County to community: Chime in on Climate Adaptation Plan

LIHU‘E — The County of Kaua‘i’s response to the impending effects of climate change, the Kaua‘i Climate Adaptation Plan, is underway in earnest.

County personnel, consultants and community members gathered online Wednesday for the plan’s inaugural open-house meeting, which saw Planning Director Ka‘iana Hull lay groundwork for the task ahead.

“Everything from the increased frequency and intensity of storms, to sea-level rise and coastal erosion, to the wall of water that moved through Hanalei a couple years ago,” Hull told attendees. “The impacts of climate change are real, and they’re having real-world consequences on our built environment.”

The county Planning Department’s existing regional community plans already fold in climate change analyses and impacts.

But the Climate Adaptation Plan will take an island-wide perspective.

“We’re going to spend essentially the next year and a half with the community, going over priorities, areas of interest, areas of concern, and ways in which we can mitigate and adapt,” Hull said.

Five more open houses, all of which will be held in-person, are scheduled across Kaua‘i through early April.

Wednesday showed what residents can expect when a meeting is held in their neighborhood.

Planners began with a review of current and projected conditions caused by Earth’s ever-warming temperature.

The State of Hawai‘i’s average temperatures have increased two agrees over the past 70 years, according to consultant Eric Yurkovich, of planning firm Raimi and Associates.

Hawai‘i’s rainfall has declined in the past 30 years, especially since 2008 (the State Department of Land and Natural Resources reported statewide drought conditions earlier this month).

Kaua‘i received 50 inches of rain in a 24-hour period during its 2018 flooding event, and the island’s sea level has risen over six inches since the 1950s.

“Sea level is projected to rise about three feet by 2100,” Yurkovich continued. “But melting ice sheets have the potential to accelerate and even double that change by the end of the century.”

Attendees were invited to move between six virtual breakout rooms, following the kickoff presentation. Rooms One through Five were dedicated to region-specific conversations, while Room Six tackled greenhouse gas mitigation strategies.

Those who remained in the main room were introduced to the Climate Adaptation Plan’s overall vision and goals.

The document, adapted from the County’s 2018 General Plan, was divided into four wide-ranging sections covering sustainability, environmental and cultural stewardship, community health and resilience, and community equity.

“This vision represents the county that we would like to be, looking outwards to 20 years into the future,” the Planning Department’s Marie Williams said.

Participants responded with concerns and suggestions.

Local ecologist Dr. Carl Berg, who studies water issues on island, argued the severity of climate change may preclude a truly-sustainable future Kaua‘i.

“We could very well run out of water. Enough water to drink, in fact, but also not enough water for doing any kind of agriculture,” he said, describing a worst-case scenario. “So we can’t, in a sense, be sustainable if we cannot provide enough water for our community, or enough water for food for our community.”

Other residents posted virtual sticky notes to promote watershed stewardship, agriculture development and shoreline maintenance.

Upcoming Climate Adaptation Plan open houses are as follows:

• Kekaha Neighborhood Center, Monday, March 28, 4 to 7 p.m.

• Kukui Grove Center Food Court, Saturday, April 2, 9 a.m. to noon

• Kapa‘a Neighborhood Center, Tuesday, April 5, 4 to 7 p.m.

• Koloa Neighborhood Center, Thursday, April 7, 4 to 7 p.m.

• ‘Aina Ho‘okupu o Kilauea, Saturday, April 9, 9 a.m. to noon

Hull invited residents to attend as many open houses as they’d like, but noted all meetings will feature identical formats and topics.

“We’re trying to grab input from you folks, to help us shape our next series of workshops that we bring back to the communities,” he explained.

More information can be found online atkauaiadaptation.com/.

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Scott Yunker, reporter, can be reached at 245-0437 or syunker@thegardenisland.com.