LIHUE — Impacts on traffic, watersheds and agricultural land were all voiced at Tuesday’s Lihue meeting regarding the new Kauai County landfill.
“What route are they going to take,” asked David Manasevitch, who lives in a neighborhood near the projected landfill site. “What are the noise impacts?”
About 30 people attended Tuesday’s meeting at the Lihue Neighborhood Center, where County of Kauai officials provided information on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the new landfill to be located off Ma’alo Road.
Currently, the new landfill is set to be situated on 270 acres near Hanamaulu’s Maalo Road, which residents say is a highly trafficked road that wouldn’t benefit from extra trucks.
“They’re saying there’s going to be 30 trucks morning and night going up there, so it’d be good to know where they’re going,” Manasevitch said.
Residents pointed out there were seven other options for locations of the new landfill, and some suggested that areas further away from neighborhoods or in drier climates make more sense.
The site was chosen from eight different potential places, including Kipu, Kalepa, Koloa, Kumukumi, Puu Papai, Umi and Kekaha Mauka.
The Ma‘alo site was chosen as “the most practicable and viable alternative,” according to the DEIS.
The new site would have exactly the same services as the Kekaha Municipal Solid Waste Landfill (KMSWLF) — disposing island-generated municipal solid waste that can’t be reused, recycled or otherwise recovered.
“We must be as diligent as we can to manage our waste,” said Mayor Bernard Carvalho, Jr. at the meeting. “Once we site the landfill, then we can move forward.”
The current landfill is set to expire in 2027 according to county officials. The cost of the project hasn’t been totaled yet, but it’s expected to reach somewhere between 90 and 120 million dollars.
“The proposed project includes construction and operation of a new MSWLF and resource recovery park,” the DEIS states.
The site has an estimated life of 264 years, according to the DEIS and is the only site identified that currently has a potentially willing landowner. Half of the parcel under consideration for the new MSWLF is owned by the state, the other half is owned by Grove Farm.
The site is also the most economical option, according to the DEIS, since it is located within the Kauai waste generation centroid, which will save costs and fuel, result in less waste-related traffic, and have positive sustainability effects.
A 2.8-mile access road and associated infrastructure is included in the DEIS, as well as an explanation of the proposed MSWLF site, which is about four miles north of Lihue, east from Maalo Road and west of Kalepa Ridge and Kuhio Highway. It is more than a mile from the Pacific Ocean, according to county officials.
At their closest point, the two sites are separated by 1,425 feet and both are being used for agriculture, with long history of that usage as both parcels were once sugar cane lands.
“This has been a long journey, one that has spanned three administrations,” said Lyle Tabata, acting county engineer. “I would say it spanned a couple decades.”
The last of the two County-led meetings is scheduled today, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at the Kapaa Neighborhood Center, and the public will again have the opportunity to provide oral and written comment on the DEIS.
Anyone who wishes may also submit written comments on forms provided at the meetings by mail with a postmark no later than May 23 or via email to mayor@kauai.gov, with a copy also sent to briant@rmtowill.com and ltabata@kauai.gov.
A copy of the Draft EIS can be found on the Office of Environmental Quality Control website at: http://oeqc2.doh.hawaii.gov/EA_EIS_Library/2018-04-08-KA-DEIS-New-Kauai-Landfill.pdf.
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Jessica Else, environment reporter, can be reached at 245-0452 or jelse@thegardenisland.com.
Consider Ahukini, Mauka the end of airport runway wea Councilman Barretto Auto Aid was! There are Adequate roads, the helicoptors traffic can blend with landfill noise, near the current (why is it) inoperable REcycle centers. Once upon a time a makai, right over the pali “landfill” site, lol probably got to Extend the runway, it was so vast for that period of time, 1960s!
Just curious how the county is currently only “disposing island-generated municipal solid waste that can’t be reused, recycled or otherwise recovered.”? The recycling options currently are very scarce and difficult for residents. I hope the new plan includes separation before being piled in a landfill. Mahalo.