Hawaii Tourism Authority sued over snorkeling dangers after long flights, temporary restraining order halts destruction of Haiku stairs, contested case hearing slows Punaluu black sand beach development, Civil Beat a Pulitzer finalist for Maui fire coverage, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Michigan family files lawsuit against Hawaii tourism authority over snorkeling dangers after long flights. A Michigan family filed a lawsuit against the Hawaii's Tourism Authority, and other visitor groups, because they don't warn tourists about potential dangers of snorkeling soon after flying. KITV4.

Hawaii Pushes To Ensure High Schoolers Learn About Money Management. The Department of Education wants to include financial literacy in students' individual transition plans for career planning. Civil Beat.

Hawaii county mayors crack down on short-term rentals, pledging neighborhood restoration. Now with the power to revoke permits, county mayors are moving aggressively to shut many of them down. KITV4.

Woman charged for alleged theft of more than $44,000 in IBEW union members’ dues. Attorney General Anne Lopez announced criminal charges against a woman for the alleged embezzlement of approximately $44,367 in union dues from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local Union 1186. Maui Now. Star-Advertiser.

Oahu

Corruption Defendant Dennis Mitsunaga Injured In Jailhouse Fall, Delaying Trial. A high-profile bribery trial involving businessman Dennis Mitsunaga and former Honolulu prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro was delayed on Monday after Mitsunaga sustained an injury in custody, his attorney said.  Civil Beat. Hawaii News Now.

Settlement over Liquor Commission lawsuit is rejected. An offer by the city to settle a 2021 federal lawsuit alleging anti-gay discrimination by investigators working for the Honolulu Liquor Commission has been rejected. Star-Advertiser.

Friends of Haiku Stairs halt removal of popular, but prohibited, hiking trail. A temporary restraining order has been filed by the Friends of Haiku Stairs in an attempt to keep the city from their removal. KHON2.

Oahu housing market improves with year-over-year gains. The single-family home market had bigger gains, with a 26% jump in sales to 262 in April from 208 a year earlier, and a 10% rise in the median sale price to $1,100,000 from $999,995. Star-Advertiser.

Man who received $12.5M settlement from HPD arrested for gun crimes. Officers booked Jonaven Perkins-Sinapati Saturday afternoon for allegedly firing a gun out of a moving vehicle in Kaneohe. Hawaii News Now.

Biki’s Balancing Act: The Bike Share Company Is Raising Rates While Trying To Attract More Riders. Biki's Honolulu ridership has been steadily declining over the past few years, and its leadership wants to reinvest in the system to draw in more riders and start adding e-bikes. Civil Beat.

Hawaii Island

Punalu‘u project stalled: Proposed Black Sand Beach Development On Big Island Hits Rocky Shores. The Windward Planning Commission granted petitions for a contested case hearing over a developer's plans to build 225 units along a remote strip of coastline. Civil Beat. Tribune-Herald.  Big Island Video News.  Big Island Now.

Star Alameda, wife of mayoral candidate dies. Star Alameda, wife of Hawaii County mayoral candidate Kimo Alameda and a career educator, died Friday. She was 54. Tribune-Herald.

National Science Foundation to decide on billions in funding for Thirty Meter Telescope. The National Science Foundation has until September to decide on advancing the Thirty Meter Telescope to the final design stage. The TMT is competing against a telescope project in Chile for limited NSF funding.  Hawaii Public Radio.

Hawaiian Name Given To New Astronomy Instrument On Maunakea.  ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi students at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo have named a new instrument that will be used at the Canada-France-Hawaiʻi Telescope on Maunakea. Wenaokeao, meaning “earliest glow of light,” was given after extensive research by high school students. Big Island Video News.

Maui

Notices of Maui homeless sweep lacking information cited by state Supreme Court. Notices of an ongoing homeless sweep at Maui’s Kahului Boat Harbor by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources lack the same information that was cited by the Hawaii Supreme Court in a challenge to Maui County’s homeless sweeps. Star-Advertiser.

A judge is forcing Hawaiʻi to give wildfire investigation documents to lawyers handling lawsuits. A judge on Friday forced the Hawaiʻi attorney general's office to turn over to lawyers involved in the hundreds of lawsuits over last summer's Maui wildfires all documents, interviews and data collected by the outside team hired to investigate the disaster. Associated Press.

Candidates file nomination papers, aim to help with Maui’s housing crisis. Two candidates for public office are testing political waters and saying they aim to help address Maui’s housing crisis, especially in the wake of the August wildfires. Maui Now.

Expeditions Maui-Lānaʻi Ferry expands to three round trips per day; continues to adjust following wildfires. The Expeditions Maui-Lānaʻi Ferry is expanding service with three round trips per day, seven days a week, starting the week of June 3, 2024. Maui Now.

Civil Beat Named Pulitzer Finalist For Maui Fire Coverage. Civil Beat’s reporting exposed critical flaws in the state and county’s emergency preparedness and response, including the absence of Maui’s top emergency management official, the county’s lack of transparency overall and the history of failures in ecological management that laid the foundation for the disaster.  Civil Beat.

Kauai

County and hotel developer respond to recent wastewater spills at Coco Palms. Two recent wastewater spills at the Wailua Coco Palms sewer pump station, expected to accommodate a 350-room hotel currently under construction, have added to public opposition to the development. However, county officials and the hotel developer assert that the sewer issues are not linked to the hotelʻs construction.  Kauai Now.

Niumalu Bridge on Kaua‘i closed till further notice. Following the flooding event in April, Kaua‘i County consultants inspected county bridges across the island and determined that the Niumalu Bridge was unsafe for motorists, prompting an immediate shutdown. Kauai Now.

Byzantine government regulations endanger the already endangered sea turtles -- commentary

Visitors pose with sea turtles at Punaluu Black Sand Beach (c) 2012 All Hawaii News

Sea turtles -- by land or by sea?

You would think it's a distinction without a difference. Not so in the byzantine world that is our federal government.

In fact, oversight of protection of these endangered creatures is split between two federal agencies -- the National Marine Fisheries Service when the turtles are in the water, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service when they're on land.

Visitor photos honu (c) 2012 All Hawaii News

In theory, the two agencies coordinate protection of six species of sea turtles found in U.S. waters and nesting on U.S. shores -- all of which are listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act. The species, the green, hawksbill, Kemp's ridley, leatherback, loggerhead and olive ridley, have been protected under the Endangered Species Act since the 1970s.

The agencies are charged with creating recovery plans for each species, setting goals and recovery strategies. They're also charged with enforcing laws against harassing or killing these endangered animals.

Snoozing honu (c) 2012 All Hawaii News

That coordination could be improved, according to Jan. 31 study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office.

Or, in government-speak, "To improve the effectiveness of the services’ sea turtle protection and recovery efforts, that the Secretary of Commerce should direct the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, and that the Secretary of the Interior should direct the Director of FWS, to revise the existing memorandum of understanding to clarify what specific steps the services will take to coordinate ..."

Hawksbill heads to sea, courtesy National Parks Service

Our precious turtles, known as "honu" in Hawaii, freely make use of both environments, of course. Swimmers and snorkelers easily spot green sea turtles in the ocean, and the curious creatures frequently will swim up to check out the people swimming nearby.

The Big Island's Punaluu Black Sand Beach is a favorite stop on the tour bus circuit, where hordes of tourists come to pose for photos with the massive honu sunning on the warm black sand. Some of the sightseers get too close, and arguments ensue, sometimes culminating in pushing and shoving matches.

We on Hawaii Island value our endangered species and aren't shy about making the scofflaws toe the line. In Hawaiian mythology, the green sea turtle, Kauila, could change herself into a girl who watched over the children playing at Punaluu Beach. Sea turtles also were thought to help guide early voyagers to Hawaii's shores and were an important food source in the Hawaiian Kingdom.

Honu grazing (c) 2012 All Hawaii News

The folks at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park also help coordinate protection efforts, especially of the hawksbill turtle that frequent their shores.

The National Marine Fisheries Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service should also, according to the GAO -- get this -- share their data. The very idea!

And who's in charge when that bugger is half in, half out of the water?

Perhaps, and you may call me a heretic, there is an easier solution. Why not simply pick one agency to oversee the turtles? Simple solution, cutting unnecessary duplication in government agencies and allowing one agency take full responsibility, thus creating more accountability. Too simple, perhaps?