Video by David Corrigan, Marti Townsend testimony courtesy Occupy Hawaii, voice of Stephanie Salazar

HILO, Hawaii: Before Tuesday’s Thirty Meter Telescope proceeding before the Board of Land and Natural Resources in Hilo, we asked the petitioners in the recent contested case hearing what they thought was their strongest argument, and the biggest oversight by the hearing officer, who decided against them.

They all pointed to the “8 criteria” … the Hawaii Administrative Rules section 13-5 that outline the standards that must be met before the Board can allow construction in a conservation district, like Mauna Kea.

The criteria is supposed to serve as the guiding principles that the land board should use to evaluate if the proposal is consistent with the purpose of the conservation district… so that the planned land use will not cause substantial adverse impact of existing natural resources within the surrounding area… or that the existing aspects of the land – like natural beauty of open space characteristics – will be preserved or improved upon.

Speaking before the land board on Tuesday, Marti Townsend – the Program Director and Staff Attorney representing KAHEA, the Hawaiian Environmental Alliance – explains the issue over the TMT’s CDUP approval and its conflict with the conservation district criteria.