Parker Ranch land use debated
By Hugh Clark
Advertiser Big Island Bureau
HILO, Hawai'i — An organization of Native Hawaiians wants to take over nearly 52,000 acres on Mauna Kea leased by Parker Ranch to graze cattle.
'Oiwi Lokahi O Ka Mokupuni O Keawe wants the land divided into homestead lots for homes, tree farming and ranching, said spokesman Ed Stevens. There is little water at the 6,000-foot elevation site, but Stevens said rain catchment systems could be developed for farming and livestock.
Parker Ranch has used the land for about 100 years, before congressional approval in 1921 of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act gave Hawaiians access to 200,000 acres of homestead land along with eligibility for government financing.
Humu'ula was the site of the ranch's sheep station for years, before sheep were phased out in the late 1960s. Since then it has been used to graze cattle.
Losing the area would decrease Parker Ranch's Big Island holdings by more than 20 percent from its 225,000 acres.
The ranch's lease was last renewed by the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands in 1977 and expires at the end of this year. DHHL Chairman Raynard Soon said the Hawaiian Homes Commission must decide by December what to do with the parcel.
Not all the land will be returned, he said, because of an infestation on 5,000 to 6,000 acres of gorse, an aggressive introduced weed that overwhelms native species. Parker Ranch will keep that land and continue eradication efforts.
Parker Ranch trustee Carl Carlson said the ranch might try to keep other parts of the land covered by the lease. "We are still in the discussion stage," he said.
Stevens' Native Hawaiian group will hold four meetings to discuss the DHHL's proposed master plan for the Humu'ula-Pi'ihonua area, which includes the smaller Nobriga and Stanley ranches: 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on March 9 at Keaukaha School in Hilo; March 16 at the University of Hawai'iiManoa's Center for Hawaiian Studies; March 23 in the Kealakehe High School cafeteria in Kona; and April 6 in the Waimea Middle School cafeteria.
For more information, call (808) 961-5122 in Hilo; (808) 329-9255 in Kona; (808) 885-1642 in Waimea; or 348-3186 in Honolulu.
