HONOLULU — The state Department of Health has cited a Honolulu company for violating asbestos removal requirements last April at Kekaha Sugar Mill. DOH on Tuesday released a statement announcing the issuance of “a Notice of Violation and Order against
HONOLULU — The state Department of Health has cited a Honolulu company for violating asbestos removal requirements last April at Kekaha Sugar Mill.
DOH on Tuesday released a statement announcing the issuance of “a Notice of Violation and Order against Kaua‘i Industries, LLC and Big Island Landscaping for multiple violations of the state’s asbestos demolition and renovation regulations.”
The citation is for failing to thoroughly inspect the affected facility for the presence of asbestos prior to its demolition activity, failing to provide DOH with a separate written notice of intent to demolish prior to its activity, and engaging in an asbestos disturbance activity without proper asbestos certification.
The violations were discovered during a site inspection at the Kekaha Mill on April 6, according to the announcement. A DOH representative on Wednesday said the inspection was the result of complaints from the community about operations at the site.
Members of Kekaha community action group E Ola Mau Na Leo O Kekaha wrote letters to DOH last spring complaining that Kaua‘i Industries was engaging in suspicious activity at the Kekaha Sugar Mill and failing to disclosure information about its scrap removal and asbestos abatement activities.
The day after DOH’s inspection, Tom Lileikis, a DOH environmental specialist in the asbestos program, told The Garden Island, “We received seven letters of complaint from a community group. At this time, we found no questionable activities. They were primarily cutting steel … We can’t say it’s a perfect situation, but it’s a very old mill.”
He said his department was working with the parties involved to ensure toxic materials were being identified properly. “Everyone is cooperating,” he added.
In May, E Ola Mau Na Leo O Kekaha staged a demonstration at the mill, during which community members voiced concerns about the lack of precautions they were witnessing during the initial clean-up involving scrap metal and debris removal and the continued lack of transparency about activities at the site, which is highly toxic and in close proximity to schools and neighborhoods.
In October, the mills’ co-owner Lynn McCrory, president of PAHIO Development, wrote a letter to the Kekaha community informing them that the structural deterioration of both Kekaha and Lihu‘e sugar mills combined with asbestos-removal requirements “leave no alternative to their demolition.”
McCrory said Kaua‘i Industries, which was initially contracted for the work, has since been dismissed and replaced, citing displeasure with the way it handled community concerns. NCM Contracting Group is now handling the project and representatives of the company have said they are willing to have as many community outreach meetings as necessary to ensure community questions are being answered and concerns addressed.
Since the department’s discovery of the violations, “the owner and operators of the Kekaha Sugar Mill demolition project have been cooperative in correcting the deficiencies in accordance with state requirements,” Wednesday’s DOH announcement states.
“I want to stress that the current operations are in compliance,” Lileikis said Wednesday.
“Basically there were some reporting technicalities,” he said of Kaua‘i Industries’ former operations. “The required reports were not adequate enough and did not notify us appropriately, though they did give us some notice. The demolition we were not notified of.”
He said it was well after the April inspection that his department discovered “the required inspection for that facility to be demolished was not complete,” and that the violations are matters of administrative compliance.
“There was definitely not any reason to believe there was any activity going on that could hurt the community,” Lileikis said. “The inspection did not reveal threats to the health of the environment, but we did want them to provide more of an identification of where the asbestos is. There needed to be an inspection report of all areas.”
The Indoor and Radiological Health Branch of DOH is responsible for regulating demolition and renovation activities to ensure thorough identification of asbestos materials and to prevent improper abatement or disturbance of material that can pose a risk to public health, the DOH announcement states.
The branch requires that all demolition activities use certified asbestos inspectors, complete inspection of the facility for the presence of asbestos prior to demolition, properly notify of the DOH prior to demolition, and use only certified asbestos abatement employees when engaging in asbestos abatement or disturbance.
A source said Kaua‘i Industries had hired Big Island Landscape to do the salvaging of scrap metal at the site, “or at least that’s what it appeared to be.”
Daniel KenKnight, head of Kaua‘i Industries, did not respond to a request for comment by press time Wednesday.
DOH has imposed a fine of $9,000 for Kaua‘i Industries and Big Island Landscaping. The companies may request a hearing to contest the allegations or order, the news release states.
Lileikis said, “Our inspector is evaluating the Lihu‘e mill as well.”
• Vanessa Van Voorhis, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 251) or by emailing vvanvoorhis@thegardenisland.com.
