Protect Kaʻula Island from Military Testing
Kaʻula, the child of Wākea and Papa, has been used - abused - for far too long, with its sacred landscape now littered with unexploded ordinance and "inert" bombs resulting from decades of US Navy target practice.
Rather than focus on the cleanup and restoration of this island from its past and ongoing transgressions, the US Navy recently unveiled a draft environmental assessment proposing to more than double its bombing of Kaʻula, among other military training activities, claiming that doing so will have "no significant impacts" to the environment.
The Navy’s assessment dismisses the potential significant and irreparable environmental, cultural, and transgenerational impacts that would arise from its proposal to not just continue, but increase its bombardment of Kaʻula’s sacred and ecologically significant landscape.
Comments on the Navy’s environmental assessment closed on Monday, September 30. You can find sample comments, as well as the comments submitted by the Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi and Earthjustice below.
Through the collective efforts of grassroots community organizations, including the Sierra Club, over 3,000 comments were submitted to the Navy in opposition to the proposal. Thank you once again for adding your voice to this fight!
The Navy indicated that a decision is expected in early 2025 after the environmental assessment is finalized. The decision-maker within the US Pacific Fleet could determine that an environmental impact statement is needed, which would involve a much more thorough study of the proposed activities’ impacts. Alternatively, they could decide that the existing environmental assessment is sufficient. We hope the Navy will seriously consider the thousands of comments submitted and carefully evaluate how their proposal truly impacts the culture, environment, people, and wildlife connected to Kaʻula.
We will continue to keep you updated as the process unfolds and the Navy moves toward making a decision. Until then, let’s remain vigilant and committed to protecting Kaʻula and the rest of our islands from further harm.
Sample comments on the US Navy’s environmental assessment:
Aloha,
I am writing in opposition to the proposed increased military weapons testing and training activities described in this draft environmental assessment, and to highlight the significant impacts that the proposed actions will have on the environment, including native wildlife, cultural and subsistence practices, and the well-being of Kānaka ʻŌiwi with cultural and ancestral ties to Kaʻula. I also protest the extremely limited time provided to review and comment on this document, which incorporates thousands of pages of referenced reports and studies, while simultaneously ignoring a wide range of pressing environmental and cultural concerns.
Kaʻula is a sacred landscape that is both culturally and ecologically important and should not be continually used for military target practice, let alone increased bombardment with “inert” ordnance and munitions.
The findings of this draft environmental assessment do not accurately portray the significant and irreparable environmental, cultural, and transgenerational impacts that would arise from the US Navy’s proposed activities. These impacts include, but are not limited to:
Restricted Cultural Access: The proposal restricts Native Hawaiian access to Kaʻula, preventing traditional cultural practices such as fishing and the stewardship of natural and cultural resources and sites, and further exacerbating the generations-long loss of connection to ancestral lands.
Decades of Past Desecration Compounded By Future Proposed Harm: Using the destruction of past military activities to justify further desecration is unacceptable. Each new impact from military weapons testing compounds the damage already inflicted to the land and surrounding waters of Kaʻula, and the cumulative impacts of past, continued, and increased future bombardment must be assessed as a whole. These impacts include the prevention of the restoration and recovery of this sacred landscape for entire generations into the future, necessary to begin healing the harms inflicted on both ʻāina and Kānaka ʻŌiwi whose health and well-being are “intrinsically tied to their deep feelings and attachment to the land.” (U.S. Pub. L. 103-150)
Wildlife Impacts: Insufficient wildlife surveys ignore potential impacts on native seabirds and other wildlife, including endangered species that may roost on or under the ground, and that may not be evidenced by the aerial survey methods used. The continued restriction of access due to UXO and the continued lack of remediation will also prevent effective invasive species control measures that require on-the-ground management, also threatening native wildlife.
No Cumulative Impact Analysis: The EA fails to address cumulative environmental, cultural, and human health impacts, including environmental justice impacts disproportionately impacting Kānaka ʻŌiwi, resulting from historic, ongoing and proposed future military target practice and other activities.
Incomplete Cultural Consultation: The lack of Section 106 consultation with Native Hawaiian organizations, much less an assessment of Native Hawaiian traditional and customary practices protected under the Hawaiʻi State Constitution, means there can be no good faith finding of no significant cultural impacts.
Furthermore, the short comment period provided for this draft EA, which incorporates thousands upon thousands of pages of referenced reports and studies, fails to provide for any meaningful community participation and input. The comment period for this draft EA must be extended to ensure that the spirit of the NEPA law is upheld, and the community is given a true opportunity to have their knowledge and concerns be heard.
Sincerely,
[Your name]
He Lei Aloha no Kaʻula: Protect Kaʻula Island from Military Testing
Join Kamāwaelualani, Ka Lāhui Hawaiʻi, Hawaiʻi Alliance for Progressive Action, Earthjustice, and the Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi for an urgent virtual discussion on the proposed increased target bombing of Kaʻula Island.
Contrary to the findings in their draft EA, this panel will discuss the significant impacts the Navy proposal may have on native wildlife, Native Hawaiian traditional and cultural practices, fishing, and the ʻāina of Kaʻula itself - and how the community can raise these concerns through the environmental review process.