Superferry case goes to Hawai‘i Supreme Court

By the Kahului Harbor Coalition

The Hawaii Supreme Court will hear Oral Argument on whether the Hawai'i Superferry was illegally granted an exemption from Chapter 343 of the Hawai'i revised statutes which requires an Environmental Impact Statement for projects using public funds. This is an appeal of 2nd Circuit Court Judge Cardoza's earlier ruling. The case has been scheduled for 11:00 a.m. on August 15, 2007.

The Sierra Club, the Kahului Harbor Coalition and Maui Tomorrow, as Plaintiffs, challenged exemptions from Chapter 343 issued by HDOT for improvements to state harbors paid for with at least $40,000,000.00 in state funds, which are conditions precedent to the use of state harbors. The case was heard by Judge Cardoza in the Second Circuit Court.

Chapter 343 requires that the secondary, long-term and cumulative impacts of the Superferry project are required to be addressed in assessing the project facilitated by these improvements. The Attorney General argued speciously that only the impacts of the particular improvements need to be addressed.

Judge Cardoza issued a one paragraph ruling in this important case. He ruled that Plaintiffs lacked standing and that even if they had standing that HDOT had followed the law. The Judge gave no reasons for his ruling. He did not issue any Findings of Fact or Conclusions of Law.

The Hawaii Supreme Court could reverse Judge Cardoza at any time. If Judge Cardoza is reversed an EA or EIS could be required and the Hawaii Superferry could be prevented from using the improvements at the Kahului Harbor until and unless the EA or EIS is lawfully completed. Such a ruling could bar the Superferry from docking at the Kahului Harbor.

J. Parker of the Kahului Harbor Coalition said "Scheduling oral arguments could be a sign that the Court takes this matter very seriously, and we are cautiously optimistic that the earlier Circuit Court ruling will be overturned."

In another separate lawsuit, the plaintiffs are challenging the so-called Harbor Improvements for Kahului Harbor (including the Superferry Improvements). In that case being heard by 2nd Circuit's Judge Joel August, he found that the Plaintiffs have standing -at least in regard to traffic impacts and that the Environmental Assessment (which was prepared by DOT for the harbor improvements) is inadequate.