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T II e <br /> TRUST To: HAWAII COUN"CY COUNCIL F[NANCF. <br /> F U li <br /> PUBLIL COMMIT"I'EE <br /> 1' N ~ Date: Tuesday, April 19, 2005, 930 A.M. <br /> Subject: TESTIMONY [N S'T'RONG SUPPORT OF BILLS 78 & 79 <br /> c„„~.~r,~h~ > ,~,~a <br /> I°' h`°I'I' 'the Trust for Public Land (TPL) is anon-profit organization dedicated to preserving <br /> and protecting land for people, whether those lands are important cultural, recreational, <br /> ecological or scenic areas that add to our quality of life here in Hawai `i. TPL has protected <br /> over 2,000 acres of our best-loved and most-used places throughout the state and is working to <br /> protect other areas every day, including cultural lands at the City of Refuge in Honaunau, the <br /> Homl`apo coastal area, and Wao Kele o Puna. We strongly support Bills 78 and 79 and believe <br /> that passage of these laws is crucial to protecting the integrity of Hawai`i's environment, our <br /> precious recreational, cultural and natural resources that support our economy, and our local <br /> quality of life. <br /> The County of Hawaii has so much to gain with the passage of this bill. Every year <br /> millions of dollars of Federal funds are available for land acquisition and conservation, but in <br /> most cases those,Junds must he matched by local funds to he drak~n to the Big Island. With <br /> some programs, one dedicated county dollar can leverage 3 federal dollarstripling it's <br /> impact. By dedicating 2% of the current property tax revenue, approximately 2 million dollars <br /> per year will be directed to a land conservation fund-money that can attract millions of <br /> federal and private matching dollars to the Island of Hawaii that would allow local <br /> communities and this Council protect special areas of land for Hawai'i's future generations. <br /> Without a predictable source of seed money provided by Bills 78 and 79, opportunities <br /> for land protection on [he Big Island routinely slip away. Just last year, $I.SM in federal <br /> funding from the Farm and Ranchland Protection Program was returned to Washington DC <br /> that could have been spent helping Hawaii farmers stay on the land and protect our wide open <br /> spaces. Important areas that have provided mauka and makai access to generations of residents <br /> could be saved with Federal help while still allowing businesses and landowners to realize <br /> market value for their property and avoiding litigation and the courts. And, cultural landscapes <br /> that define the soul of our Island culture and are critical to the tourism economy could be <br /> protected in creative partnerships that leverage money from a number of sources. <br /> Although we fully support Bills 78 and 79 in their current form, TPL believes that one <br /> basic amendment can help make it more efficient and effective. We suggest adding language <br /> that will clarify that traditional hunting and gathering areas are priority areas of public concern <br /> and eligible for funding from the Preservation Fund, namely: "Public outdoor recreation and <br /> education, including access to beaches, mountains, and traditional hunting and gathering <br /> areas." <br /> TPL is ready and prepared to help protect the lands that are most critical to the Big <br /> Island community. Our organization and our land trust partners need dependable funding year <br /> in and year out to apply for matching funds, work with willing landowners, and save this <br /> Island's natural resources and the economy that depends on their preservation. <br /> <br /> TLc Tru,.t for I'ubLc LanJ <br /> I lauauan Inlan.6 O(6io <br /> zIa nt~r.h.,,,, s~r~.~., Mahalo for the opportunity to testify. <br /> s,~~r~~;'~` Josh Stanbro,'CPL-I[awai`i Project Manager <br /> I I~~no ulu, I II UPSI i <br /> Comm. No:_~ - <br /> la,~at sz~-,sao <br /> E.~, moat s~ t-~,sas Ref. To: Pre~o+~ _ <br /> Ref. Uote ^ APR 9 <br /> lC N'Nl (h ~.O[h <br /> <br />