BREAKING NEWS!

Posted 11/12/2024

URGENT NOTICE – Shrimp Farm Meeting Tomorrow and CORRECTION on Comment Due Date

Aloha Friends,

In the last email we sent November 8, you received 2 emails sent to Friends of Maha`ulepu (FOM) informing us of a public meeting tomorrow regarding the proposed pollution permit (National Pollution Discharge Elimination System – NPDES permit) for the Shrimp Farm operation from  the State Clean Water Branch, Hawaii Department of Health (HDOH). CORRECTION: Our email stated that Comments on this permit were due no later than November 22, 2024. The Comments are due by midnight November 13, 2024 and can be emailed to [email protected] before midnight tomorrow.

As you may recall from our last email, our concern about the permit the State is proposing to give the shrimp farm is based on the following:
  1. The Shrimp Farm drains its multiple ponds, the waste and genetically modified shrimp larvae in the Kinekine ditch which drains directly over the beach and out to sea without any consideration for the fact that the pollution permit is to be given for drainage that will be compounded by Agribusiness Development Corporation  (ADC) drainage of pesticides and fertilizers which will enter the same ditch following the same drainage pattern to the ocean.
  2. A Court Action by Surfrider National produced ample data of the chemical pollutants coming from the ADC farming operation to prompting the decision that the ADC operations are required to get a pollutant permit as well. (Comments on that are due 11/29/24 and also included in our last email 11/8/24).
  3. Both permits are to be given for pollution draining through the same ditch to the ocean without either permit taking into consideration the cumulative impact that is certain to occur because both are using the same drainage system as the same time.
  4. The proposed NPDES permit fact sheet and related documents for the shrimp farm can be viewed here. It does not consider the genetically modified shrimp larvae that are allowed to escape from the shrimp farm ponds, with an unlined drainage system, threatening the Hawaiian shrimp, the Opai with genetic modification through cross contamination from the genetically modified shrimp larvae that are being released into our ocean. 
  5. We last objected to the proposed shrimp farm NPDES permit in October 2021. We asked for a public meeting and it took the State 3 years to set one – tomorrow at 10:00 am in Kekaha; not exactly the best time of day to accommodate the public, many of whom will be at work. 

The State of Hawaii, Department of Health (DOH), Clean Water Branch (CWB) will hold a public hearing in Kekaha, Kauai regarding the proposed National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit renewal for Sunrise Capital, Inc.

Date: Wednesday, November 13, 2024
Time: 10:00 am
Location: Kekaha Agriculture Association Building
7189-D Kaumualii Highway Kekaha, Kauai, Hawaii
 

Mahalo nui,

Bridget Hammerquist, President
Friends of Maha`ulepu, a 501(c)(3)
Kia`i Wai o Wai`ale`ale, Co-founder
PO Box 1654
Koloa, HI 96756
Donate
friendsofmahaulepu.org
[email protected]
(808) 742-1037 home
(808) 346-1973 cell

Posted 11/8/2024

Aloha Friends,

The Makauwahi Cave at Maha`ulepu will reopen soon

Many have called. The rumors are plentiful but not true. Don Horner of Grove Farm contacted FOM directly and shared that Grove Farm intends to permanently preserve approximately 7,000 acres of the Maha`ulepu coastline. Steve Case has made a commitment to preserve this area as a community asset. Grove Farm is currently looking for the proper modality to steward a large expanse of coastal property that is probably some of the most scenic undeveloped land remaining on Kauai.

With regard to the Makauwahi cave, Grove Farm did not close the cave. Rather, Grove Farm is actually the entity that applied for the non-profit organization, and created the Makauwahi Cave Reserve. Dr David Barney and his wife managed the cave and had a month to month tenancy for the last twenty years with an extremely minimal rent. In 2024, Dr Birney applied for a Navy grant to develop a bird sanctuary at Maha`ulepu. He did not involve Grove Farm with his application. With the constant trade winds that blow along the Maha`ulepu coast, there is a real question as to the feasibility of a bird sanctuary where the average winds blow at 15 mph daily. Press coverage of Dr Birney’s grant application did not clarify that the grant was not to help the cave. The Navy had been led to believe that Dr Birney had a long term lease for the coastal property which was not the case. After the Navy studied the area, they decided not to award the grant for developing a bird sanctuary at that location. Thereafter, Dr Birney gave Grove Farm notice that he and his wife would be ending his involvement with the Makauwahi cave and would be turning in their keys. There is no question that Dr Birney and his wife devoted their archeological expertise and helped to develop this legacy for Kauai. Dr Birney posted signs saying that the cave was indefinitely closed. In fact, Grove Farm is working now to find personnel who can staff the cave. Don Horner, Grove Farm’s CEO, explained that Grove Farm is especially interested in having this resource be an educational opportunity for school children with a resumption of the field trips that use to occur regularly for schools on Kauai. The following article covers the archeological importance of the cave for Kauai. Grove Farm is committed to the preservation of this site:

Kauai’s clear view into the past – Garden Island

West Kaui Shrimp Farm and ADC Ag lands required to apply for pollution permits

The State Department of Health recently released 2 notices of proposed approval for National Pollution Discharge Elimination System permits (NPDES). The notices did not get released in the Environmental Notice. Rather, State of Hawaii Department of Health (HDOH) sent emails to certain members of the community and suggested that we share the following proposed approvals with individuals that we felt should be informed.

Needless to say, FOM objected to this form of notice because there is a public notice system in the State, the Environmental News Letter that assures notice to a broader community.

The first thing that you will find below this email is our objection to the notice sent as being inadequate. The next email involves the proposed NPDES permit the Agribusiness Development Corporation (ADC) which has already been found to pollute the ditch system in the Mana Plains. After a Court action, it was determined the ADC was polluting and so had to have a pollution permit. Comments are due on the permit application November 29, 2024.

The final email below gives notice of the Shrimp Farms need to also apply for a pollution permit. Unfortunately, as the FOM email below to Daryl Lum indicates, both polluting operations have their pollution discharging to the ocean through the Mana Plains ditch system and primarily the KineKine ditch. Comments on the Shrimp Farm discharge and their application are due November 22, 2024. When the environment is threatened we call for public comment because without your help we can’t preserve our environment and the quality of life on Kauai. Here is a copy of FOM’s Comment filed with the State more than 3 years ago. Nothing substantial has changed in their current application for permit approval. Feel free to use any part of the attached comment when making your comment on the Shrimp Farm permit application.

Mahalo nui,

Bridget Hammerquist, President
Friends of Maha`ulepu, a 501(c)(3)
Kia`i Wai o Wai`ale`ale, Co-founder
PO Box 1654
Koloa, HI 96756
Donate
friendsofmahaulepu.org
[email protected]
(808) 742-1037 home
(808) 346-1973 cell

——– Forwarded Message ——–

Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2024 17:34:01 -1000
Subject: Re: Notice of Proposed Water Pollution Control Permit for Outfalls of the Mana Plain Drainage Ditch System
To: Darryl Lum <[email protected]>, Dee Morikawa <[email protected]>, Senator Ronald Kouchi <[email protected]>, [email protected]
From: Bridget Hammerquist <[email protected]>
Cc: cleanwaterbranch <[email protected]>

Aloha Daryl,

Help! Why is the Clean Water Branch sending some individuals the following emails when they have never been published in the The Environmental Notice? After I received the two emails below, I did forward them to Carl Berg, PhD because of his work with Surfrider Kauai and knowing that Surfrider has been directly involved with litigation relating to the need for NPDES permits due to the well documented nitrogen and turbidity pollution from the Mana Plains ditch system outfalls, draining across the beach from one of the main ditches, Kinekine, polluting waters of the US on the Kekaha coastline. 

Surfrider has collected abundant data of the unacceptable pollution levels entering the ocean proximal to the Kinekine ditch drainage. ADC agricultural operations drain into the large main Kinekine ditch above the pump station and below the pump station drainage enters the Kinekine ditch from the shrimp farm. There has long been controversy over how much of the contaminants are attributable to fecal waste and turbidity draining from the shrimp farm (pollutants that have been documented there as well) and how much is from the ADC Ag operations. Has the State Department of Health ever conducted water quality testing above and below the pump station? If not, how are the two NPDES permits proposed in the following two emails, one for the shrimp farm and one for the drainage from the ADC Ag operations, going to be determined?

Two years ago when Friends of Maha`ulepu commented on the proposed NPDES permit for the shrimp farm, we requested a public meeting. The west side of Kauai is very important to many beach goers, surfers, military personnel, etc. As the litigation referenced in your most recent notice of October 29, 2024 revealed, the Mana Plains outfalls are from numerous sources and they present a major problem for the health and welfare of our coastal beach and ocean on the shores of Kekaha. They also present serious pollution for the marine mammals and endangered species that habitat these waters.


Aloha!

Humpback whales are often seen breaching off the shores of Maha’ulepu during the winter months.

Friends of Maha’ulepu is comprised of a group of concerned citizens (local and beyond) who are contributing their time and talents to protect the natural beauty of this pristine coastal valley.

Maha’ulepu Beach is located on the South Shore of the Island of Kaua’i in the Hawaiian Islands, approximately 3 1/2 miles northeast of the town of Poi’pu.  Poi’pu is one of the major visitor destinations on the island due to it’s beautiful beaches, swimming, snorkeling and surfing, sea turtles, whales, monk seals, trade winds, palm trees, and spectacular sunsets. Learn more about Friends of Maha’ulepu and the work we are doing!


Maui wildfires timeline of failed communications