On the day the world's largest telescope (Keck II) was dedicated (May 8, 1996) the Honolulu Advertiser printed a strong editorial criticizing the astronomy industry for not paying sufficient attention to the environmental and cultural concerns being raised by the Sierra Club and Native Hawaiian organizations. The editorial urged studies of damage to insect life and cultural sites "before we risk losing an earthly ecosystem in our rush to study the distant stars." Congratulations Sierra Club for standing up and being counted. This is an affirmation or our message and an excellent example of the statewide support we are receiving.
During an interview with the Honolulu Star Bulletin on May 7, 1996 Institute for Astronomy (IFA) Director Don Hall admitted that the 40 antenna proposal (Massive Millimeter Array -- MMA) or any other new facility, will need a new environmental impact statement. The last summit Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) was done in 1983. Concerns have been raised by environmentalists and Native Hawaiians that the astronomy industry may try to seek exemptions to federal EIS laws (like the one Senator Daniel Inouye pushed through Congress to exempt the H-3 highway). A dangerous precedent for astronomy has already been set on Mt. Graham in Arizona where observatory construction has cut into a federally protected animal species habitat.
The Mauna Kea Cultural and Natural Advisory Council toured the Science Reserve managed by the IFA and visited places identified by research biologists as essential habitat for endemic fauna and flora. Council members were shocked by the destruction caused by construction activity. One cinder cone flagged by the biologists as having a large population of the rare Wekiu bugs was completely altered -- the top 40 feet bulldozed for three facilities -- Keck I, Keck II, and Subaru (Japan National Telescope). Another sensitive habitat area about the size of a football field was bulldozed flat and close inspection revealed many small pieces of rubbish and construction debris. Contractors used the former Wekiu bug habitat for a staging area and for strong materials.
More habitat destruction was found at the Gemini Telescope construction site. The main roadway was moved over one road-width, right into Wekiu bug habitat. Dr. Fred Stone, who in 1982 helped map the habitat of the newly discovered insect communities, has written an alarming letter to Department of Land and Natural Resource (DLNR) Director Mike Wilson charging that the biological damage appears irreversible and he calls for an immediate moratorium on any further construction activities until biological and archeological surveys are completed.
On May 12, Club volunteers joined with DLNR's Bill Stormont and Dr. Don Hall, Director of IFA, to install large Natural Area Reserve (NAR) boundary signs along with "No Off-Road Vehicle" markers. These signs will protect the "Ice Age NAR" which encompasses significant cultural, geological, and biological resources. Despite our differences in the way Mauna Kea has been managed, all participants pitched in for a great service trip surrounded by splendid scenery and the bracing environment of 13,000 feet elevation. Afterwards, Dr. Hall treated the volunteers to lunch at IFA's Mid Level Hale Pohaku facility.
MKSS maintains the Mauna Kea road to the summit and the Hale Pohaku Mid Level Facility on behalf of all the observatories on the mountain. During the road resurfacing activities, crews have set-up berms along the roadside to prevent illegal 4 X 4 traffic onto sensitive areas of the mountain. Other MKSS help came by installing much needed signs marking certain "off-limits areas. In April, four UH-Hilo students and a rental car were cited for illegal off-road driving in the Natural Reserve Area. Scarring of the cinder cones is very evident on several cones and lasts for years.