Hawaii is at a historic crossroads in its relationship with the U.S. military. Gov. Josh Green has counseled the public to be “sober” about our situation. We agree. It’s time for a clear-eyed accounting of the harm Hawaii has suffered from the 150-year-old legacy of the military in the islands and our vision for the next century and beyond.
Yet, instead of shepherding our island community through this critical opportunity to begin repairing generational trauma towards a more pono future, the Green administration has acquiesced to the bullying of the Trump administration. And all they have to show for it so far is a Christmas list of random wishes for Hawaii for which they are willing to give away Hawaii’s lands. But there is no generous benefactor to grant those wishes.
A painful example of the Green administration bargaining away our future is its attempt to package another military taking of Hawaiian trust lands with plans to bring a new fossil fuel to the islands: liquefied natural gas (LNG).
It is a shame to see TIME Magazine climate leader of the year, Gov. Josh Green, M.D., beg the U.S. military for help to shackle the Hawaiian Islands to a new climate-killing source of imported energy, even worse than coal.
It is insulting to tell people who are already paying absurd prices for energy that this new snake oil will ease their burden. In reality, we know that liquefied natural gas will speed our trajectory to climate catastrophe and cost us and our children far more than anyone should have to pay in terms of money, health, and safety.
One of the many lessons learned from the Skyline rail project is: big, bulky infrastructure projects typically run over budget and fail to deliver on benefits.
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The Green administration predicts that under its most hopeful conditions this LNG project will cost $1.4 billion, take 10 years to complete, and save ratepayers maybe a sliver on monthly bills. The margins are razor thin and buried under mountains of speculation.
But when it’s all said and done, the rest of us get stuck paying the bills, no matter how much. Banking on energy infrastructure that will be obsolete the moment it’s installed is irresponsible. Hawaii learned that bitter lesson already.
Likewise, to believe the military will assist us in achieving our clean energy goals is naive.
The reality is the Pentagon has failed to provide a full accounting of its carbon emissions. And the current federal administration has sabotaged climate science, slashed federal funding for renewable energy, and fast-tracked fossil fuel production. Based on the military’s dismal track record in Hawaii, any promises it makes must be taken with a huge Red Hill-sized grain of salt.
During this holiday season, it is our wish that Gov. Green finds the courage to fulfill Hawaii’s role as a world leader in peace, justice and environmental sustainability.
The Hawaiian trust lands are not his or anyone’s to bargain away. He should back the leadership of kanaka maoli to engage with the U.S. toward restorative justice for Hawaii’s future.
Kyle Kajihiro is a faculty member in ethnic studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.