2006-08-25 D-BAR - Laserfiche WebLink

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GRAHAM:Thank you. So perhaps the triggering mechanism is the existence on a map at that time. And the trail did not exist on the map at that time, hence, it does not fall under that Act? HAHN:That’s my understanding. GRAHAM:Thank you. ALAMEDA:Thank you. Commissioner Siracusa? SIRACUSA:Yes, I was holding a question; and now appears to be the appropriate time to lay it on you. And that is a question as to whether you did any outreach to discover if there were any families who had traditionally used that property for gathering, or to visit the burials, or to maintain the land around the burials at present. I noticed that there is ko`oko`olau growing on the property, and that is used medicinally. So I’m wondering if possibly anybody had been doing gathering of that. HAHN:Not in the way of, the outreach that we are currently involved in involves consultation regarding the Preservation Plan as well as Burial Treatment Plan which specifically address burial and ritual sites, as well as the trail. That process is ongoing and will continue as the Burial Treatment Plan is presented to the Hawai`i Island Burial Council in September. We anticipate being on the September agenda, at which normally there are additional individuals who may have an interest in this area are identified. But the extent of our outreach for this is being focused on these archaeological sites. I mean we have not, sometimes through that interaction other kinds of activities may come to light, none have. And with regard to any ongoing maintenance or use of the burial sites, visitation of the burial sites, during the survey work these sites appear to be completely undeveloped densely forested area and that we found no evidence of anyone maintaining them or visiting them within the past 100 years or so. ALAMEDA:Ms. Siracusa, follow-up? SIRACUSA:Thank you. Would you explain to me how you would go about doing outreach to find native Hawaiians who might use that property, who might have used that property for gathering or for visiting burials? How would you, would you put ads in the paper, or how do you do this? HAHN:First thing we do is contact the Department of, State Division of Land and Natural Resources, Historic Preservation Division, Burial Program staff; and we have done that, contacting them to determine whether or not any individuals have claim descent in this particular ahupua`a. And, in fact, they identified at least three individuals that we have subsequently sent copies of this plan to for comment. As part of the Burial Treatment Plan process, there’s additional efforts to notify potential descendants in the form of advertisements, legal ads, notices posted in West Hawai`i Today, the statewide circulation newspaper, in this case the Honolulu Advertiser, as well as the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, a monthly newsletter. Notices were posted in each one of those monthly newsletter for the OHA, as well as Sunday, Wednesday and Friday publication of the Legal Notice. And before the plan can be submitted for review by the Island Burial Council, you have a waiting period of 30 days. We’re reaching that 30-day period. EXHIBIT B 11