HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0377.441 2024-2026From: Cydnee Yamamoto
Sent: Monday, August 18, 2025 6:01 AM
To: Council Testimony
Cc: Kimball, Heather; Kagiwada, Jennifer; Onishi, Dennis; Kierkiewia, Ashleyf�,ganealii,
Kleinfelder, Matt; Galimba, Michelle M.; Villegas, Rebecca; Inaba, Holeka*ust��
James c
Subject: Please SUPPORT Res. 234-25 — �-
co o
ro ter✓
Aloha Chair and Council Members, I stand in full support of Resolution 234-25 to protect theFbealtlr
safety, and cultural integrity of Hawaii Island. This is a historic and important opportunity for -our
residents. We ask that you unanimously Vote in SUPPORT of Resolution 234-25 that will help end y
Pohakuloa live fire and bombing practice, and further contamination and destruction of the landscape
and soil/air quality in the Pohakuloa Training Area, rejecting land swaps and lease renewals with the
military unless specific stipulations are established, with the U.S. Military adheringto our Hawai'i State
Constitution and motto through the Ka Pa'akai Analysis on the area. For decades, Pohakuloa—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. Pohakuloa 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.
Protectingthis 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:
trips•//kawaiota news/columns/e-ninau-is-nhlc-ask-the-native-hawaIIan-legal-corporation/e-nhlc-
. - �,�u ..�� � •u . �- a ..
... .eh 9&tri ad: aedium=ffios
C. Yamamoto
Comm. I�•
Ref. To:
Ref. Date 19 202E