Ma‘alo landfill siting meeting draws crowd

HANAMA‘ULU — The first public meeting about the proposed site for the island’s next landfill in Ma‘alo drew a large crowd from the Hanama‘ulu community.

Several prominent politicians vying for office in the upcoming elections also attended the event, mixing with an estimated 200 community members Monday evening at King Kaumuali‘i School.

The few speakers who testified showed strong opposition to the siting of the landfill near Hanama‘ulu.

Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. unveiled the proposed site last month, announcing that the administration would no longer pursue a site in Kalaheo. His administration proposed Ma‘alo, located about 2.5 miles north of Lihu‘e and just over a half-mile from Wailua Falls.

Carvalho told the audience that a central location will save the county money and reduce the negative impact on the environment.

The Ma‘alo site is roughly 120 acres. The state Department of Land and Natural Resources owns the property, which is currently leased to ranchers as pasture land.

Last September Carvalho said the “prospect of taking agricultural lands out of production for the purpose of a landfill is not a preferred alternative, but unfortunately it is our only alternative.”

On Monday night Carvalho said that “we have the potential not just to preserve the agricultural activities that are there, but we have the opportunity to expand them by as much as 1,000 additional acres.”

Carvalho said there is a chance to capture energy from hydro, methane and other sources. He also said the new site will provide an opportunity to develop a bypass road, which would lessen the traffic in Hanama‘ulu and Lihu‘e.

“If we do this right we can create jobs in solid waste management, energy production, agriculture and possibly even tourism,” the mayor said, adding that the administration will be able to develop a 50-acre resource recovery park nearby that will keep most of the garbage out of the landfill and allow Kaua‘i to be a model in responsible solid waste management.

Opposition

Environmental biologist Carl Berg said the site has potential for negative impacts in water sources.

“Placing the bids near any of our drinking wells is not a good idea, and may require that we relocate those drinking wells at a huge expense,” he said.

Berg said he is unsure how the landfill will affect the streams in the area.

The administration alluded to the diversion of water from an old ditch system to a new one to be used in agriculture.

“I don’t think they are taking into consideration the instream flow standards,” Berg said, explaining that the ditch system keeps enough water in the nearby streams that lead to the ocean, allowing fisheries to survive.

Berg said the instream flow system is especially important in Hanama‘ulu, because the area has been rated one of the 10 most polluted areas in the nation.

“If we take the water away from that, we’re not going to be diluting it, we’ll be flushing it out,” he said.

Berg said he was concerned that the community might be giving “lip service” to an Environmental Impact Statement, a thorough mandatory review process that includes alternatives to the proposal.

There may be many different mitigation efforts that cannot be done that could make this a “good environmental choice,” he said.

Ma‘alo resident Lara Butler-Brady said she would be displaced to make room for the landfill. She used to own a horseback-riding tour business there, until her horses got confiscated for alleged animal cruelty. She is currently fighting those charges in court.

The proposed site is a 168-acre parcel. “It’s the finest farmland, with the best water system that we’ve got. Every ditch from Kilauea to Puhi is on this system,” she said.

Butler-Brady also said there are endangered Hawaiian nene geese that fly over her ranch every day.

Hanama‘ulu resident Bob Cariffe, who unsuccessfully ran seven consecutive times for Kaua‘i County Council, gave a lively testimony.

He suggested the administration build a plasma-electric facility in Kekaha, where the current landfill is located, which would allegedly turn the trash into energy and leave no residues.

“We can probably get the electric (bill) down to almost two cents a house, almost nothing, if the government is behind us,” Cariffe said.

Ma‘alo resident Jerry Brady questioned how the county will control the water that feeds into the Fern Grotto, especially if there is a heavy rainy season similar to the one in the beginning of 2005.

Former Mayor JoAnn Yukimura  commended Carvalho for “sticking on this issue,” adding that other mayors have avoided or delayed such a “hard issue” to handle.

Yukimura, however, had many questions.

She said she would like to see in a map where the proposed Kalepa agricultural park would be located, and how it would be integrated.

She would also like to know where a proposed motocross park would be located.

Yukimura said she would like to have a timeline for the Materials Recovery Facility.

“The MRF is one of the most important ways to buy time on the old landfill,” she said.

Currently all of the trash on the island goes to the Kekaha landfill, which is scheduled to close down in less than seven years.

“If we can put a MRF up in six months and start diverting (trash), that will buy us more time to do landfill planning,” she said.

Yukimura suggested the MRF be put in closer to the harbor rather than closer to the landfill, because the destination of most of the recyclable material is the harbor.

Kaua‘i resident Joe Manini questioned the state’s claim to the land ownership, saying county records will show otherwise.

Waldeen Palmeira, who has been a vocal advocate of Hawaiian cultural practices, said the area is sacred and it’s very disgraceful that it’s being considered because it encompasses an extensive water system.

Kaua‘i resident David Ward said the central location is a good idea, but maybe a dispersed location would be an even better idea.

•Léo Azambuja, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) or lazambuja@kauaipubco.com.