DLNR Listening Session on Molokai

By Wendy Osher

William Aial Jr., Chair of the Department of Land and Natural Resources heard testimony from Maui residents at two meetings on the Valley Isle. He now heads to Molokai for similar meetings. Photo by Wendy Osher.

Residents on Molokai will have a chance to air their concerns on issues under the jurisdiction of the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) during a Listening Session.

The two-hour session begins at 4 p.m. on Friday, October 7, 2011 at the Mitchell Pauole Community Center in Kaunakakai.

During similar sessions held on Maui earlier this month, residents discussed axis deer control, the dredging of Lahaina Harbor, and water management issues in Waihe’e.

Department Chair, William J. Aila, Jr. will be in attendance along with his First Deputy Guy H. Kaulukukui, and Water Deputy Bill M. Tam from Honolulu.

The DLNR’s management responsibilities extend from the mountaintops to three miles seaward of Hawai’i’s coasts–that includes 1.3 million acres of state land in Hawai’i, as well as 3 million acres of state ocean waters.

The department also has jurisdiction over drinking water supplies, fisheries, coral reefs, indigenous and endangered flora and fauna, and all of the state’s historic and cultural sites.

Individuals who are unable to attend the meeting, but still want to comment, can do so by sending their comments, questions, or concerns to [email protected].