2018-04-25 Meeting Minutes (EMC)

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Commissioner Osborne said she would like to discuss the Nāālehu Large Capacity ʻ Cesspool Replacement project, on page 8 of Director Kucharski’s report. She said she is very concerned and distressed by the testimony received today. At an earlier meeting she expressed her concern about condemning private property in Pāhala. Now she is distressed to hear there is consideration of condemning a family owned ranch which is located by a school. She is astounded this is happening and would like the director’s update on this. Director Kucharski said that for the Pāhala facility, it has been redesigned and the County will only take a portion of the property. They are in discussions with Kamehameha Schools, and there is no conflict at this point. For Nāālehu, over the past 12 to 1ʻ5 years they have looked at between 23 and 28 sites in the area. None of the sites were deemed acceptable, for one reason or another. When the process was started, the property in question was up for sale. It was examined and believed it could be an appropriate location. Before any property can be condemned, an EA needs to be done on it. Part of the EA review is to look an alternative sites that could be used. The talk story sessions that occurred recently were to bring the issue to the forefront in the community, and it was eminently successful in that regard. The EPA’s administrative order of consent was publicly noticed last year. There were full sets of comments received on the plan, and the EPA responded to each public comment received. What was going to happen was not a secret, and the proposed location is not the final location. The final location is unknown until such time as the EA is complete. If a facility is not constructed, the County is subject to $10,000 per day in penalties for violations. The cesspools were to have been closed by 2005, and they have failed miserably in doing their duty to the environment and local residents. Commissioner Osborne said she did not see how they could consider having the facility placed by a school. There are long-term issues these facilities face. She is also unclear on how the talk story sessions were successful. If 23 to 28 sites were looked at, surely something can be found that is not by a school. There has to be somewhere in the vast Kaū area that could be ʻ considered. She asked what the community’s recourse is, the timelines, and what the EMC can do to address this, as it is not sitting well with her. Director Kucharski said the talk story sessions were to talk to the community about the fact that an EA was about to be presented. It was not to come in and say this is what the County is doing. It was to come in and have the community understand what was under consideration and what the EA would look at. The EA has not started. Commissioner Osborne asked whether, if the County goes forward with an EA, the next step is serious consideration, and Director Kucharski said that is not correct. The EA is proceeding. Until it is completed, a final site will not be selected. This is part of the process. Commissioner Osborne ask if the EA would be on several sites. Director Kucharski said the EA will look at the site and do an engineering analysis of all the sites. This is what was done in Pāhala as well. It is based on having already reviewed the other sites, which for one reason or another were not acceptable. He explained that when he said the talk story sessions were successful, he meant the community became fully aware of what is potentially going to happen. A sewage treatment plant is going to happen. Where it will be placed is not yet determined. This location right now has been deemed, from an engineering perspective, an acceptable site. 13