(BIVN) – The community had a chance to testify Monday on the second draft environmental impact statement for the Army Training Land Retention at Pōhakuloa Training Area, during a meeting held at the Waimea District Park.

It was the first of two public meetings being held on Hawaiʻi island in order to gather public input on the draft document. The second meeting will be held at the ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center on May 7, 2024.

The Waimea meeting was livestreamed by the US Army via YouTube.

Pōhakuloa Training Area is the largest contiguous live-fire range and maneuver training area in Hawai‘i. Of the approximately 132,000 acres at PTA, the Army leases approximately 22,750 acres from the state. The Army’s 65-year lease of the state-owned land is set to expire in August 2029.

Location of Pōhakuloa from US Army maps found in the DLNR submittal

There was only a handful of speakers who took to the microphone Monday evening to share their thoughts, mostly in opposition to the military occupation of the land. There was enough time for some speakers to testify a second time.

The next meeting will be held in Hilo at the ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center on Tueseday, May 7th, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

The comment period on the draft EIS ends on June 7, 2024.