Editing Niihau (section)

==Economy==
Approximately 80% of Ni{{okina}}ihau's income comes from a small [[United States Navy|Navy]] installation atop 1,300-foot-high cliffs. Remote-controlled tracking devices are used for testing and training with Kaua'i's [[Pacific Missile Range Facility]]. Modern missile defense tests are conducted at the site for the U.S. and its allies. The installation brings in millions of dollars a year, and provides the island with a stable economic base without the complexity of tourism or industrial development.<ref name="khon2009" />

The sale of shells and shell jewelry is an additional source of income.{{sfn|Tava|Keale|1998|pp=36–37}} Its beaches are known for their ''pūpū'', tiny shells that wash onto shore during winter months. Species used for shell leis includes ''momi'' (''[[Euplica varians]]''), ''laiki'' or rice shells (''[[Mitrella margarita]]'') and ''kahelelani'' (''[[Leptothyra verruca]]'').<ref name="moriarty">{{cite book |last=Moriarty |first=Linda Paik |title=Ni{{okina}}ihau Shell Leis |url={{google books |plainurl=y |id=LY8dldokp9EC}}|publisher=[[University of Hawaii Press]] |year=1986 |isbn=0-8248-0998-X}}</ref> The shells and jewelry are so popular that Governor [[Linda Lingle]] signed a bill in 2004 to protect ''lei pūpū o Ni{{okina}}ihau'' (Ni{{okina}}ihau shell leis) from counterfeiting.<ref>
[http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session2004/bills/HB2569_sd1_.htm H.B. No. 2569]. See also: {{cite news | url=https://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/stories/2004/05/24/daily76.html | title=Governor signs Niihau shell bill | work=[[American City Business Journals]] | date=May 24, 2004}}</ref> A single, intricate Ni{{okina}}ihau shell lei can sell for thousands of dollars.<ref name="khon2009" />

[[File:Niihau-Trash-Beach.jpg|thumb|Trash deposited by the ocean on a windward Ni{{okina}}ihau beach]]Many residents of Ni{{okina}}ihau were once employees of Ni{{okina}}ihau Ranch, farming cattle and sheep until the Robinsons shut down the operation in 1999. It had not been profitable for most of the 20th century.{{Citation needed |date=July 2009}} [[Honey]] cultivation{{sfn|Tava|Keale|1998|p=xv}} was also no longer viable by 1999.<ref name="sommer" /> [[Kiawe]] [[charcoal]] was once a large-scale export, but aggressive [[Mexico|Mexican]] price competition ended that as well.<ref name="khon2009" /> [[Flathead mullet|Mullet]] farming has been popular on Ni{{okina}}ihau, with ponds and lakes stocked with baby mullet, which reach {{convert|9|-|10|lb|kg}} apiece before being harvested and sold on [[Kauai|Kaua{{okina}}i]] and [[Oahu|O{{okina}}ahu]].{{sfn|Tava|Keale|1998|pp=66–67}}

Bruce Robinson, Ni{{okina}}ihau's co-owner, is seeking and considering new forms of non-invasive income generation. Depending on feasibility, impact, and [[ecological footprint]] on the ecosystem and culture, possibilities include [[JP-8]] (jet fuel) generation by the [[lignocellulose]] process; military, including a possible runway; and [[windmill]] energy production. Robinson has declined offers to purchase [[sand]] from Ni{{okina}}ihau's beaches, because of adverse environmental effects.<ref name="khon2009" />

===Tourism===
Ni{{okina}}ihau's owners have offered half-day helicopter and beach tours of the island since 1987,<ref>{{cite news |title=Flying visitors can catch glimpse of "The Forbidden Isle" |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=August 15, 1987}}</ref> although contact with residents is avoided and no accommodation exists.<ref name="owners">{{Cite web |url=http://65.61.16.97/Niihau/Index.asp |title=Niihau Island |access-date=July 24, 2009 |archive-date=December 1, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091201180628/http://65.61.16.97/Niihau/Index.asp |url-status=dead }}</ref> Since 1992,<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.boston.com/travel/travel/2012/11/17/niihau-hawaiis-forbidden-island-is-closed-to-outsiders | title=Niihau, Hawaii's 'Forbidden Island,' is closed to outsiders | work=[[The Boston Globe]] | date=November 17, 2012}}</ref> [[Big-game hunter|hunting]] [[safari]]s provide income from tourists who pay to visit the island to hunt [[Taurotragus|eland]], [[aoudad]], and [[oryx]], as well as wild [[sheep]] and [[boar]]s. Any meat the hunters do not take with them is given to the village.