Molokai residents did their homework, sending Molokai Properties Limited (MPL) back to the drawing board this past Friday. Under adverse public testimony and scrutiny by the State Land Use Commission (LUC), MPL decided to withdraw the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for their proposed La`au Point development.

“I believe they heard the concerns of the community and felt they needed to do more work,” LUC Chairwoman Lisa M. Judge said.

In seeking to develop 200 luxury home lots at La`au Point, acceptance of the EIS is a vital step for MPL in order to reclassify zoning of 613 acres of land from agricultural to rural.

A United Community

Hundreds of community members came together for the hearing at the Lanikeha Community Center in Ho`olehua on Nov. 15 and 16. Most of the testimonies heard by LUC commissioners were critical of MPL’s 3,000-plus page document.

“In the three years that I have been on the commission, I have never before seen a hearing like this,” LUC commissioner Thomas Contrades said. 

Judging by the amount of police officers outside the building, some may have expected a tumultuous event. While emotions were high during much of the hearing, almost everyone was patient, respectful, and well prepared.

MPL attorney Isaac Hall argued that opponents to the EIS, “haven’t really read the document in depth.”

But Judge thought otherwise saying, “It was a very long day with very passionate testimony from a community that was well prepared, and that addressed the issues in a very civil and gracious way.”

Not Looking Good For MPL

For MPL, the hearing took a turn for the worse on Friday morning when Commissioner Reuben Wong made a motion to reject the EIS.

Wong explained the EIS failed to adequately detail key components of the proposed development, including water use, CC&Rs, and how the Molokai Land Trust would operate. He also said the rebuild of Kaluakoi Hotel, a major component of the project, should not be left out of the EIS.

Under the imminent threat of rejection, MPL legal council appeared torn on what step to take next. Hall argued that although the EIS was not perfect, it was adequate.

Attorney Yvonne Yzu, also representing MPL, said her client recognized many concerns had not been adequately addressed. She then requested commissioners put the meeting on hold until a further date, allowing MPL time to more thoroughly respond to community concerns within the document.

After a 4-4 vote, the commission denied MPL’s request for more time.

Contrades said that allowing petitioners to go back and fix a document “because they didn’t like what they heard” would set an unfair precedent.

At that point MPL lawyers decided to pull the plug by withdrawing the EIS.

What’s next for MPL?

“First of all, we are going to have to submit our formal letter of withdrawal,” Yzu said. “Basically we will have to go through the EIS process all over again.”

“To me that means they will have to start again, but I’m not an expert in environmental law,” Judge said. The Office of Environmental Quality Control (OEQC) will decide the next step of the process for MPL, she said.

Testimony

While Stacy Crivello, Molokai Enterprise Community (EC) president, felt that the community should “embrace (MPL’s plan) as a solution of what is happening” on Molokai, others see the plan leaving the island wide open to a Pandora’s box of potential negative impacts.

Water

“You don’t have to be one with a degree to know that there is not enough water,” kupuna Judy Caparida said.

University of Hawaii extension agent and homestead farmer Glenn Teves gave a thorough discussion of water and soil related issues in a slide presentation.

“Water is an unresolved issue in the EIS,” Teves said. Arguing that MPL-owned Well 17 was “insufficient backup for even existing (water) use,” he claimed the entire west end is exposed to potential water shortages.

Retired attorney Victoria Kapuni submitted 1500 questions during the public-comment period. Like many others, she felt that MPL’s answers came up short.

Kapuni’s main protest was the absence of an accurate water chart detailing the complex workings of Molokai’s aquifer. She also said that the plan’s water use estimates were not consistent throughout the document.

 Sierra Club representative Lucienne de Naie said similar developments on Maui, her home island, have caused sacred springs to dry up as a result of the over-pumping of wells.

“Today I’m a seal expert,” said Scarlet Ritte who provided some humor when she attached a sign to her chest. Along with Loretta Ritte, she said Monk Seals would be affected if CC&Rs didn’t adequately protect the animal’s surrounding environment.

Seals come to Molokai throughout the year, especially near the Penguin Banks, an area rich in fish just offshore from the proposed development. “We need to protect and speak for them,” Ritte said of the shy seals.

CC&Rs

Several members of the community brought attention to further unresolved issues regarding covenants, conditions and restrictions, or CC&Rs - safeguards or governing rules that regulate how property is used.

Karen Holt, Executive Director of the Molokai Community Services Council, pointed out that CC&Rs are referenced 866 times in the EIS.

“These things are meant to protect the environment,” said Holt. However, CC&R documents do not appear anywhere in the EIS.

Representing Molokai Land Trust (MLT), Cheryl Corbiell discussed MPL’s promise to donate 25,000 acres of “significant lands” to the trust. MPL also planned to place the usage rights for an additional 25,000 acres under MLT’s jurisdiction to manage.

Although the acreage would be safeguarded by CC&Rs, Corbiell was unable to explain what they would entail and how the trust would enact the CC&Rs.

Vice Chair of the Molokai Planning Commission, Steve Chaiken argued that without an adequate description of land easements, there would be no guarantee that trust lands would be safe from development.

“What wasn’t in the EIS?” asked Kawika Crivello, Maui County Environmental Service Officer. Crivello, who works at the Molokai Landfill, said the dump cannot handle the volume of trash from 200 extra homes. He said the dump is not currently in compliance with the state environmental laws, and with regards to capacity, the landfill is “barely head above water.”

West-end resident Steve Morgan had qualms with MPL’s slogan, “One last Development.” He said MPL land near the resort was zoned for an additional six hotels and several additional condominiums. He said MPL was wrong for leaving out the potential developments in the EIS, including the renovation of the Kaluakoi Hotel. “We need a clear and accurate picture of the entire project.”

Alternatives

“There must be a discussion of alternatives … regardless of costs,” said Alan Murakami, an attorney with Native Hawaiian Legal Corp.

Matt Yamashita, who helped form the Alternatives to La`au Development Committee (ALDC), said that a wind farm could be an end-all alternative to the La`au development as it would not require more water, nor attract outsiders to the island, among other reasons.

He said an MPL manager had previously attended meetings concerning wind alternatives as far back as 2004, and that the company has since been approached by at least one major wind company.

Yamashita charged that the EIS completely ignored the wind farm alternative even though the EIS states MPL analyzed all of the ALDC proposed alternatives.

Commissioner Randy Piltz added that the possibility of wind farming on Molokai was mentioned at a renewable-energy conference on Oahu in the previous week.

Jobs

Rex Kamakana, Water Operations Manager at MPL, spoke on behalf of company employees and their families in supporting the proposed EIS. He said without the master plan, he would have to leave the island to provide for his family.

Executive Director of the EC, Abbey Mayer, based his testimony on unemployment levels. He said economic statistics show a majority of Molokai residents living below the poverty level, and referred to the proposed development as a “historic opportunity for the island.”

Contrades questioned Mayer’s tactics, saying that poverty-level statistics do not reflect the “happiness level” of the people on the island. A sociologist, Contrades said that statistics must be viewed from several different perspectives. “How can I make a good judgment if someone uses partial and not complete information?”

Former General Manager for MPL, Teri Waros did her own math and said that while MPL’s employment wages “sound outright philanthropic,” the approximate $27,000 per employee spent on salaries actually equate to $19,000 after deductions. A two-parent household with two children would exist below national poverty level on that income.

Showing pride in the thorough and unrelenting efforts that Molokai community members put into preparing their testimonies, Hanohano Naehu gave his own perspective on statistics saying, “If there was a stat on per capita coming to a meeting ‘we would win!’”

EC board member Bridget Mowatt felt similar pride in the way community members showed their opposition to the La`au Point development. “Last night I walked in here and it looked like the Red Sea,” said Mowatt, referring to the crowd who wore red “a`ole La`au” shirts.

Taking a Stand

The hearing was filled with emotional testimonials, which were oftentimes overwhelming. “Molokai Ranch (MPL) is splitting us apart.” Speaking in Hawaiian and English, kupuna Pilipo Solatario addressed MPL representatives John Sabas and Peter Nicholas.

Solatario has worked at the Ranch for 27 years and has recently been adamant about his disapproval of MPL’s mistreatment of employees.

“I am not for the plan. I am not for La`au,” Solatario said. “If I don’t have a job tomorrow it is because I am honest. Only honest people they let go.”

Solatario’s defiant presentation brought tears to the eyes of many including several commissioners. Upon his exit, several hundred people in the room stood and applauded.

Withdrawal or Rejection

“The environmental laws are very precise, and they (MPL) chose the options they thought were best for the community and themselves,” Judge said. But at the end of the day, the lack of a thorough EIS proved too much for MPL.

 “I think the EIS was withdrawn because they (MPL) felt it was going to be rejected,” Maui County Planning Director Jeffrey Hunt said.

LUC Executive Officer Anthony Ching said the OEQC will decide MPL’s next step. According to Ching the expected outcome will be for MPL to start the process over again by filing a new Draft EIS.

While MPL faces the task of recreating its EIS for the La`au Point development, it could be forced to concurrently author a separate EIS for water use.

A recent opinion by state Deputy Attorney General Myra Kaichi mandates MPL provide an environmental assessment in order to continue renting use of the state owned Molokai Irrigation System.

Although details of Kaichi’s opinion are forthcoming, disappointed looks from MPL’s corner at the Friday hearing tell of a probable uphill climb for the company.