A government effort to eradicate Hawai’i’s four non-native fruit fly species “lit up, exploded, then fizzled in about six or seven years.” That’s the way the effort has been described by Mike Kido, a former member of the Hawai’i Fruit … Continued
Land Board Settles DHHL Claims With Transfer of Five More Parcels On April 9, 1998, the Land Board voted to amend a four-year old land agreement between the Department of Land and Natural Resources and the Department of Hawaiian Homelands … Continued
“It’s amazing, the amount of power — there really is a lot of power on the board.” That’s the view of Chris Yuen, former Big Island member of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, who was interviewed in the … Continued
Kauila A legend relates that there was a time when stormy weather prevented the men from diving for water. There were two supernatural turtles who had come out of the ocean to Punalu`u: Honu-po`o-kea (Turtle-with-white-head), the mother; and Honu-`ea (Turtle-with … Continued
“Should the dam collapse, a flood wave could envelop the communities of Waialua and Hale`iwa within 40 minutes…. Human safety is the primary concern,” states a report to the 1996 Legislature written by the Wahiawa Reservoir Task Force. The group … Continued
It’s right there in black and white: “DLNR does not have any documentation of a Registration of Stream Diversion Works and Declaration of Water Use, a Stream Diversion Works Permit, or a Water Use Permit for Moloa`a Ditch.” Since the … Continued
Second only to sludge, auto fluff, also known as auto shredder residue or ASR, is one of the largest waste components in O`ahu’s Waimanalo Gulch landfill. In 2006, 29,786 tons of auto fluff were dumped into the landfill, accounting for … Continued
The Auditor, State of Hawai`i. <i>Performance Audit on the State Administration’s Actions Exempting Certain Harbor Improvements to Facilitate Large Capacity Ferry Vessels from the Requirements of the Hawaii Environmental Impact Statements Law: Phase I [April 2008] and Phase II [December … Continued
As with most other state agencies, the Department of Land and Natural Resources is facing straitened circumstances as Hawai`i attempts to deal with forecasts of crashing revenues. From an authorized spending level of roughly $111.6 million for the current fiscal … Continued
The annual Variance Report, published by the state Department of Budget and Finance, is a rich mine of information on the operation of Hawai`i government agencies. Here are a few tidbits: Average number of business days the Department of Taxation … Continued