Contract finally awarded to dredge volcanic debris that left Pohoiki Boat Ramp landlocked in 2018

East Hawai‘i commercial and recreational boaters have finally received the news they have wanted to hear since 2018, when the lava flow from the 2018 Kīlauea eruption left the much-used Pohoiki Boat Ramp landlocked.

The state Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation finally awarded a contract for the dredging of 42,000 cubic yards of volcanic debris that will create a channel from the boat ramp to the Pacific Ocean.

Goodfellows Bros. was awarded the contract as the lowest bidder for the project at $9.2 million. The project is expected to begin in February.

Describing Pohoiki Bay as Pāhoa’s icebox, Hawai‘i County Councilwoman Ashley Kierkiewicz said: “We should’ve been in the water by now getting ahi for Christmas sashimi.”

But Kierkiewicz was excited by the news, saying: “It’s hard to have words because we’ve waited so long.”

From Kilauea’s Lower East Rift Zone, lava destroyed, covered and inundated Puna for 124 days in 2018. In addition to the impacts to Pohoiki, about 8,448 acres of land, 700 homes and structures, and several farms were destroyed along with 32.5 miles of public and private roads, and 14.5 miles of water lines.

The lava flow rendered the boat ramp useless, forcing fishers and boaters to use the Wailoa Small Boat Harbor in Hilo, which is about an hour’s drive away.

It also cut off some of Hawai‘i’s best fishing grounds from lawai‘a (fishermen), whose families for generations have called the Pohoiki area home and fished out of the bay for their livelihoods.

The boat ramp is the only one between Hilo (40 road miles to the north) and Punalu‘u (81 miles to the south). Losing its use has caused hardship for the community’s fisherman, who are forced to spend more money and time to travel elsewhere just to get their boats in the water only to face longer and more dangerous trips to get to the fishing grounds outside Pohoiki Bay.

The dredging involves removal of accumulated lava debris to restore a wide entrance channel for the existing boat ramp, according to Finn McCall, an engineer with the Boating and Ocean Recreation.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Final Public Notice for the project said the bay was inundated with volcanic sand, cobble and boulders.

The debris will be removed by on-land excavation and mechanical dragline dredging.

The document also indicates that a portion of the material will be used in the backshore area to fill ponds created by the accumulation of volcanic debris in the bay. The remaining dredged material will be moved to the main final disposal site, which includes the lava land mass that covers the eastern end of the park and the adjacent area of the entirely new accretion land.

The state continues to work on acquiring all needed permits. If the project is able to start in February, it is anticipated to be completed in November of next year.

Kierkiewicz, who represents Puna, said she won’t believe it’s happening until she sees the work begin.

“Over and over again the community has had to be patient,” Kierkiewicz said. ” We were asked to be patient.”

Over the past 6 1/2 years, Kierkiewicz and other advocates for the boat ramp have been constantly reminding the federal government about why restoring this structure is critical.

“The thing with recovery is you need champions every step of the way; people banding together to make sure these projects stay top of mind,” Kierkiewicz said. “You have to constantly advocate until the work is done.”