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Editorials
Wednesday, March 14, 2001State was negligent
in mercury incidentThe issue: Dozens of people were sent to hospitals for mercury contamination.
THE state has a lot to answer for in the mercury contamination that sent dozens of people, most of them children, to hospitals for treatment and forced the closure of two Halawa public housing complexes and Aiea Elementary School.
The problem stemmed from children playing with mercury found at an abandoned Pearl Harbor pumping station. The station is located on state land adjoining the naval base. Once military property, it was turned over to the state in 1962 and it was the state's responsibility to maintain. It is under the jurisdiction of the state Department of Defense.
A spokesman for the Honolulu Fire Department said the department believes that gauges in the station contained mercury for pressure readings. The gauges were smashed and mercury was splattered on the floor, where children picked it up. The spokesman said the building was littered with beer bottles and other items -- obvious signs of neglect.
State Health Director Bruce Anderson said, "I expect to find widespread contamination."
This is a case of dangerous negligence on the part of the state government -- the entity that is charged with, among other things, protecting the health of Hawaii's people as well as the environment.
There is a likelihood that neglect similar to that at the Pearl Harbor pumping station exists at the former Barbers Point Naval Air Station, now state property.
Can the state give assurance that adequate measures have been taken to prevent another incident involving negligence with hazardous materials at the former naval station?
Several years ago the University of Hawaii was fined for negligence in the storage of hazardous materials.
The Army has been guilty of damaging the environment at the Makua Valley firing range, but at least it was incurred during essential training and remedial measures have been taken.
There is no such excuse for the state in the mercury incident. Governor Cayetano should order a full investigation and see that appropriate steps are taken to prevent a recurrence.
Our concern over this case is nothing new. Environmental protection has long been promoted by this newspaper, but we have insisted that economic effects also figure in policy decisions.
That is why a year ago we criticized the Sierra Club for filing a lawsuit seeking to force the Hawaii Tourism Authority to conduct an environmental impact assessment of the effect of bringing additional tourists to Hawaii before awarding contracts to market Hawaii tourism.
Such assessments are appropriate for projects such as hotels and shopping centers, which can have specific impacts.
But to require such assessments for spending on tourism promotion is preposterous.
We agreed with the authority's executive director, Robert Fishman, who commented that the suit is "a patently ridiculous and inappropriate interpretation" of the law.
Fishman asked, "Where do you start and where do you stop?" in requiring such assessments. "Would every aspect of the economy that touches tourism be included?"
In an article that appeared Saturday on the opposite editorial page, the Star-Bulletin was criticized by a spokesman for the Sierra Club for opposing its lawsuit.
This newspaper was falsely depicted as opposed to an environmental assessment of the impact of tourism. In fact, we opposed requiring the Tourism Authority to conduct the assessment before making promotional grants, which would paralyze the agency -- perhaps for years.
The Sierra Club is on record as opposed to further growth in Hawaii tourism.
Our position is that there is room for further growth in tourism if the environment is protected. In many cases, environmental problems are manageable. Few industries are as environmentally friendly as tourism.
By all means, let's assess the environmental effects of bringing more tourists to Hawaii -- but not with the Sierra Club's preconceived notion that growth must be blocked. And don't tie the hands of the Tourism Authority while the study is being conducted.
THIS is the final day of publication of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin under the ownership of Liberty Newspapers Limited Partnership. The Star-Bulletin’s
change of ownershipThe new owners will take charge of operations starting with the production of tomorrow's newspaper.
The events of the last year and half -- Liberty Newspapers' decision to cease publication of the Star-Bulletin, the subsequent court battle that produced an order stopping the closure and the eventual sale of the newspaper to Black Press Ltd. -- have been stressful for all concerned but particularly for the staff of this newspaper.
We wish them and the supporters of the Star-Bulletin well as this newspaper begins operations on an independent, more competitive basis.
Bulletin sale archive
Published by Liberty Newspapers Limited PartnershipRupert E. Phillips, CEO
Frank Bridgewater, Acting Managing Editor
Diane Yukihiro Chang, Senior Editor & Editorial Page Editor
Frank Bridgewater & Michael Rovner, Assistant Managing Editors
A.A. Smyser, Contributing Editor
