Pollution taints our
streams and shoresThe issue: After a review, the EPA
expands the list of contaminated
waterways from 19 to 111The identification of 111 polluted streams and coastal waters in Hawaii outlines a formidable challenge for the state. Although the Department of Health declares that none of these troubled waters threatens public health, persistent contamination left unchecked eventually will present a hazard not only to humans but to the ecosystem from mountain to sea.
It's better to clean up sooner rather than allow further deterioration to exacerbate the problem and ultimately increase the cost.
The Health Department's resistance even to identifying the polluted areas, however, raises questions about how serious it is about tackling the problem. For more than 30 years, the federal Clean Water Act has required such identification as well as measures to reduce pollutants. The department knew that the state had far more polluted water sites than the 19 it listed in accordance with the law in 1998. What prevented further designations was a water quality monitoring program the department acknowledged was inadequate. The expanded list of polluted areas was issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency only after environmental groups challenged the department's assessment and a federal court in September ordered the EPA's review.
Most of the pollutants are not immediately harmful to humans. However, fecal coliform was evident in streams, such as Manoa and Palolo, and unsafe levels of the bacteria have shown up at beaches. Other pollutants are more insidious and primarily affect wildlife. Nitrogen from fertilizers, for example, threatens sea life and soil runoff produces sediments that suffocate coral reefs.
Now that target areas are clear, the Health Department's task is to clean up the streams and coastal waters, establish how much pollution can be allowed without violating water quality levels and prevent more pollutants from entering the waterways.
The program will require considerable surveillance and testing, cooperation from pollution sources such as agricultural businesses and golf courses that use fertilizers and housing developers and the construction industry at projects that expose soil to runoff, especially near coastal areas.
Further, a heightened awareness among the public will be necessary. No longer can people pour automotive oil down storm drains or throw old furniture or yard debris into streams.
Hawaii's waterways are the lifeblood of the land. They support recreation, tourism, fishing, aquaculture and agriculture. It is the responsibility of government and citizenry to restore and maintain their integrity aggressively.
Isle airlines should avoid
price abusesThe issue: A new law allows Hawaii's
two inter-island airlines to violate antitrust
restrictions during the next year.THE aviation security measure that President Bush signed into law includes a temporary antitrust exemption for Hawaii's airlines. The provision should help Aloha and Hawaiian airlines through the tourism downturn following the Sept. 11 terrorist attack. Governor Cayetano should scrutinize the cooperation to assure the traveling public that the exemption is not abused.
The bill primarily put into motion several security measures such as protecting airplane cockpits and shifting the responsibility for checking baggage from the airline industry to the federal government. However, the bill includes four provisions requested by Senator Inouye to support Hawaii's air travel.
Those provisions allow flexibility in profile screening because of the nature of Hawaii's market, diverting of federal airport improvement funds for operating costs, allow waivers on essential air cargo and permit coordination between the two inter-island carriers. Inouye says the the law "takes into consideration Hawaii's unique and specific needs as an isolated state heavily dependent on air travel."
The extent of coordination allowed under the new law is not clear, except that it be deemed "necessary to ensure the continuing availability" of air transportation within the state. For example, while the law does not explicitly allow cooperation in pricing, neither does it preclude what antitrust laws regard as price-fixing. A more acceptable scenario would be Aloha and Hawaiian agreeing to consolidate flights scheduled at about the same time and then sharing the revenues from the single flight.
Attorneys for Hawaii's two airlines have been studying the new law, and airline officials can be expected to meet soon to plan their strategy. The approval by Cayetano and Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta is required for any agreement between the airlines.
Aloha and Hawaiian laid off nearly 700 employees in the weeks following the terrorist attack on New York and Washington. They are expected to receive nearly $40 million of the $15 billion airline bailout approved by Congress last month and are relieved of paying landing fees to the state, but still need assistance in coping with the slump in tourism.
The antitrust exemption is allowed through Oct. 1 of next year but can be extended by Mineta for an additional year. If the economy and the travel industry recover fully in less than a year, Mineta can and should act in the public interest and reject anticompetitive arrangements by the two airlines.
Published by Oahu Publications Inc., a subsidiary of Black Press.Don Kendall, Publisher
Frank Bridgewater, managing editor 529-4791; fbridgewater@starbulletin.com
Michael Rovner, assistant managing editor 529-4768; mrovner@starbulletin.com
Lucy Young-Oda, assistant managing editor 529-4762; lyoungoda@starbulletin.comRichard Halloran, editorial page director, 529-4790; rhalloran@starbulletin.com
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