2001-08-08 Enviromental Management Commission Minutes

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Minutes for Wednesday, August 8, 2001Page 1 of 5 Return to: Home Page | Table of Contents | Commission Page ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT COMMISSION Wednesday, August 8, 2001 9:13 a.m. Hawai`i County Council Room 25 Aupuni Street, Room 201, Hilo, Hawai`i 96720 PRESENT:Riley SmithALSO Peter Boucher, WWD PRESENT: Barbara BellLarry Capellas, SWD Sam KawamuraGalen Kuba, Acting Deputy Director Carolyn WitcherPat O’Toole, Corporation Counsel Kimo FrankelJon Olson Luana JonesCynthia Bryan Mack AsatoG. Morgan Griffin Hugh OnoGeorge Krasnick Curtis Tyler, III, Councilman EXCUSED:Peter MartinJohn Ray Tom Nelson STAFF:Valerie TanimotoTiffany Edwards, West Hawaii Today Steven J. Araujo John Ota Steve Hambalek, FEMA CALL TO ORDER Riley Smith called the meeting to order at 9:13 a.m. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF JULY 19, 2001 MEETING Barbara Bell motioned to approve the Minutes of the July 19, 2001 meeting. Carolyn Witcher seconded. Kimo Frankel suggested that we record the motions in a way that are going to be understood by everyone. Barbara also made a suggestion that when a motion is made, we record that portion verbatim in the minutes. Motion was unanimously carried. STATEMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC ON ITEMS LISTED ON AGENDA John Ota, a Hilo resident, expressed his concerns with the wastewater issues. Knows of homeowners with ages that range from 60 to 90 and they live on social security income. These people labored in the sugar cane fields for $1.00 a day until the year 1940. The County wanted to purchase the right-of-way to these properties to install the sewage line. The County required 15 feet right- of-way, nothing to be planted on top of it and were not willing to pay the cubic foot involved to the homeowners. Today, the wording has been changed to say that the EPA approves a hook up to the sewage system with a charge. If the individual landowner could not afford to pay for that loan, a lien would be placed on his property. Do the EPA rules only govern sewage lines? Do they govern discrimination of only select people, select citizens? Sewage is an island problem. Everybody that lives on this island creates sewage. I don't think the EPA distinguishes or segregates business from population and/or use our road as a division to segregate what's got to be done on one side or the other. How is the County going to approach these people that don't want to hook up? There is no definite process at the present to address the total sewage system on this island. Although finance may be a big factor, there have been federal grants approved to the County for this purpose. Hugh Ono commented that there’s been substantial amount of effort, study, and work going into this area over many years and many decades. There was a study or an organizational effort that occurred which determined certain areas were permitted to have cesspools. A part of this effort was because of the tremendous cost impact to citizens in switching over from what was the traditional cesspool situation over to wastewater systems. Kimo Frankel mentioned that we were given maps at the last meeting that show what areas are already sewered, which areas are planned to be sewered in the next two years and which in the next 10 years. At some point we will have to get that information to the public. The plan will be revised and we’ll be discussing that in terms of what areas are in the most critical need. That's the purpose of Bills 57 and 58. How do we finance the whole effort of sewering the island? John Ray, representing the Hawai`i Leeward Planning Conference. Testified on Bill 57 not on the substance of the bill but the process in regards to the commission assuming a recommendation onto the County Council. Should consider holding public hearings in Kona and in Hilo. file://C:\Test1\minutes080801.htm6/22/2011