Material dredged from a Hawaii Kai marina was supposed to be disposed of in waters off East Honolulu under a permit issued by the Army Corps of Engineers in February — not in Waianae as apparently was done.
A copy of the permit, obtained by Waianae residents concerned about illegal dumping in their community, shows the Hawaii Kai Marina Community Association was to dredge the marina and entrance channel and dispose of about 122,000 cubic yards of "suitable dredged spoils" at five Hawaii Kai-area sites: Rim Island No. 1, the Yacht Club, Portlock Beach, Maunalua Bay Beach Park and the South Oahu Ocean Dredged Material Disposal Site.
Instead, material was apparently dumped at a Waianae Valley Road property owned by Sandy Silva, owner of SER Silva Equipment, the company hired by contractor American Marine Corp. for disposal.
Silva, in a letter to the state Department of Health on Aug. 23 that was released to the media by the marina association, said "we have discussed" having up to 44,444 cubic yards of dredged material taken to her Waianae Valley Road address "as fill for grading several areas to promote drainage and accessibility of the property."
A major traffic jam was caused Aug. 31 when an SER truck spilled sludge on the H-1 freeway in Aiea.
The Army permit issued to the association calls for any revisions to be approved by the corps’ district engineer.
The city Department of Planning and Permitting last week issued a notice of violation to Silva to halt disposal of the dredging material until she can obtain a permit. The order calls for daily fines of $150 to kick in if a grading permit is not secured by Oct. 7.
Makaha resident Leimaile Quiteves, who obtained the government documents through a Freedom of Information Act request, said the documents make her question why government agencies at all levels allowed the project to occur when the work deviated so greatly from the original plans.
Sen. Maile Shimabukuro (D, Kalaeloa-Waianae-Makaha) and area Councilwoman Kymberly Pine both urged the Army Corps and state Department of Land and Natural Resources to look into possible action against the marina association and its contractors.
Pine said the new information is troubling.
"The sludge may not be toxic in the areas designated for disposal by the sea," Pine said. "However, it would be highly toxic to inland areas where high salt content cannot be tolerated. Freshwater fish and inland vegetation cannot survive an environment with a high salt content."
Marina association board President Robert Clark, in a letter to Waianae Coast Neighborhood Board Chairwoman Johnnie-Mae Perry, reiterated his position that the material is safe. He included soil sampling results by a firm hired by American Marine as proof.
