Keahole power plant gets air-quality permit
By Hugh Clark
Advertiser Big Island Bureau
HILO, Hawai'i — Federal and state regulators have issued an air-quality permit for the long-disputed $100 million expansion of the Keahole power plant, but opponents of the project say there are still many issues left to resolve.
The Hawai'i Electric Light Co. project, which would add 58 megawatts of generating capacity to the existing 30-megawatt plant, is still subject to pending court cases and a hearing before the Board of Land and Natural Resources.
Expansion of the Keahole power plant has been a source of controversy for nearly a decade, with some Kona residents and farmers fearful of the air pollution problems it could bring and its potential for marring the scenic landscape.
The air-quality permit was initially approved in 1997 but withdrawn after appeals by the Keahole Defense Coalition, made up of residents living near the plant and farmers in the adjoining state agricultural park.
HELCO was required to conduct further studies to verify the development would meet environmental protection standards.
HELCO President Warren Lee announced yesterday that the EPA and the state Department of Health signed off this week on a permit for the expansion, which he said would help solve recent rolling blackouts on the Big Island.
"This was one of the most thoroughly reviewed permits in Hawai'i's history," Lee said in a written statement. "The re-issuance of the air permit by EPA and DOH is a major step forward in providing our homes and businesses with the power they need.
"If this plant had been on-line Saturday, Big Islanders would not have suffered rolling blackouts."
HELCO has undergone more than a dozen power outages this year, including last weekend, largely because of repeated failures by a new private generating plant in Haina.
The development next faces a contested case hearing before the state land board in September over a conservation district use permit. The project also is the subject of several pending court cases.
"HELCO must address many more critical issues," said attorney Michael Matsukawa, spokesman for the Keahole Defense Coalition, including the use of groundwater, a noise permit and land-use matters.
HELCO spokesman Paul Fujioka said $74 million already has been spent on the project. Further work would not be expected until next year at the earliest, he said, though the first turbine unit could be on-line within three to four months after final approvals.
The addition would add 58 megawatts through a pair of 20-megawatt combustion turbine units and an 18-megawatt steam-recovery unit. Much of the equipment for the expansion has been acquired and is on the site near Kona International Airport.
