HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 1141.006 2006-2008
DATE: May 19, 2008
TO: Hawaii County Council
FROM: Elizabeth Miller
P.O. Box 504 (19-4377 Wright Rd.)
Volcano, Hawaii 96785-0504
RE: Puna Community Development Plan
Grading and Grubbing Ordinance
Summary: In support of petition 1114: That the revised Grading and Grubbing
include provisions to minimize damage to the Volcano rain forest.
There's a line in a Joni Mitchell song that goes: "Don't it always seem to go, that you don't know
what you've got 'til it's gone. They paved paradise, put up a parking lot." I feel compelled to tell you
that I came from a town in western Washington whose planners did not revise its official ordinances to
preserve the priceless ecological treasures of the area. It allowed for developers to clear-cut the land
against our wishes and resulted in a huge loss of environmental integrity, aesthetic beauty and local
character. Not only were the committed residents of the community and their children effected, but also
untold numbers of critters whose habitat was obliterated forever. I was one of a small cadre of citizens
who fought to preserve as much undeveloped green space as possible, but due to the efforts of corporate
backed attorneys, most of our battles were lost. It came down to the ordinances... and everyone ended up
regretting the resulting "uglification", (except, of course, the developer, who made lots of money). But
to this day, no one (except, perhaps, the developer) regrets the few green belts and other features we
were able to squeak through ....in fact, these are the treasures now most valued.
Clearly, a city or county council's responsibility is not to let financial considerations of a few builders
looking for the easiest and cheapest way to do something outweigh the greater, long-term responsibilities
to preserve and protect the land - land which is guided by the law of nature that, naturally provides a
healthy quality of life for all its current and future residents. People, plants and critters can and should
live in balance and harmony, the science is readily available to prove it, and disrupting that balance only
leads to problems. Cutting down the forests and critter habitats surrounding my former town left resi-
dents with increased air, water and noise pollution to deal with, which, in turn, also caused increased
health problems. What I learned in Washington, all too late, is that ordinances can should be written with
the foresight and vision to help preserve the natural order of local ecosystems. And citizens should fight
for the proper language to assure it.
In Volcano, I feel that we have a responsibility to preserve the native rain forest. We are next to a
national park, we come under the umbrella of an international biosphere. And we are now subject to
greatly increased amounts of sulfur dioxide because of recent volcanic activity. Quite frankly, we need the
oxygen that the forest and vegetation provide, so do our children and the animals who live here, and so
do the tourists who visit here. We need your help. We need clearly and firmly written ordinances to back
up the stewardship of the land that we take seriously.
It took the earth millions of years to create the pristine ecosystem of our unique Volcano area, but it
will only take a few years for shortsighted peopled who want to do grade and grub the land in the easiest,
cheapest way to ruin it for everybody.... for generations upon generations to come, perhaps forever. For
those of us who have seen that we need to protect these native trees and plants, the terrain and the
Hawaii Island culture that is tied to the land, we look to you to support our efforts with the proper
ordinances. This is our chance to do something none of us will ever regret.
THANK YOU, sincerely, GOMM No t Vii
Ref. 16, emnMsd WI 4
Eliza Miller Ref. Da e _ IUTAY 1 9 200A