Maunawili opposes dirt dumping
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By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer
KAILUA — Maunawili residents are questioning the state's plan to dump 240,000 cubic yards of dirt from the hillside stabilization project at Castle Junction next to a wetland.
The Maunawili Community Association is holding a meeting tonight at 7 at Maunawili Valley Neighborhood Park on Maunawili Road to discuss the project with officials representing the state, the contractor and the landowner.
The state Department of Transportation said the contractor expects to get the permits to dump in Maunawili but won't be putting anything into the wetland.
Meeting tonight
Contractor Goodfellow Brothers Inc. has begun a $7.8 million job to terrace the landslide-prone hillside at Castle Junction.
It plans to place most of the excavated dirt on vacant agricultural land across from Kapa'a Quarry Road, less than a mile from the project. The land is owned by Kane'ohe Ranch Co. Ltd.
Linda Ure, secretary of the Maunawili Community Association, said residents are concerned about environmental issues and night work, in which truckloads of material would be dumped and graded while people are trying to sleep.
The dump site is near Kahanaiki Stream, which runs into Kawainui Marsh, Ure said. She said the project could cause flooding at homes on Auloa Road.
"Our residents are saying you can't do this at night," Ure said.
The state Department of Transportation is conducting the project under an emergency proclamation from the governor that allows for fast-tracking of permits.
The success of the project being completed on time hinges on the contractor's ability to work at night and being able to dump the dirt nearby, eliminating long hauls to the other side of the island, said Scott Ishikawa, spokesman for the Department of Transportation.
The contractor can work at nights only until the end of April, when migrating birds return to the island. Environmentalist have said the lights disorient the birds.
Goodfellow was told by the Army Corps of Engineers that the dirt disposal site is not in a wetland, Ishikawa said. It is at least 1,000 feet from the nearest homes, he said.
The project suffered a two-month setback when the state tried to purchase the land at the project site from the two property owners, Hawai'i Pacific University and the Teixeira family trust.
The plan calls for the contractor to transport the dirt at night to the property across from Kapa'a Quarry Road, Ishikawa said. The contractor must build a road off Kalaniana'ole Highway and will not be driving through the Maunawili community, he said.
The contractor has two alternative sites for the dirt, but because of the distance involved, the project would be prolonged and commuters would suffer, Ishikawa said.
"The Maunawili site is preferred because of the distance," he said. "We can finish the project quicker and ... get off the road quicker."
Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com. or 234-5266.
