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Committee narrows landfill options near key aquifers, adds prohibition on reuse of toxic ash
Summary
Lawmakers advanced SB438 with amendments that would restrict landfill siting relative to major aquifers and include language to prohibit reuse of certain incinerator ash in roads or construction; counties and operators warned of unintended consequences for landfill capacity, notably on Kauai and Oahu.
The House Committee on Water & Land advanced SB438 (SD2) after extensive testimony from the Department of Health, county officials, water managers and environmental groups about protecting aquifers and the risks of reusing incinerator ash.
Glenn Hai of the Department of Health said the department “is opposing this measure” as written because Oahu’s municipal solid-waste landfill is slated to close in 2028 and siting a new landfill takes many years; he also asked for clearer criteria to identify “significant aquifers.” Hai told the committee that “responsible solid waste management, including landfills, is necessary” and that the department provided proposed amendments to help enforcement.
Roger Babcock of the City and County of Honolulu environmental services office urged caution about blanket prohibitions, saying existing state and federal permit processes and contested-case public hearings already account for site-specific safeguards and “blanket prohibitions like this... have unintended consequences.” Honolulu’s witness said new landfills must receive state solid-waste and air permits and that land-use special permits for ag lands trigger public processes.
Kauai Mayor Derek Kawakami told lawmakers the island has limited options and warned that as written the measure could remove viable siting options there. He asked that the committee consider narrower restrictions — for example, removing class B agricultural lands from prohibition while protecting class A lands — because, he said, “if the bill were to pass through as written... we would have no options for a landfill on Kauai.”
Ernie Lau of the Honolulu Board of Water Supply supported stronger protections around aquifers and suggested using the Board of Water Supply’s no-pass zone as guidance for Department of Health rules rather than the more-restrictive underground-injection-control line. Environmental groups including Sierra Club Hawaii and Energy Justice Network supported tighter restrictions and asked that the bill preserve a prohibition on using toxic incinerator ash in roads, construction, or daily landfill cover. ReWorld, operator of H-POWER, asked the committee not to add non-germane ash-reuse amendments that could affect a pending permit for ash reuse.
The committee adopted amendments that removed class B agricultural lands from the statutory prohibition and directed the Department of Health to consider a Board of Water Supply "no pass" approach when defining protected groundwater areas; the chair also said the committee would add language prohibiting certain ash reuse. Members discussed PFAS testing in ash and leachate and asked for additional sampling data.
SB438 advanced out of committee with those amendments; committee members emphasized the need for careful, site-specific review while adding statutory protections meant to reduce risk to drinking-water resources.
