Rep. Kai Kahele introduces legislation to restore, return Makua Valley to Hawaii

U.S. Rep. Kai Kahele said today he has introduced federal legislation to remediate Makua Military Reservation in Makua Valley on the Waianae coast and have the military return the land to Hawaii.

Named the Leandra Wai Act in honor of the late co-founder of Malama Makua, a Native Hawaiian community group that for decades sought to protect and restore the valley’s unique environmental and cultural resources, the bill also stipulates a trust fund be created to achieve its purposes.

“It is time to demilitarize and return Makua Valley to the people of Hawaii,” Kahele said at a news conference this morning at Thomas Square, following the draping of the statue of Kauikeaouli, also known as King Kamehameha III, with lei in celebration of the Hawaiian monarch’s birthday.

Noting that the U.S. military had for decades conducted live-fire training in the valley, which caused “environmental degradation and cut off Native Hawaiians from traditional cultural practices,” the Hawaii Democrat said, adding that the legislation “is a step towards righting decades of wrongs against Native Hawaiians and their sacred sites.”

Although live-fire training ceased at Makua Valley in 2004, unexploded ordnance and other contaminants remain there. Among the provisions include a cleanup schedule for land remediation and restoration along with the removal of unexploded ordnance and other contaminants at Makua.

The U.S. military’s 65-year lease for 30,000 acres of training lands, including Makua Valley, ends in 2029, but the Army has proposed it retain 1,170 acres at the Kahuku Training Area, 4,370 acres at the Kawailoa/Poamoho Training Area, and 760 acres at Makua.

The Leandra Wai Act’s provisions include:

>> The Defense Department must provide a cost estimate and cleanup schedule for the land remediation and restoration of Makua Military Reservation, in coordination with the state.

>> The Secretary of the Army must enter into a Memorandum of Understanding with the state establishing a Makua Valley Conveyance, Remediation, and Environmental Restoration Trust Fund, and to consult with Native Hawaiian organizations on the timing, planning, methodology, and implementation for the removal of unexploded ordnance and other contaminants at Makua.

>> The secretary shall carry out the conveyance no later than 180 days after the enactment of the act.

>> The Defense Department is liable for all unexploded ordnance and contaminants that it introduced to the area.