase water infiltration to our island aquifers by managing threats to our forested watersheds and restoring once-forested area to enhance rain interception and fog capture.

View of Hualalai from North Kona camp Mauna Loa

Snowcapped Mauna Loa from North Kona — View of Hualalai from North Kona camp Mauna Loa

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Partners

Hawai‘i Department of Public Safety
Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources
Kamehameha Schools
National Park Service
The Nature Conservancy
US Fish and Wildlife Service

USDA Forest Service
US Geological Survey
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service
Office of Hawaiian Affairs
Hawaii County Department of Water Supply

Our Logo

The Three Mountain Alliance logo includes three triangles representing the three mauna of the partnership: Kīlauea, Mauna Loa, and Hualālai. The vertical lines below each mountain symbolize the support and commitment of the partners. Droplets beneath the mauna represent the fresh water sources that we at TMA and our partners work to keep healthy and abundant.

Management Priorities

At Three Mountain Alliance, we strive to maintain and re-establish native forest cover in mauka (upland) areas to improve landscape capacity for water capture and absorption. To achieve this, we work with partners to:

Manage threats such as non-native hooved animals, weeds, and fire to minimize disturbances to forested watershed. Our actions include fencing and feral ungulate control.
Encourage forest cover that is diverse in species and structure to promote water infiltration and groundwater recharge, and to reduce the severity of flooding. Our actions include forest restoration, surveying, monitoring, and facilitating research.
Increase public awareness of and connection to forested watersheds. Our actions include education and outreach from student enrichment programs to community planting days, and an annual art exhibition.

Fence checks high elevation Ka‘ū Mauna Loa

Fenceline build Ka‘ū Mauna Loa — Fence checks high elevation Ka‘ū Mauna Loa

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Ecosystem Highlights

Approximately 85% of the total TMA land area is comprised of native ecosystems. The TMA contains some of the largest expanses of intact native forest remaining in the Hawaiian Islands (approximately 50% of the State’s remaining native habitat). Due to the variations in elevation, climate, and vegetation, the TMA is home to thousands of native species as well as rare and threatened or endangered species (many of which are endemic to the island).

Major native ecosystems found in the TMA include alpine, subalpine, montane (dry, mesic and wet), and lowland (dry, mesic and wet).

Ka‘ū silversword restoration area Mauna Loa — Aalii outplant North Kona Mauna Loa

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Top Threats

feral ungulates
invasive plant species
avian disease
climate change

Pig sign outside of fence Ka‘ū Mauna Loa

Ungulate damage to olapa tree Ka‘ū Mauna Loa — Pig sign outside of fence Ka‘ū Mauna Loa

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TMA Area

How You Can Help

Through our incredible education and outreach program, ‘Imi Pono No Ka ‘Āina, we offer multiple ways for community members and visitors to connect with TMA watersheds:

News, Updates, Job/Volunteer Openings:

We offer a monthly community day (typically first or second Saturday) with Nā Kia‘i Kūmokuhāli‘i. Past community days have included native forest restoration, seed collecting, and weeding. https://threemountainalliance.org/nkk/

To learn about additional opportunities, follow us on Facebook and Instagram: