Volcanic Ash: With TMT stalled, time for a moratorium on Mauna Kea

The Thirty Meter Telescope appears at a dead end for now, leaving a chance for Gov. David Ige and Hawaiian protesters to end the rising rancor and negotiate a good-faith moratorium to reopen the public road to Mauna Kea’s summit.

After two months of protests and Ige’s failure to provide promised access to the work site, TMT has backed off assertions in July that it was ready to immediately send crews and equipment to the summit to begin work on the $1.4 billion telescope.

Asked last week if construction would still start immediately if the state cleared protesters from the road, TMT Vice President Gordon Squires hedged, saying, “There are a number of factors to be considered other than just opening the road.”

He said these include the outcome of “larger conversations” involving Big Island Mayor Harry Kim, who was asked by Ige to seek a solution to the standoff, and community stakeholders.

“As such, a specific time frame between the clearing of the road and start of construction is unclear,” Squires said.

With work effectively on hold, there’s no good reason for protesters to continue blocking the summit road to the inconvenience of staff at other observatories, tour groups and other members of the public wishing to use a public road.

Nor is there justification for the state to continue limiting the access of Hawaiian cultural practitioners to Mauna Kea.

The two sides should be able to agree on a moratorium that reopens the summit road, restores traffic flow on Saddle Road and frees law enforcement without requiring either to relinquish their perceived rights should the situation on the ground change.

Kim’s attempts to ease opposition to TMT by offering Hawaiians a cultural center and a bigger role in managing Mauna Kea won’t likely produce agreement anytime soon, as protesters say they won’t accept any plan that allows TMT to build on ground they consider sacred.

TMT, meantime, is holding its own discussions among funding partners in California, Canada, Japan, China and India who are nervous about the prospect of a 10-year construction process fraught with endless protests and lawsuits.

Squires said TMT partners “remain committed to Hawaii,” but it must be noted they’ve also applied for a building permit at their backup site in Spain’s Canary Islands.

Ige can’t let the blockade on Mauna Kea continue indefinitely, but would draw criticism for using force against protesters — risking injury on both sides — if no construction is imminent.

Protesters would risk losing the credibility they’ve gained from the mostly smart, disciplined and dignified way they’ve run their camp if they refused to stand down if offered a promise to maintain the status quo while discussions ensue.

A fair moratorium would end recent charges and countercharges of abuse that dangerously inflame the situation.

Reach David Shapiro at volcanicash@gmail.com.