SPORTSMEN WILL INVADE WWII ISLE.

Byline: Bill Schulz Associated Press 

On a remote Pacific atoll, where a half century ago the guns and bombs of the U.S. Navy turned the tide of war against Japan, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans a unique refuge for wildlife and angling getaway for tourists.

Most remote island refuges in the Pacific are not open for regular visits by the public. The Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge will be an exception.

It consists of three islets and a reef. The islets make up about 1,600 acres, home to one of the world's largest seabird colonies, as well as the Hawaiian monk seal and rare sea turtles.

In addition, the refuge includes 88,500 acres of submerged reef.

Located about 1,150 miles west-northwest of Honolulu, Midway is the only island in the Hawaiian Island chain not within the state of Hawaii.

During World War II, it was the United States' westernmost outpost in that part of the Pacific. After the Doolittle raid on Tokyo in 1942, the Japanese decided the island had to be incorporated into their defense lines.

That led to the Battle of Midway, June 4-6, 1942, during which the Navy sank four Japanese carriers while losing only one, the Yorktown, a blow from which the Japanese navy never recovered.

The base eventually became home to as many as 10,000 sailors and civilians. But as it lost its importance as a staging area for trans-Pacific flight, its population declined.

In 1993 it was ordered closed and much of the atoll was designated a national historic site.

Today, the Navy is conducting a final clean-up prior to leaving the island later this year.

Midway is home to more than 2 million seabirds of 15 species, including the world's largest colony of Laysan albatrosses and the second largest colony of black-footed albatrosses. The highly endangered short-tailed albatross also can be found there. In addition, terns, noddies, tropic birds, boobies, petrels and shearwaters are found there.

Many signs of the great battle remain, including buildings, bunkers, guns and defensive positions built to stop a Japanese invasion that never came. There also is the seaplane hangar which, despite restoration, carries the scars caused by Japanese bombs.

Plans call for some of the buildings, such as the bachelor officers' quarters, to be turned into hotel space. A restaurant also is planned. The operation would be run by a private contractor, who would have as many as 150 employees on the atoll.

``We evaluated several alternatives'' for the refuge, said Fish and Wildlife Service spokeswoman Barbara Maxfield. ``We could either pretty much close up shop, which would not benefit either the historic buildings or the animal life, or we could find a co-operator who will start a public visitation program that will raise funds to help finance the refuge.''

Most visitors would fly to Midway from Hawaii, a three-hour trip.

Visitor services now proposed include motorized group transportation, bicycle rentals, fishing trips, scuba-diving tours and guided boat tours to the outlying Eastern Island. Tiny Spit Island would be off-limits to public use.

Final transition of Midway from a military base to a public-use facility is to be complete in 1997.

Plans call for limited visitation. Airline flights will use the runway from which American bombers took off to attack the Japanese fleet. Private aircraft and private boats also may be used to reach the refuge, but reservations must be made in advance.

Wildlife-oriented recreation will be primarily fishing. According to the draft environmental-impact statement, fishing will be mainly a catch-and-release program, but anglers will be allowed to keep some ocean-going and bottom-dwelling fish.

Within the lagoon, only light, spin-tackle angling and fly-fishing will be allowed on a catch-and-release basis.

Outside the lagoon, boat captains will be expected to release most fish, except one per person, which would be eaten on the island, or record billfish for mounting purposes.

There also will be guided scuba-diving and snorkeling trips. Plans also call for a variety of non-wildlife related activities, including swimming and tennis.

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PHOTO Midway Island, an important World War II staging area west of Hawaii, will be the site of a new wildlife refuge with limited tourism.

Associated Press