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Jason Schwartz is joined by Maui County Councilman SHANE SINENCI… First term councilman Sinenci discusses his important role on Culture and Environmental Committee; shares his views on important subjects facing the County government now AND into the future…8-26-2019
Summary & Transcript
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- [00:00 → 06:24] Introduction and Background of Council Member Shane Sinenci
The interview opens with host Jason Schwartz introducing Shane Sinenci, a sitting Maui County Council member representing Hana, Maui. Sinenci is a longtime community member and former special education teacher with 20 years of experience in Hana, a rural area of Maui. He emphasizes his deep understanding of rural community needs, particularly for families with special needs, and his grassroots support during his campaign. Sinenci expresses gratitude to supporters and highlights the collective community effort involved in his journey from educator to council member. He notes that while he is new to the council, he feels a strong responsibility to represent rural voices at the county decision-making table. - [06:24 → 09:31] The Reality of Political Power and Council Role
Sinenci discusses the difference between expectations before holding office and the reality once in the council seat. He explains that as one vote among nine council members, he does not hold unilateral power to enact change but must work collaboratively. He serves as chair of the Environmental, Agriculture, and Cultural Preservation Committee, where his background as a cultural practitioner and resident of Hana aligns well with committee responsibilities. Sinenci highlights ongoing efforts such as proposing a pesticide ban in county parks, mirroring recent pesticide-free policies in public schools. He stresses the importance of constituent engagement through testimonies and letters to support council initiatives, acknowledging that public participation significantly influences council decisions. - [09:31 → 16:41] Navigating Governance and Priorities
Jason probes about how Sinenci manages the volume of issues and his priorities. Sinenci acknowledges a steep learning curve and the need for extensive research and consultation before making decisions. His priorities include environmental protection, cultural preservation, and affordable housing. He reflects on how housing is a critical yet complex issue in Hana, balancing the need for more housing with preserving community character and environmental values. Sinenci explains that sustainable development is a key concern and that much of his work involves addressing long-standing problems in county governance, including vetting department heads and addressing past policy challenges. He admits that governing entails dealing with difficult realities, not simply “draining the swamp” as some might initially hope. 
Sinenci elaborates on affordable housing challenges in Maui County. He explains that while there are mechanisms such as the “tool 1’h process” to require affordable units in private developments, implementation is difficult. Affordability clauses often last only 10 years, after which units revert to market prices, limiting long-term affordability. Sinenci highlights efforts to extend affordability timeframes to 30 years or perpetuity. He also discusses how short-term rentals have contributed to the loss of affordable housing stock, driving up rents. The council has imposed taxes on hotel and short-term rental units to generate funds for housing programs. Sinenci stresses that affordable housing development requires collaboration between government and private developers, incentivized by tax credits and leveraging state and federal funding.- [25:18 → 31:17] Countywide Representation and Environmental Initiatives
Sinenci underscores that Maui County council members are elected at-large, representing the entire county, including Maui, Molokai, and Lanai, which poses unique challenges in campaigning and addressing diverse community needs. He discusses environmental initiatives, including legislation aimed at reducing single-use plastics and improving recycling. Sinenci explains the island’s challenges with waste management, particularly since China’s ban on importing recyclables has shifted the recycling burden to places like California, and much waste still ends up polluting oceans. He stresses the need for community education and support to move toward more sustainable practices and reduction of plastic pollution. - [31:17 → 38:08] Lahaina Injection Wells and Legal Challenges
Sinenci brings up the contentious issue of the Lahaina injection wells, which are under legal scrutiny and are expected to be heard by the Hawaii Supreme Court. The wells are a source of pollution concerns affecting ocean health and coral reefs. Sinenci explains that the council may vote on a settlement to avoid prolonged litigation, but this requires a supermajority. He highlights the importance of strong public advocacy and community awareness to influence council decisions on environmental protection. The challenge lies in balancing legal, environmental, and political considerations while setting precedents for future cases involving pollution and environmental stewardship. - [38:08 → 44:03] Public Engagement and Access to Council Information
Sinenci encourages the public to stay informed by using the county’s online legislative information system (accessible at leches.starcom or similar), where residents can track bills, meeting agendas, and testimonies. He emphasizes that public participation—especially during budget sessions and contentious issues—is crucial for influencing policy outcomes. The council values diverse input, including from scientists and longtime community advocates. Sinenci reiterates that decisions made now will greatly impact future generations, underscoring the council’s role as stewards of the island’s natural and cultural resources. 
Sinenci highlights agriculture as a vital secondary economic pillar alongside tourism. He discusses ongoing efforts to increase funding for agricultural programs and apprenticeships to promote food security and sustainable farming practices. Sinenci also stresses the importance of cultural preservation, noting that many historic and sacred sites lack adequate protection due to understaffed state historic preservation offices. Maui County recently added a county archaeologist position to improve oversight and prevent unmonitored development on culturally sensitive lands. There is also discussion about establishing cultural overlay zones to safeguard significant sites and burials, reflecting a growing commitment to honoring Hawaiian history and traditions in land use planning.- [50:51 → 56:06] Climate Change, Resiliency, and Sustainable Development
Sinenci touches on the creation of a new County Climate Change and Resiliency Department or division through a proposed charter amendment. This department would coordinate county-wide efforts to address sea-level rise, shoreline retreat, and climate impacts affecting infrastructure and development. He acknowledges ongoing development projects in vulnerable coastal areas like South Maui and Kihei, expressing concern about the pace and location of growth without adequate climate considerations. Sinenci stresses the need for proactive policies to guide sustainable development that protects environmental and community resilience. This includes enforcing community plans and zoning regulations to avoid overdevelopment and preserve Maui’s unique character. - [56:06 → 58:00] Closing Remarks and Vision for the Future
In closing, Sinenci shares his personal motivation as a lifelong resident and educator dedicated to preserving Maui’s environment and lifestyle for future generations. He expresses concern about the impacts of tourism on small communities, particularly in East Maui, and the risk of losing the island’s cultural and natural heritage to overdevelopment. Sinenci advocates for sustainable tourism and carefully managed visitor impacts to maintain quality of life for residents. He invites the public to engage with the council and participate actively in shaping Maui’s future, emphasizing that collective community involvement is key to success.
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- Key Insights and Takeaways
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- Maui County governance requires collaboration and public participation; council members have limited individual power but can influence policy through community support.
- Affordable housing remains a critical and complex issue, with ongoing efforts to extend affordability terms and address the impacts of short-term rentals.
- Environmental challenges, particularly plastic pollution and ocean health, are key priorities for the council’s environmental committee.
- Legal battles such as the Lahaina injection wells case highlight the intersection of environmental protection and political decision-making.
- Public engagement, transparency, and access to information are essential for effective local governance.
- Agriculture is recognized as an important economic and cultural pillar, with increasing support for sustainable food systems.
- New initiatives addressing climate change and resiliency signal a forward-looking approach to development and infrastructure.
- Cultural preservation efforts, including increased archaeological oversight and protective zoning, aim to safeguard Maui’s heritage amid development pressures.
- Sustainable tourism management is critical to balancing economic benefits with community well-being and environmental protection.
This comprehensive summary captures the depth of the discussion, organized according to the video’s natural flow and topics, providing a clear understanding of Council Member Shane Sinenci’s role, challenges, and vision for Maui County.
TRANSCRIPT
[Music] good morning everyone it’s 11:00 a.m. on Monday this is the neutral zone I’m your host Jason sports we have a great guest today [Music] [Music] please leave you good morning Aloha everyone I am sitting here monday august 26 2019 you may be seeing this or listening to it live Facebook live you’ll find it at kku 88.5 FM on facebook also a next day you’ll find it up at Maui neutral zone comm along with the rest of our shows I think we’re up to 57 and you’ll also find that
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on YouTube and you’ll also but if you’re watching ikkaku you’ll say is that a radio show yeah we’re trying to make sure people know this radio station exists you can also find it on tuned in on the radio on your phone so we’re available and we’re building an audience I’m sitting here with the guests that if you don’t know him and you’re missing it live you’ll say oh I want to go see this guy again he’s really dynamic well you can see this guy again in I’m here with
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teacher weren’t you yes with 20 years of special education teacher in Hana one threat just a little bit closer so we get yeah that’s perfect okay um yeah you move that if you want perfect so as a special education teacher and someone in our community from Hana you got to understand rural you got to understand families special needs families real need [Music] things lacking for many years I imagine who you part of all the stuff going on in Hana all the time all those years yes it’s such a small town you you can’t be
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outside of it if you live in AMA yeah so I’ve been part of it the last 20 years so here you are a guy now who went from public teacher and doing an excellent job in the local community to representing that area all the areas but as a residency seat welcome to our show congratulations on your win I know it’s much after the election you’ve now been serving having a sitting counselor person who you know I feel like is one of the boys has been there and grown through the ranks and now is sitting at
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the roundtable is a great thing and I’m just really thrilled to know that someone from a rural community you also kyani who sits there you know from a rural community and I know that you’re both different but I think of this term with the new council a new Youngblood any things that you see immediately when you’re sitting there were so different than you thought they were when you’re outside the seat of course first off mr. Schwartz I just wanted to give a shout out and a big Mahalo for having me you know and I
apologize for not being here earlier but you’ve been a supporter of our grassroots campaign in the last two years and so I just wanted to Mahalo you for that and I’m so happy to be here hanging out with you finally and talking sorry Rob but you’re right we’re still we’re still kind of amazed you know we sometimes we still kind of gotta pinch ourselves that we we got in and so we’ve been given this opportunity and like you said for for rural communities like like Hana we get to you know we definitely have a
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voice now at the table so we’re very appreciative for all the support and you know as a took us a couple years to get where we are right now and a lot of you know sweat hard work and science a lot of sign-waving yeah so they’re people that you know have some of the music as a dartboard they’re foolin but so you know and keep their kids happy because they’re Shane is always with them right I don’t know where they are as some guys might have them at that garage next door what I
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correct but we did you know just going through this last 20 years as a teacher in Hana you know we’ve definitely being been involved with our small community and you know it hasn’t been a it’s been a kako thing I’ve there’s many supporters and people that are on the front lines and are doing you know the work for for the environment for for our small communities and I just wanted to recognize them because without them I wouldn’t be here you know it has definitely been a group effort and so I
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wanted to thank all those people to help me along the way mala well you know and funny the destination we’re not the destination we’re all on that direction toward perfection we’re working on it a long time and put things that when you’re sitting in the council seat well I guess I want to compare it to when when you became the Donald Trump of your seat there now I’m fully in your seat and you have no power yeah new power any ways that you see that you’ve been able to use it or not use it in different than
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it’s great it’s definitely been a learning curve in this last eight months that we’ve been on the job the environmental agriculture and cultural preservation committee suits me well and and I was supported by the majority of the council members some probably because of my background as a cultural practitioner and living in such a beautiful place like Hana so the environment was definitely something that we we grow up in as practitioners as gathers mauka to Makai so definitely fits you know my role on the on the
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County Council you feel that you are there in that role in that are seeing progress in a very meaningful way to you yes we’ve been trying to put some you know some progressive bills through currently we’re working on a pesticide bill for County Parks you know the Department of Education just made all schools pesticide free so we’re looking we’re working with the Public Works and the parks and recreation departments to see if we can go and do an alternative to using pesticides on our County parks
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and roadways so can you just declare an edict or you have to get it to run through it can’t do like Trump does this is now the role I’m changing it by executive order if you have any executive power as a council person now you can do things without decision oh yeah no I’ve just one vote of nine on the council so but there’s a lot of progressive issues that are coming through and and different people constituents are calling their council members to support some of these initiatives so we’ve got a good support
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from from the people out in Maui County Maui Molokai and lanai so so we encourage people to come down and share their mana Oh at County chambers because it really helps when when more of the county members hear from the people and even if it’s multiple times it really makes an impact on them so letters get the letters right we get all the always wonder you know sometimes because I know guys like you I think well they know how I feel you know interact should I send the letter and yeah you should wear calm
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down sometimes because of my role in this media seat I’m careful of being too publicly outspoken not sure how things get interpreted and yet public forums so you’ll see me you’ll watch that now you’ll see really will I come out but I’m watching yeah correct you’re absolutely correct and I’ve had that from from some of my constituents it’s like a I don’t want to come down and and you’re right people are either working or they’re busy at home with the kids
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but some people some people will actually tell me hey I voted you in so I don’t need to come down there anymore and and testify anymore and that’s true but for for some of these issues that may might be more contentious that and we need to get more public publicity out there into the communities I think it’s good in educating you know the the masses so that people you know keeping government transparent and keep keeping people aware of what are the issues are and how how they would affect their
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daily life so you found people in your area there you remote testimony yet you know and yeah we’re still working on that yeah we’re trying to get more from the remote rural areas to come out and testify because I know you know especially like here we are on Facebook live there are ways that testimony can happen from a distance yeah that’s something that the chair is working on and you know all through the budget session and the budget meetings in the different districts you know the
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more people came out during those budgetary meetings I mean definitely impactful when making budgetary decisions on us so I want to thank everybody who showed up because it you know really helps well you know I I can say I imagined but I know that to be doing this as one person you couldn’t do it without a great staff that is supporting you and people around you talking outside you have to have a calendar and you’re on a running schedule because you really are a more than full-time full-time part-time
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whatever they call you you know advocate of things you’re out there and running with a great team and what subjects I’m gonna be with such a busy schedule I wonder sometimes where do you focus your time you’ll have all kinds of support how do you best function you know it’s every other week there’s a different agenda for the different committee meetings so there’s something new on every every week and you’re right to it when you spoke earlier about there’s a lot of reading just to catch up you know
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for my first month you know and going through the vetting process of the the mayor’s department heads you know we quickly had to for me anyway quickly had to get on board and and read up on a lot of past history of past issues that that has come through the county you know prior to to my position on the council so luckily I’ve got some staff that knows a lot of the historical content of the of the council to quickly get me up to speed and that has been really impactful as well you know I think all
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through that process it was somewhat stressful you know we had you know you you you kind of had sites and families involved and friends and people involved because you know we’re all family here on Maui so you know somebody knows somebody or is related to somebody so so that was that was the the hard part when we were vetting to some of this department heads because we didn’t want to hurt any of the families but but we did want to address some of past issues that that may have been either negative
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you know whatever you couldn’t well you know anybody say to be a leader you have to be brave because you got to deal with things that sometimes people don’t want to deal with right that’s stuff under the rug right and yes and that was yeah that was pretty intense for me and you know we did you know of course as new councilman you know you look at we want to keep the the sanctity and the safety of of the county government so so there was time so we found out or issues that you know made the county either at risk
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you want to have happen and now get on council that old thing comes up it’s difficult to remember that your original intention was to drain the swamp when you’re up to your ass in alligators so there’s so many issues you suddenly discover on counteract all these difficult things it’s like a bit overwhelming have you found an area that you really are working on I think of you as a champion have you picked any issues and you’re working through but I’m just curious you know as a council person
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we’re working on bills you got all kinds of committee stuff so you move into ledges let you know litigation stuff forward hearing all kinds of things about dropping litigation we got to make decisions all kinds of big issues coming up that we hear lots of statements on but here I am I’m a guy talking about environment when I think about environment the first thing jumps in my mind is we need more housing I imagine in Hana is also it’s like we need more housing but we don’t want it to look
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like like the Westside and we like to have it and make it work in our community and we need housing in the middle but that may not be the passion some people say well I’m now in there now I’m going to make sure that our environment is happening or I’m gonna make sure I strengthen what has been your passion when you’re in there was rich driving you these all right there’s definitely a lot of priorities and so I was just thinking I got a I got to put it on a prioritize yeah there’s a bunch
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just a bunch but going back to your first point you know I think coming in with with fresh eyes fresh years being a the public school teacher for 20 years it is kind of was a blessing and a curse because you know I got to be very observant and and listening to all of these things and then and then making those decisions speaking with colleagues and and doing my own research so so that has kind of helped me I think by just taking on you know not taking sides but you know just really listening to the issues and then
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making some really cognizant decisions when voting housing is definitely an issue I’ve got a you know my family I’ve got an architecture background and an affordable housing specifically so I’m kind of a I’m more of a minimalist when it comes to architecture but that was one of the first issues that came through my committee we did a conservation code we adopted the conservation code so so it designs can be more geared toward Island designs where you didn’t have all these are
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rated values for you know for your homes as far as environment are rated values is not something like the movies that’s in insula yeah sorry yeah yeah all right we don’t need all those edit for for Holly’s in in Hawaii but definitely environment has been a has been a big issue agriculture we’re currently working on a bill to increase agriculture spending on the state site so we’re putting in a package with with the other counties to the state legislature so funding more agriculture
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promote agriculture and food security Maui County and across the state so that’s one of our issues that we’re trying to promote and we want to we want to continue also agriculture as a secondary economic engine and not just rely on our tourist industry we funded a lot of the the u-h agriculture programs including the fam the apprentice programs and and we’re looking forward to the hf uu a convention sometimes later later this year farmers you know correct sorry-sorry throwing all these the other
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one i was trying to figure the fam is probably farmed aid something and management you know it’s really good that these programs are ongoing with so many things and so many things that intensity level needs have you guys ever proposed i mean it’s great to sit out here and not have to do it i’m gonna have to ask somebody else what about an emergency condition to be able to condemn lands an eminent domain and and create housing and take a builder and say look we’ll give you tax incentives
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if you will work on affordable housing rather than new housing we’re gonna have a restriction about new how about the vacations of at some point but because you’re a good citizen we’re going to do this and we’re gonna try to do without having to pass a law let me say is that for me to go to a developer and say look developer you do this let’s get a tax credit from the government so you can make as much money but you’re doing what we need yet happen does that happen well we did it through the racing some of the
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texas for hotels short-term rentals and condominiums and and it wasn’t a large increase but we felt that some of those went well some of us felt that taxing the hotel short-term rentals and condos is because you know for one the short-term rentals because of short-term rentals we’ve lost a large huge affordable housing inventory to to that industry yeah and and that’s that’s part of why we’re in this housing crisis people justify charging high rents because of the huge prices they pay because there’s not
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enough housing inventory we’ve watched this you and I from the public sector for 20 years you’ve been watching as a teacher and no one we need housing and they keep push it back pushing back pushing back when the Tasha talks about where we have 200 units here and 50 here yeah I know that’s big but I keep thinking we need 5,000 isn’t that an emergency and emergency can be declared or it can be that’s why I’m asking it kind of this way as a council person can you go to a guy’ll a good fellow and
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someone like a and B and say or whoever it is and say you have land here or does it have to be the private sector to instigate them to do something right so no we can’t and it’s right we’re just a policymaker so we can just make policy but now a lot of them what a misdeal and I were to come to you and say look these guys agreed that they’ll do this this and this but we need to offset their tax burden and give them a way to make this then I would come to you I mean I’m trying to understand how to how to
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interact public with you without a lot of people think that you guys in your seats can declare out change and it will happen where it takes involvement in the private sector that’s why I’m asking this right right and yeah County government DeLuna we’re limited Road it takes correct and do stuff correct and it takes a while and I think the only thing that we can influence is you know the tool 1’h process the tool 1’h process is for affordable housing or at least to keep upwards of 50% of a private project
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in an affordability and so the problem the other problem was that the affordability clause was only 10 years so we saw after 10 years a lot of this affordable projects or homes flipped after 10 years and when they returned back into the market with market values and then again it took us out of affordability again so so those same homes were now being sold for seven eight hundred thousand dollars I know when originally three four hundred thousand two were you know they were sold for so and even those numbers when
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you say three and four hundred thousand when we write Jobs Act Lee are you kidding me I’m a teacher for 20 years I said yeah I can’t buy that yeah same here I still like I’m thinking this that’s why I’m I’m I’ve the words emergency you know those are big words and I know I’m using them there may be very bold but they’re meant to be what is the mechanism to to get faster action on issues in the public that we want and I’m guessing from what we’re seeing here
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that the private sector has to come up with a deal and then see what government can do or the government might see what they could do to pass a law to encourage that private sector thing to happen more correct well who did we’ve definitely gotten their attention because you as we haven’t okayed some of the projects that have come through through the county and some of the reasons was again that affordability clause we’re looking at affordability at their you know minimum of 30 huge years into perpetuity you
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know so that it remains in and that income level also addressing a very low income though I think developers can still make their money if they’re addressing the hundred percent ami and above hundred twenty percent ami and above they can still you know pencil into the right area median income so I think they can sue pencil out their projects it’s just when we’re dealing with the really low 60% ami and below 30% ami and below and so we’re seeing slowly seeing some some projects that
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come through the county that they’re getting a lot of funding whether it be from h FF e not the Hawaii housing programs the state housing program some federal photos without those funds current would be very difficult to create affordable housing is correct and what we’re seeing is that whatever the county is giving them for their projects they’re leveraging those funds to get more monies to this to pencil out let’s think about we’re gonna I’m here with Shane Sinenci president council member from Hana
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Maui Hawaii I’m Jason Schwartz we’re gonna go to break and let some sponsors talk for a few minutes and come back and we’ll get into some other specific issues but this issue thank you for taking the time to go into I know it’s a bit of an unusual direction that I went in but I keep thinking that the public’s got to solve this and now I know it really is more important that the public generates activity and not ask the government to solve some of these problems that can’t
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get solved without more public activity with public and not with government you know it’s interesting I’m happened to much the neutral zone with me Jason Schwartz would like to sincerely thank David Bryan for his support David was founder and head of school at New Road School in Santa Monica California and as the board chair at the Ojai Foundation and on the board for brave new films the neutral zone has heard live Mondays at 11:00 a.m. here on Kak you 88.5 FM the voice of maui and again on saturdays at 7:00 a.m. as well
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as on TV and on Maui neutral zone calm Aloha Archy kalapa here asking you to help protect our local coral reefs by switching your sunscreen avoid sunscreens with oxybenzone and opt in oxy to chemicals that can harm or kill corals there are lots of safe for the reef choices get info at Maui reef shark slash sunscreen brought to you with Aloha by Maui newly marine resource Council Maui’s Visitors Bureau county of Maui office of economic development and me Archie : superstar titus o’neil it
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registration hi I’m Jason Schwartz host of the neutral zone kak u is a listener-supported station this means that all the great programs you hear like mine are sponsored by you as well as our underwriters if you would like to help keep the voice of Maui can loud and clear go to kak UF m dot org slash donate today and give and don’t miss the neutral on mondays at 11:00 a.m. on 88.5 FM a voice of maui [Music] aloha this is Jason Schwartz at kak you the neutral zone 88.5 FM here with Shane Sinenci are sitting councilman
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from Hana Maui now you should remember out there all our audiences know that in Maui County we vote at-large voting which means Jensen NC is your council person no matter where you live in Maui County if you think this is the man who needs to hear what you’ve got to say he’s the guy you see because he’s for everyone there’s a residency requirement because we want districts to be represented that have different kind of constituency but we’re all big constituency and one big melting pot
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called Maui County right correct I’m hopefully that I’m not just to weigh out we had subjects that I wanted to bring back and say okay Shane which subjects are really most important for you I know I see all kinds of notes in them I’m very impressed you came with things that you want to share and I want to jump into that so do you take the lead thanks Jason well I just wanted to speak to your first comment because you’re right I’m from a small rural town you know and then I but I have to go campaign in all
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three all three islands for we call well not coal lobby but you know it’s part of for Island County so of Yorker absolutely correct I definitely have to come into calorie Wailuku and Lahaina to to come in campaign because you’re right it’s it’s all nine districts throughout throughout the county so it’s that has been a challenge for me as well as some of the other issues you know we were as the environmental committee chair we talked about recycling reuse and that has been a I think a couple of the
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[Music] rezo’s and bills that were passing we want to continue the the plastics different plastics and some of the trash we live on an island and then people should get that one I hope right so we’re trying to push more of you know the single-use looks you’re getting rid of single-use plastic is correct I mean we’ve definitely seen the additional trash and and you know our idea the county’s idea about recycling is to ship it off to recycle our you know China doesn’t take it anymore so
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we’ve got our aluminum plastics glass and we just ship it off I mean or to California and they process it there so so instead we’re in the middle of the ocean that gets lost and goes right the plastic island and part of it is because you know some of these smaller island nations they don’t have any there live on adults they don’t have anyplace any landfills or anything so they just throw it in the and of the ocean and it ends up on all their beaches on the language side wherever the water comes it’s like
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they’re at our Beach every article as I don’t know what the numbers are but even our beaches here have plastics in them so these problems so you’ve been doing things with environmental plastics well yeah yeah yeah and I just brought it up because you’re gonna see more as as we continue in our term you’re gonna see some of this come up and and some of it you know and I’m just bringing it up Jason because you know it’s something you know you know us old dogs you know we still do things no way they in our
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own way so it’s gonna it’s gonna take a lot of educate on our part and if people come up and educate people there are a lot of people in the field that are moving already at looking at paper products and and would you know would sports those types of things and and recycling so some people are already on the bandwagon and and Kenny restore them and we’re trying to well we’re trying to get community support and educate our our community so that we can work to much more of a green
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and healthy environment and forks out of old spoons and forks right or or just use yeah just use your old the metal ones you know instead or take I’ve seen a spork and I thought it was really a great thing a biodegradable thing that you don’t have this sudden you’re gonna see it come up in a turtle right and I take it’s really when you’re out there in this water here and you’ve been here like you have all your life and and me now thirty years to see what’s gone on and it’s just a sad thing that injection
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well you mentioned why we’re sitting off the thing is something’s going on there what’s happening with that you guys ready the line injection well debt that is gonna be coming up in committee meeting on next week Tuesday and the g-e-t Committee at 9:30 a.m. so the issues with the Lahaina injection wells that it’s later in the year in November I believe it’s going to go through the Supreme Court to be heard in the Supreme Court if you guys can stop that right the county can can vote to
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settle before going to the Supreme Court that’s if you know we have a majority to vote to settle and the mayor you know Mary’s continuing last mayors appeal of of the ninth and fourth circuit court’s decision so I think what the problem is is there’s you know people think there’s a lot of people jumping on bandwagon and we’re seeing that there it’s a lot of polluters throughout the nation you know whether it be gas oil fracking you know these people kind of want to support Maui County because I
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think if the county is successful at the Supreme Court it could mean you know injecting and polluting more of our environment so I think that’s where so we as public they are hoping that council people like you hear the message you just delivered to me so I’m hoping that your cohorts enough of them can make a determination that will not let looters feel like they can run rampant you’re right it is a very powerful issue in urine right now a county consists of precedence for doing that and and I think it’s I don’t want
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the county to be known for that you know for setting a precedent well looting our our our oceans or reefs and and and we all want the same thing a lot of the monies that could go in different ways can be used here to solve them problems and grad off this this trail that it’s been correct and I think the the plaintiffs they just want to fix the problem they want to stop polluting our ocean shore lines and our reefs and just do something else with our the effluent so we’re hoping that yeah if we can
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settle that’ll be great if not I don’t know what the ramifications ramifications go you hopefully you can settle I mean you’re wonderful how many more do we need right just never going yeah uh-huh so and can they override the mayor if the mayor says oh no we want to fight this to the end no I think that the county can sue can all right yeah so what they call the super majority yeah and and if people out there need to be you know educated some more please show up words or tuned in and I believe it’s
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September second or third that Thomas Navy real soon the other time yeah bum your website you know I know that people always ask you me about how do you know about bills that are on pretty easy for the public to navigate to find out what’s coming up so they can be there to testify yeah I think it’s on the county website is leches starcom and it has over yeah and it’ll show a bill isn’t right humming off yeah you click on the link and then it’ll just pop up all the different bills you can see all
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the the the bills that are coming through or and it also has meeting notes and I mean reading notes testimony for the communities I know that we’ve got some strangers yeah and great testimony from the public so I like reading the testimonies people from people that are scientists people you know that have been involved in the issues for years I mean you know catching up but then and getting their perspective is great so yet jump online if you know you’ve access and you know get get up to speed with some of these
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issues cuz we’re doing this for the kids you know what we do now will affect you know the next generations down the road into a room and I’m looking around and I think I’m the oldest one here everything I do is for them yeah we’re now getting to a point where you know the future is these people that we’re seeing out there how could we not do what we need to do to leave them a better place than when we were here that what we’re supposed to that’s correct we want to be good
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stewards good kupuna and and right give them a chance that they can you know enjoy what we have right now and I think this is the time to make the stand right you’ve seen it before making the stand now instead of going we could you know that fierce you know some people say shucks we’re one one counsel away from you know from really developing the island to the point where you know we could be like Oahu or even you know some of these Hong Kong and some of these other Asian countries where we could you
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know easily within a matter of years just right at a incredible pace so field now it has two million people right now so putting on the brakes putting on at least setting the infrastructure putting in policies that a dictate where we go in the future and you guys have been pretty aggressive yeah yeah we’ve we’ve spent a lot of time fixing a lot of stuff you know again that are questionable or you know litigates so we’re hoping to to make very clear policies and so that you know there is no question or you know
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this is this is what the community wants we want to support the Maui Island plan the community plans and we have Mahalo everybody said but that’s been coming out and you know contributing to that process because it’s definitely an important process whenever I think of that I think about Lucien de neige who I’ve known since I’m a little a little child she was with me a little yeah yeah but Lucien always has been working on that for so long the commitment that people put into going through the
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community plan and doing their part to bring this whole thing to be a great plan and then to see it not followed that’s correct sacrilege so right Oh glad to hear that you you’re listening to what the community is bringing to you and that’s a good point I mean we definitely need to enforce our own brews and regulations right it’s been such a you know challenge all these years is if we’re putting policies that we can’t even enforce our old policies well yeah definitely needs some changes there yeah
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yeah I took your if you list them what other things as far as the environment we’re looking at a vase of species you know the county in the last meeting concerning Maui invasive species they definitely wanna fund more protection of our environment from invasive species we again we put out a bill for for more spending for agriculture that could technically be more funds being spent at our airports and our ports of entry so that we can kind of address some of the the problems that the Big Island has definitely seen as
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last couple of years so you know just more biosecurity and not you know just allowing you know it’s it’s crazy because when you leave the island you know you have to throw your bags through the the agricultural checkpoint right and that’s California’s law so we’re paying for California’s law to to check whatever is entering into California oh and those are coming the other way anybody to know nothing nothing substantial and I think substantially comes into Hawaii I mean you have to
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sign a little waiver on the airplanes on the airplanes but what that’s it so we’ve definitely I mean we live in one of the most isolated places in the world you know and and in most remote land masses interact with us you know the most got its blessings and it’s curses the a yeah and I’m surprised that we haven’t you know made more of an effort for for our own biosecurity well here we are yeah so then how are you is your issue of agriculture as a second economic engine besides tourism and
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there’s so many areas that you know can be helped by strong agricultural base and everything you’re talking about I mean I hope I’m not you know turning it into you know will sound like a whitewash economic sound like a white guy the Hawaiians have done this forever you know but I remember when I came to you because I think it was your uncle and some kind of housing design yeah natural housing design that I thought you know this could be taught this is before you’re on council I think
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what I really recognize you know the I guess and maybe I’m just bringing it in because when you’re talking about environment you think about culture what culture comes up to me is the Hawaiian culture and all first of all cultural preservation but also the practices that were very successful that had how many a million people here on the island before some incredible number that makes us look foolish that we can’t handle a couple hundred thousand right and I think basically it was just a whole
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system from mauka to Makai and just following the basic premise that the water cycle and how water flows from Moka through the you know the VAWA khua and your filters through all the mosses ferns and ancient forests down into the aquifers and then down out into our estuaries that create you know the fishery fisheries down along the shorelines and you don’t build the you know nuke schools or condo complexes along where the water is coming rushing down you take the can you divert that and use it for agriculture
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why are we not doing logical natural things kenta is there that kind of stuff being talked about you uh not really maybe maybe not right and we’re looking at it that brings me up to my other issue we are starting the the climate change in resiliency department or division we’re going to be talking about that in my meeting next Tuesday in the environmental agriculture and cultural preservation committee so we’re hoping to create it’ll be a charter amendment to create a climate and resiliency
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Department or County division so that we can look at you know whether it be retreating from the shoreline or just you know it’s just kind of addressing sea level rise and climate change and for example addressing and recommending changes and lost so these policies yet policies correct because again we’re on an island and you know the environment would we’re constantly at the imagining you’re gonna build a hotel for a 300 million and you’re gonna do it in Kihei and so where do you choose to
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put your new thing there at the Maui loo where you have a motion at the front where there’s no more Kihei Road that part of the deal is they’re raising Kihei Road I don’t really understand how that stuff keeps moving forward anything what happens with that don’t they say yeah you got you guys have you looked at what’s gonna be happening here in the next 20 30 years or you’re gonna build anyway you know right and we’re hoping that at this you know this charter will begin that conversation and start to you
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know definitely affect all the different departments of the county government so that you know there’s just another thing that we need to be addressing and like you said there was stopped building on the shorelines I don’t understand as I go by in there in South Maui I Drive by that spot and I everytime wonder why why are they not addressing this now is it nothing you can address has already been passed and it’s going on that’s I know I think which we’re still addressing those
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for some of the hotels that are coming through we get to vet some of these projects so yeah we’ll definitely let the community know when they they come through but right it seems like that project kind of slipped under the radar right well you know they bought that property a long time that’s what uh so they’re amazing there’s a lot of if there were a lot of men’s different notes yeah those are some of the things that people are asking about the county government you know they received their
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permits years ago but they didn’t build immediately so now some developers are using those whether it be other permits that are still kind of lingering out there whether it be OD is and environmental impact studies that are out there there they sometimes they’re using older ones that was from that a really obsolete based – that’s correct yes so they’re already in motion and continuing in motion all right those are so those are some of the issues that we need to address what are the things
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on your right because I can I can pick things out of the air and talk but I know that with all your time Mary you really must have an impression of where you feel you can be most effective I know you’re being very effective as you’re sharing about in the environmental area in building new protections in creating new directions for us not to be using stuff in parts that’s the best aside and and like you say more changes of rules and making things better cultural right a big one all right so cultural preservation we
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did introduce into the budget a new position the karch County archeologists so the big problem especially with Maui Lani and all the you know the barrios that were disturbed during that and all these past years was because the State Historic Preservation division you know either they’re too busy or they they don’t have any they’re not properly staffed so in the past if if the ship D the start preservation division didn’t comment do an assessment a lot of the projects just went ahead without any
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cultural monitoring so the the intent of the County archaeologist is to kind of do some of the preliminary work before ship d we still need ship d to come and sign off when some of these projects but if we did have a county archeologist and we could you know technically do some of the preliminary work and and avoid some of these and avoid some of these things because because if it didn’t go after 30 days the project just kind of went ahead without any monitoring of the sites so um so that debt was an addition that we put in and
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we’re also looking at some kind of a cultural overlay where you know we were just in the county which is say hey certain places on the island I just you know couple you know though these they’re known for significant Barrios Eva coupeau know so so we’re looking at maybe in a near future or monarchia kind of activity you’re looking ahead yeah cuz we all know that certain areas are sacred right and so we kind of want to just leave certain areas around the county for for cultural preservation so
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definitely write some stronger policies for for cultural preservation and burials burial protections I know this may sound like a funny question what do you like best about what you’re doing and what do you hope you know I when I see three or four minutes left I’m thinking I want to be able to give you a chance to really talk about what it feels important to you that you really want to share with people you have an open door here to be on with me any and all the time if there’s anything you’d like to share
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with the public what things right now feel like you’d like to tell people yeah as far as priorities you know the key key has always been you know as a school teacher for 20 years the key key has always been my my main priority and so and me as a keiki growing up in in East Maui you know those are just one of the best times you know just growing up near near the ocean going to the ocean and just living in that environment and I think wanting to keep that for future generations we’re seeing a lot of visitor impacts on our
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environment especially out in East Maui so you know we’re trying to keep to keep the industry and our and our lifestyle keep the lifestyle where the industry doesn’t take over that that lifestyle I mean we we see throughout the world where there’s just tourist destination something about say Vegas Vegas got two million residents but there’s just workers there hand you know there’s you know 40 50 million what you know what number that it kind of visits come through right so the entire spot it’s
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just a visitor you know a tourist destination we don’t want that for it used to be the United for going to Vegas is now different everything’s changed in here like you say God knows a beautiful quiet beach and a quiet lifestyle can be invaded by a you know 45 tour buses coming through and showing you this spot as well Lindbergh lived his with this people at ho keeper were telling me that you know yeah I heard Rob Parsons on radio the environmental guys talking about you know 40 buses go by in but it used to be
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a quiet spot really changing the quality of our lives we’re gonna have to definitely write and also look at how to stop some of that right yeah you know the federal government started it by limiting people on Haleakala maltine because the experience you just didn’t get a good experience up there if you had hundreds of people that you couldn’t bark and you were constantly well you were stuck in a in gridlock up on the mountain so you know they’ve definitely saw the impacts so we wanna where we
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have visitor impacts as one of the resolutions that we’re trying to pass and we’re trying to urge the mayor and administration to develop a more sustainable tourism port where you’re in luck we’re running out of time and so you’re gonna have to come back I know an hour goes really quickly yeah yeah thank you for joining me right give us a spark anytime thank you we are so happy that you all joined us here on the neutral zone this is Shane Sinenci our council person from Hana remember him the matter
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where you live on the island you like it next election you can vote for him the matter where you live on Maui County and we are leaving you thank you for joining us at the neutral zone Aloha everyone [Music]
