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Judge orders conference
By Debra Barayuga
on Kailua Bay cleanup
Star-BulletinA U.S. District Court judge has ordered a status conference in four to six months on the 1995 consent decree that created the Kailua Bay Advisory Council to improve water quality in Windward Oahu.
The order came yesterday after Judge David Ezra ruled that three residents who filed a petition in February seeking changes to the consent decree had no standing to bring their claims before the court.
The petitioners sought court intervention asking that the council be disbanded and the money turned over to the communities because it has failed to comply with requirements of the consent decree.
The judge felt their claims were no different from those of the environmental organizations, which originally filed suit against the city in 1992 for violations of the federal Clean Water Act, and that these organizations adequately represented the public's interests, said David Arakawa, city corporation counsel, who applauded the court's decision.
He said the court's order gives the Kailua Bay Advisory Council "time to do what it's supposed to do" without interference from the courts.
Jim Andrews, one of the petitioners and a member of EnviroWatch Inc., said the court's finding will not end their efforts to make sure the council complies fully with the consent decree. "We need to hold their feet to the fire and we're going to be watching this issue."
He called the judge's order a victory for their group, noting this is the first time a status conference has been called since the consent decree was signed in October 1995.
Paul Achitoff, attorney for the original plaintiffs in the lawsuit -- the Sierra Club, Hawaii's Thousand Friends, Save Our Bays and Beaches, and Surfrider Foundation -- said the council's failure to meet deadlines shows the job to improve water quality in Windward Oahu is more difficult than anticipated.
The council consists of all volunteers, who are doing the best they can under difficult circumstances, he said.
Toby Rushforth, acting chairman of the council, acknowledged the council has not complied with the consent decree's time lines.
But he said the petitioner's complaints that the council is "dysfunctional" or has squandered funds have "little or no merit."
The council is mandated to distribute $3.1 million provided by the city for programs and projects to improve water quality in Waimanalo, Kailua and Kaneohe.
As soon as their strategic plans are approved, the council hopes to put out a request for proposals this fall, Rushforth said.
