North Shore NewsBy: Lynell DaMate, Angela Huntemer, Chris Tarski – Aloha Marconi Alliance
On Friday April 26, 2024, the State Board of Land and Natural Resources (Board) met to consider proposed fines of over $3 million against multiple landowners at “Marconi Point” for the death of Hoʻokipa (an adult female Laysan Albatross, an indigenous seabird species), the destruction of an estimated 300 Yellow-Faced Bees (endangered endemic species), and the devastation of 2 acres of shoreline habitat (mature heliotrope and naupaka).
Unfortunately, the landowners’ attorneys strategically called for a “contested case” after the staff of the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR), Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW), and the Office of Coastal and Conservation Lands (OCCL) made their presentations asking the Board for substantial fines and remedies. The landowners’ attorneys refused to consent to allow testimony to continue, forcing BLNR to terminate the hearing without a decision and abruptly cut off a pipeline of live testimony from dozens of concerned community members and experts who had waited over five hours to testify.
The DLNR staff proposed total fines of $3,157,500; $1,502,500 for unauthorized take of Yellow-Faced Bees, $45,000 for the death of Hoʻokipa (the Laysan Albatross), $1,640,000 for habitat destruction including removal of over 106 native coastal trees. The DLNR staff also requested remedial actions including removal of a massive iron fence, habitat restoration, conservation easements, and permanent protective signage.
North Shore resident Lynell DaMate, who waited at the BLNR hearing room all day to testify, stated: “The landowners should be ashamed for stopping the public testimony. People have a right to be heard. This is our coastline, our native species, our ʻāīna – it does not belong to these newly arrived wealthy investors. We all need to stand up for our native wildlife!”
Kahuku resident Angela Huntemer, who also waited the entire day at the Board room, was disappointed. She said, “We won’t walk away from attempts to silence concerned community members and experts. Our community is really troubled by the range of allegations at Marconi Point. Folks with first-hand knowledge of the ecosystems out there were not heard from on Friday. Obviously, the landowners didnʻt want people to know the truth.”
Albatross monitoring volunteer Chris Tarksi has spent the last six years, several times each week, personally monitoring and protecting the health of the Albatross adults, eggs, and chicks at Marconi and Kahuku Point. In December 2023, Chris had the gruesome task of taking the dead body of the beloved Hoʻokipa for an autopsy. Chris was particularly upset to learn from the Board proceedings that Ho‘okipa, who was found entangled in the wrought iron fence by another volunteer, died from blunt force trauma because a landscape worker on “Condo Unit 1” of the Marconi properties intentionally threw a rock at her head.
Even though interrupted, the Board hearing shone a bright light on the raft of alleged violations on the Marconi site. It also surfaced concerns about other serious incidents that warrant further investigation, including an endangered monk seal’s death on the beach in front of the development, unpermitted draining of wetlands, demolition of historic buildings and cultural sites, and improper commercial activities on agriculturally zoned lands.
The fight to protect this precious coastline is far from over. For updates on future events and proceedings, go to our IG (https://www.instagram.com/malamamarconi/) and FB https://www.facebook.com/alohamarconi
In The News
Honolulu Star-Advertiser: https://www.staradvertiser. com/2024/04/27/hawaii-news/state-condo-verdict-deferredon- 3-1m-in-potential-fines/
Hawaii News Now: https://www.hawaiinewsnow. com/2024/04/27/marconi-point-developer-property-owners- contest-states-proposed-32m-fine/