Off the News: Enforce laws to protect our beaches

A Rocky Point property owner bought an excavator, moved massive amounts of sand to shore up the North Shore beach adjacent to his two oceanfront homes and has refused to remove sandbags and debris. His request for a contested case hearing on a $92,000 fine could stretch out the case for months; today, the state Board of Land and Natural Resources is scheduled to vote on that.

Along with several coastal protection organizations, we urge the state to enforce penalties against those who damage Hawaii’s beaches. That should apply to the city, too: The owner, Todd Dunphy, has accrued hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines from the city for shoreline violations, going back to 2006.