05-08-2022, 09:07 AM
https://www.civilbeat.org/2022/05/legisl...pay-bills/
"Inouye, a Big Island senator whose district includes Mauna Kea, said the bill is redundant because the University of Hawaii and the Center for Maunakea Stewardship already help to manage the mountain and its resources.
She said that UH officials worried that the university would become a “lame duck landlord” during the five-year transition period to the new management authority proposed in the bill. She also said there were some concerns in the astronomy community that the bill could halt the construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope. She questioned how much the new authority would actually support astronomy, and called the bill a “Trojan Horse.”
Inouye was almost entirely alone in her opposition.“If this bill is a Trojan Horse, then I’m afraid to report that Troy is already on fire,” Sen. Jarret Keohokalole said.
He maintained that the status quo on Mauna Kea may only continue to threaten the future of astronomy on the mountain. In 2015 and 2019, mass protests halted construction of the TMT."
"Inouye, a Big Island senator whose district includes Mauna Kea, said the bill is redundant because the University of Hawaii and the Center for Maunakea Stewardship already help to manage the mountain and its resources.
She said that UH officials worried that the university would become a “lame duck landlord” during the five-year transition period to the new management authority proposed in the bill. She also said there were some concerns in the astronomy community that the bill could halt the construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope. She questioned how much the new authority would actually support astronomy, and called the bill a “Trojan Horse.”
Inouye was almost entirely alone in her opposition.“If this bill is a Trojan Horse, then I’m afraid to report that Troy is already on fire,” Sen. Jarret Keohokalole said.
He maintained that the status quo on Mauna Kea may only continue to threaten the future of astronomy on the mountain. In 2015 and 2019, mass protests halted construction of the TMT."
