Pond odor creates a nuisance

By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer

KAILUA — An annoying odor at the bird habitat on Ka'elepulu Pond has residents and landowners looking for solutions, such as finding new homes for the 45 or so domestic ducks and geese that have taken up residence there.

"As soon as you turned down our street, you were hit with a wall of sulfur stench," said Jill Williams of Kiukee Place. Adding to the problem are bird droppings everywhere, which raise public health concerns, Williams said.

Although the smell has subsided, residents said something must be done to keep the problem from returning.

Gaylord Tom, attorney for habitat owner LECI Properties, said he was aware of the problem and working with the community to resolve it.

Bird droppings and low water flow are the causes, and the droppings are the biggest problem, Tom said.

The bird population has ballooned in recent years because of feeding by residents and tour buses, Tom said, and the number of native bird species seems to be down.

One solution would be to move the domestic ducks and geese, possibly to a nearby farm.

Water flow was constricted when a stand of California grass grew out of control near the silt-laden storm drain, Tom said.

"We're blamed for the siltation, but we have no control over it," he said. The grass has been cut, and a recent rainstorm helped replenish pond water.

But Tom hopes to do more with the help of the city, state and community, including killing off the grass near the bird habitat and trying to get grant money to improve the wetlands.

Stench from the pond is nothing new. A decade ago, people complained because the mangrove that once covered the shore housed hundreds of birds. Residents said the bird droppings created an unbearable smell.

The problem was solved when LECI Properties cleared the site and built the 5.5-acre habitat in the mid-1990s as mitigation for illegal fill dumped there by a previous owner. LECI also was allowed to dump more fill on land near the habitat to develop residential lots.

As part of the mitigation, LECI was required to create a $250,000 maintenance trust fund, with the idea that earnings would finance care of the wetland.

But the fund isn't doing well, and today it earns barely enough to pay the fund manager, he said.

Marine biologist Robert Bourke said the smell could have several sources in the 100-acre pond, including exposure of the bottom, change in the water's acidity or alkalinity and the water turning anaerobic, which kills off life.

Maintaining a higher water level would solve the problem, said Bourke, who also called for better maintenance of the bird habitat.

When originally dredged, the lake was about 12 to 18 feet deep, he said, adding that the center of the lake is now about 9 feet deep and the edges around the storm drains are mere inches.

Bourke said he wants the community to work on the problem and reach a consensus on a solution.

"I want people to visualize the future for the lake and move forward," he said. "It's tricky, because it's like trying to visualize the future of your neighbor's yard."

Sen. Bob Hogue, who lives next to the sanctuary, said he had called for a meeting with state and city officials, residents and Tom to discuss options.

A Dec. 13 report from state Department of Health vector control inspector Mark K.H. Leong described moderate to heavy accumulation of large bird feces on the road, sidewalk and grassy area in front of the bird sanctuary on Dec. 2, Hogue said.

The inspector recommended trapping and moving the geese, locking the gate to the wetland, posting No Feeding signs, replanting eroded banks and improving water flow in the pond.

Hogue said he had asked the city to clean the area it is responsible for.

He also asked the Army Corp of Engineers, which issued the permit, to outline what LECI has done to follow the permit conditions.

"Now LECI needs to do their job, and the Army Corps need to enforce the permit," Hogue said.

Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.