Guest Viewpoint for Thursday — February 19, 2004

• Farming and PMRF: Setting The Record Straight

Farming and PMRF: Setting The Record Straight

By Captain Jeff Connelly, U. S. Navy

Last year, the Navy and the Pacific Missile Range Facility’s leadership initiated a public dialogue with the State of Hawai‘i, local government officials, and the residents of Kaua‘i regarding our desire to preserve agriculture on the west side of Kaua‘i. The public debate that followed has been true to our democratic traditions — passionate, often factual, but at times expressed in terms that could misinform or cause confusion. Unfamiliar real estate and technical terms along with imprecise jargon such as “set aside,” “buffer zone,” “set back,” and “land grab,” have been used. Unfortunately, they appear to have served only to confuse, rather than clarify, the Navy’s intent. Please allow me to set the record straight.

PMRF’s Growing Importance To Our Nation

Much has changed in the world since the PMRF was established shortly before WWII. Over the last 50 years or so, PMRF has evolved from a tiny airstrip and Kaua‘i’s only airport to a training and testing range whose importance to our nation has few equals, if any. Today, PMRF enjoys many natural advantages found nowhere else in the United States — or the world for that matter. Summarized succinctly, these advantages include a remote location, compatible agricultural development immediately adjacent to the base, and the natural geography and range size that permits those that train and test at the range to conduct their operations on and beneath the sea, in the air and in space, with maximum realism — yet safely. I am often told by my seniors and by the courageous sailors, soldiers, and airmen that train at the range, that PMRF is the best location at which they can hone their skills. With equal frequency, many in the military’s testing community identify PMRF as the only location where complex tests can be conducted.

And I could not agree more.

My personal association with PMRF goes back nearly twenty five years when, as a fledgling aviator, I flew practice submarine hunting, torpedo dropping and mining exercises above the waters between Kaua‘i and Ni‘ihau. Throughout my career I have flown aircraft or driven ships repeatedly at PMRF (and many other ranges as well), as a “warrior in training” and as a commander of naval forces of various size and capability. I’ve watched PMRF’s capabilities grow to “world class” levels. And I’ve observed the men and women that oversee or conduct every facet of the operations at the range, most of whom are long time members of the community, become the best at what they do. They do it right, they do it safely, and as kama‘aina they do it with great concern for long term interests of Kaua‘i and our ohana.

What is the Navy’s real agenda with respect to agriculture and the Mana Plain?

Farming and the base’s primary missions have proved themselves a perfect fit for over half a century. Many bases around the world, both large and small, have struggled to continue meaningful operations as adjacent land was developed. Some have even closed.

The Navy’s “agenda” boils down to simply a strong desire to preserve PMRF’s natural advantages which, in turn, will permit training and testing at the range to continue well into the future. This is vitally important to future users of PMRF whose lives may well depend upon the quality of training and the equipment developed through testing at PMRF. In practical terms, it means finding a way to preserve the 5,860 acres of land adjacent to PMRF for agricultural purposes.

Why is agricultural preservation so important to the Navy and PMRF?

Agricultural activities do not generate excessive light or electromagnetic interference — both very important considerations when conducting training or testing designed to provide maximum realism. From experience, I can tell you that flying in the vicinity of PMRF on a dark, moonless night replicates to near perfection some of the most challenging flying a pilot will see in combat or peacetime in places like Afghanistan and the Arabian Gulf. Bright lights to a pilot using night vision enhancement goggles can temporarily blind or disorient with catastrophic consequences. Electromagnetic interference can, in effect, inadvertently “jam” important signals during testing causing less information to be collected and thereby reducing the value of a particular test and potentially the effectiveness of the system that eventually finds its way into a military service members’ hands.

Equally as important, agricultural land typically is considered “low density” in terms of development and occupancy. Large structures and/or concentrations of occupants can stop, alter, or cause the cancellation of military exercises because of concerns over noise and safety.

Today, PMRF is not subject to these “encroachment-related” concerns to any great degree. We would like this to remain the case far into the future.

What are PMRF’s intentions regarding base expansion into the Mana Plain?

Contrary to what some have said, the Navy is not making a “land grab.” When initially proposed to the public, the Navy referred to its 5,860 acre initiative as a “set aside.” As we saw it, a land “set aside” struck an appropriate chord as something less than an outright “fee simple” purchase. We saw the initiative as a limited interest in the Mana Plain that did not impose upon State control, ownership of oversight of the land. It was our belief then, as it is now, that we would work closely with the State and area farmers to address common interests.

We found out during our first joint DLNR/Navy meeting that, to the public, the term “set aside” connoted control far above what we intended or in fact desire. The Navy’s goal is simple — keep the Mana Plain agricultural. Thus, in response to community feedback and to better reflect this desire in our discussions with the public, the State, and other local officials, we now refer to this initiative as the API — or Agricultural Preservation Initiative. As well, the Navy has recently modified our real estate request to the State — requesting a “restrictive use” easement. To be perfectly clear, there is no “sleight of hand” here. The Navy is simply trying to appropriately reflect the true nature of our intentions. We desire to work with the state and area farmers to develop and set the specific language in the easement and make it very clear that we can’t build or control access any more than we do now within the defined API area. Our goal appears to fall in line well with other efforts at the State and local level to keep appropriately sized parcels of land throughout the State available for agricultural use.

Coinciding with the Navy’s 5,860 acre API, is a separate but related initiative to lease 415 acres of land from the State of Hawai‘i. As many on the West Side know well, the Mana Plain is a natural marsh that floods. The drainage pumps and ditches that prevent flooding require annual funds to repair and maintain. Funding for this endeavor has been primarily borne by the State and the farmers themselves.

We are seeking to lease 415 acres from the State of Hawai‘i for two simple reasons.

The first is related to federal law. Without this lease, the Navy cannot lawfully expend federal funds to repair and maintain the drainage pumps and ditches. The Navy can, under certain circumstances, expend funds to maintain and repair equipment when it has a real estate interest in a particular property. This is the case with respect to the drainage equipment. With a lease agreement, the benefits are potentially many to PMRF, local farmers, residents and visitors that work or drive to PMRF and the State’s Polihale Beach park.

The second relates to efficient land use. The 415 acre lease will permit PMRF to more efficiently use the land presently available within the existing acreage set aside for facility use to support future growth at the facility. Post-9/11 Federal and Department of Defense Force Protection guidelines relating to the siting of new construction projects requires the Commanding Officer or builder of the facility to “set back” the site of the project a fixed distance from major thoroughfares and public access points. Distances vary according to the various criteria but the intent is the same — provide sufficient boundary space or “buffer” to lessen the likelihood, impact, or severity of injuries resulting from an explosives-related incident. The lease will allow PMRF greater siting flexibility within the confines of PMRF and allow the Navy to build much closer to the base perimeter while complying with new and more rigorous regulations. We hope to build a small visitor center in this area to improve the base access process and safety. Visitors to PMRF must now park outside the gate and walk on or along the roadway in front of the entrance and then through the barriers to get to the pass and identification office inside.

Preserving PMRF’s capabilities is essential for the long-term interests of our country and Kaua‘i. The API and the 415 acre lease desired by the Navy represent “win, win” scenarios. They mean great training for military members from all the services, more efficient use of the existing real estate at PMRF, both of which translate to job sustainment for island residents, and growing economic and educational opportunity for Kaua‘i.

The community’s support and understanding will go a long way to help us continue with our important mission.

Aloha and mahalo.

Capt. Jeff Connelly is the Commanding Officer of the Pacific Missile Range Facility at Barking Sands