Explore the Nursery Facility

Dive in and learn more about the state-of-the-art capabilities of the land-based nursery.

Taking data to new heights

Large-scale coastline monitoring from the sky enables targeted diagnoses.

Navigating Reef Conservation

Charting the Depths with Our Maritime Fleet

Understanding the 3RC Facility

The 3RC was designed as a modular, expandable facility. Its primary function is to mass-propagate endemic Hawaiian coral species under ambient conditions, using seawater supplied by the Hawai‘i Ocean Science and Technology (HOST) Park, Kailua-Kona, HI. The HOST Park was established and funded by the State of Hawaii as a unique outdoor demonstration site for innovative renewable and ocean-based technologies. The 3RC occupies a 1-acre site within the NELHA Host Park (Fig. 1). The main structures consist of three 40-foot Intermodal Steel Building Units (ISBUs), commonly known as “shipping containers." Two ISBUs operate as independent Life Support Systems (LSSs), each equipped with the necessary equipment and controls to provide a continuous flow of processed seawater to 72 180-gallon coral propagation raceways. The third ISBU is designed and equipped to function as a wet lab, as well as research and office space.

NELHA HOST Park

Utilizing Deep Seawater

For all entities within the HOST Park, three sets of HDPE pipelines deliver deep seawater from a depth of 2,000 feet, along with surface seawater. The waters off Keahole Point, which supply seawater to the HOST Park’s systems, are classified as Class AA by the Hawaii State Department of Health, indicating they are largely unaffected by human activity and represent clean, open ocean tropical surface seawater. The seawater supplied to the 3RC by NELHA is ideal for coral cultivation and is routinely sampled to ensure water quality is upheld. The 3RC employs deep seawater for temperature regulation (via water-to-water heat exchangers) of surface seawater, which boasts oligotrophic, near-shore water quality ideal for coral growth and reproduction. Utilizing the deep seawater pipeline, which consistently maintains a temperature of 6°C, allows us to efficiently lower and manage the temperature of the supplied surface seawater (ranging from 24° to 28.5°C) as needed to support the coral propagation raceways. NELHA is equipped with redundant backup power supply systems and pumping stations to ensure a constant, uninterrupted seawater supply for all organizations within the HOST Park.

Coral Raceways at 3RC ʻĀkoʻakoʻa facilities

LIfe Support Systems

Advanced Water Systems for Sustainable Usage

The Life Support Systems (LSSs) are arguably the most crucial components of the facility’s capability to provide uninterrupted service essential for complex, large-scale, long-duration research experiments. The LSSs are designed to minimize seawater usage while maintaining optimal conditions for coral propagation. Each LSS supplies 1.5 gpm) of single-pass seawater to each raceway, resulting in approximately 0.5 complete turnovers per hour (R). Each raceway is equipped with a 1/3 HP closed-loop circulation pump and connected to custom manifolds featuring 12 independently valved bulkhead returns installed in each raceway,. The LSSs are identical, encompassing primary filtration, temperature regulation, sterilization, control, monitoring, and automation, each with the stand-alone capacity to operate independently and run the entire facility.

Maritime Operations

Fleet for coral reef monitoring and rapid response

Our fleet of maritime assets interoperate with our land facilities to provide both rapid response and long-term coral reef monitoring capability. From our largest vessel, the Kai Surveyor, capable of carrying a large team of divers and gear, to our smallest and most nimble vessels, we are equipped to deploy scientific dive teams, students and community members for every need.

ʻĀkoʻakoʻa science vessel entering harbor

Support Our Operations Today

Discover how your contribution can make a difference in our operations.

Get Involved Donate