OHA trustees authorize negotiation to end Waialua lease as EPA cesspool rules loom

At a Dec. 17 meeting of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) Committee on Investment and Land Management, trustees voted to authorize administration to negotiate termination of OHA’s general ground lease with the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) for a Waialua property leased to Hoʻomana, citing an EPA-mandated cesspool conversion deadline and potential fines.

Laurie Walker, OHA’s Interim Land Director, told trustees the property was previously treated as exempt from large‑capacity cesspool rules but that a 2023 DLNR compliance audit prompted the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to reclassify the site. “The large capacity cesspool at this property…in fact is a large capacity cesspool,” Walker said, and she said DLNR notified OHA that the required conversion must be completed by January 2027. Walker told the committee that DLNR indicated EPA fines could be transferred to OHA and cited a figure of about $25,000 per infraction per day.

Why it matters: Hoʻomana operates outreach and meal programs on the site and several witnesses said termination or closure would disrupt services to vulnerable…