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Kokua Line June Watanabe |
Silt pollution halts
dredging in Hawaii KaiQuestion: I have a question about the three large pieces of machinery by the Kalanianaole Highway bridge as you drive toward Hawaii Kai. They've been there for months down on the beach. I know they were used for dredging, but it looks like the work is done. When the tide is up they're practically underwater. Are these city machines that will be allowed to rust away? Who do they belong to, and when are they going to be picked up?
Answer: The machines belong to American Marine, which was contracted by the state Department of Land & Natural Resources to dredge the mouth of Maunalua Bay, to provide better access to the Hawaii Kai Marina.
It may appear that the dredging project is completed because the machines have been idle for months, but in fact, work stopped after the state Department of Health raised concerns about silt pollution.
The much-debated dredging project dates back to 1993, but it was only last year that DLNR finally got the go-ahead to proceed.
The first phase called for dredging, and the second phase, building a sand retention wall, said Steve Thompson, Oahu District manager for DLNR's Division of Boating & Ocean Recreation.
But "the dredging was halted due to concern from the Health Department regarding the best management practices for controlling silt," he said last week.
Because of the rapid flow of water when the tide changes, it's been difficult to keep "silt curtains" in place, Thompson said. The "engineers are trying to find a way to better control that."
Last September, the Star-Bulletin reported that the $300,000 project to remove 9,000 cubic yards of silt would take about a month.
However, in a letter to DLNR and American Marine dated Oct. 24, the Health Department "included a phrase that 'the Department of Health demands that all activities causing the discharge of pollutants into state waters be stopped,'" Joanna Seto, an environmental engineer with the department's Clean Water Branch, told "Kokua Line."
The concern was that the contractor was not implementing the site-specific, "best management practices" plan that had been submitted to and subsequently approved by the Health Department to control the silt, she said.
On Jan. 22, American Marine submitted an amended plan. However, health officials had concerns about that plan, Seto said.
American Marine then submitted a "best management practices" plan for just the sand retention portion of the project, which the Health Department accepted on March 7, she said.
Although the dredging machines have been idle, workers have been able to work on the sand retention wall, Thompson said.
On May 7 the Health Department received an amended plan for the rest of the project, including the dredging, Seto said. However, health officials sent a letter to DLNR dated May 27 saying they still had concerns, and as of last week they were awaiting a response from DLNR and American Marine.
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