Did the 2014 amendments to Kaua‘i County’s shoreline setback ordinance weaken what was once considered to be one of the strongest laws of its kind in the state? Unlike O‘ahu, where shoreline setbacks are 40 feet from the certified shoreline, … Continued
In short, it’s still there, blanketed in naupaka, just as the abutting landowners want it to be. Efforts to clean up the legal morass surrounding its existence are in limbo. In August 2015, Environment Hawai‘i published a cover story on … Continued
With the closure last December of Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar’s (HC&S) sugarcane plantation, most of its former fields in Central Maui now sit fallow. Some cattle graze on a small portion, and the company has made moves to grow bioenergy … Continued
Constant Flooding Hampers Tenant’s Ability To Pay Rent for Mapunapuna Demo Business By now, anyone who watches the local evening news knows that Mapunapuna floods dramatically during high tides and heavy rains. As local scientists and government agencies have ramped up … Continued
On July 31, the Natural Area Reserves System Commission approved a special use permit to the National Science Foundation (NSF) to establish a National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) field site within the Pu‘u Maka‘ala Natural Area Reserve (NAR) on Hawai’i … Continued
The state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ (DLNR) effort to rid its Lehua Island bird sanctuary of invasive rats got off to a rocky start last month. The agency did not receive notice from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric … Continued
Landscaper May Finally Pay State Its Nearly Half A Million Dollar Debt An ill-timed auction. An effort to give a Waimanalo animal shelter time to relocate after its lease expired. Alleged verbal instructions from state land agents to the new tenant … Continued
Western Pacific Fishery Management Council (Wespac) executive director Kitty Simonds isn’t just pushing for commercial longlining to return to the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument expansion area established by President Barack Obama late last year. She’s made it clear she’s also … Continued
If it weren’t for us, you wouldn’t even have a beach and you promised us we could use it, so cut us a break. That appears to have been the attitude of representatives for the Kahala Hotel & Resort over … Continued
Kuka`iau Ranch Acquisition Wins Much of 2017’s Legacy Land Funds Breaking with a decade of past practice, the state Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) in May supplanted funding recommendations from the Legacy Land Conservation Commission with its own. At the … Continued