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Island Breath: The Superferry reverses engines
by Juan Wilson for 23 September 2007 In The Garden Island - Revision 8.1
Since
this article was originally written many things have happened. The most
important was the meeting between the Governor of Hawaii and the people
of Kauai. Fortunately, that dialog changed some minds.
The Superferry won’t be coming to Kauai for the immediate future and
until the circumstances change. In the meantime court proceedings and
economic forces may further change the landscape of the project. We
must praise the Governor Linda Lingle for being part of a responsive
and reasoned reaction to the heartfelt expressions by he people of
Kauai on Thursday night.
The Governor has brought to bear as much force as she can command. She
calls it the Unified Command and it includes the National Guard, USCG,
FBI, The Hawaii Attorney General, State Police, PUC, DLNR, HDOT, the Kauai Police Force and pathetically our mayor, Bryan Baptiste. She seems to be following the old motto:
"If brute force is not working - you are not using enough of it!"
Last Thursday night, at the Peace & Freedom Convention Hall in
Lihue, the people of Kauai overflowed the arena to meet with the
Unified Command.
The original agenda was for the Governor to tell Kauai residents about
the regulations to restrict our activities in the Emergency Security
Zone, then describe the lethal forces arrayed to stop our “illegal”
activities and finally explain the punishment for violating those
regulations. Then she would take questions from the public on the
security issues.
That was not the meeting the people of Kauai had in mind. It was
overwhelmingly clear that Kauai still demands an EA and EIS be done
before Superferry operations start here. “EIS First! “ was the chant.
It was clear to the Unified Command that intimidation and fear
mongering were not going to work.
There will be many that still plan to challenge the authorities on the
entry of the Superferry to our harbor with their bodies. I respect
their commitment to peaceful civil disobedience, including paddling out
in front of the Superferry to keep it from docking. There also will be
USCG and police who believe it is their duty to stop them and imperil
themselves in order to do their job. I respect their commitment too.
What people on both sides of the issue need to do now is imagine a new
course of events and act on it.
Lingle has become isolated on issue
Sadly, Governor Linda Lingle has been a central player is a series of
bad judgment calls that are likely to do irreparable damage to her
political career because of her uncompromising support of the
Superferry.
The Governor made a commitment to lower or avoid whatever "red tape"
the Superferry might encounter to get it into the earliest possible
service.
This meant not only performing a lot of media boosterism, but also
influencing the HDOT to put aside its requirement for an Environmental
Assessment (EA) that would likely touch off a more detailed
Environmental Impact Statement EIS).
After the green flags were waved for the Superferry to go-ahead, the
Governor simply ignored all reasonable concerns of the outer island
governments, environmental experts, and the public. The “Big Lie”
machine was rolled out and misrepresented many things, like the
connection between the Superferry and its use by the military, as well
as the ability of the ferry to avoid whales in the dark at 40 mph.
In addition, we hear from Sean Connaughton, Maritime Administrator of
the U.S. Department of Transportation, that although he wanted
assurance that there would be no encumbrances (like a pesky EIS) on the
loan guarantee his agency was providing, he never insisted that the
Lingle Administration break Hawaii's laws to evade environmental
reviews.
Moreover, it appears it was not the idea of Rear Admiral Sally
Brice-O'Hara, of the USCG, to set up a Nawiliwili Harbor Emergency
Security Zone without following of normal USCG regulations (like a 30
day notification period). It was Governor Lingle who went over
Brice-O'Hara's head, to Homeland Security, to jam that through. What’s
the rush? The embarrassment of two "naval defeats" on Kauai?
We must hope that cooler heads, in court and behind the scenes, can
prevail. The Superferry issue is not over yet. We must be vigilant not
let it slip under the door while we celebrate or independence and
unity. Until the issue is really resolved, we can still push forward to
make headway.
What can we do now?
For those souls not ready to face the guns and holding cells of
Lingle's Police State, I have a few suggestions on strategies to
counter the Unified Command.
1) CELEBRATE
I am writing this before Saturday’s scheduled Nawiliwili Freedom
Festival. I like what the planners are suggesting and am sure it will
be an expression of the good will and joy felt by many who live on
Kauai. I suggest more people get involved with Nawiliwili Harbor - the
park, the jetty, the beach and the regional watershed. Celebrate this
place. Let's show what freedom and joy look like in contrast to the
Police State that will be shutting down the small boat harbor,
canceling canoe club events, eliminating jetty fishing, Infringing on
public park use while the Superferry is in port.
2) PRESSURE
Bring to pressure to bear on Kauai Mayor Brian Baptiste to disengage
from the Unified Command. It is a threat to the people of Kauai. He
claims to be ‘neutral’, seeking the "safety" of all. This kind to
safety is “Safety before Justice” and “Safety before Freedom”. While
the mayor was preparing himself to represent the Unified Command at the
Convention Center, JoAnn Yukimura was doing his job with cool headed
leadership before a thousand concerned residents in front of the Old
County Building.
We need Mayor Baptiste to lead and make a real commitment to defend
Kauai. He should be emphasizing the unanimous vote of our County
Council (and Kauai State Legislators) that the Superferry undergo an
EIS before entering our harbor. He should be advising Lingle that a
court case is underway here that will determine whether the Superferry
should come to Kauai and that in the meantime she should “chill”.
3) COMPROMISE
Suggest to the Superferry Corporation, the elements of the Unified
Command and our elected representatives, that the Superferry might be
welcome to dock at Nawiliwili Harbor tomorrow and until the EA is
completed, under the following conditions:
a) carry no vehicles to or from Kauai.
b) travel no faster than the cruising speed of other visiting passenger ships.
c) there be no special Security Zone when the Superferry is in harbor.
Following these constraints make Superferry no different from other
passenger ships now serving Kauai. These are completely reasonable
requests that fall far short of a temporary restraining order or an
injunction stopping Superferry operations.
4) DEMONSTRATE
Come and witness the Kauai Circuit Court hearing on an injunction that
continues this coming week. Show we are solidly behind a court ordered
restriction on Superferry service to Kauai until all environmental
studies that are required are complete. If there is a resumption of
service to Kauai be ready to come together again and show we are not
afraid and are resilient.
What can Lingle do now?
Take a deep breath. Listen to the people in Hawaii who you respect. The
business representatives of the tourist industry must be telling you
that you are damaging the biggest business in the state by shoving the
Superferry down our throats with gunships in a combat zone.
The Supreme Court has determined that the decision, by HDOT Director
Barry Fukunaga, not to do an EA was in violation of the law. You and he
were wrong and you must deal with it now. In regard to our protest, you
lecture us about the importance of safety. Certainly, the only “safe”
course would be to not let the ferry sail until the EA determined it
was “safe” for the environment of Kauai.
There should be no rush here. The Superferry can wait another few weeks
until the courts make their rulings on whether there can be service
before an EA. Allow this brouhaha to settle down by letting the
Superferry "volunteer" not to sail here until after Kauai Circuit Court
Judge, Randall Valenciano, determines if there will be an injunction
stopping service. There's plenty of room available for you to
compromise – use it. The Superferry could even begin operations under
some circumstance. Revisit item #3 above.
Governor, I agree with you that surface transportation between the
islands is in our future... but not with this high-speed Littoral
Combat Ship. You should look at this as a chance to turn lemons into
lemonade. You could advocate selling the two Superferrys to Blackwater
Coproration or the Navy. Then a rational alternative to this ferry, not
tied to the Stryker Brigade, could be designed with environmental
sustainability in mind. Kauai and Hawaii Nei would welcome it and
praise you.
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