Editorial: Keep astronomy’s place on mauna

On one thing about the proposed change in management of the Mauna Kea summit, there can be agreement: A decision here is both consequential and risky.

House Bill 2024 has cleared conference committee changes and review, and now is headed for a final vote in each chamber. The argument for passage is that taking management from the University of Hawaii and placing it in the hands of a newly constituted, 11-member authority would help defuse years of conflict between the state and the critics of observatories developed at the summit.

Most of that opposition comes from the Native Hawaiian community, some of whom do not trust UH as the steward of the mauna, believing it has pursued astronomy at the expense of environmental and cultural resources. The tension erupted in full-scale protest when the large Thirty Meter Telescope was on the brink of construction eight years ago.

On the other side are advocates for astronomy and the telescopes who fear, with reason, that a new bureaucracy could impede Mauna Kea’s ongoing contribution to science, education and the economy.

It is concerning that the Legislature is poised to take that risk: HB 2024 has emerged with strong conference committee support. A special fund would be endowed with $14 million for startup and transition planning costs of the Mauna Kea Stewardship and Oversight Authority, giving taxpayers good cause to worry.

If it does pass, as seems likely, the Legislature must keep the authority accountable. The bill would leave UH in charge of management for a five-year transition. As of Monday, the university officials watching this legislation declined comment.

But if there’s a glimmer of hope here, it’s that the bill now pointedly states that astronomy is a state policy goal, a key aspect missing from HB 2024’s original version. The updated bill also would preserve the current UH time allotment for use of Mauna Kea telescopes.

And it includes a $350,000 allocation to create educational programs for grades K-12 through the UH-Hilo ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center. These hard-won improvements were the result of vigorous pushback from astronomy faculty and supporters who don’t want to see that enterprise falter.

State Rep. Scott Saiki, speaker of the House, said he doesn’t want to see astronomy falter, either, but instead believes the authority will have the space to find a balance among the competing uses of the mauna.

The governance change arose following recommendations by a working group convened last year. One aim was to give Native Hawaiians more of a voice on a governing body constituted independently of UH.

Unfortunately, the UH role is too severely diminished: Only one voting authority member drawn from current or former UH regents, and one nonvoting member from UH-Hilo. That could put projects such as TMT in limbo. The planned observatory has a sublease and a permit to build, but Saiki acknowledged on Monday that the consortium in charge may feel pressed to realign its plans with the legislation.

For example, he said, the bill states that the authority would develop a “framework” that may include limitations on facilities and priorities for reusing the sites of decommissioned telescopes, rather than building on a new parcel.

Saiki argues that sticking with the status quo is guaranteed to continue the present standoff, every decision drawing legal challenge and protest. He pointed to a letter from Maunakea Observatories that offered general support for “community-based mutual stewardship,” and he hopes the new authority could be a model.

That is everyone’s hope, but it can be realized only if lawmakers watch carefully — and stand ready with more safeguards, should the authority fail to maintain the balance being sought.