The recent decision of the Hawai`i Supreme Court involving a bottling company’s use of spring water has moved the case forward — back into the lap of the county agency that denied it the permits it needed in the first … Continued
The taro farmers of East Maui were first in line, but it appears they may be last to get served. The state Commission on Water Resource Management’s contested case hearing on the interim instream flow standards of Waihe`e River and … Continued
For a few weeks in January and February, keeping up with the filings for mechanic’s liens against Hu Honua Bioenergy required almost a full-time presence in Hilo’s 3rd Circuit Court. On February 4, an article by John Burnett in the … Continued
The Nature Conservancy’s Waikamoi Preserve in east Maui has been mostly free of feral pigs and goats for the last two decades. But what has that meant for the native vegetation on the high slopes of Haleakala? In 2008, four … Continued
The County of Hawai`i Planning Department has won a favorable ruling from the 3rd Circuit Court in a case that challenged the county’s ability to set shoreline setback distances. Despite that, the deputy corporation counsel representing the Planning Department, Amy … Continued
It’s finally settled. James Pflueger’s company, Pila`a 400, LLC, must pay the state $4 million for damaging the reef at Pila`a Bay in North Kaua`i. After heavy rains in November 2001, a massive wall of mud from Pila`a 400‘s mauka … Continued
Council Loses an Advisor: Robin Baird, one of the leading experts on false killer whales in waters around Hawai`i, has resigned from the Protected Species Advisory Committee of the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council (Wespac). Baird resigned effective January 31. The … Continued
Film Office Seeks DLNR’s Help with Unauthorized Productions Hawai`i film commissioner Donne Dawson begged the state Board of Land and Natural Resources for help with certain “misbehaving” productions. “We need assistance in sending a strong, clear message that they cannot … Continued
The state Board of Land and Natural Resources did pretty much everything wrong when it approved Wainiha, Kaua`i property owner Craig Dobbin’s certified shoreline in 2010. That’s the impression one gets from reading the January 27 Hawai`i Supreme Court decision … Continued
Use of Monk Seal Bait Sparks Debate Over Permit to Cull Sharks in NWHI “There’s a big difference between taking an action to kill versus using the flesh of an animal already dead,” said at-large Board of Land and Natural … Continued