2003-10-03 TRUTTER - Laserfiche WebLink

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fresh water due to golf course irrigation needs and human impacts to endangered species habitat. We have forwarded to the Planning Director for his consideration would like to see made a part of the permit conditions. In fact, the Land Use Commission has a required condition of a 40-foot buffer around all anchialine ponds. We do not believe that golf tees, fairways, greens or any other manmade golf course feature zone around an anchialine pond. These ponds contain a unique ecosystem of invertebrates found nowhere else in the world. Although it has been demonstrated that the typical red shrimp, `` paeula, found in these ponds are relatively hearty, other organisms that depend on this ecosystem, such as the candidate endangered species, the orange black damselfly, are more susceptible to environmental change. Protection of the anchialine pond system found within this development should be a high priority of the SMA conditions. We are quite concerned about the impacts of increased groundwater salinity to park resources resulting from the developer's golf course irrigation plan. Wells upslope or adjacent to the park are likely to have the greatest impact on park resources. We strongly recommend that new alternatives be considered to reduce golf course irrigation needs. These alternatives should include drought tolerant grasses and other plants, liners to retain moisture, irrigation with treated wastewater, and perhaps other possibilities not yet explored. We are also concerned that the development of new manmade water areas can increase salinity and create easy paths for the entry of contaminates to the groundwater. Other water quality concerns are with the disposal of wastewater and storm water runoff from impermeable surfaces. We have found significant contaminants in our pond sediments and fish tissue. We request that the developer's wastewater treatment plan achieve at least a secondary level of treatment or two so that water may be used for irrigation needs. All storm water drains should be fitted with oil/water separators. Areas where toxic chemicals and fertilizer are stored, such as the golf course maintenance area, should require additional catchment conditions to prevent groundwater contamination due to accidental spills. The SMA mentions the need for water quality monitoring throughout the document, and the park would like to see a specific monitoring plan prior to approval of the SMA permit to be sure the needs of the park are taken into account. We appreciate the effort the developer is making to preserve cultural and archaeological sites within the development. Overall, there should be a preservation plan that designates sites slated for preservation, data recovery, and those requiring no further archaeological attention. We would also like the developer to agree to preservation in place for all human burials. This would include known burials, burials found during archaeological surveys, testing, or data recovery, and burials discovered during construction. This development has the potential for significant visual impacts on the park. The intrusion of modern elements on the Kaloko Fishpond landscape, especially, can have a detrimental impact on the visitor experience. We applaud the developer for limiting the first phase of structures to a single story. We would also like to have visual buffers between the park and the 17