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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMIN AWEEMC 2019/01/08 2018-2020Committee on Agriculture, Water, Energy, and Environmental Management 1St Session Hawaii County Building 25 Aupuni Street Hilo, Hawai `i January 8, 2019 CALL TO The regular meeting of the Committee on Agriculture, Water, Energy, ORDER: and Environmental Management was called to order at 9:52 a.m., in the Council Chambers, Hilo, by Mr. Herbert M. "Tim" Richards, III, Chair. ROLL CALL: Present: Mr. Herbert M. "Tim" Richards, III, Chair Ms. Karen Eoff, Member Mr. Aaron S. Y. Chung, Member Ms. Maile Medeiros David, Member Mr. Matt Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Member Ms. Ashley L. Kierkiewicz, Member Ms. Susan L. K. Lee Loy, Member Ms. Valerie T. Poindexter, Member Ms. Rebecca Villegas, Member STATEMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC ON AGENDA ITEMS: The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, Statements from the Public on Agenda Items. The following individuals registered to speak in support of Comm. 37, and came came forward when called by the Chair: Nani Pogline. Tom Lodge. CHR. RICHARDS: Okay, thank you, for your testimony. If there are no other testimonies, quick trip around. If there are no other testimonies from around the County, and no further in the chambers, we are going to close public testimony. Mr. Clerk, Communication 37, please. AWEEMC-1 January 8, 2019 COMMUNI- The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, CATIONS: Communications. Comm. 37: NOMINATION OF ABRAHAM ANTONIO TO THE GAME MANAGEMENT ADVISORY COMMISSION From Mayor Harry Kim, dated December 19, 2018, submitting for the Council's review and confirmation the above nomination. Requires Council Confirmation by: February 1, 2019 (Section 134(1), Hawaii County Charter) (Note: At this time, Executive Assistant to the Mayor Rose Bautista came forward to introduce and provide a brief narrative of the nominee to the members of the Committee.) Vote on Comm. 37: Mr. Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder moved to recommend confirmation of the (Approved appointment of Mr. Abraham Antonio to the Game Management Advisory Commission. Seconded by Ms. Lee Loy and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, David, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Villegas, and Chair Richards — 9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Committee Members spoke in favor of the appointment. Chair Richards stated that Mr. Antonio is not required to attend final confirmation at full Council. Comm. 38: REAPPOINTMENT OF JON OLSON TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT COMMISSION From Mayor Harry Kim, dated December 19, 2018, submitting for the Council's review and confirmation the above nomination. Requires Council Confirmation by: February 1, 2019 (Section 13-4(1), Hawai `i County Charter) (Note: At this time, Executive Assistant to the Mayor Rose Bautista came forward to introduce and provide a brief narrative of the nominee to members of the Committee.) Page 2 AWEEMC-1 January 8, 2019 Vote on Comm. 38: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to recommend confirmation of the (Approved) reappointment of Mr. Jon Olson to the Environmental Management Commission. Seconded by Ms. Eoff and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, David, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Villegas, and Chair Richards — 9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Committee Members spoke in favor of the appointment. Chair Richards stated that Mr. Olson is not required to attend final confirmation at full Council. CHR. RICHARDS: I'd like to take a five-minute recess to congratulate our nominees. Recess: At 10:04 a.m., the Chair called for a recess. Reconvene: The meeting reconvened at 10:09 a.m. Return to Order The Chair directed the Committee to return to the order of business. of Business: ORDER OF The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, RESOLUTIONS: Order of Resolutions. (There were none.) BILLS FOR The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, ORDINANCES: Bills for Ordinances. Bill 192: AMENDS CHAPTER 2, ARTICLE 40, SECTION 2-202, AND CHAPTER 14, OF (Draft 3) THE HAWAII COUNTY CODE 1983 (2016 EDITION, AS AMENDED), RELATING TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT Establishes an Environmental Quality Control program to mitigate nuisance factors at County facilities and County -owned properties, such as improperly -handled refuse and wastewater, invasive plants, and feral cats, dogs, and pigs. Reference: Intr. by: Postponed: Referred to Environmental Management Director and Commission: Comm. 1083.23 Ms. O'Hara October 2 and 16 and November 1, 2018 November 19, 2018 Page 3 AWEEMC-1 January 8, 2019 (Note: There is a motion by Ms. O'Hara, seconded by Mr. Kanuha, to recommend passage of Bill 192, as amended, on first reading.) ; and Comm. 22: From Environmental Management Director William A. Kucharski, dated December 11, 2018, transmitting the department's comments. ; and Comm. 22.1: From Environmental Management Commission Chair Richard Bennett, Ph.D., dated December 4, 2018, forwarding the Commission's negative recommendation. CHR. RICHARDS: Thank you, Clerk. And to clarify so that we have a motion and a second already, so it's on the table, correct? MR. HENRICKS: It's on the table, correct. CHR. RICHARDS: Okay, thank you. So with that, we have the motion on the table and we're open for discussion. So, I'm looking to Council Members for anybody who wants to weigh in on this. Council Member Kierkiewicz. MS. KIERKIEWIEZ: I see Director Kucharski in the audience. If I could ask you to step up to the table. And if there's anyone from the Environmental Management Commission available to answer questions? (Note: At this time, Environmental Management Director William Kucharski came forward to address the members of the Committee.) MS. KIERKIEWIEZ: Director Kucharski, could you help me understand some of the mitigation efforts that the (DEM) Department of Environmental Management currently employs to control nuisance factors and how implementing this bill would impact your work, or how it would help your work or not? MR. KUCHARSKI: We operate both transfer stations, landfills, and wastewater treatment facilities. On those facilities for the solid waste side, we have the Department of Health permits that require us to control outside vectors and to deal with any of the ancillary types of impacts. For example, at Kealakehe, we have endangered bird species that nest there, and we provide predator control for those facilities. Our wastewater facilities are generally not accessible to the public. The transfer stations are obviously always open and available to the public. The issues that we have with handling solid waste that putrescibles, that you know, food waste products that are in there is that that will attract rats, which then attract cats, which then attract pigs, then chickens; all of the other feral animals that we Page 4 AWEEMC-1 January 8, 2019 do have on the island. And, we have a mandate currently from the Department of Health to control those factors. So, this bill would not require us to do anything physically different, but it would be reporting requirements, structural requirements that would be nice data to have, but would not, in fact, improve our vector control in my opinion. That's a long answer to a short question. MS. KIERKIEWIEZ: Thank you for the background. Mr. Olson, if you could provide us with some information as to why the Commission has a negative recommendation for the bill. That would be helpful. MR. OLSON: I did the wrong thing. I never should have touched it. Well, I mean the background on this is that is started obviously with Eileen O'Hara, and a discussion about process for Environmental Management and principally aimed at their mechanisms for dealing with the transfer stations, because the impacts of people leaving off their unwanted cats, dogs, pigs, anything with two or four legs, and other stuff when the transfer stations are closed, has been an ongoing sore point with the community. You have the groups that are adamant about animal protection and other groups that don't see that as a priority. What it was intended to do is start a discussion, and obviously that has been truncated, to say the least. And, it probably will have to come back in a fuller form going forward, and will whoever—I haven't kept up who got Environmental Management this time around, who's the chair? I don't know. You are? Okay, good. Somebody I know. You know, you block out a budget for Environmental Management, and they only have so much money to do so many things. And they make an allocation for the year, and that is exceeded. Then, it's got to come from someplace else if it has to be done. And so, some other part of the agency suffers for that loss. I have a picture on my cell phone of the pile of rubbish that was left Christmas day in front of the Pahoa transfer station. And it happens at all the transfer stations County wide. On the days that they're closed, people have to do something with their solid waste, and somehow we've got to figure out how to accommodate that, and that we'll have to find a place in the budget to add that extra day. And it's an overtime day, if that's the way it's going to be dealt with. So, I mean we live in a real world, and you know people have to do this. You know, the family is coming for dinner and the driveway is full. What are we going to do? And it won't fit in the back yard. So, we're going to have more conversations about this one way or another. I understand that again, it's been a truncated process. It got cut off in the middle and we'll have to glue it back together and make some changes to it and try to accommodate it and try to figure out what the budgeting requirements are going to be, and all of those things. Page 5 AWEEMC-1 January 8, 2019 MS. KIERKIEWIEZ: Thank you, Mr. Olson. I'm just concerned about fiscal impacts of this program and by hearing Director Kucharski's testimony, it doesn't seem that there would be any additional positive impact to the program that they currently have in place for nuisance control, and so I'm inclined to not support it at this time. CHR. RICHARDS: Thank you. Council Member Lee Loy. MS. LEE LOY: Thank you, and thank you both of you for being here. You know, right on the cover letter here, it says there is no financial support provided by the bill. And we are going to be looking at a very, very tight fiscal year. And Ms. Kierkiewicz really just summed it up. I'm inclined to not support this at this time. We just cannot take on more things without taking on the fundamental things that our budget is supposed to be providing. So, I will not be supporting this measure at this time. Thank you. CHR. RICHARDS: Thank you, Council Woman. Council Member Eoff. MS. EOFF: Thank you, and I appreciate the comments that you both have made. We know this is a problem, but I understand from what Director Kucharski has said, that we already have to address it by law, anyways. And, adding that into your duties and functions doesn't really provide really a positive impact, although it could provide a negative impact financially. So, I think your duties are already offered at the end, to exercise other functions prescribed by ordinance. So, maybe a better way for us to approach problems in the future is by specific requests, either by resolution or ordinance to address certain specific problems that we come upon. But for now, I think leaving your "Powers and Duties" the way it's stated is adequate. So, thank you for the commission's review and recommendations, and I'll be voting against the bill. CHR. RICHARDS: Thank you, Council Woman. Any other Council Members. Seeing none. I'll finish up here. Oh, got one? Councilman— MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: I read through the communications, and it was interesting that we had four commissioners vote "No" against it, and then as well, to receive a neutral position by (DEM) Department of Environmental Management. I was going to defer to the man who's in charge of the department, unless I find it otherwise, but in this case, it seems that it's both covered by your existing requirements for the Department of Environmental Management. Thank you for being here. CHR. RICHARDS: Thank you, Councilman. Any other comments or questions for the people before us? Okay, just rapping up real quick. Bill, thanks for the Page 6 AWEEMC-1 Vote on Bill 192 Draft 3): Failed January 8, 2019 comments and also Jon, thank you for being fortuitously,_ be here. Yeah, it worked out. I don't think anybody's going to disagree we have some problems that we're going to have to face. But, as pointed out by Council Woman Kierkiewicz here, we have to be very fiscally mindful as we go forward, and I think we need to plan going forward. So, with that, I'm going to call for the vote. The vote on the motion to approve Bill 192, Draft 3, failed by the following roll call vote: Ayes: None. Noes: Committee Members Chung, David, Eoff, Ka.neali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Noes: Poindexter, Villegas, and Chair Richards — 9. Absent: None. Excused: None. MR. HENRICKS: Chair Richards, you don't have any votes in favor of this. CHR. RICHARDS: Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Okay, the bill fails. Thank you for your time. Thanks Bill. Thanks Jon. So with that, Bill 192 fails. Does that bring us to the end of our agenda? MR. HENRICKS: Yes, sir. ADJOURN- There being no further business, at 10:21 a.m., Ms. Lee Loy moved to MENT: adjourn the meeting. Seconded by Ms. Kierkiewicz and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, David, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Villegas, and Chair Richards — 9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Approved: Mr. Herbert M. "Ti Agriculture, Water. HR/dt gement Committee (Date) Page 7