Mauna Kea science reserve gets Hilo-born manager

By Hugh Clark
Advertiser Big Island Bureau

HILO, Hawai'i — A Hilo native has been named director of the Office of Mauna Kea Management.

Bill Stormont, 41, a Hawaiian who has spent the past 10 years as manager of the state's Natural Area Reserve System on the Big Island, will replace retired Judge Walter Heen, who has been serving in an interim basis.

Stormont's duties will include overall management of the 11,288-acre Mauna Kea Science Reserve atop the 13,796-foot peak, which includes the summit road and the Hale Pohaku support facility at the 9,000-foot elevation.

The appointment was announced yesterday by University of Hawai'i President Evan Dobelle and U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye, who has supported the development of astronomy facilities on the Big Island. The Office of Mauna Kea Management was created last year under a master plan approved the UH Board of Regents.

"Bill possesses the overall energy and genuine passions to manage Mauna Kea responsibly, with dignity and sensitivity," said University of Hawai'i-Hilo Chancellor Rose Tseng. She will work with him on what Dobelle called "responsible stewardship of Mauna Kea's cultural, natural, educational and research resources."

Dobelle also announced that the new Institute for Astronomy headquarters that opened at the UHH Technology Park in April will be renamed the Malama Mauna Kea Center. In the Hawaiian language, "malama" means to take care of, to protect or preserve.

The university leader also reaffirmed plans to restrict the number of telescopes sites largely to the existing facilities.

In related news, it was announced that Paul Coleman, a Native Hawaiian from O'ahu, will join the Institute for Astronomy's faculty. Coleman, a graduate of St. Louis High School, will work in Hilo at the new $40 million Smithsonian Array.