HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0377.349 2024-2026From: Gabrielle Provencher
Sent: Saturday, August 16, 2025 10:25 AM
To: Council Testimony
Cc: Kimball, Heather; Kagiwada, Jennifer; Onishi, Dennis; Kierkiewicz, Ashley; Kanealii-
Kleinfelder, Matt; Galimba, Michelle M; Villegas, Rebecca; Inaba, Holeka; Hustace,
James o c�
Subject: Please SUPPORT Res. 234-25 w CDn
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Aloha Chair and Council Members, m o
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I stand in full support of Resolution 234-25 to protect the health, safety, and cultural integrity of Hawaii Islap8. Thi3 iSa:
historic and important opportunity for our residents. o >
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We ask that you unanimously Vote in SUPPORT of Resolution 234-25 that will help end P6hakuloa live fire and bombing
practice, and further contamination and destruction of the landscape and soil/air quality in the P6hakuloa Training Area,
rejecting land swaps and lease renewals with the military unless specific stipulations are established, with the U.S.
Military adhering to our Hawaii State Constitution and motto through the Ka Pa'akai Analysis on the area.
For decades, P6hakuloa—a sacred and ecologically vital area —has been subjected to contamination and destruction
from military activity. These impacts extend far beyond the immediate training grounds. What happens on our land
directly affects our island's water quality and quantity. The pollutants and toxins from bombing and live fire seep into the
soil, travel into our aquifers, and threaten the clean water that sustains our families, farms, and fisheries.
The Board of Land and Natural Resources recognized this danger when they denied the U.S. Army's Final Environmental
Impact Statement in May 2025—its second failure to meet the requirements of our laws. The Army's recent, partial
clean-up efforts are not acts of goodwill; they are strategic moves to secure more land and reframe their public image.
True stewardship means consistent respect for cultural sites and environmental health —not compliance only when more
land is at stake.
P6hakuloa is culturally sacred. It is also centrally located at high elevation and greatly impacts our island's ecological
health. We cannot allow further poisoning of our land, air, and water under the guise of national defense. Protecting this
area is protecting our people, our culture, and our future.
I urge you to adopt Resolution 234-25 without delay.
Please review these articles:
Ka Pa'akai Analysis:
https:Hkawaiola. news/colum ns/e-ni nau-ia-nh lc-ask-the-native-hawai ian-legal-corporation/e-nhlc-what-is-a-ka-paa ka i-
analysis/
The Army is Not Our Neighbor:
https://ethanmckown.substack.com/p/the-army-is-not-our-neigh bor?r=3bxyhg&triedRedi rect=true&utm_medi um=ios
Mahalo,
Gabrielle Provencher
District 7
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