State of the Beach/State Reports/HI

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Hawaii

Summary

Beach access in Hawaii and information regarding access are generally good, although some landowners are attempting to restrict access by creatively defining their shoreward property line and some designated beach access paths are fenced off by adjacent property owners. There is plentiful information on surfing areas, which the state recognizes as valuable recreational, economic, and cultural resources. On the other hand, erosion is a serious problem, and shoreline armoring is proliferating in response. An inventory of these sites is needed, along with a program to limit their construction and monitor the effects of structures already built. Beaches should be posted with health advisories when testing indicates that EPA's BEACH Act standards are exceeded.

Hawaii Ratings


Indicators

(+) A great new resource is a Coastal Access in Hawai'i website created by University of Hawai'i Sea Grant that attempts to address the longstanding need to provide accurate information on coastal access laws and policies in Hawai'i. UH Sea Grant is working on populating this website with maps that show the actual access points.

(+) In June 2010 Governor Lingle signed into law House Bill 1808, a bill that prevents private property owners from blocking shoreline access by planting or cultivating vegetation. The new law requires the Department of Land and Natural Resources to maintain beach transit corridors by prohibiting land owners from planting vegetation that interferes with the corridors. It also establishes access to the corridors as a policy within the Coastal Zone Management Program. Notice will be given to property owners adjacent to the corridors if vegetation from their property blocks access to the shoreline.

(+) A Framework for Climate Change Adaptation in Hawaii was released in November 2009. A companion piece is the 2010 video by HCMP Adapting to Climate Change in Hawaii. The video references and ties directly to the Ocean Resources Management Plan (ORMP).

(+) In December 2007, Kaua‘i County Council passed a science-based shoreline setback ordinance that mandates a 40-foot minimum setback plus 70 times the annual coastal erosion rate as recommended in the Hawai‘i Coastal Hazard Mitigation Guidebook. Previously, the county required a 40-foot setback with an option for land owners to appeal up to 20 feet.

(+) As an alternative to hardened structures for erosion protection, the State DLNR is working on guidelines for truly temporary biodegradable erosion control sandbags. These bags and blankets are intended to serve as temporary emergency erosion control and are composed of 100% coconut fiber (Coir). Initial trials have been promising.

(+) Hawaii Sea Grant prepared Natural Hazard Considerations for Purchasing Coastal Real Estate in Hawai'i (May 2006).

(+) Hawaii’s coastal managers consider sand bag revetments to be “hard” structures, meaning they are not permitted as much as they have been in the past.

(+) All beaches in Hawaii are publicly owned and/or controlled.

(+) Hawaii recognizes waves as a valuable recreational, economic, and cultural resource.

(+) The University of Hawaii monitors over 80 beaches around the state to better understand the process of seasonal profile adjustment.

(+) In May 2005, Hawaii's Board of Land and Natural Resources proposed administrative rules that prohibit all extractive uses in the state-regulated waters around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI). Following this, former Rep. Ed Case introduced a bill that would establish a protective refuge for the federal waters surrounding the NWHI. The NWHI are now a national marine sanctuary, the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument.

(0) On Maui, 62% of the sandy shoreline is eroding at an average rate greater than one foot per year. As much as 30% of the sandy shoreline has either significantly narrowed or been lost since the 1940s. Nearly 8 miles of beach have been lost due to shoreline armoring.

(-) In early January 2011, following an extended period of heavy rain, waters accumulating at a reservoir above Oahu's only municipal landfill poured into a "cell" of waste, causing it to overflow and send a torrent of debris-laden storm water down a concrete spillway and into waters just off the Ko Olina Resort. Medical waste, including syringes and vials that appeared to contain blood, were among the debris that washed ashore along beaches at Ko Olina's four lagoons and other western shores, including the area around Kalaeloa Harbor. More info.

(-) In late 2010 the Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting approved a request by Kyo-Ya Hotels to build a 26-story hotel/condo tower on Waikiki Beach. The proposed structure violates existing zoning laws, triples the height of the Moana’s current Diamond Head Tower and encroaches onto the public beach. In January 2011 a coalition of environmental groups, including Surfrider Foundation, appealed the decision to the Zoning Board of Appeals.

(-) In late 2009, due to state budget cuts the Department of Health’s Clean Water Branch lost 4 of its 5 water quality monitoring staff on Oahu. This is a big liability for Hawaii because they are so dependent on tourism, and need to make sure the waters are monitored and protected from waterborne diseases.

(-) Hawai'i is one of the only coastal states without a centralized science office to deal with such issues as coastal erosion.

(-) On Oahu there are only 86 public rights of way for over a hundred miles of coastline. Many shoreline paths were created with the intent to provide beach access and are tax assessed at only $100 -- yet they remain closed to the public.

(-) Major sewer spills occurred on Oahu in early 2006. A sewer spill in Honolulu due to a line break released an estimated 48 million gallons of raw sewage into the Ala Wai Canal and closed beaches in Waikiki. Additional sewer spills occurred during a period of heavy rain in November 2007.

(-) On Oahu, the Honouliuli sewage treatment plant in Ewa and the Sand Island plant operate under section 301(h) waivers from the requirements of the federal Clean Water Act. These two plants and one in San Diego, California are the only major sewage treatment facilities in EPA's Region 9 that still have these waivers. UPDATE: In January 2009 the EPA issued a decision to not renew the waivers for the two sewage treatment plants.

(-) Nearly 25% (17 miles) of Oahu’s beaches have been lost or significantly narrowed over the last century as a result of coastal armoring along the coastline. Beaches in front of seawalls are 50-70% narrower than non-armored beaches.

(-) Past practices of locating shorelines for certification too far makai has tended to reduce beach access, lead to inappropriate shoreline construction setbacks and in some cases lead to shoreline armoring.

(-) Current water quality information only became available on the HDOH website in 2006 and beach health advisory posting procedures are confusing.

Victories

  • Access Protected at Larsen's Beach on Kauai When Paradise Ranch tried to fence in a property that would block access to an area called Larsen's Beach, the Kauai Chapter joined a couple of other organizations to contest the permit they were granted. After trying to fight these legal challenges, Paradise Ranch chose to surrender the permit, and beach access was preserved.
  • Save O'oma--Kona Land Retains its Conservation Status The Kona Kai Ea (KKE) Chapter partnered with other local environmental groups to block the reclassification of the O'oma land from conservation to urban. Property owner Dennis Moresco and developers wanted to build a new project called O'oma Beachside Village on the last piece of pristine coastal land in Kona near the airport; so they tried to convince the Land Use Commission (LUC) to go along with their plan. This was the third time developers had tried to reclassify the land as urban so they could proceed with their projects. But after three and a half years of overwhelming public testimony against the development, the LUC finally decided to maintain the land's conservation status. This was partly because of fears that the proposed development would be threatened by noise from the expanding Kona airport. More info.
  • Beach Access Bill Passed The new law, HB 1808 requires the Department of Land and Natural Resources to maintain beach transit corridors by prohibiting land owners from planting vegetation that interferes with the corridors. It also establishes access to the corridors as a policy within the Coastal Zone Management Program. Notice will be given to property owners adjacent to the corridors if vegetation from their property blocks access to the shoreline. The Department has the authority to take enforcement action if the issue is not resolved after 21 days. All beaches in Hawaii are supposed to be accessible by the public, but increasingly, private landowners were blocking passages with overgrown vegetation or extending their yards further toward the ocean on public beaches. Although the bill targets landowners' use of vegetation to block beach access, it also includes language that enforces laws against the use of gates, fences, walls and signs. More info.
  • Turtle Bay Victory—Kuilima Resort Required to do SEIS Using an old Environmental Impact Statement from 1985, the Kuilima Resort tried to push through a massive development plan for its Turtle Bay Resort on the North Shore of Oahu, refusing to consider how dramatically conditions had changed in the last 25 years. The Sierra Club’s Hawaii Chapter and the Keep the North Shore Country filed a lawsuit against the owners, and Surfrider’s Oahu Chapter donated $10,000 toward the cause. Though two lower courts sided with the Resort, the Hawaii Supreme Court finally announced its decision to force the owners to do a Supplemental EIS for its Turtle Bay Expansion Plan. More info.
  • Kauai Bans Plastic Shopping Bags The island of Kauai banned the use of plastic grocery bags. The hard-fought win came at the culmination of a two-year campaign by the Kauai Chapter based on the Rise Above Plastics campaign toolkit. The ordinance will ban distribution from all non-biodegradable plastic bags from retail stores on the island. The bill goes into effect on Jan. 11, 2011, the same day that Maui County's plastic checkout bag ban goes into effect. Retailers that violate this law will face charges of $250-$1,000 per day (depending on the number of offenses cited). The county will distribute 25,000 free reusable bags to assist the local community make the transition away from single-use bags.
  • Favorable Hawaii Navy Sonar Ruling. Federal District Court Chief Judge Ezra in Hawaii ruled that the U.S. Navy would not be allowed to carry on its undersea warfare exercises without implementing further mitigation measures to protect marine mammals. In response to a complaint brought by Surfrider and other conservation groups, Judge Ezra ordered eight new mitigation provisions including increased monitoring for marine mammals for one hour each day before using sonar, three lookouts exclusively to spot the animals during sonar use and stop sonar transmission altogether when one of the mammals is within 500 meters, and sonar must be gradually powered on to warn marine mammals and allow escape. The judge also held that the Navy has failed to investigate alternatives to conducting these exercises. In a parallel case in California on the same day, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected President Bush's attempt to exempt the exercises from environmental laws.
  • Preservation of Pupukea-Paumalu, North Shore, Oahu, Hawaii Surfrider Oahu Chapter and Surfrider Japan, working together with North Shore Community Land Trust, the Trust for Public Land and many dedicated community activists, helped secure the scenic bluffs overlooking the famous North Shore waves of Sunset Beach, Rocky Point and Pipeline from development. The coalition eventually included backing by the state, the city, the military and federal agencies, which contributed to the purchase price of approximately $8 million. Fundraising for Pupukea-Paumalu continues in an effort to support the coordination of community planning and stewardship activities so that residents, visitors and surfers from around the world will be able to enjoy the property in perpetuity. The North Shore Community Land Trust has set up a special restricted savings account for the Pupukea Paumalu Stewardship Fund. All tax-deductible donations to this fund are designated specifically for the acquisition and protection costs for Pupukea Paumalu. More Info.
  • The Oahu Chapter has been working closely with the Hawaii Dept. of Health Clean Water Branch (DOH) in reviewing and modifying their ocean water quality testing procedures and standards. In April 2005 when EPA presented a BEACH Act grant check to DOH, Oahu Chapter chairperson Peter Cole was part of the presentation, symbolizing the partnership between EPA, Surfrider, and DOH in the protection of the beaches of the State of Hawaii.
  • Between 200 and 300 people, including Oahu Chapter activists, marched to the State Capitol to oppose plans to sell land along the Kakaako waterfront and build high-rise apartments. Surfrider is part of a Save our Kakaako coalition that includes Life of the Land and Sierra Club.
  • The Oahu and Maui Chapters began posting current DOH beach water quality results on their websites, before DOH had the capability of doing so. The DOH website now has current water quality data.



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