Health chief: Maui
needs sewer work

Anderson answers charges
that state and EPA action is
politically motivated

By Gary Kubota
Star-Bulletin

WAILUKU -- State Deputy Health Director Bruce Anderson says Maui County still has a way to go before its sewage system is safe.

But county official David DeLeon says the system is safe, and that state officials are painting an inaccurate picture because Maui Mayor Linda Lingle is running for governor.

Their differences led the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the state Department of Health to file a lawsuit against the county yesterday in U.S. District Court.

Anderson said he still would prefer to negotiate a settlement. He estimates the litigation could take two to three years to resolve and cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars.

DeLeon said the county broke off negotiations after state and federal officials began adding some $34 million in costs to comply with regulations. "We broke off negotiations because they (federal and state officials) were not negotiating in good faith," he said.

County officials said that initially, federal officials indicated the fines and required improvements would total $1.15 million.

The Lingle administration has charged in a letter to the U.S. Office of Special Counsel that state and federal agencies were improperly using their power to influence the gubernatorial election.

Lingle spokesman Lloyd Yonenaka said two county employees were told by a state employee the federal and state agencies were under order to complete negotiations before the elections in November.

Anderson said references made by an employee about the November elections were used simply to indicate the urgency of completing the talks as soon as possible.

"There was absolutely no political motive behind this action," he said.

He said that from 1992-97, Maui County had 330 sewage spills, or 1.5 to 3 times more sewage spills per mile of sewage line than the Big Island and Kauai.

Anderson said while the county has made significant improvements in the past several years, it still needs to improve its system of maintenance and replacing sewage lines, many more than 20 years old.

He warned that without this system in place, the county could face major sewage line breaks and spills.

DeLeon said the county has spent $120 million to improve its system and its spill rate is next to nothing.

He said that in 1997, the county spilled less than 6,000 gallons of sewage.

County officials say they are trying to avoid being trapped into an agreement similar to one made by the City & County of Honolulu in 1995 that requires $1.7 billion in upgrades in the next 20 years.

Anderson said he has made a telephone call to Lingle's office to try to restart negotiations but hasn't received a response.

"It's troubling to me the county isn't willing to discuss areas of disagreement," Anderson said.

Anderson said many of the improvements in the system came as a result of enforcement actions by his department.

"It's not because they wanted to do it out of the goodness of their heart.'