Big Isle’s recycling
program falls
under suspicion

A criminal probe will look
into a contractor's failure to
recycle 700 tons of glass

By Rod Thompson
Star-Bulletin

HILO -- Hawaii County contracts for recycling glass will be modified and the possibility of criminal wrongdoing will be considered in light of a critical report on the 3-year-old program, County Councilman Dominic Yagong said.

The Council's Public Works Committee last week heard a report from the county legislative auditor that said the largest contractor in the program received payment for about 700 tons of glass in 1997-98, which it then failed to recycle.

An additional 560 tons were properly recycled by the contractor, Recycling System Hawaii, the report said.

Auditor Gerald Monden said officials of Recycling Systems told him they stockpiled glass they were unable to sell, an apparent violation of the contract.

Monden also said the stockpiles he was shown did not appear to add up to 700 tons. "I did not believe the stockpile consisted of all that was supposed to be there," he told the committee.

Councilman Curtis Tyler, noting the county paid more than $100,000 to the company for the unrecycled 700 tons, called for a criminal investigation.

Committee Chairman Dominic Yagong said Recycling Systems owner Illinois "Ululani" Rosario assured the committee that the company's activities were honest, but she didn't explain why stockpiles appeared too small.

Rosario did not return telephone calls for additional comment.

Yagong said he is checking with the county prosecutor and the county civil attorney on how to proceed.

Acting Department of Public Works Chief Jiro Sumada said it was an oversight on his part that payments were made to Recycling Systems without checking that the glass was recycled.

The contracts and procedures will be revised in the next two weeks, Yagong said.