The Interagency Task Force on Vog had one mandate when formed last year: hold meetings to gather public testimony on the impact of Kilauea’s emissions.
The meetings have happened. But the testimony? Not so much, according to two of its members.
Rep. Bob Herkes, a committee member who spearheaded its creation, said public turnout has been lower than expected for the quarterly gatherings, possibly leaving the group with little to report when the state Legislature reconvenes in January.
“Absent public participation, it made no sense,” Herkes said of the 15-member committee.
A meeting in Pahala in March attracted about a dozen Ka‘u residents.
But a meeting in Pahoa last June saw no public attendance, said county Civil Defense Administrator Ben Fuata, who chairs the committee.
“When we went there, we entertained ourselves,” he said.
Another meeting in Hilo attracted only a couple attendees.
Fuata said the committee will meet again in November shortly after the election.
Though they haven’t gotten the input they were looking for, Fuata said he doesn’t see the effort as time wasted.
The committee has still been able gather data from experts on pollution from the volcano, information he plans to make available to the public once the group is dissolved after this year.
“I think it’s been successful in that we kind of have an idea … a better grasp on what the concerns of the public are,” Fuata said.
“We weren’t solving anything other than (forwarding) feedback presented. We’re nothing more than a sounding board to the public.”
Herkes, D-Puna, Ka‘u, Kona, said he had planned to introduce a resolution next session requesting the committee meet on an as-needed basis after this year, but had to drop that after losing in the primary election.
The Legislature approved the committee’s formation last year, but the bill almost didn’t make it past Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s desk.
Abercrombie considered vetoing the bill, noting the existence of larger, state-level vog committee.
Herkes was able to convince him otherwise, and argued that the smaller task force would be able to meet with the public more often and receive more input.
“I still think it’s a good idea,” he said. “But if they didn’t show up to ask the questions, it didn’t make sense to do it.”
