2019-06-26 Meeting Minutes (EMC)

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said the state’s position is that Kealakehe does not require an NPDES permit. Rather, it has state discharge requirements that act as a permit. Further discussion was held on monitoring the wetlands and SAT ponds. Chair Bennett said he has not found evidence that an SAT pond was ever built in Hawaiʻi, and he is a little uncomfortable with the state’s ability to regulate something about which they know very little. Director Kucharski said the State Department of Health has the regulatory responsibility, and it has been delegated the authority to issue permits in accordance with the Clean Water Act. The counties operate under that authority. The county’s consultant does not have a say in what the monitoring requirements are and will need to set up whatever monitoring system the state obligates them to. Commissioner Gaffney said the EMC could, as a commission, make suggestions which might be positively considered by the state. Chair Bennett agreed and said they could exert conceptual leadership. Commissioner Burns said he agreed with that direction, but it is highly premature at this time. The EIS now is just a conceptual idea. They need to wait until the project gets closer to reality, to where permits and approvals are being initiated. Chair Bennett asked the commissioners if they wanted to go on record as recommending to the department that a monitoring program of sorts be implemented to ensure that the goals of the treatment process are met. Motion and second: Commissioner Gaffney moved that the EMC continue the process of developing a monitoring plan recommendation to the department so that the department develops a plan that will take into consideration all the variables the EMC feels are important. Vice Chair Olson seconded the motion. Discussion: Director Kucharski asked for clarification on the purpose of the monitoring, and Commissioner Gaffney said the purpose was for environmental protection. Director Kucharski said that monitoring in itself does not protect the environment per se, and the basic fact is that the county has 25 million gallons of untreated cesspool waste entering the environment every day. The R-1 system would be dealing with 2.3 million gallons of highly treated, totally disinfected, no TSS water that would be going into the SAT for removal of nutrients. Were they asking him to incur an expensive monitoring bill or program for materials the system cannot treat and that probably exist in every outfall, cesspool, and septic system that is entering the environment? From a regulatory and practical stance, this is something the department will consider because it will be coming from the commission, but he cannot see a real strong use for these data. Commissioner Burns added that it can cost thousands of dollars for one sample, and there is a situation where you pass a point of how much you can be proactive. He would be more in favor of a simple request to have some sort of monitoring plan which the EMC would have an opportunity to review. Chair Bennett said the first order of monitoring may simply be nutrients, and later they could move to other tiers of concern. The public is paying $90 million for the system