Letters for Sunday, September 6, 2009

• New landfill site

• The reality is that we are losers

New landfill site

Our new mayor has shown his leaning: A new landfill in Kalaheo? (“Kalaheo pegged for new landfill,” The Garden Island, Aug. 29)

I’m sure that choice won’t rile up the feathers. Out in the middle of a matured coffee farming operation no less which the owner’s of that operation objects to, not to mention the residents, or should I say the “host community,” who gets to live next door to a brand new landfill site: Another 80-foot mountain of garbage for our tourist visitors to enjoy? Lets see, we’ll have Mt. Kusaka in Kekaha, and next we will begin growing Mt. Carvalho.

Can’t happen? Don’t kid yourselves! It took 16 years (“Mayor: Landfill site coming this week,” TGI, Aug. 22) for our elected public servants just to finally decide on this new landfill site. That’s four mayors and some two dozen council members just to announce a new site. It hasn’t been approved yet either or even begun its Environmental Impact Statement.

Our present filled and expanding Kekaha landfill opened 16 years ago. Add 16 years to 2009 and we get 2025. With five to seven years to build a new landfill, what do we do with our garbage during those five to seven years? Will an expansion handle that long? What about alternate energy? Has it been set aside? Are we to expect high electric bills until 2025 0r 2035?

 Why build a new landfill in Kalaheo? Why go through another EIS and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayers’ money for such a study? What’s the cost of the land? Whatever happened to the idea of biofuel? Why burden the taxpayers with these huge cost of buying “The 127-acre site smack in the middle of Kaua‘i Coffee’s operations” as President Wayne Katayama said in a written statement.

What will the contaminates do to the soils in that coffee field let alone the coffee? Would any of you coffee drinkers want to buy coffee that had a noxious landfill in the middle of it? I doubt it!

Many readers know that I have attempted to bring a solution to Kaua‘i’s solid waste dilemma for years. This year, an offer to build a state-of-the-art recycling facility and $100 million to build it was offered to our community. Approximately six weeks ago, we met with the mayor, the finance director, the solid waste director, KIUC’s director and engineer and presented a procedure that would recycle the vast majority of Kaua‘i’s waste.

From household garbage, which the county is holding onto very tightly, green and solid waste of all kinds and even plastics 1 through 7. Our plastic grocery store bags could be recycled back into crude oil thus eliminating the banning of them with just another law.

 Of course, we have heard nothing from anyone of those members at our July 15 meeting. Wouldn’t one think that someone would follow up on a potential $100 million investment into our community that would create jobs? We also met with KIUC on July 28 and discussed our proposals and ended the meeting leaving non-disclosure agreement forms for KIUC to sign before exposing cost and processes could begin.

To date we have not received any word or signed NDA forms. All that is needed to begin building a new Recycling Facility is a Power Purchase agreement, a Renewable Energy Credits agreement and the political and community will of the government and KIUC in helping to facilitate any bureaucratic requirements such as zoning and permitting.

Our new site was planned to be located in Kekaha at the existing landfill area which already has an Environmental Impact Statement completed. It’s had one for 16 years. The new facility could be up and running in 14 to 18 months after all permits and other bureaucratic requirements are met.

And the last we heard the community of Kekaha is behind our efforts.

John Hoff, Lawa‘i

The reality is that we are losers

David Thorp’s letter regarding democracy on Kaua‘i warrants serious consideration (“Organizing democracy,” Letters, Aug. 13).

He gives cogent reasons for change that certainly will benefit our island. But the likelihood of anything happening is remote.

First, voting patterns are family associated. Depending on your cousins or god father or uncles will determine your votes. Where your name appears on the ballot is essential since Hawai‘i is one of the few states that does not scramble the names on the ballot and remove the advantage of alphabetizing the candidates.

Finally, as a consequence of this, we elect ill-equipped people whose last name ranges from A to K. We have had one exception to this and she has served the island well.

So David, I am in total agreement with you. I will work with you to achieve what you so thoughtfully and passionately outlined. But my dear friend, the reality is that we are losers.

And so is Kaua‘i.

Monroe Richman, Koloa