The Thirty Meter Telescope, housed in a structure as high as an 18-story building, is gargantuan — in relative size, in its reach to the stars, in its importance as an educational boon for the state and as a scientific asset for the world.
It also has occupied a prominent place in Hawaii’s political and cultural history, owing to its location: at the summit of Mauna Kea, highest point in the islands, a site regarded with reverence by many in the Native Hawaiian community. Some have opposed its development at this point and, over the past decade of the project’s controversial review process, have sought to stop it.
Early Monday morning, with the requisite permits in hand, heavy equipment will begin moving into place, the access road closed to the public for the few days that will take.
This marks the beginning of a new chapter of the story, one marked with muted celebration by those hopeful for its completion, and with disappointment by those still resisting its advent.
To that end, opponents have filed a new lawsuit in Hilo’s Circuit Court, arguing that work should be halted because its developers failed to post a security bond on the $1.4 billion project. The state officials overseeing the construction launch said the legal challenge will not disrupt the start of work.
That is a relief for the Thirty Meter Telescope International Observatory consortium, which has weathered challenges in courtrooms and before the state Board of Land and Natural Resources, and deserves to see the project move forward.
Leaders within the “protector” opposition have said they intend to protest peacefully but have signaled their expectations that government authorities will do otherwise.
“It appears the state is willing to let people get hurt and even allow bloodshed to occur,” Kealoha Pisciotta of Mauna Kea Hui said. “I say that not because we are going to do anything violent. We’re not the ones with the guns.”
A support organization, Mauna Medic Healer Hui, has posted an online store registry seeking gifts of various first-aid supplies and other items.
For their part, however, state officials have pledged to keep order without ratcheting up the rhetoric, which is a good thing. One hopes that the clash TMT opponents seem to be telegraphing does not materialize.
In announcing the start of construction, Gov. David Ige on Wednesday said the state is bringing in the National Guard but emphasized that members will be unarmed.
Part of the state’s accouterments will be a device, a Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD), or sound cannon. Ige gave assurances the tool would be used as a public address system and not as weaponry to disperse crowds. He needs to stand by that promise.
Outside the governor’s office, protesters had gathered. Healani Sonoda-Pale of the Ka Lahui Hawai‘i Political Action Committee asserted that the state could not block access for cultural practitioners who want to have religious observances on the mountain.
The fact is, it’s within reasonable bounds for the state to secure the road while the heavy equipment used in grading and other construction activities is staged. There is good cause for that, in the interest of safety for everyone — the protesters as well as the work crews.
“Protectors” can certainly claim constitutional rights to free speech and religious expression — at an appropriate place. At this point, that is not in the pathway of construction equipment.
Rather than attempting to stop the crews’ passage, the cultural practitioners and the University of Hawaii officials providing oversight of the project should focus on setting some ground rules for long-term access to the mountain’s upper reaches, once the need for safety precautions subsides.
The activists also must acknowledge that they don’t represent the whole of Native Hawaiian thought on this issue. The indigenous population also comprises many who recognize the potential of TMT for science and knowledge, and as a career and educational opportunity for native and non-native residents of the state.
The aims of the TMT Observatory are exciting to imagine, given the astronomical discoveries being made by Hawaii’s existing facilities: the imaging of a distant black hole named Powehi, the discovery of an interstellar object dubbed ‘Oumuamua, are just two of the most recent.
So much more will be possible, a future that should be universally thrilling.
Mauna Kea was selected in 2009 as the best site for the Thirty Meter Telescope. The website (www.tmt.org Opens in a new tab) describes TMT as a tool that “will allow astronomers to explore the mysterious period in the life of the universe when the first stars and galaxies were formed.”
Many Native Hawaiians, who have a rich history of exploration, sailing great distances guided by the stars, find this a compatible prospect, a platform for sharing cultural knowledge and for gaining scientific insights about the universe. Hawaii has waited long enough to begin the journey.
