Another Good Kauai Letter to the Editor

Sorry, have not been able to post here for a while. Will try to catch up. Here is a recent unpublished letter to the editor to a Kauai newspaper:

"This is not an E.I.S."

"In response to Mr. Carvalho's letter of 8-11-08, politicians should research what they are writing about before they are published.

Mr. Carvalho, are you aware that the environmental assessment that is being conducted by the State is being done under Governor Lingel's Act II that she pushed through the Legislature?

If you read Act II carefully, you will find that there are "4" parts to the Act. Parts 1, 2, and 4 mostly cover what the "Large Ferry" is free to do in violation of the Hawaii Environmental Protection Act 343. Part 3 covers the environmental assessment, but there is one paragraph that stipulates that this part does not affect anything covered in parts 1, 2, or 4. This makes the environmental assessment conducted under Act II totally irrelevant in it's effect on Kauai.

There are also two Hawaii Supreme Court cases pending, one from Judge Valenciano's Kauai court and one from Judge Cordoza's Maui court. After reading the court briefs on both cases, I am totally convinced that Act II will be found unconstitutional, and the ferry will again be grounded until an independent Environmental Impact Statement is completed, just as Cardoza's Court originally decreed.

Let's all wait and see what our Supreme Court decides."

Richard Hoeppner
Kauai, HI