Some 17 years ago, Leon Hallacher and Brian Tissot undertook to assess the impact of aquarium fish collectors on the population of reef fish along the Kona coast of the Big Island. To collect the data needed, undergraduates were trained to identify the … Continued
On September 24, Environmental Court Judge Jeffrey Crabtree heard final arguments in a case brought by the Sierra Club of Hawai‘i over permits that allow East Maui stream water to be diverted out of the watershed. The group argues that the state Board of … Continued
Land Board Grants Permits, Easements For ‘Auwai Repair Projects in East Maui In the midst of a years-long legal battle with the state Board of Land and Natural Resources over its decisions to allow Alexander & Baldwin, Inc., to divert water from … Continued
A Loss for American Samoa: The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has overturned a lower court decision, effectively giving longline fishing vessels the right to fish as close as 12 miles from the territory’s coast. The decision is a blow to … Continued
Last month, Environment Hawai‘i reported on a $423,000 settlement the state Board of Land and Natural Resources approved to resolve several damage claims brought by its lessee, Pacific Marine Partners, LLC. The company had won a 10-year lease at public auction in the … Continued
Danny Julkowski threw himself on the mercy of the Leeward Planning Commission of Hawai‘i County last month. And as sympathetic as the commissioners were to his plight, their mercy was more limited. Julkowski was asking the commissioners to recommend that the … Continued
In July and August, both the Leeward and Windward Planning Commissions of Hawaiʻi County approved a recommendation that the County Council change the county’s zoning ordinance and county code to allow for a range of activities at the county’s two … Continued
Over the past several years, members of the state Board of Land and Natural Resources have questioned Ross Smith of the Department of Transportation’s Airports Division about some of his requests for board approval of direct leases. Why, they wondered, … Continued
On August 13, the state Land Use Commission unanimously approved a petition from Hawaiʻi County for a declaratory order confirming that short-term vacation rentals (STVR) are not acceptable uses of farm dwellings in the Agricultural District. The commission also denied … Continued