Governor Linda Lingle and officials of Hawaii Superferry would probably be happier if thousands of neighbor island residents who have been demanding environmental impact statements would just go away.
That’s not going to happen any time soon.
A public meeting was held Sept. 26 at the Capitol building in Honolulu. Arranged by Senator Gary Hooser and HSF watchdog group People for the Preservation of Kauai, nine presentations were made by representatives from the four islands to be impacted by the Superferry. Among the presenters were Hooser, former Kauai police chief K.C. Lum, Maui orchid farmer Jeff Parker, and Dick Mayer, a retired economics professor, also from Maui.
The presenters, one from as far away as Mo‘orea, where a ferry system is in operation, pointed out numerous potential impacts the Superferry could have on marine life, beaches and parks, native culture, security, traffic, farming and economics.
Though Lingle was invited to the meeting, she declined due to a previously scheduled appearance in Kona.
“There is an up side to having a ferry service and a down side,” said Ted Kawahinehelelani Blake, who has first-hand familiarity with the impacts of a roll-on roll-off ferry service.
The Kauai-born Blake resides on Mo‘orea in French Polynesia, where four ‘fast ferries’ transport passengers and vehicles between Tahiti and Mo‘orea.
Blake says that weekends bring an influx of Tahiti residents to Mo‘orea. Though the economic importance of the ferries is obvious for the island nation, Blake says that Mo‘orea residents have paid a high price, citing trashed beaches, fished out waters, appearance of invasive species and a rise in crime as some of the negative impacts.
“Criminals rob homes and businesses, then catch the last ferry out,” says Blake. “Invasive species are reported weeks after they have shown up. Surf spots are jammed. Roadways are jammed. Campgrounds are trashed. No more spur-of-the-moment with Dad coming home and saying ‘Let’s go camping tomorrow.’ [With the Superferry,] camping permits will need to be applied for a year in advance.”
Hooser feels that DOT’s and the Lingle Administration’s refusal to acknowledge the need for an EIS is unacceptable.
“Many believe that this will change the way of life on the neighbor islands, and it may very well do that,” Hooser says. “There is always change, but this will accelerate that change. I think it outrageous and irresponsible that the Governor and the transportation board came to this conclusion.”
Hooser likens the concerns regarding the Superferry to those of the proposed runway extension at Kahului. “There was an EIS (environmental impact statement) required for that. We do need it, and the state should require it. I think the Governor and DOT need to step up to the plate and do what is right.”
Kauai residents Rich Hoeppner and his wife Judie Hilke-Lundborg have collected over 6,000 signatures around the state urging the Governor to postpone the HSF operations until environmental impact statements are conducted for each of the four islands. Most were obtained on Kauai and reflect approximately 20 percent of the island’s adult population.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Randy Iwase has also jumped on the Superferry EIS bandwagon, and has signed the petition.
The morning following the meeting at the capitol, Hoeppner and Hilke-Lundborg, along with representatives from Maui, went to the Governor’s office to present the stack of signed petitions directly to Lingle. Though the Governor was there, the group was flatly turned down.
“There is a procedure on how to meet with the Governor,” said Kaui Alapa, the receptionist in the Governor’s office.
Hoeppner had met Lingle at a Kauai farm rally in July. At Lingle’s request, Hoeppner and Hilke-Lundborg sent a letter on Aug. 1 to the Governor stating their concerns about the Superferry. After receiving no response, the couple twice formally requested an audience with Lingle through the Governor’s website. Both requests were made with an obligatory 45-day advance notice. Both requests were denied.
“I don’t make those decisions, the Governor does,” Alapa explained to a frustrated Hoeppner. “She reviews it and decides what she wants to do. It is her schedule.”
Alapa had gone to the ‘back room’ twice in attempts to secure the group a couple of minutes of Lingle’s time to no avail. When the group requested five minutes of time with a senior staffer, Alapa informed them that the senior staffers were ‘unavailable.’
“If you came into my house unexpected, would you expect me to give you the time of day?” Alapa asked.
“Six thousand people have concerns and she can’t meet with us for five minutes,” said a shocked Hoeppner. “To me, that’s one of two things irresponsible or untruthful.”
The couple went to Iwase’s office shortly after being turned away from the Governor’s office. According to Hoeppner, Iwase was appalled and immediately issued a press release.
“A governor is a governor of all the people,” Iwase wrote in his release. “Whether you agree with a person’s position or not, it is unacceptable to refuse to allow citizens with a grievance to be shunned at the door and sent packing. To not even allow them to hand the petition to a staff member is the epitome of governmental arrogance.”
Hilke-Lundborg was frustrated.
“We have done everything we know of to talk with her,” says Hilke-Lundborg. “Is she the Governor of Hawaii or the Governor of Oahu?”