WAILUKU, Maui — Big Island Mayor Harry Kim yesterday endorsed the Hawaii Superferry, calling it a welcome and needed alternative to interisland air travel.

Kim was called as a witness by Hawaii Superferry in a Maui Circuit Court hearing on whether the company should be allowed to resume service while the state conducts an environmental assessment of ferry-related projects at Kahului Harbor.

"We are the only state in the 50 states where intrastate travel is limited to only air. To me it's very, very limited and it should not be," he said.

The ferry also would provide another alternative for moving goods throughout the state, and could assist Civil Defense agencies in disasters, according to Kim, who headed his county's Civil Defense Agency for almost 25 years.

The mayor said he feels Hawaii Superferry has taken steps to address community concerns and should be allowed to operate during the assessment. "I don't see what the harm would be to allowing this to happen," he said.

The Sierra Club, Maui Tomorrow and the Kahului Harbor Coalition claim the harms would include potential collisions with humpback whales, the spread of invasive species, increased vehicle traffic around ports, and damage to subsistence resources by off-island visitors with vehicles.

The three groups won a Hawai'i Supreme Court ruling last month ordering the Department of Transportation to conduct an assessment on the Maui harbor projects, which are part of $40 million in ferry-related work done at four ports.

Maui Circuit Judge Joseph Cardoza issued an order preventing the ferry from using Kahului Harbor until he decides whether the company can operate during the environmental review process.

During yesterday's hearing, attorney Isaac Hall, representing the three groups, argued that Kim's testimony is irrelevant since the court case involves only Maui. He also suggested Kim should defer to Maui leaders when it comes to potential ferry impacts at Kahului Harbor.

"This mayor should not be able to come over and testify on Maui when we have our own mayor who has taken a position on this matter and we have our own civil defense who can testify," he said.

When Maui Mayor Charmaine Tavares was serving on the County Council, she participated in a unanimous vote in March 2005 to approve a resolution calling for the state to conduct an environmental impact statement for the Hawaii Superferry because the ferry could "create or exacerbate existing problems for Maui's rural environment."

The Big Island and Kaua'i councils passed similar resolutions.

Hawaii Superferry launched service between Honolulu, Maui and Kaua'i on Aug. 26, but operations were suspended the following day because of the Maui court order and protests on Kaua'i. The company plans to start service to Kawaihae on the Big Island in 2009.

The hearing, which is in its second week, will resume at 9:30 a.m. today.

Reach Christie Wilson at cwilson@honoluluadvertiser.com.