HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0377.365 2024-2026From:
Raquel Runnels
Sent: Monday, August 18, 2025 10:23 AM
To: Council Testimony
Subject: Support Res. 234-25
Aloha mai Kakou Committee Members,
The US military training at Pohakuloa has already caused serious harm burning nearly 20,000 acres, contaminating the
'Aina (land), and threatening, endangered species. Beneath this area is a major aquifer that supplies freshwater to
Hawai'i Island, and the military track record shows they're not equipped to protect it. There is also serious concerns
about depleted uranium left in the soil, which can become airborne during exercise exercises and has known health risks.
Pohakuloa is s wahi pana—a secret place with deep, cultural and ecological significance. Continued military uses
incompatible with the conversation status, and the values of aloha aina.
Our kupuna may not live to witness landback in their lifetime, but it is our duty to hold those who claim to be "stewards"
of our aina accountable and to return it to its rightful stewards, the Kanaka Maoli. As Pua Case reminds us: "We are not
protesters. We are protectors. We stand not in opposition, but in affirmation —of our land, our water, our life, our
future." The military's continued use of Pohakuloa betrays this sacred kuleana, and we must act now to protect what
remains for the future generations to come. Please support this resolution to protect the 'aina (land), wai (water), and
people of Hawai'i.
'O au iho no me ke mahalo,
Na Raquel S. Runnels
Ma Wahiawa, Oahu
Sent from my Whone
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Ref. To:
Ref. Date AUG 19 2025