{"id":134867,"date":"2021-02-03T09:13:28","date_gmt":"2021-02-03T19:13:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=134867"},"modified":"2021-02-03T09:37:41","modified_gmt":"2021-02-03T19:37:41","slug":"uh-response-to-calls-for-ending-its-maunakea-management","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2021\/02\/03\/uh-response-to-calls-for-ending-its-maunakea-management\/","title":{"rendered":"UH<\/abbr> response to calls for ending its management of Maunakea state lands"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 4<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"Maunakea\"
(Photo credit: Andrew Hara)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> remains steadfast in its commitment to continue to improve stewardship of Maunakea. The university is willing to work with anyone to honor that commitment, which includes considering different governance structures. UH<\/abbr>\u2019s commitment to collaborative stewardship was clearly mandated to leadership by the Board of Regents (BOR<\/abbr>) in an August 24, 2017 resolution<\/a>, and alternative models other than UH<\/abbr> management were publicly discussed with the UH<\/abbr> Regents at their April 16, 2020 BOR<\/abbr> meeting<\/a> (PDF<\/abbr><\/small>).<\/p>\n

UH<\/abbr> believes astronomy on Maunakea and in Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> will be put at significant risk if work on the new land authorization is stopped at this time with no clear alternative path forward. It will take substantial time to reach an agreement on a new approach, if that can be done. If a new organization is recommended it will need to be created and funded, and even if it already exists it will have substantial work to complete the necessary plans, assessments and approvals. Similar ideas have been previously proposed in the legislature in past years with no result. This has created uncertainty and concern amongst the existing observatories and their national and international non-profit owners\/sponsors regarding matters critical to their futures. This includes the new observatory stewardship fees UH<\/abbr> has been planning to assess and more fundamentally, whether they will be offered the opportunity to continue beyond the end of their current leases in 2033. The observatories are anxious to determine if they can continue to invest and upgrade their facilities, or must begin the long process of decommissioning.<\/p>\n

The issues surrounding Maunakea are extraordinarily difficult, and opinions have hardened. As was noted in the recent third-party assessment of UH<\/abbr>\u2019s execution of the Comprehensive Management Plan, the opinions of members of the public regarding UH<\/abbr> stewardship of Maunakea has often depended upon whether they support or oppose telescope development on the mauna. A new governance structure or land manager will not change the minds of those who are opposed to astronomy on Maunakea.<\/p>\n

In the 1960s the State of Â鶹´«Ã½,<\/span> under the leadership of Governor Burns, determined that it wanted to support astronomy on Maunakea and further, that Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> should not just be a landlord but should aspire to a world-class program of education and research in astronomy. That has been achieved, and the university understands fully that the privilege of stewardship carries an even greater responsibility to mālama, to care for, Maunakea because of its unique heritage and resources.<\/p>\n

If the State now wishes to discontinue astronomy on Maunakea or continue as a landlord only, those are decisions for the State to make. But such decisions should be made in full recognition of the improvements in stewardship made since 2000 and the changes underway even today. Among the public recognition of UH<\/abbr>\u2019s work in the last two decades are:<\/p>\n