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OHA trustees hear renewed appeals to protect Kauai salt ponds and Kaneoaluma from flooding, development
Summary
Trustees were briefed on recurring flooding, damaged salt beds and cultural sites on Kauai, and heard calls for hydrological studies, Army Corps assistance and renewed outreach to agencies including DLNR and Bishop Museum.
Trustee Ahuna told the Office of Hawaiian Affairs Board of Trustees on Kauai that salt pond stewards and kūpuna are again facing yearly inundation that is damaging traditional salt-making beds and associated cultural resources.
The appeal, raised during a trustees meeting with administration staff present, described mixed jurisdiction along the coast — county park lands, state land up to the high-water mark and areas adjacent to a state-owned airport — and said county roadbuilding and buried asphalt have blocked historic drainage pathways. Trustee Ahuna said OHA staff have worked with families of the salt-pond stewards for decades and requested continued administrative support for relief and advocacy.
The board heard from Kai Markell, Compliance Enforcement Manager, who described the problem as a mix of jurisdictional control and climate-driven…
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