Councilmember Bob Jacobson
Hawai`i County Council District 6 Upper Puna-Ka`u-South Kona

COUNTY OF HAWAI'I                                               STATE OF HAWAI'I 
RESOLUTION NO. 54 O3 

A RESOLUTION SUPPORTING THE FORMATION OF A COMMITTEE OR ADVISORY BOARD TO PROVIDE CITIZEN INPUT FOR THE POHAKULOA TRAINING AREA. 

WHEREAS, Pohakuloa is a holy place to Hawaiians; a place of union between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, the female and male figures of the world; not a place for pollution and destruction; and 

WHEREAS, the Army has withheld truth from Hawai'i Island residents in the past, secretly testing germs and nerve gases in Waiakea Forest Reserve from 1964 to 1976, dumping contaminated test materials into an earth crack near Volcano Highway and secretly testing chemical spray in a watershed area between Stainback Highway and Saddle Road from 1966-1967; and 

WHEREAS, in the former Waikoloa Maneuver Area, three deaths were caused by old ordnance in 1945 and 1954, and four live grenades were found in 2002 at Waimea Middle School; and 

WHEREAS, the Army has not protected the environment at Pohakuloa Training Area (PTA)-- allowing hoofed animals to roam freely; leaving wildfires burning for days in the 1980s and 1990s; and failing to do proper environmental studies for a firing range in the 1980s; and 

WHEREAS, the Army is proposing an expansion plan to add 23,000 acres to Pohakuloa Training Area, improve the PTA runway there to bring in larger airplanes, and build a new tank trail to Kawaihae; and WHEREAS, the military already controls 110,000 acres, or 4%, of Hawai'i Island and 85,000 acres, or 22%, of 0'ahu; and 

WHEREAS, the Army stated it could look at meeting training needs without expansion, using other locations. 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the County of Hawai'i supports formation of a Technical Review Committee, Restoration Advisory Board, or other appropriate mechanism to provide citizen input on activities at Pohakuloa Training Area. 

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the County Clerk transmit copies of this resolution to The Honorable George W. Bush, President of the United States of America, Mr. Donald Rumsfeld, Defense Secretary, Major General James Dubik, Commander of the 25th Infantry Division (fight) and U.S Army Hawai'i, as well as The Honorable Daniel Inouye, The Honorable Daniel Akaka, The Honorable Neil Abercrombie and The Honorable Ed Case. 

INTRODUCED BY: Bob Jacobson COUNCIL MEMBER, COUNTY OF HAWAI'I