Mahi Pono, Maui’s largest landowner and agricultural entity, was allegedly cautioned by an agricultural agent earlier this month for failing to follow proper procedures when applying Gramoxone, an herbicide product that contains paraquat — one of the most toxic chemicals in use today and one that’s been banned internationally. That’s the story that’s been racing […]
Maui News Feature
Is Regulation to Blame? Perspectives on the prevalence of out-of-state homebuyers and lack of attainable housing in Maui County
“The [Hawai‘i state] legislature pronounced that the problem of the critical shortage [of housing for low- and middle-income earners] was the high cost of housing. The causes of this high cost were said to be the ‘cost and availability of land, the cost of development, the cost and availability of financing, the cost added by […]
Nearly Half of Maui Homes Sold in Last Decade Were Bought by Non-Residents, DBEDT Reports
Forty-eight percent of homes purchased in Maui County during the last decade were sold to buyers outside the state, according to data from the Hawai‘i Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism. That’s twice the percentage of out-of-state homebuyers for Hawai‘i as a whole, which was 24 percent during the last decade according to DBEDT […]
Decriminalization! What you need to know
Last year, Hawai‘i joined the league of states that have enacted laws to decriminalize or legalize marijuana for recreational use. According to the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), that makes us the 26th state (including the District of Columbia) in the union to enact such a law. HB1383, as the decriminalization […]
Et Tu, ‘Ohana Candidates? Kelly King steps down as council chair, Alice Lee voted in
In an end-of-the-year County Council shakeup, Councilmember Alice Lee (Wailuku) was voted in as council chair on Dec. 27, replacing previous chair Kelly King. Testifiers at the special council meeting offered their support for King, and pleaded for transparency regarding the change in leadership which came to many as a surprise. “I felt like a […]
Naughty or Nice? At the one-year anniversary of Mahi Pono’s 56,000-acre Maui ag land grab, questions remain about the company’s ultimate intentions
Last year at this time, Mauians were cheering the news that Alexander & Baldwin had suddenly shed its former cane field land and 50 percent of its EMI irrigation system in a $267-million sale to a completely unknown, newly-created entity named Mahi Pono. Oh, there were high hopes for this corporate stranger, the result of […]
Honolulu Takes on the Plastic Problem: Will their leadership encourage Maui to do the same?
If there’s one thing I took away from PBS NewsHour’s special feature, “The Plastic Problem,” (other than, Here’s yet another way we humans have screwed ourselves and our planet) it’s that plastics are everywhere, from the tops of mountains to the depths of ocean trenches. One scene in particular sticks out in my mind: A […]
‘Criminal Disregard’: Attorney representing Maui families responds to Monsanto’s admission of guilt
An attorney representing two Maui families in a lawsuit against Monsanto responded Tuesday to the company’s recent admission of illegally using, transporting, and storing the banned pesticide methyl parathion, also known as Penncap-M, at locations in Maui County in 2014. “Monsanto’s illegal conduct in spraying a banned pesticide at its Kihei facility in 2014 clearly […]
Monsanto to Pay $10.2M for Illegal Pesticide Use: Kihei residents and activists warned about violations for years
The year was 2014, and Maui was in the middle of a political revolution: For the first time in the county’s history, a voters’ initiative made it onto the ballot, signalling an unprecedented effort of grassroots activism to directly govern with community-drafted and -approved legislation. The issue was genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and the biotechnology-agrochemical […]
Is the MRA Legal? Councilmember Keani Rawlins-Fernandez challenges the Maui Redevelopment Agency’s authority
A meeting of the Maui Redevelopment Agency regarding possible zoning changes to Wailuku Town drew passionate community testimony on Friday, Nov. 15, sparked largely by news of a six-story, 156-room hotel planned for the area at the corner of Market and Main Streets. The changes within the MRA’s draft zoning code amendment include, most notably, […]
‘This DEIS Is Deficient’: Sierra Club, Maui Tomorrow, and others weigh in on A&B/Mahi Pono’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement for a 30-year water lease
The public comment period for Mahi Pono/Alexander & Baldwin’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) closed last week, and judging from the dozens of pages of responses I’ve read, this DEIS has more holes in it than bleached coral. Those stalwart folks who actually pored through the 2,700-page tome seemed to find scant substance and lots […]
‘The Community Is At A Breaking Point’: Last week’s massive ‘o‘opu fish kill reignites conflict over Wailuku River
Hundreds, if not thousands, of ‘o‘opu (goby) died in the Wailuku River last week in what’s been called a “substantial fish kill” by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources. The Interim Instream Flow Standard (IIFS) which dictates the share of water permitted to be taken from the river by private entities was suspended […]