People, hui want to join hearing about telescope

A total of 30 people and three organizations have formally asked for a seat at the table during the upcoming Thirty Meter Telescope contested case hearing.

The final list of applicants asking to become a party to the hearing was released Thursday by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources. Those wanting into the hearing were asked to apply by the end of May.

Most of the individuals who applied oppose the $1.4 billion project and consider themselves Mauna Kea cultural practitioners.

A hearing to consider the proposed participants is scheduled for June 17 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Hawaii County Council Chambers in Hilo.

Whether the hearing will actually take place is uncertain at this point, considering that the project applicant, the University of Hawaii at Hilo, and the Mauna Kea Hui petitioners, plus the TMT International Observatory board, have all asked that retired Circuit Judge Riki May Amano be replaced as contested case hearings officer.

Asked whether the Board of Land and Natural Resources is considering replacing Amano, spokesman Dan Dennison said he didn’t know and won’t know until a board action is announced in an order posted on the DLNR website.

Amano, a former Hawaii island Circuit Court judge, gave the original contested case parties until June 13 to offer a response to the party requests.

According to contested case law, anyone can be denied participation in the hearing if his or her point of view is substantially the same as a party already admitted to the proceeding or if it will make the hearing “inefficient and unmanageable.”

Each party to a contested case may cross-examine witnesses during the hearing.

According to law, contested case parties can include anyone who has a property interest in the land in question, including those who live on or near the property, or those who can demonstrate they will be especially affected by the proposed action. Requests can also be approved if it is believed they will help the board make its decision.

Among the latest applicants is the Temple of Lono, described as the men’s temple of the Traditional Hawaiian Faith, whose kahuna, Frank Kamehameha Tame­aloha Anuumealani Nobriga, hopes to answer questions about the spiritual issues surrounding Mauna Kea and the TMT case.

Other organizations that have already asked for entrance into the hearing are the TMT International Board, the developer and eventual operator of the large observatory, and Perpetuating Unique Educational Opportunities Inc., a recently formed nonprofit composed of Native Hawaiians who support the cutting-edge project.

The original parties are the six petitioners — Mauna Kea Anaina Hou, Clarence Kukauakahi Ching, the Flores-Case ‘Ohana, Deborah J. Ward, Paul K. Neves and Kahea: The Environmental Alliance — and the applicant, UH Hilo.

Following the June 17 hearing, there will be a second pre-hearing conference with counsels and unrepresented parties, if any, to discuss further scheduling, according to an order issued by Amano.

In a related matter, Hawaii island BLNR member Christopher Yuen said in a filing posted Thursday that he would not remove himself from the hearing, as asked by the petitioners, due to bias because of some pro-Mauna Kea astronomy remarks he gave in an interview 18 years ago and for his support of last year’s Mauna Kea emergency rules.

Yuen said he would be able to evaluate the TMT project on its own merits.