2021-09-22 EMC minutes draft - Laserfiche WebLink

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3. STATEMENT FROM THE CHAIR Chair Adams began her statement by reading the Commission’s role in the County Charter: The Environmental Management Commission shall advise the Department (of Environment Management) of solid waste and wastewater programs, waste reduction strategies, recycling, control, community involvement, and other issues, including any pilot project or program, related to the functions of the Department. The Commission shall also provide its comments and recommendations on these mattersto the Council. The Commission shall hear and determine appealsfrom decisions of the Director, including orders and denials of variances. The EMC is also given 45 days to comment on Council bills that relate to the functions and duties of the Department. And to keep us on track for following our Charter, rules, and procedures that apply to us, we have a new Deputy Corporation Counsel assigned to Sinclair SalasFerguson. Counsel said hello to the Commission and said he looks forward to working with them. 4. PUBLIC STATEMENTS ON ITEMS ON THE AGENDA Jerome Warren (Agenda item 7-C) You have my written testimony. It was sent to Honolulu because the attorney who took me to court wants to be a judge. I submitted to you a similar letter last month, and it was blocked. OIP (Office of Information Practices) is looking into this. You should havetheir correspondence. This year the Department of Environmental Management is more feeble. The staff cannot produce monthly reports prior to Commission meetings. This negligence inhibits the public’s ability to add corrective testimony. We cannot correct what we do not know. This makes the environmentalists among you seem both feeble and draconian. People do not follow feeble leaders. I do not like being oppressed by the Green Thumb. Nobody knows what the updates for the Nlehu sewer project are, but I assume you are going for the impossible plan while keeping homeowners in the dark. A legislative audit will reveal how much money has gone to outside contractors for the Nlehu plans and reports. The dollar figure for Nlehu will be astronomical, while the citizens’ morale will be negative. Morale is part of an audit. Anyhow, you will find a negative value there, thanks to you guys, yeah? Neither my nor the public’s trust in government can be regained. We are left with less than nothing, and precious time keeps getting dithered away -- (Counsel instructed the testifier not to direct any personal comments toward the commissioners, and to keep his public statements to the agenda item. The petitioner then resumed his comments). No sir! I followed what the County Council does, I know the law and you cannot interrupt me, and you cannot correct me. Again, this is another OIP violation. I have free speech rights. So thank you. Sandra Demoruelle (Agenda item 7-C) I am very concerned about the notice of noncompliance that was sent to Mayor Mitch Roth on August 18 from the EPA. The noncompliance is for the 2