Opponents of an Ala Wai flood mitigation project are pleased that Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell won’t accept the project’s environmental impact statement, a move that kicks it back to the state for more review and potentially could cause the project to lose millions of dollars in federal funding.

Caldwell, in an Oct. 31 letter to Gov. David Ige, outlined several inadequacies that the city had found in the project’s EIS, which the city must sign to move the controversial project forward. Adequate environmental review of the flood control project is critical since it aims to build walls and berms around the Ala Wai Canal and put huge flood-control structures in the upper reaches of the watershed.

Caldwell’s letter said the city was concerned that the federal environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) did not meet state law and administrative rule requirements. He was chiefly concerned that responses to public comments fell short and that changes, including the scope of the project’s real estate requirements, were not clearly identified.

Caldwell’s concerns pose a new wrinkle for those who have worked to hasten the project since October 2018 when the federal government offered to pay $220 million of the $345 million U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-designed project. Supporters have pushed for expediency since they say current modeling indicates that a 100-year event would result in damage to more than 6,000 structures with approximately $1.14 billion in structural damage and damage to critical infrastructure.

But the mayor’s decision was another coup for opponents like Sidney Lynch, president of Protect Our Ala Wai Watersheds, and Dave Watase, who started the Stop Ala Wai Project movement. Members of the groups they represent are concerned about negative impacts to their properties and the project’s potential to harm the region’s natural and cultural assets.

“For over a year Dave Watase has pointed out these very discrepancies between the draft and final EIS, and I am so relieved that the city has taken the time to thoroughly review the EIS, recognize these discrepancies and take steps to have them resolved,” Lynch said. “It is to be hoped that this flood mitigation project will be able to evolve into something equitable and acceptable to all the communities involved.”

Protect Our Ala Wai Watersheds filed a lawsuit Sept. 18 to stop the city and state from initiating the project. It was that lawsuit that triggered the city’s review of the project’s federally accepted EIS.

Judge Jeffrey Crabtree, senior Environmental Court judge for the 1st Circuit, issued an Oct. 29 injunction stopping the city and state from funding the project. Crabtree’s ruling halted the state’s plan to fund the project through the sale of certificate of participation bonds — its only route to securing project money this year since the state Legislature had denied Ige’s funding request.

That was quite a blow to city and state officials whose delay in executing a partnership agreement until Sept. 19 already had put them at risk of losing the project’s federal share since corps officials in Washington, D.C., have the power to reallocate emergency appropriations to more urgent projects.

Caldwell wrote in his letter to Ige, “As you know, acceptance of the EIS is critical to the project’s progress, so we ask that the state make the necessary modifications, follow any required processes, and resubmit the final EIS documents for acceptance as soon as possible.”

It’s anyone’s guess how Caldwell’s decision will play out. No one knows how long it will take the state to tweak the EIS or whether further delays will bring an end to the project.

Ige said Tuesday, “We are currently evaluating the Mayor’s letter and will determine an appropriate response that would best serve the community.”

Jeff Herzog, the corps’ Ala Wai flood project manager, said Tuesday that the state had not yet contacted the corps in reference to Caldwell’s letter. Herzog did not speculate on how the latest delay would play out, but he did defend the federal EIS as sufficient and said the corps worked with the state Department of Land and Natural Resources to follow the “spirit” of state law.

“We are prepared to support the state DLNR or the city and county of Honolulu in their efforts to accept the federal EIS … but we can’t assess the acceptability of the EIS or how it impacts their ability to participate in the project,” Herzog said.

David Frankel, an attorney representing Protect Our Ala Wai Watersheds, said absent the fixes, it would be difficult for the state to sign the EIS.

“The mayor has pointed out some pretty damning legal problems for the EIS. I don’t think the state could just turn around and accept it,” Frankel said. “I don’t know if this kills the project.”

Waikiki Neighborhood Board member Jeff Merz, who is an urban planner, said based on his experience, minor fixes could move quickly. But Merz said the process could take a year or so if it is determined that the project’s changes require a supplemental EIS.

“I say let’s dive in and get it done. We need to show federal officials that we are serious about this project,” said Merz, who lives in Waikiki and favors the project. “We don’t want to jeopardize funding any further.”

Mayor's Letter Ala Wai … by Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Scribd