2017-05-15 Public Testimony on SMA 16-063 Contested Case

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mainland they call it a watershed and they are very careful to preserve their watershed, the forest lands above where the water goes through. Well, this land you are going to put these 300 and odd timeshare buildings on this watershed for Kahalu‘u lagoon, the jewel of our island. Shame on us for even considering development like this. Shame on us. I have written testimony here, the EPA reports on O‘ahu. But, to put these condos, that they’ll turn into condos, they’ll start off timeshares, you can wash your car and the water that goes into the ground has detergent and oil in it, it gets down into the little tubes, goes right down to the beach and kills all the wild life there. We do not live on the mainland. The ground is like a bunch of little tubes, like veins; anything you put on the ground or in the ground migrates down to Kahalu‘u lagoon like a bathtub ring in your bathtub. It’s hard to sample because once it comes out, you know, the ocean dilutes it. So you have to look at indicator species to see what the damage is. But I’ve been down there a lot. The little keiki pond right in front of the lifeguard chair, it’s about a foot, foot and a half deep, you go down there at the right time of the day, there is cold water comes out of the rocks and it’s on top of the surface. Freshwater floats on saltwater, and you can drink it. It’s beautiful, cold freshwater. Well, it was. Put this development in, it won’t be. Thank you for listening. Aloha. GEORGE ABOOD: Hello. My name is George Abood. I’m here to speak on behalf of the Surfrider Foundation’s Kona Kai Ea Chapter. In case you don’t know, Surfrider is an international non-profit whose mission is to help protect the shoreline and the ocean through conservation, research, education and activism. Our group strongly supports the McMichael ‘ohana and their efforts to stop this development. We defer to the cultural practitioners and kānaka maoli to present the compelling cultural and historical issues, which show the inappropriateness of this plan. Some of our members have frequented this coastal area for decades and even generations. We see that in many respects, the area is already at peak carrying capacity. The waters are sadly impaired, much of which is likely due to seepage from cesspools and septic tanks too close to the water. And a recent sewer breach portends of worse to come. We feel for that this reason it makes no sense to develop the area, especially on such a large scale until the sewer line is extended and the waters show measurable improvement. For many residents and visitors, Kahalu‘u Park is already inaccessible due to lack of parking, beach space and space in the water, especially during peak tourist season, which seems to last longer every year. Even in so-called non-peak times, the surf zone, snorkeling areas and parking are overcrowded due to visitors and surf schools. As for roads, no matter how many are built, catch-up can never happen when permitting and development continue. Slow crawling traffic is the norm in both directions. With the new bypass, it’s only gotten worse. There are some growing threats of climate and sea level changes. We feel that sensible, long-range planning demands larger building setbacks for all of our coastal communities and especially areas like Kahalu‘u, which provide our members and growing population with 5 2017-05-15 Public Testimony on SMA 16-063 Contested Case