The crowd asked state officials not to let the Superferry sail until an Environmental Impact Statement is completed. Andrew Shimabuku/The Honolulu Advertiser

The meeting lasted six hours, ending just before 8 p.m.

Dozens of people filled the King Kaumuali'i Elementary School cafeteria, with the crowd spilling outside, at an informational briefing called by the state Senate to hear public comment on draft legislation to help Superferry before a possible special session. The audience at its peak was estimated at 250 to 350 people.

"Superferry is not welcome on Kaua'i until an EIS is completed. EIS first," said Carl Berg, an ecologist and activist.

Scott Mijares, a small-business owner who lives in Kilauea, said the Superferry project is an example of the closeness between government and corporate interests.

"This is the wrong time to make the wrong decision," Mijares warned senators.

Lingle was booed and heckled when she visited here last month to talk about a new federal security zone for Superferry at Nawiliwili Harbor and to warn protesters of arrests and prosecution for breaking the law.

The tone of today's briefing was much more civil.

State Sen. Brian Taniguchi, D-10th (Manoa, McCully), the chairman of the Senate Judiciary and Labor Committee, who is chairing the briefings, said at the outset that senators were there to listen.

Taniguchi even caused knowing laughter and applause when he warned that he would call the Coast Guard if anyone in the audience failed to turn down their cell phones and they went off.

However, people were overwhelmingly critical of the Superferry and the Lingle administration's decision to exempt the project from an environmental review.

The informational briefings will continue Monday on Maui and Tuesday on the Big Island. A special session, if called by Gov. Linda Lingle, could start on Wednesday.

The draft bill would allow the ferry to resume service while the state conducts an environmental impact statement. The Lingle administration would impose operating conditions to protect whales and other marine life, deter the spread of invasive species and preserve cultural and natural resources.