Board Talk
State To Exchange Lands With Kapalua Developer Does an exchange of 226.545 acres of ceded ag land in Lahaina for 1.432 acres of private land at a Waikele industrial park sound fair? To the state Office of Hawaiian Affairs, it … Continued
Enforcement at Ahihi-Kina'u Hinges On Community Input, New Permit Rules
We’ll get back to you. That pretty much sums up the way the Department of Land and Natural Resources’ administration has treated the Natural Area Reserve System Commission’s push to get some enforcement down at the Ahihi-Kina’u NAR on Maui. … Continued
Injured Worker Sparks Investigations Of Waste Violations at Cement Company
Coughing up blood is never a good thing. So when Jason Pacheco started doing just that after following orders to mix a vat of unknown chemicals with cement at work, he complained to the Department of Health and filed suit … Continued
Challenges Shrink, Delay Payment Of Large Health Department Fines
Since 2001, the Hawai’i Department of Health has proposed fines totaling about $5 million against what would seem to be some of the state’s biggest environmental scofflaws: Eco-Feed, Maui Electric Company, Silva’s Equipment Rental, Inc., Marisco, Ltd., Chaminade University, the … Continued
From the Editor's Guest
Disappearing Act: The Incredible Shrinking Fines at the DOH Time and again, newspaper headlines in Hawai’i scream out the apparently high fines the state Department of Health proposes for any and all who fail to toe the line when it … Continued
Experts Discuss, Plan For Arrival Of West Nile Virus To Hawai'i Shores
“The distance from Los Angeles to Honolulu is half that between the Middle East and New York City, and it made that jump,” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Jeff Burgett says, describing the leaps made by the West Nile … Continued
It's Crowded Out There
With more boats and more whales, it only stands to reason that there will be more collisions between them. And a study prepared last year for the Hawaiian Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary bears out that suspicion. The study, by … Continued
DLNR Seeks New Ways to Protect Dolphins, Whales After Judge Tosses Out Old Rules
“Few sectors of the tourism industry have experienced the same levels of growth in such a concentrated period of time as whale- and dolphin-based operations. As the popularity of interacting with marine mammals in the wild increases, managers of these … Continued
Other Assaults on Aquatic Resources Are Less Celebrated, But No Less Harmful
Conflicts over commercial uses of Hawai`i’s coastal areas receive attention because they have an impact on lots of people. Fistfights are not uncommon in disputes over who stays and who goes in certain desirable areas. While overuse by tourists and … Continued
Land and Natural Resources Department Suffers Punishing Blows in 2005 Budget
How much does Hawai’i value its natural resources? If one looks to the governor’s 2004 budget message, it would seem that the administration of Linda Lingle places a high premium on protecting the environment. It was among the top five … Continued