Residents blast
city for landfill
expansion

They say the current landfill
near Kahe Point is already
unsightly and smelly

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By Gordon Y.K. Pang
gpang@starbulletin.com

Penny Mueh bought and moved into a townhouse unit at the Ko Olina Fairways in 1997 after receiving assurances that the city's Waimanalo Gulch Landfill near Kahe Point would be closed by 2002.

"Now they're going to expand it," Mueh said, shaking her head. "We feel very betrayed about the whole thing. We put our money in here thinking this would be a good place to spend the rest of our lives. There's no way this resort would have been built here if it was known that the landfill would continue."

Mueh joined other Leeward Oahu residents and community leaders in showing their anger at city officials during an "open house" for the landfill project yesterday at Kapolei Hale. Opponents say the existing landfill is unsightly, smelly and having an adverse economic impact on the Ko Olina Resort and Marina complex across Farrington Highway, as well as the state's second city at Kapolei.

Maeda Timson, chairwoman of the Makakilo/Kapolei/Honokai Hale Neighborhood Board, grilled city engineer Wilma Namumnart about why no higher-ranking officials, such as acting Environmental Services Director Tim Steinberger or Refuse Division Chief Frank Doyle, were in attendance yesterday.

Timson also questioned why the city chose to hold the meeting during the day and why the city did not give a presentation on the project but only set up question-and-answer tables.

City Councilman John DeSoto said much of the frustration is based on the perception that the city did not look seriously at alternative sites or technologies. The public, he said, is seeking assurances that the expansion is not "a done deal."

Namumnart said that while the plan to expand the existing landfill rather than go elsewhere may not be "a done deal," it is the city's plan.

"There's not a question," Namumnart said. "That's why we're doing the draft environmental impact statement, because we believe this is the best thing to do. We do need a landfill, and this is the best location for the landfill at this time." At no point, she said, has the city ever promised not to expand the landfill.

Herb Lee, an independent community liaison for the city, said while other disposal technologies exist, none eliminate the need for a landfill.

Lee said the format of yesterday's meeting was chosen because the city is in a public-comment period with the final draft of the environmental impact statement.

"We felt that this format affords people who have questions about the document to come at their leisure and get their questions specifically answered by the preparers of the document," Lee said. "They can stay as long as they want; they don't have to wait for a presentation, wait for other people to express their concerns before they get an opportunity."

The city says the current 86.5-acre landfill, which opened in 1989 and takes in about 1,400 tons of solid waste daily, will fill up next year. The expansion would add 60.5 acres and requires a special use permit from the state Land Use Commission and a conditional use permit from the city Planning Commission. The public-comment period for the draft environmental document ends Aug. 7. Information regarding the draft is at the city's refuse Web site at http://www.opala.org.