Several years ago we conducted a survey of our membership to determine which of our activities (hands-on projects, environmental education or advocacy) should have our highest priority. Over 80% of you voted for this category. Thy will be done:

Oneloa Onsen: The Final EIS has not yet come out and, we suspect, it will not until ex-senator David Matsuura has the funding secured. We are keeping watch and will be ready.

Arborist Advisory Committee: This committee runs with the term of the mayor, and we had to keep being the squeaky wheel until it was finally formed. We have attended every meeting since, and done voluntary research for it. We are working on signage for exceptional trees and seeking new trees to nominate for protection.

Sonar Tests vs. Whales: We have repeatedly submitted testimony in opposition to the underwater sonar tests, citing beached whales in the Bahamas and the Mediterranean, and other related concerns. The Navy is ignoring all evidence, including their own studies, and we believe that they are willing to sacrifice these gentle giants on the spurious excuse of national defense (against Al-Quaida subs).

Insinger Sea Wall: We reported this illegal structure (and other violations) in Kapoho Beach Lots during the previous administration, but they had a strong conflict of interest ($1,500 campaign contribution to Yamashiro). The current Planning Director, Chris Yuen, picked up the gauntlet and took the issue to the Planning Commission. The PC agreed that violations had taken place, but allowed the new owner (the perpetrator’s relative) to keep the wall. We had testified that it should be razed and a new shoreline survey done.

Aviation Noise & Nuisance: A federal appeals court ruling about jurisdiction in certain aviation issues gave us hope for some relief. We held some public brainstorming meetings to get ideas about how we could use the court decision, but our legal consultant didn’t see anything we could really use. We are hopeful that John Carse’ lawsuit to force implementation of the National Parks Overflight Act will either reduce chopper traffic or at least set some legal precedent that we can use.

The Bottle Bill: Having spent years and years picking up discarded beverage containers from our roads, coasts and parks, we testified in support. We believe that this, or any other plan to relieve the problem, should at the very least be given a chance. If there are problems that arise with it, it can always be improved upon and fine-tuned.

SB2505: This bill addressed a problem with development issues which we have noted over the years and raised with the Sierra Club leadership, who brought it to Sen. Russell Kokubun’s attention: when the approving agency, the accepting authority and the applicant are all the same party, there is a conflict of interest. This bill proposed to give the final decision-making power to the Office of Environmental Quality Control (OEQC) whenever this happens. We testified in support but it did not pass the State Legislature. We’ll try again next session.
Green Space Program: This is a plan we designed to enable the County to acquire land cheaply through the tax forfeiture process. Only lands which meet certain priorities are eligible, such as those adjacent to County facilities, wildlife corridors, native habitat, etc. The idea is that if we wait to acquire land for these and future needs, it will all be gone or too expensive. The plan has languished on the desk of the County’s Legislative Auditor for over two years. Councilman Bob Jacobson (Upper Puna-Ka‘u) has vowed to make its passage a priority.

Mauna Kea: We have testified in opposition to the continued development on the summit, based on environmental, cultural and legal concerns. We also offered our support and assistance to OHA, which is opposing the sub-millimeter array on Hawaiian cultural grounds.

Geothermal: A federal appeals court gave the EPA the final go-ahead to issue more stringent air quality standards, which will require state and local authorities to impose tougher controls on smog-causing chemicals and microscopic soot, and we wrote and asked them to review PGV’s permit to make sure that it is upgraded to conform to these new standards. We also learned that Civil Defense and the emergency responders are not really prepared in the event of a worst case scenario, and our letter alerting the public and lawmakers to the problem was published in the Hawai 'i Island Journal (after the Trib-Herald refused to print it). Subse-quently, we testified at the Planning Commission, addressing one of those concerns, and as a result, and to our surprise, they awarded $5,000 from the Geothermal Asset Fund to Puna Malama Pono, so that the H2S monitoring program could continue. It is only through this program that Civil Defense will know when an accident or upset condition occurs, so that they can come to the aid of the community.