'Big concerns' over Superferry remain

Thursday, February 15, 2007
The Maui News and The Associated Press

HONOLULU - A joint Senate committee approved a bill requiring an environmental impact statement be prepared on the Hawaii Superferry, although senators said significant legal issues need to be addressed.

Senate Bill 1276, approved by a joint session of the transportation and environment committees, was amended from a companion version that was advanced by one House committee last week but then died in the House Transportation Committee.

The Senate bill was approved after the committees went to Maui and Kauai last weekend to receive public comment that was virtually unanimous in favor of requiring an EIS.

The Senate version approved Wednesday would require a study of traffic, invasive species, harbor space and humpback whale preservation before service could begin.

"There are big concerns,'' said Sen. Gary Hooser, D-Kauai-Niihau, vice chair of the environment committee. "We have a responsibility to our community to look into these matters.''

He cited a petition signed by 6,000 people who oppose the Superferry, as well as overwhelming testimony against it from hundreds of residents at meetings held on Kauai and Maui.

He noted the Department of Transportation expressed concern over the threat of a lawsuit by Hawaii Superferry if it is prevented from starting service as scheduled in July - based on commitments made by the DOT in 2004.

"If the state failed to act appropriately, then the state administration which approved this must work to fix these breaches," Hooser said.

On Maui, officials with Hawaii Superferry said they are not opposed to a requirement for an EIS for harbors improvements needed to accommodate the ferry. The $235 million Superferry, a four-story-high catamaran, will carry up to 900 people and 250 cars.

"We're not against an EIS. We fully support a comprehensive plan for the harbor," said John Lehman, the organizer of the financial backing for the Hawaii Superferry.

"What we are totally opposed to is being discriminated against and treated as if we are the problem."

He said the state has neglected the harbors for decades and "it is time for a full environmental study" on a long-term harbor modernization program. The Superferry contends that other new harbor operations have been started without an environmental impact statement.

Lehman, founder of the J.F. Lehman & Co investment firm, said he is "very excited" about the prospects for the Superferry and believes that many of the objections are based on misunderstandings of what the ferry is and how it will operate.

For example, to concerns about a ferry running into a whale, John Garibaldi, president of Hawaii Superferry, said the ferry will slow down in whale waters. "We will not run any faster" than other vessels, he said.

Lehman, a former secretary of the Navy, said the advanced hull of the ferry means that it can ride stably and comfortably "even at three knots," unlike hydrofoils, which depend on high speed to get up on their planing hulls in order to achieve a smooth ride.

The National Marine Fisheries Service recommends a maximum speed of 13 knots in waters in which humpback whales might be found - although there is no legal limits on boat speeds in Hawaiian waters. The Superferry is expected to run normally at up to 33 knots.

The Superferry has withstood both state and federal lawsuits that attempted to force it to conduct an environmental impact statement, but the Senate bill would require an environmental study by law.

"This company is committed to helping protect our environment in Hawaii. We want to be here a long time,'' said Terry O'Halloran, director for business development for the Superferry.

He said the Superferry has gone beyond its requirements to protect the environment.

It will prohibit dirty cars from coming on board, require slower ship speeds in areas with high whale populations and hire two lookout workers on the bridge to spot whales, he said.

Critics of the Superferry claim that little has been done to prevent major traffic jams at

Neighbor Island harbors, while Young Brothers says its operations are being squeezed by the loss of space going to the Superferry.

The barge company was persuaded to drop an application to cease handling small cargo loads when the state moved to acquire more land at Kahului Harbor, but has applied for a 24 percent increase in rates for less-than-container-load service.

"What we need is disclosure. We need a common understanding of the project. We need to identify areas of concern . . . and hold the Superferry responsible,'' said Rep. Hermina Morita, D-Hanalei-Kapaa.

Senate Transportation Chairman J. Kalani English, whose 6th District includes East Maui, Molokai and Lanai, said amendments to SB 1276 require the Department of Transportation to complete an EIS and provide that if any mitigation measures are required, the DOT can assess the Superferry for the costs.

Whether the Legislature will block the start of the ferry until an EIS is completed is another issue. English said he hopes a bill will be approved, noting "there are a number of vehicles in the Legislature for this.

"There are still some significant outstanding questions that could not be resolved, but because of our deadlines, we had to move it out today," he said.

The bill will advance to the Senate Ways and Means Committee, chaired by Maui Sen. Roz Baker, where those questions could be answered, English said. He said Sen. Ron Menor was reviewing the legal questions.

"What we're trying to determine is whether or not the Department of Transportation exceeded its authority by granting the waivers when it said the EIS was not necessary," he said.

"It's still a work in progress, but because of our internal deadlines, we had to get it out to the second committee. More than likely there will be additional amendments in the second committee," he said.

The Superferry was exempted from a requirement that it do environmental studies because the state didn't see a need to single out the ship, said Barry Fukunaga, interim director for the state Department of Transportation.

"They're a vessel that's using the harbor just like any other vessel,'' he said. "To come in after the fact and attempt to impose a special requirement on an operator is incorrect.''

While the senators argued that an environmental study is required because the Superferry will require $40 million in improvements using state funds, Fukunaga said the improvements were paid for with fees imposed on harbor users - not with taxpayer dollars.

The House bill seeking environmental review of the Superferry died Wednesday when the Transportation Committee declined to hold a hearing on it. Committee chairman Rep. Joe Souki, D-Waihee-Wailuku, didn't immediately return a phone call seeking comment. Vice chair Rep. Scott Nishimoto, D-Kaimuki-Waikiki, said he didn't know why the bill wasn't heard.

If the bill continues to get approval in Senate committees, it could reappear in the House later this legislative session.

"I think we took a very positive step forward. It shows we're pretty serious about looking at the higher public benefits, making sure our environment is protected and all the rules are followed," English said. "Our constituents are really supporting this and we are moving forward." The ferry is expected to arrive in Hawaii in May after it was launched from a Mobile, Ala., shipyard earlier this year.