Hawaii County has selected a preferred site for a wastewater treatment plant serving Naalehu.
The site is located on state land makai of Mamalahoa Highway on the east side of the town. It borders property the county is considering purchasing in order to preserve former Makahiki grounds known as Kahua Olohu.
Environmental Management Director Bobby Jean Leithead Todd said a draft environmental assessment will be issued following a public meeting, likely to be held by the end of the year.
The wastewater plant would be 350 feet from the approximate boundary of the cultural site, according to a map provided by Environmental Management. A 100-foot setback would be used to protect a nearby petroglyph.
Leithead Todd said 13 properties in the area were considered.
Previously, the county was considering selecting another state parcel that partially includes the former Makahiki grounds, where Native Hawaiian festivals and sporting events were once held.
An archaeology report conducted by the county discovered the cultural resources on the property and an adjacent private parcel. That site was dropped from consideration as a result.
A proposal to buy the private parcel through the Public Access, Open Space and Natural Resources Preservation Fund is pending before the County Council.
Leithead Todd said the treatment plant would use an aeration system with open lagoons similar to sewage facilities in Kealakekua and Honokaa.
She said the lagoons wouldn’t be visible from the highway.
Leithead Todd said the area can accommodate a gravity-fed system.
“Some sites proved to be too small, some had issues with archaeology, some with lava tubes, some would require pumping the sewage uphill,” she said in an email, regarding why other potential sites weren’t selected.
A cost estimate and timeline wasn’t immediately available.
Email Tom Callis at tcallis@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
