More than a week after going into effect, the new emergency rules restricting access on Mauna Kea, which protesters of the Thirty Meter Telescope say unfairly target them, have yet to be enforced.
More than a week after going into effect, the new emergency rules restricting access on Mauna Kea, which protesters of the Thirty Meter Telescope say unfairly target them, have yet to be enforced.
As they have for four months now, TMT opponents continue to maintain a constant presence across the street from the Mauna Kea Visitor Information Station, despite laws prohibiting camping in the area.
Nearby, signage installed earlier this week warns residents and visitors of the restricted area, and that violators of the rules will be prosecuted.
“(We) are working to make sure that people are aware of and understand the rules,” Joshua Wisch, a spokesman for state Attorney General Doug Chin, wrote in an email.
On Tuesday, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources distributed an “educational handout” to protesters explaining the rules, according to department spokeswoman Deborah Ward.
Asked if DLNR has given protesters, who call themselves protectors of the mountain they consider sacred, a certain amount of time to break down their camp, Ward declined to comment.
“Enforcement may proceed at any time,” she wrote in an email, adding she’s not aware of any citations being issued so far.
Five large signs were installed Tuesday along Mauna Kea Access Road, below, at and above Hale Pohaku mid-level facilities, and eight more will be placed along the road above Hale Pohaku to the summit in the days to come, according to officials.
In addition to prohibiting certain camping gear, including tents, sleeping bags and stoves, the new rule restricts being within a mile of Mauna Kea Access Road at night, from 10 p.m.-4 a.m., unless in a moving vehicle.
The state Land Board approved the rules — meant to deal with what state officials have described as an “imminent peril” to public safety and natural resources resulting from ongoing protests — by a 5-2 vote July 10.
After being signed by Gov. David Ige and filed with the Office of the Lieutenant Governor on July 14, the temporary rule remains in effect for 120 days.
Meanwhile, Williamson Chang, a professor of law at the University of Hawaii Richardson School of Law and TMT opponent, has filed an amended petition seeking to repeal the rule on behalf of two Big Island residents. He argues it prevents telescope opponents from legally exercising their rights to peacefully protest.
“The rule is not neutral as it is designed to thwart what has been a successful and peaceful protest for the past 100 or so days, while clearing the way for restarting construction of the TMT,” Chang writes in his request, which was received by DLNR July 15.
Land Board Secretary Ku‘ulei Moses said Thursday that while Chang’s request for a contested case hearing could be taken up by the board during its Aug. 14 meeting, the agenda won’t be confirmed until the week prior.
Reached by phone Thursday, Chang said he’s considering taking the case to state court, as the DLNR proceeding “seems very slow.”
Email Chris D’Angelo at cdangelo@hawaii tribune-herald.com.