A Honolulu City Council resolution to uphold a more than 20-year-old city policy over solid- waste landfills and their proximity to Oahu’s underground drinking water supply received approval this week.
The Council voted Wednesday to adopt Resolution 3, which reaffirms a prior Council’s 2003 policy against siting landfills near freshwater sources. That year, Resolution 9 — introduced by then-Council member Mike Gabbard — was approved by the panel to safeguard Oahu’s important water resources.
Council Vice Chair Matt Weyer and Council member Radiant Cordero introduced the new resolution Jan. 2. Weyer, whose Council District 2 includes Wahiawa as well as the North Shore, offered this legislation in the wake of the city’s announcement that Oahu’s next dump may be sited in his district, on agricultural lands and directly above the island’s aquifer system.
On Dec. 10, Mayor Rick Blangiardi’s administration declared its intent to site the city’s next dump on active farmland owned by Dole Food Co. Hawaii near Wahiawa.
The site — west of Kamehameha Highway and north of Paalaa Uka Pupukea Road — is also about 800 feet above Central Oahu’s freshwater aquifer.
City officials say they hope to negotiate a purchase of about 150 acres — the amount of land needed for a solid-waste landfill — out of what they described as an approximately 2,360-acre parcel now owned by Dole.
The city contends a new landfill on Oahu is necessary, allowing it to continue to handle the island’s estimated 225,000 tons of solid waste and related materials it puts into its dump each year. The city claims the newly built landfill will be safe, with double-layered linings underneath it to protect from any leakage of chemically laced contaminates into the island’s groundwater.
The city’s move comes as it faced a state-imposed Dec. 31, 2024, deadline to find an alternate dump site, ahead of the planned closure of the 35-year-old Waimanalo Gulch Sanitary Landfill in Kapolei, in accordance with a 2019 decision and order by the state Land Use Commission.
That West Oahu dump is set to close in 2028, though the landfill will not reach full capacity until 2032, the city said.
Dole has publicly stated opposition to the city locating a landfill on its actively used pineapple fields in Wahiawa.
Meanwhile, the city asserts it also wants the state Legislature to change a state law, Act 73.
The 2020 law places restrictions on locating waste-disposal facilities, particularly those close to conservation lands or half-mile “buffer zones” near residential areas, schools or hospitals, as well as near airports or tsunami inundation zones.
City officials have said amending Act 73 could do one of two things: reduce buffer zones to a quarter-mile or eliminate them altogether, thereby opening up more land for potential city dump sites.
Before the Council’s vote, Board of Water Supply Manager and Chief Engineer Ernie Lau said his city agency stood in support of Resolution 3, which rejects landfills over groundwater sources.
“We appreciate the Council’s position to protect our wai, which is reflected, I think, going all the way back to 2003,” Lau added. “Landfills are a concern, especially if they are located above a freshwater resource, our underground aquifer, because we know the contaminants that are going to be generated from that landfill will be a problem or a threat to contaminate our groundwater below the landfill should the containment systems fail at some point in its future.”
“Landfills are basically permanent facilities,” said Lau. “Once located and filled, it’s there forever.”
Others also testified on Resolution 3.
Cody Sula, representing the Waipahu-based Iron Workers Stabilization Fund, testified on behalf of its managing director, T. George Paris.
“We are in strong support in making sure that there’s no type of landfills around our drinking water and aquifers,” he added.
Sula claimed that Paris, a Nanakuli resident, “is a strong opponent of landfills,” including the privately owned PVT Landfill in Waianae, which accepts waste from only construction and demolition projects.
He noted Paris was also a “strong advocate in pushing” Act 73.
To that, Council member Esther Kia‘aina asked Sula whether his union “supported opening up Act 73.”
“No, not at this time,” he replied.
Kia‘aina then noted opposition to any changes the city might propose for Act 73.
“It is not fair for them to reopen that act to decrease the buffer zone,” she added, “because protecting our water is critically important, but protecting our community is equally important. And the buffer of a half-mile to schools, residences and hospitals needs to remain the same.”
Kia‘aina added that she looked forward to working with the ironworkers union on that front.
“Thank you,” replied Sula, “we agree.”
James Manaku Sr. of Waianae said “we don’t need” a landfill over an aquifer.
“I thought it was plain that when you folks were looking for a rubbish dump, that over an aquifer was out of the question,” he added.
Later, Council member Andria Tupola, whose Council District 1 spans the Waianae Coast, said Resolution 3 “ensures that we don’t repeat past mistakes, and reinforces our commitment to ola i ka wai.”
“I thank Mayor Blangiardi and his administration for the commitment to moving the landfill site out of Waianae,” she said. “However, the root issue is that we’re still relying too heavily on landfills. We need to reduce reliance on landfills by following models.”
Tupola noted those models to handle waste included those found in foreign countries.
“In Fuzhou, China, they actually built parks above all of their (waste) convenience centers,” she added. “And their motto is ‘No Trash, No Smelly Odor.’”
Weyer said Resolution 3 and ongoing discussions over the city’s next landfill site were “really just a starting point in understanding how we’re going to manage our waste.”
“I totally agree with Council member Tupola in looking at what’s already been discussed, what’s in our plans, what’s possible and where we can go from here,” he said.
During the meeting, Council Chair Tommy Waters acknowledged that city officials — including city Managing Director Mike Formby — were in the Council Chambers to potentially field questions from the panel.
“I just want to be fair to both sides,” Waters said.
But neither Formby nor any other city official was asked questions by the Council or offered comments of their own regarding Resolution 3.
