One of the most recently identified invasive species — a microscopic fungus called Ceratocystis fimbriata — doesn’t sound that frightening. But if unstopped, it stands to wipe out the state’s iconic `ohi`a trees, which make up fully half of the biomass of … Continued
The Hawai`i Green Infrastructure Authority has submitted its annual plan for fiscal year 2016 to the state Public Utilities Commission. Public comments will be accepted by the PUC through May 15. The HGIA manages the state’s Green Energy Market Securitization program, … Continued
Is the sighting of one monk seal three years after the acceptance of the Kalo`i Gulch Drainage Improvements’ final environmental impact statement (FEIS) enough “new evidence” to require a supplemental one? How about a monk seal sighting plus the release … Continued
Posted 06/02/2014 Maui County’s operation of its Lahaina sewage treatment plant has been found to violate the federal Clean Water Act. U.S. District Judge Susan Oki Mollway issued a ruling on May 30 finding that the four injection wells used … Continued
Posted 04/24/2014 The long and acrimonious dispute over ownership of the Haleakala Trail has been decided. On April 23, a jury determined that the state of Hawai`i does indeed own the six-foot-wide trail extending from Makawao up to Haleakala crater. … Continued
Posted 12/30/2013 The National Marine Fisheries Service is proposing a change in fishing regulations that would make permanent what has been a year-to-year rule allowing Hawai`i-based longliners to exceed the annual catch limits on bigeye tuna imposed by the Western … Continued
(Posted December 23, 2013) The Land Use Commission’s approval of a controversial O`ahu housing development known as Koa Ridge has been tossed out by the state Supreme Court. In an opinion written by Associate Justice Paula A. Nakayama and signed … Continued
Posted 08/30/2013 The National Marine Fisheries Service has determined that removing North Pacific humpback whales from the federal endangered species list may be warranted. That’s according to an August 29 Federal Register notice in which the NMFS announced the initiation of … Continued
(Posted 8/8/13) Shawn Smith is scheduled to attend Friday’s meeting of the state Board of Land and Natural Resources as the board’s representative from Kaua`i. But with the state Senate having met last Tuesday in a special session, in which … Continued
Posted 07/29/2013 To the surprise of probably no one, scientists at the University of Hawai`i have determined, once and for all, that indeed, there is a link between the treated wastewater from the Lahaina sewage treatment plant and nearshore water … Continued