Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 25, Number 9, 1 September 2008 — Maui, tomorrow [ARTICLE]

Maui, tomorrow

I attended the Aug. 13 West Maui GPAC (General Planning and Advisory Coimnittee preparation/forum and the controversy and frustration are very apparent. The future we want and the one that is unfolding are not the same. Many who have been involved

with the general plan process from the start have little faith, as the plans they intended to provide for today were not followed. This may be interpreted as a sign of failure for the GPAC process, but knowing what went wrong and resolving it could also be the beginning of our success. Our plans clearly state that the ahupua'a concept - that everything is connected - is important to us. We need to honor and keep our ecosystems functional to keep Maui, Maui. Watershed-manage-ment planning as outlined by the Environmental Protection Agency is the key to this logical process of evaluating water-quality problems and deciding where to spend resources to solve them. I believe that too mueh emphasis is being put on protecting the supply side of eonsumptive uses and greater emphasis is needed on protection of aquatic life and their ecosystems. If we protect the most sensitive uses, it will lead to adequate quality of water for human endeavors. Tamara PalHn Kahana, Maui