It has been a little over 3 years now that I have been submitting these cultural articles to the Honolulu Advertiser at the request of Mr. James Gonser of the myadvertiser.com blog sites. At that time I had no idea what a blog was. I knew what I wanted to write about, I was just not sure if it was what the Advertiser was expecting. I know now what a blog is however I learned something much more.

I was very familiar with how business interest shaped our early history of these islands. I was also very familiar with the role federal agencies played in the transition from a monarchial form of government to what we have today. I said it before and will say it again that I do not judge people of today for those decisions of the past but rather to just remember. I have learned something much more valuable. That lesson is the role that large owners and federal agencies played in the altering of the ancient history of the indigenous peoples of ‘Ewa and perhaps elsewhere and how was it intentionally and methodically done.

What is perhaps most frightening is that view of altering an ancient past continues today by some. Federal agencies own 25% of all of the lands of Hawaii nei and that is most obvious in ‘Ewa where we have the most military bases and installations than any other moku. Even after the downsizing of military facilities recently within ‘Ewa Moku federal agencies continue to have a large presence and continue to impact and affect the alteration of that ancient history.

The solution lies in something Kumu Hula John Kaimikaua repeatedly told me. “Remember the past………..educate the children of today ………that those children yet unborn will know their ancestors.” In doing this it will secure the future of these islands as they once were. This is where this story shall begin. It is the story of the restoration of an ancient past………….and the sharing of it.

Much of my views today come not only from researching and spending many hours reading through tons of archival information but also from having established a good relationship with these same federal agencies. I need to thank the different branches or our military for their assistance and willingness to disclose historical data that allows me to share these views and perspectives. We have many friends.

This is a good time to share a testimony I made before the Advisory Council of Historic Preservation on May 13, of 2008. It addresses the concerns of many Native Hawaiians with respect to the restoration of an ancient past and the role preservation plays in this effort. It also identifies the role that federal agencies can play in this new direction if they choose to. It is an interaction…….it is an integration of an ancient past with the story of today. It is our story and rooted in the very fabric of those stories I have shared with you in “Cultural Kapolei”.

This testimony was given before a meeting of the members of the Advisory Council of Historic Preservation at the Old Post Office Building on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C. on May 13, 2008. I was speaking as the Native Hawaiian Representative of the Native American Advisory Group whose chair is Arden Kucate, a Native American. The first chair and first NH Representative of NAAG was Fred Cachola. At this meeting NAAG brought to the floor at the quarterly meeting of the board of ACHP a proposal to adopt the “ACHP Native Hawaiian Policy Statement”. The meeting was presided over by Chairman John Nau. Following is the entire testimony given before a full room of board members and representatives of all federal agencies.

This testimony was given following an opening pule of “Noho Ana Ke Akua”, and “E Ulu”.

Native Hawaiian NAAG member Shad Kane speaks in support of the “ACHP Native Hawaiian Policy Statement” before a meeting of the Advisory Council of Historic Preservation on May 13, 2008.

“Aloha mai e Kakou. Honorable Chairman John Nau, honorable members of the Council, guests and friends, I would like to thank you for allowing me to share my thoughts and to speak in support of your proposed Native Hawaiian Organization Policy.

Native Hawaiians are in a unique situation. It is not a tribal government that they have. Native Hawaiian organizations such the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, and the many different Hawaiian Trust organizations are constantly challenged on their constitutionality. In order to understand how important this proposed document is one needs to understand a little of the history of these islands.

Much of our cultural past was lost or you could safely say, although it is not said often openly ……. it was taken away. I think some of you can understand that. Fred Cachola, who I think some of you know well, and who also served as the first chair of NAAG, he and I went to the same high school, although he attended a few years before I did. It was and still is a Hawaiian only school although it has been challenged in court. It is however much different today than when we attended.

At that time it was a military high school and upon graduation most of us we were expected to go into the military. It was 4 years of ROTC and we wore military uniforms with brass and spit shined shoes every day of those 4 years. We participated every year in the Armed Forces Day parade with our dress blues and M-1 rifles.

Fred and I learned little of our Hawaiian culture during those 4 years. We studied American history and histories of other places, we studied geographies of other places, we studied other languages, we studied plants and animals of other places and even studied the cultures of other people. We even took military science courses where we learned of American war strategies. Even most of our teachers were recruited from other places. Very few of our teachers were from Hawaii with the exception of our athletic coaches. We learned absolutely nothing of our Hawaiian culture. Fred and I grew up being told that it was not good being Hawaiian so I identified with my German ancestry…….. it is important to understand that Fred and I are not unique……..a lot of people from our generation grew up with the same sense of cultural denial.

Today however things are much different. Because of what has happened for over 200 years to Native Hawaiians like other Native Americans we have come to not only embrace our Hawaiian culture but to live it…..….and it is this that most federal agencies have a difficult time understanding…..and more importantly…..a need to understand.

This is a very important policy statement that will help federal agencies understand the Native Hawaiian’s perspective of their world and how they see themselves in it. Twenty-five (25%) percent of all the land in Hawaii are owned by federal agencies. Native Hawaiians like other Native American find meaning in their lives through their relationship with the aina (land) and everything in it. It is not something to fear but to embrace. It is not something to change but to live amongst as equals. Their church is not defined by walls but by the ground upon which they walk, the sky above, and the sea that surrounds them. Their gods and ancestors manifest themselves in nature. All land was owned by the gods and it was the people’s responsibility to care for it. For Native Hawaiians it is not an issue of owning land but the preservation and care of it for future generations. It was their kuleana or responsibility to care for their wahipana and wahikapu and the right to access these lands for religious and cultural practices. It is here that the dispute lies and the solutions can be found.

The question amongst most cultural practitioners today is how sincere and how meaningful is consultation especially amongst federal agencies. Is it a means to clear the way for a federal project or is it a sincere effort to save or integrate historic and cultural sites into a project where one can still access and practice their cultural beliefs and protocol. These are the places that bring meaning to a Native Hawaiian’s cultural world.

It is also important to understand that not all land provides that connection to one’s ancestors or cultural beliefs. Native Hawaiians were removed from these lands and placed on less productive lands. Much of the lands acquired by federal agencies are those lands that we refer to as “Wahikapu” or sacred lands. One can find cultural sites on most properties owned by federal agencies. These cultural sites exist today partially the result of federal agencies installing security measures in the acquisition of these properties. There is some good that has come out of this and that has been the preservation of the many cultural and historic sites on especially DOD properties.

Historically the relationship between Native Hawaiians and the military community has been a strained one however it has improved over the years. Examples of this success has been Navy Region Hawaii’s support of the Oahu Council of Hawaiian Civic Clubs participation on the Navy Region’s Historic Preservation Partners as a Native Hawaiian organization in the Master Development of Ford Island and all military construction projects with respect to section 106 consultation. What has made this relationship extremely successful has been Navy Region’s support of the Oahu Council of Hawaiian Civic Clubs annual Makahiki Festival held every year in November allowing a traditional double hull canoe and many smaller canoes paddle into Pearl Harbor pass all the large ships and subs and land on Moku Umeume (Ford Island) celebrating the arrival of the god Lono who was the god of good health and a bountiful harvest. Traditional foods are carried by canoe and offered to the god Lono on Moku Umeume. This access provided by the Navy allowing Native Hawaiians to practice a cultural function in a place where it was once held has established a lasting relationship amongst those who participate annually.

There are other success stories….. Over the last 7 years the 15th AirBase Wing Commander at Hickam Air Force Base likewise personally participates in a similar Makahiki Festival and where many other Native Hawaiian organizations participate in partnership with military families on Hickam.

These success stories are important for us to understand because it has established a relationship between Native Hawaiian organizations and the Navy and the Air Force long after the consultation. In addition it has served as a bridge to fostering a better relationship between the military and the civilian community. The Base Commander of Hickam has encouraged his DOD employees and the military families to participate. It needs to be stated that the success at Hickam is the direct result of the participation of the Base Commander and his Command Staff. It should not end with the consultation…….it should be the beginning.

More meaningful consultation and an effort to find a more lasting relationship through access for religious and cultural practices is perhaps the way to finding solutions at places such as Schofield, Makua, Kaneohe Marine Corp Air Station and Pohakuloa.

There are other success stories such as the National Park Service on Hawaii Island and the preservation of Pu’uKohola Heiau. However they have had some challenges with respect to the recent earthquake damage and their attempt to consult with and work with Na Papa Kanaka ‘O Pu’uKohola, a Native Hawaiian organization. The dispute there as addressed in one of the goals of this ACHP Native Hawaiian policy is regarding who are the experts in the repair of a Hawaiian Heiau. Is it the federally appointed archaeologist or a Hawaiian cultural practitioner. In that situation the dispute was over the Native Hawaiian organization’s refusal to allow the archaeologist, who was a female, into the heiau. In Hawaiian culture women were not allowed into certain heiau. This proposed ACHP policy would greatly resolve these kinds of challenges which could be avoided through the support of an educational program for federal agencies.

The adoption of this proposed Native Hawaiian policy will provide for a better working and productive relationship between Native Hawaiian organizations and federal agencies and define NAAG and ACHP as a conduit for that relationship and recognition.

I urge this council to adopt this policy and to encourage all federal agencies to support the language of this policy.

Mahalo a me aloha no.

Shad Kane”

It was adopted by the Advisory Council of Historic Preservation at this meeting on May 13, 2008. The Department of Defense adopted a similar policy statement the following year. Efforts are being made to assist other federal agencies in adopting similar policies. Our history is not just one history…………..but an integration of many. It is this aspect of historic preservation that federal agencies need to understand.

Here in Hawaii that ancient past can be found in the oral traditions and the preservation of those special places and wahipana and wahikapu associated with those stories. It is not one story but many. That is our story……………..in this City of Kapolei.

The Base Realignment and Closure Commission, BRAC, was established on a federal level to consider and re-evaluate the usefulness and planned reuse of military properties. The BRAC Commission recommended the closure of the Barbers Point Naval Air Station in June of 1993. It was reviewed and accepted by then President Clinton and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in September of 1993. The Barbers Point NAS was subsequently closed in 1999.

It was partly an effort to generate more federal dollars to improve the quality of life of the military and their families. It was an attempt to attract and provide quality enlistment opportunities in the transition from the draft to a volunteer enlistment structure of our military. It was also done to provide more monies for military construction projects that would provide for better housing of our military families and also to help make critical military infrastructure more secure. This new direction was also motivated by the increased acts of terrorism around the world and especially since the bombing of the USS Cole in the Persian Gulf. As part of base closure an Environmental Impact Statement to include an inventory of all previous archaeological surveys was conducted. On a federal level BRAC, Base Realignment and Closure, was put in place with dollars to cleanup and facilitate this transition. Simultaneously the State of Hawaii established the BPRC, Barbers Point Redevelopment Commission, to also facilitate this transition on a state level. It is here that we will begin this story.

The International Archaeological Research Institute, Inc., IARII, was requested by Belt Collins Hawaii to provide a synthesis of the cultural resource studies of the ‘Ewa Plain through the 1990s to include the cultural resource inventory of the Naval Air Station at Barbers Point. This synthesis was intended to serve as a review and documentation of all previous historical and archaeological studies that would provide the foundation for a cultural resource management plan of the cultural landscape of the former Barbers Point NAS as a critical part of base closure.

As part of this effort Dave and Myra Tomonari-Tuggle of IARII was privileged to get the assistance of a number of very respected cultural experts to include Rubellite Johnson, Ross Cordy and Earl Neller. This short article in no way can do justice to the intense work and contributions of all involved in the synthesis. All this article can hope to do is draw some attention to the work of these people and the need to care for and preserve the cultural landscape of the former Barbers Point NAS.

To this day much of this cultural landscape belongs to, and is the responsibility of the Navy. Ultimately it will be conveyed to perhaps another agency. It is critical that it be conveyed to an agency that that has the cultural sensitivity, vision and resources to care for and preserve these valued cultural resources. The Ahahui Siwila Hawaii ‘O Kapolei, the Kapolei Hawaiian Civic Club, has been working in partnership with the Kalaeloa Development Authority, the Navy Region Hawaii and Navy Base Police as interim caretakers toward the security, care and preservation of the Kalaeloa Heritage Park.

Historically, much of the ancient Hawaiian geographical boundaries have been altered. The very nature of agriculture and development is to clear and grub the land. Our ancient Hawaiian ancestors delineated boundaries along natural features such as mountain ridges, rivers and shorelines. In areas where there was no natural feature they built ahu or altars. To most of us today they would appear or seem to resemble a stone mound. Upright stones would also serve the same purpose. Today however most of these man-made boundary structures are gone.

Based on the traditions it appears that the cultural landscape of the former naval base is a large geographical area perhaps even an Ili or smaller subdivision of an ahupua’a. This becomes an interesting thought. If that is correct then it would substantiate and support a konahiki living at the Heiau ‘O Pu’uokapolei which is supported by the traditions of the area. By definition an Iliaina is property allotted by a Konahiki to individuals. In return these individuals would provide tribute to the Konahiki at Pu’uokapolei, and he or she would provide similar tribute to the chief of the ahupua’a and he who would provide that same tribute to the chief of the island. All of this supports the large numbers of agricultural mounds and agricultural sinkholes in Kanehili or the former Barbers Point NAS. It also supports the many stories associated with bird catchers smoking and snaring birds for feathers that would serve as tribute to the Konahiki.

One particular tradition is the story of Hi’iakapoliopele. When Hi’iaka left Pu’uokapolei she walked along a trail in the makai direction. As she walked along this trail she passed through Kaupe’a and Kanehili till she reached Kualaka’i where she admired her reflection in the Spring of Hoakalei. The story makes it seem that Hi’iaka walked a long way supporting a large geographical area comprising Kanehili. The synthesis identifies much of the former Barbers Point NAS as Kanehili.

Amongst the properties of the former Barbers Point NAS is one that had been identified by the Barbers Point Redevelopment Commission as the Kalaeloa Heritage Park. Its future reuse as identified by the BPRC was that it should serve as a heritage park and signature property in the future reuse of all cultural properties of the former base. It was meant to serve as a community benefit and a venue to educate both our residents of Kapolei and visitors.

The native plant the Maiapilo thriving in the Kalaeloa Heritage Park

Its reuse was also based on the numbers and excellent condition of valued cultural resources within the proposed Kalaeloa Heritage Park property. These structures are also representative of most of the structures found on other properties throughout the former naval station. Its selection that it serve a community benefit as a heritage park was also based on the lack of soil contamination usually associated with former military bases.

These cultural structures are unique and cannot be found anywhere else. They are entirely constructed of coral and hints of a Tahitian origin by the integration of many upright stones into their construction. The synthesis identify a habitation structure as permanent or temporary by its design construction. It suggests that the occupant may have been a permanent resident of the area or temporary based on its design construction.

Example of a rectangular permanent habitation structure. There would have been poles on each of the 4 corners with an A-frame roof thatched with grasses or native palms. Floor would have been paved with small stones made comfortable with mats. No biting insects made it possible living outdoors in ancient Hawaii

A rectangular habitation structure is identified as a permanent house site and C-shaped or L-shaped structures may have served as temporary house sites. There are many examples in the Kalaeloa Heritage Park.

Example of a C-shaped temporary habitation structure. Many exist at the Kalaeloa Heritage Park

The synthesis identify sinkholes as either burials, agricultural or as water resources. Some of these sinkholes that served as water resources have walls constructed around them in an effort to keep opala or trash out of them. The presence of water in sinkholes is unique to this region. Where in most other places water would travel along surface dissections or rivers, water travelled underground in the porous coral of Kanehili.

Walled sinkhole. Highly probable that it served as a water source.

Some of these sinkholes that served as a water resource also have paved stairs within them to reach the water as the water level varied with the rainy season. In the traditions associated with the place once known as Kanehili is the story of the travels of the gods Kane and Kanaloa. In their travels Kanehili is the place they visited where Kane brought forth water from the sinkholes with the strike of his ko’oko’o (staff).

Large walled sinkhole. Probable water source, however its size seems to indicate a possible religious purpose.

Sinkholes are also identified as agricultural sinkholes. Our ancestors planted their crops within the moist and damp recesses of sinkholes. Amongst those agricultural resources were maia (banana), kou (sugar cane), la’i (ti leaves) and others. There are examples of ti leaves growing out of sinkholes in the Kalaeloa Heritage Park. It is also important to understand these ti leaves may be as old as the culturally modified sinkhole. Amongst these burial sinkholes are chambers and walls within the sink designed and constructed to conceal the kupuna. There are also above ground burials as coral mounds or ahu.

Agricultural sinkhole with ti leaf growing in the Kalaeloa Heritage Park

Perhaps the one most interesting cultural feature is a paved trail of upright stones every 6 to 8 feet. This paved trail of coral slates is perfectly straight. Only approximately 200 yards of this trail exist today. It can be seen on Malden’s Map of 1825. It had to have taken hundreds of people to construct as the trail provided access to several places to include as far away as Honouliuli or where today is the West Loch Golf Course.

Paved trail with upright stones in Kanehili.

The Kalaeloa Heritage Park is perhaps the most important piece of real estate in the former naval air station. It culturally defines who we are as a new community of Kapolei and its namesake Kapo as the elder sister of Pele. It is also interesting as the Pele family is referred to as amongst our Tahitian ancestors. Perhaps the paved trail of upright stones was constructed in their honor. It is interesting as ‘Ewa is referred to by Hawaiian Historian Sam Kamakau as the celebrated lands of our ancestors. The ancestors he is referring is not our ancestors here…………but our ancestors from the southern latitudes.

In an attempt to summarize the Synthesis of Cultural Resource Studies of the ‘Ewa Plain by Dave and Myra Tuggle, this is what seems most obvious. In every area of the former base that was left undisturbed by construction and development, remnants of ancient past can be found. These valued cultural resources stand in support that the traditions such as Hi’iakapoliopele is a history and not a myth or legend as some of us have been made to believe. The synthesis also states that the work is not done. Much more work must be done in the identification of ancient bird bones in sinkholes. Much more data need to be gathered and cataloged. The vastness of the cultural landscape paints a picture of a community of people that lived in Kanehili. It is not a documentation of individual archaeological features but rather a landscape…………..an ancient community that once lived at a place once known as Kanehili.

Just another story of the new city of Kapolei………..

After having worked many years as a detective in the Honolulu Police Department I have come to feel at home conducting investigations or research in an effort to seek knowledge or ‘ike. Whether it is to seek information or evidence to file charges against someone who has violated another person’s rights or looking for a window into the ancient past, it is much the same. The content of the results may be different but that sense of enlightenment is the same.

I have always enjoyed finding or discovering pieces of facts that lead to a positive conclusion. Likewise, frustration, when the results were not as revealing. In most cases however these investigation brought a sense of closure. There is however a difference between police work and unraveling the mysteries of an ancient past. In police work the effort is to make certain that justice prevails and good wins over evil. However research of an ancient past does not necessarily mean that right or good will prevail. It does not mean that we will make right a faded memory or the altering of a past. It simply means that knowledge is a gift and those who possess that knowledge will find comfort in the things of today and a clear path to the future…………………and this is where we want to begin this story.

Sterling and Summers “Sites of O’ahu” makes this reference to a place name of Hanalei, “Hanalei, a small flat land with a little gulch on either side on the right of Pu’uloa mauka of Pu’uokapolei. Formerly there was much milo, neneleau, kamani and other trees on the land, home of the i’iwi and o’o birds. (Lono, Honomu).

It is a reference attributed to a Mr. Theordore Kelsey Collection, HEN: Vol 1, p. 820.

The native bird I'iwi was once a frequent visitor of Hanalei. Photo courtesy The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii.

What can one make from this short but simple reference of a place name of Hanalei, Oahu? Mr. Kelsey does not leave us with much to start from. First there is nowhere else where one can find any kind of reference to a place called Hanalei, O’ahu other than Hanalei, Kaua’i which we are all very familiar with. It does not appear in song, dance or chants. It does not appear in genealogies. In order to understand, one much first understand who is this person…………Mr. Theodore Kelsey.

Mr. Theodore Kelsey at home in Waianae. Photo courtesy Mr. Keoni Nunes.

I spoke to Keoni Nunes, a well respected and well known Cultural Practitioner and Historian. Keoni was a haumana to Mr. Kelsey and confirmed Mr. Kelsey’s reference to a place called Hanalei, O’ahu. Keoni identified Makakilo as that place referred to by Mr. Kelsey as Hanalei. Keoni shared some valuable information into the life of this very interesting man. Mr. Kelsey’s significance or importance in terms of understanding the past lie not so much in song, chants and dance but rather the personal relationships he had nurtured with the people in his life.

From a cultural perspective life is defined in terms of cycles and opposing forces or opposites. It does not matter what culture one speaks from for they are all the same. Our challenge is where are we in terms of that cycle. There is a consistency in generational perspectives. There is a commonality in every generation or every life cycle. It repeats itself………..our ancestors understood this simply because of their relationship with the real world and how it manifests itself in the spiritual world. Or as our ancestors would say how the spiritual world manifests itself in the real world. This commonality or consistency allows us to learn of the past and plan for the future by knowing ourselves and our spiritual component. A piece of that knowledge or “ike” can be found in the names of our ancestor’s special places. It brings us to this……….what is the name Hanalei meant to tell us.

Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects of Hanalei by Mr. Kelsey is his reference to the plants and birds that thrived in the area once known as Hanalei. It allows us a peek into the past and helps us understand plant and bird change and how that can serve as an indicator of environmental and landscape alteration. Kiawe was introduced in the early 1800s as cattle feed. There was no kiawe in the area today known as Makakilo. We can also say that there was no California grass and foreign weeds. Plants can tell us something of our past if we only have the will to listen. Neneleau, Milo and Kamani are dry land forest trees and appear to have been the dominant trees in the area once known as Hanalei as mentioned by Theodore Kelsey.

A Milo tree growing in the Pu'uokapolei Native Plant Garden with a young Neneleau growing at the left and below the Milo.

Today one might see an occasional Kamani or Milo in our community parks or roadside landscape. I have seen Neneleau within Kalo’i Gulch but that was many years ago. I have seen Neneleau in our district parks and along the side of our roads. They seem to favor soil that has been turned. It is interesting though that the Neneleau is mentioned in the kumulipo, the Hawaiian creation chant. It’s wood was also used by our ancestors to make lomilomi sticks, used for massages. I have not seen any in Awanui, Pala’ila’i, Makalapa, Makaiwa, and Waimanalo Gulches. The biological landscape as shared by Mr. Theodore Kelsey is not as it once was. It seems that the Neneleau has adapted to growing in places other than its historical range which is interesting and cannot be explained by me.

A more mature Neneleau growing in the Maui Native Nursery. Photo courtesy Jonathan Keyser, Native Nursery, LLC

For those of us who live in the mid elevation level of Makakilo between Kalo’i Gulch and Awanui Gulch and just where Makakilo Gulch vanishes…………….you live in Hanalei. Makakilo Gulch starts right where there was once a spring. That spring may have dried up only within the last 50 years. There are indications that there may have been several springs in the immediate area of where Mauka Lani Elementary School is located in Makakilo.

Perhaps one of the most important aspects in understanding why our ancestors gave specific names to places is understanding the spiritual concept of mana and how it played a real part in their world. I have shared this in the past but it needs repeating here. Names were not superficial but was meant to manifest the spiritual importance of its surroundings. Mana was real in ancient Hawaii and one could harness it to help make better one’s life. If one could harness it in a subsistence lifestyle one could provide more food and water for those who live within that geographical region. Mana was not just a word that the chiefs dwelt in …………….but also the Kupukaina………those who have sprouted from the land.

The place name of Hanalei when given to a landscape makes reference to a lei or that of a…………….hoaka. Hanalei Bay on Kauai makes reference to the mana it’s ocean resources provided to the ancient people of this region. Hanalei Bay is a Hoaka…………….a cresent bay……………..an umeke………a receptacle of the mana of the “kai”………..the ocean.

Hanalei (Makakilo) sits in the receptacle (Hoaka) of 3 pu’u each which form a Hoaka in and of themselves. The hoaka of Pu’uomakakilo and Pu’upala’ila’i opens and faces the rising sun. They receive the mana of the rising sun (Both pu’u are on both sides of Hanalei). Pu’uokapolei sits in the bowl formed by these 3 pu’u and faces mauka…………………………Hanalei. Hanalei sits in the shadow of both Pu’uomakakilo and Pu’uopala’ila’i. The shadow of the rising sun (Pu’uomakakilo) and the shadow of the setting sun (Pu’uopala’ila’i). It is when the sun reaches Pu’uokapolei, it is then that Hanalei receives the mana of the sun. Pu’uokapolei was where the largest heiau in the ahupua’a in Honouliuli was built. That heiau was dedicated to the sun. This is the cultural significance of this name…………Hanalei. The sun is the dominant force in all of the new city of Kapolei and that of Hanalei. It is a significance that is repeated in the traditions and stories associated with the place we refer to as Kapolei.

Makakilo (Hanalei) from just makai of the Kapolei Regional Park with Pu’uokapolei in the foreground and Pu’uomakakilo and Pu’uopala’ila’i on both sides of Hanalei.

Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects to the ancient place name of Hanalei is the man who shares this information with us. Cultural Historians such as Theodore Kelsey have softened my attitude toward non-Hawaiian Historians. Having researched his works and cultural contributions I was surprised to find out that he is not Hawaiian. Theodore Kelsey was born in Seattle, Washington in 1891. He and his parents moved to Hawaii shortly after he was born. They lived in Hanamaulu, Kauai where his mother worked as a school teacher for 1 year. They eventually moved to Hawaii Island where his father worked in Hilo as a manager of a store. It was here on Hawaii Island that Theodore Kelsey’s interest in Hawaiian culture was nurtured by kupuna close to him. He initially developed an interest in photography and captured the lives of those kupuna that shaped his view of an early Hawaii. He initially operated a photo studio in Hilo. His early interest in Hawaiian culture occurred during those turbulent and difficult years of the Hawaiian people. He was hanai to a Hawaiian family who ultimately became his teacher. He learned Hawaiian language as a child. He grew up in places such as Kuka’iau and Hanalelei on Hawaii Island. He spent many years at Kalamakama’a, Hawaii Island.

He ultimately moved to Kaimuki and befriended a Henry E. P. Kekahuna who shared the same cultural interest with him. He eventually became the legs of Mr. Kekahuna when Henry Kekahuana lost a leg in a train accident. During those early years he and Henry Kekahuna assisted Kenneth Emory of Bishop Museum in their understanding of the Hawaiian language, the ancient Hawaiian’s view of themselves and their world view, and an understanding through mapping of heiau. Mr. Kelsey was an extremely humble man who never took credit for his work and was quick to acknowledge others for his works. He ultimately lived out his final days living in Waianae with June Gutmanis. Hawaiian Cultural Practitioner Keoni Nunes served as haumana to Mr. Kelsey during those years. When Mr. Kelsey died in 1987 Keoni was afforded the privilege of returning Mr. Kelsey’s ashes to Hawaii Island, the land of his origins.

There is much to share regarding the contributions of Mr. Theodore Kelsey but we will save that for another day. Perhaps the saddest chapter in Mr. Kelsey’s life is when he found out that the Bishop Museum was updating the Hawaiian language dictionary he rushed to provide them with a long list of Hawaiian words that were not amongst the pages of those early editions. For reason unknown to us today those words were never included and lost amongst some dusty boxes at the museum. However we can say this about Mr. Theordore Kelsey………he will not be forgotten. He will be remembered for the picture he painted for us of a distant landscape. Before throny Kiawe and foreign weeds it was Milo, Kamani and Neneleau that dominated the landscape between Pu’uomakakilo and Pu’uopala’ila’i, It was the native birds the I’iwi and the O’o that found shelter amongst their branches. This is how it once was………..in this place once known as…………………Hanalei.

I often ask myself why have so many place names changed. At times one can feel as a stranger in his own home. There are places that seem foreign and distant. We could be anywhere. We are only reminded by an occasional Hawaiian street name. At times I see tourists along a country roadside taking a photo of a tree that is also from another place. Why is it? How did it happen? Why did this happen…..? There are places such as military bases and those communities surrounding these bases where one could feel almost unwelcomed. I look around our country and see so many States and Cities with Native American names. I look around the world and see many Japanese names in Japan, Chinese names in China, Korean names in Korea, French names in France , Russian names in Russia. So why do we have so many foreign names here…………………….? Perhaps a lack of sensitivity of developers whose projects take on a character that is not familiar to us. Perhaps a marketing strategy that focuses on foreign capital and investments. The results are however the same. The quieting of the past and the shouting out of a new era. Perhaps it was facilitated out of a partnership between business interests and federal agencies. Perhaps we too are to blame………………………….this is such a story of a place once known as Lihue. Not Lihue, Kauai………….but Lihue, Oahu.

Lihue stands at the Waolani of O’ahu. It is in the Moku of ‘Ewa, Ahupua’a of Honouliuli. The “Uplands of O’ahu”…………….and this is where we shall begin. Its history is associated with the earliest settlement on the Island of O’ahu at Keawalauopuuloa (Pearl Harbor), and that of the ‘Ewa Plains and the new city of Kapolei. It is at the center of the very fabric from which the ancient history of O’ahu can be found. It defines the origins of our voyaging ancestors who first dredged Keawalauopuuloa in the 11th century for their large wa’akaulua (double-hulled canoes). This is where they first settled where there was a bountiful of fresh water for their Lo’i Kalo and Loko I’a. Much fish and limu. A safe anchorage for their wa’akaulua.

They eventually moved along the plains of Kaupe’a and Kanehili where their coral structures can still be found beneath the thorny foreign kiawe. They built the largest heiau in all of the Moku ‘O ‘Ewa at Pu’uokapolei and placed Kamaunuaniho to live and serve as Konahiki over the entire region. These are our Tahitian ancestors. They are referred to as the Lo Chiefs of ‘Ewa. Those who preserved the blood line of Tahitian Chiefs and Chiefesses. They eventually moved into the uplands and cut a trail we refer to today as Kunia Road. It was they who preserved the blood of our Tahitian ancestry and established the Kukaniloko Birthing Site. Whenever one wished to seek a chief one could find him in the mountains surrounding Kukaniloko. The birthing site of chiefs and chiefesses. Names such as Mailikukahi, Kakuhihewa, Kahahana……………. It was Lihue that fortified Kukaniloko from the east and the northern door to Waianae. These are the stories of people and places whose deeds have slipped from our memories. Why has such a colorful history faded from memory. Was it intentional or is it a natural evolution of events as the passing of one generation to the next. These cultural articles are not meant to stand in judgment of the decisions and actions of the past. But simply to remember…………and to allow it to guide our decisions and actions of the future……………

Lihue - top left geographic region. Click to enlarge.

The Honouliuli Map of 1873 which was surveyed by W. D. Alexander identifies Lihue as a large geographical region perhaps on the same scale as an ahupua’a. He identifies it as encompassing 7,510 acres. Based on Alexander’s Map and the oral traditions associated with Lihue it appears to have been bordered today by Schofield Barracks on the north, the H-3 freeway on the east, Pohakea, Kupehau and Keahumoa toward the south and the Waianae Mountains on the west.

The exact boundaries and former identifying boundary markers are no longer available to us. Much of the cultural structures have been removed and destroyed. The native forest with its many native birds which once extended from the Waianae Mountains to the Ko’olau have made way for James Campbell’s sugar, Stanford Dole’s pineapple and Dowsett and Meek’s cattle grazing in the later part of the 1800s. Kunia Road and Kamehameha Highway are in the approximate location where once there were trails that brought people from the low lands into the uplands of Lihue and Halemano.

At left, one of many walls remaining in Lihue today. Right: segment of a wall with an elevated platform in the background.

Historically there had been several political centers or places of governance on the island of O’ahu depending on who the ruling mo’i was during periods of unification. Waikiki had always been referred to as a chiefly residence. So was Mokapu however ‘Ewa had several places that have been referred to in the traditions as political centers such as Waikele, Lepau (Waipio Peninsula), Pu’uloa and Lihue.

There are several aspects that make Lihue an extremely interesting place. This significance appears to have grown out of a need to secure the sanctity and purity of the bloodline of the ruling chiefs and that of Kukaniloko. The road to Kukaniloko was by way of Kaihuopalaai (West Loch). That path to Kukaniloko is today’s Kunia Road. The traditions associated with Lihue makes reference to it serving as a place of Nakoa (warrior) training. These warriors not only secured the road to Kukaniloko but also served to secure the northern gate into Waianae Moku at the Kolekole Pass. It was along the road to Kukaniloko at Lihue that Hawaii Island warriors entered Kaihuopalaai with 3,000 canoes in the 16th century in search of Mailikukahi’s army stationed at Lihue. Led by Hawaii Island Chiefs Punalu’u and Hilo suffered a major defeat first at Waikakalaua, then on the Plains of Punalu’u (now Mililani) which took the name of the fallen Hawaii Chief. Kipapa Gulch took the name of the many Hawaii Island warriors who died and “paved” the gulch with their bodies. Hilo was killed and decapitated, his head placed on a pole at the intersection today of Kunia Road and Farrington Highway. The area took the name of Po’ohilo (Head of Hilo) and appears in tax maps of the late 1800s. It served as a lesson to any other island chief with ambitions of leading any future assaults on O’ahu.

In the early 1300s the ‘Ewa Chiefs formed a formidable alliance with Wai’anae and Waialua and served as a dominant force on the island of O’ahu. ‘Ewa had always been considered as rebellious and difficult. This opinion toward ‘Ewa had lasted many generations right up to the period of the monarchy. When Kahekili of Maui ruled over O’ahu with the defeat of Kahahana he literally killed every Ali’i man, woman and child leaving no descendants of the initial Ulu Clan. Likewise when Kamehameha defeated Kahekili and hearing of a plan to overthrow him by several rebellious ‘Ewa chiefs he struck with a vengeance.

This rebellious reputation of ‘Ewa stuck with them even during the monarchy period where debts were paid by the ruling Ali’i with the harvesting of Iliahi (sandlewood) on the backs of the people of Lihue. Hawaiian Historian Sam Kamakau makes reference in the Hawaiian language newspaper of the 1800s on large scale harvesting of Iliahi at Lihue. Ali’i debt was paid on the backs of these people of Lihue during the early 1800s. Large numbers of the people of Lihue died as a result of starvation for having work all day without tending to their lo’i for food. Large numbers of the people of Lihue died as a result of the smallpox epidemic of 1840. Ali’i was also quick to give up ‘Ewa lands to outside interest. Nowhere else in these islands did the people of the land suffer more than those people of Lihue at the hands of the Ali’i.

All of this led to the loss of a history or perhaps provided for the conditions toward that demise. Not much archival information can be found on Lihue. Bits and pieces of this ancient past reveal itself amongst the pages of a number of historical publications. Amongst these Abraham Fornander makes reference to Lihue in “Fornander’s Collection of Hawaiian Anitquities and Folklore.” Nathaniel Emerson‘s “Pele and Hi’iaka” and a number of more recent translations by Kepa Maly and Puakea Nogelmeir reveal references to Lihue.

In the 1800s when Ka’ahumanu served as Kuhina Nui she was made aware of an uprising by the people of Kauai. She had sent a Chief who had served as Konahiki of Lihue during this period to Kauai to put down the uprising. He eventually succeeded in ending the rebellion but however decided to stay on Kauai. He however loved and missed his home in the uplands of O’ahu so much that he soon called his new home Lihue.

My interest in Hawaiian culture got its start when I stabled my horses on the fringes of Lihue at Pohakea many years ago. It was my horses that ushered that interest on many of our long rides into the valleys and hillsides of Lihue. That story is shared in an earlier essay under “Pohakea ….. White Rock……Black Hills”. I will leave that story for those of you to wish seek it.

A few of the members of "Na Wahine 'O Kunia"

More recently I have come to meet a group of young women who call themselves “Na Wahine ‘O Kunia”. I was invited by them to participate in a site tour of a cultural landscape in the area of Lihue. It was of extreme interest to me simply because although I thought I was familiar with the Lihue cultural landscape I was not familiar with what they were about to share with me.

I have always commented on cultural assessments that archaeological work is never completed. It is misleading to say that a document is a final report. We have walked into areas immediately after a survey had been done to find many red ribbons identify places where data was gathered. In the same area just adjacent to these markers we would find small triangular shaped Pohaku that were used by our Kupuna to mark burials. They seemingly appear to be sitting on the surface however as one brushes away the leaves and soil from around it a mound of stones appear.

Probable burial mound identified by a small piko stone (marked in white).

It was just several weeks ago when I got an email from friends informing me that people were going into an area in Lihue that we were aware of the existence of undocumented cultural sites. The concern during those years was whether to expose those sites or keep them hidden. There were no planned development by Campbell Estate at that time so decisions were made to keep them hidden. We have come to realize that there are no safe places today. The only solution is education…………….we all need to be aware that these special places exist today and the likelihood of their destruction and disappearance is real. Secrecy is not a solution. The only ones who benefit out of secrecy are developers and landowners.

Prior to our site tour we reviewed some of our informational sources. Sites of O’ahu by Sterling and Summers identify site no. 133 in the approximate area of where we were planning on visiting. It identifies it as “a small enclosure said to be a heiau, on a slight elevation in a gulch at the foot of Pu’u Kanehoa.”

Expecting to see a small enclosure I was surprised to find not just “a small enclosure” but an entire landscape of cultural walls, terraces, elevated platforms, Ku’ula stones, walking paths between terraces and signs of possible burials.

Segment of wall with large upright stone to the left

Also observed several triangular stones commonly found associated with burial mounds in other areas of Honouliuli Ahupua’a. We have made several trips back to record several aspects of this interesting cultural landscape.

Left: interesting slate stones within a rock shelter. Stones appeared to have been placed there and not naturally occurring. Right: A walking path with walls on both sides. Takes one from one area within a complex of structures to another area.

It was however disturbing when we were shared a map of the “Preliminary General Site Plan” drafted by the new landowners identifying this parcel as an agricultural lot up for sale. The question is whether the landowner disclosed the existence of this cultural landscape and its cultural resources to potential purchasers. Secrecy is not an option in land sales. It is obvious from all the red ribbons that this cultural landscape is known to the landowners.

It seems as if it was many years ago when we rode our horses into the valleys and gulches of Ekahanui and Huliwai, along the trails travelled by Kane, Kaneloa and Hi’iaka. Perhaps this relationship we all have with this place is meant to be. It is comforting to know that there are others. It seems interesting to me that it was the horse that brought us all here. There are a thousand trails in life. However there is only one trail that matters and that is the trail of a real human being ………..that is all that matters. The “Na Wahine ‘O Kunia” are on that trail. It is important that one day our children will know that there was once a place on O’ahu known as…………………Lihue.

Much of what you find amongst these pages is an effort to help us see what life might have been like anciently in the region we now refer to as Kapolei. We can get a snap shot of that past a number of ways. We have shaped that view by photos and recollections of those who can remember how life was once like. Although a narrative from our parents or grandparents may not entirely satisfy our curiosity it does provide us with a stone from which to leap. That is the focus of this next article.

We all struggle to find that clear vision of what we lost. Perhaps we can find that vision in the plants of the past. Those that struggle to find life in today’s world. Maybe there is something about their struggle that can shed some light about the world they thrived in…………….or the lack of it today.

This is the story of the endangered plant species the Achyranthes Splendon Rotunda. This is a plant that we have not been able to find a Hawaiian name for. Although plants such as the Wiliwili, Ma’o, Aheahea and Ohai can be found in ancient chant and mele……………….the Achyranthes cannot be found. This is especially unusual since it appears to have been the most abundant next to the Ilima which British Captain George Vancouver identifies the Ewa Plains as a “sea of gold” for the golden color of the Ilima.

Shad Kane pointing out a healthy population of Achyranthes.

We today have given this plant the name of the Ewa Hinahina. So why isn’t it referenced in the traditions if it was so abundant. Today it can be found only in 3 Endangered Species Plant Sanctuaries in the Campbell Industrial Park………..nowhere else in these islands………….nowhere else in the world. A victim of the development of a new city.

I first became aware of the struggles of this Hawaiian plant a number of years ago when I was trying to get a clear picture in my mind of the biological landscape of the ‘Ewa Plain. This was that period before a resort…….before an Industrial Park………before sugar………. before the military and before cattle. It led me to the plight of the native Wiliwili which Kapolei was once known for. It took me to the struggle of the Abutilon Menzisi which the last remaining population worldwide stood in the way of the proposed North-South Road in Kapolei. Its Hawaiian name is the Ko’oloaula or the “Red Lantern Ilima.”

The endangered Kooloaula is the native plant that held up the construction of the North South Road for many years.

It was this native plant that taught me to understand terms such as the “taking” and establishing of “wild populations” as defined in the Habitat Conservation Plan. All in the effort of going forward with the North-South Road and still save a wild population of an endangered species. It led me to the plight of the Achyranthes of the ‘Ewa Plains. This is its story………….another story of a place once known as Kanehili.

The common name of this plant is the Ewa Hinahina. Its scientific name is the Achyranthes splendens var.rotundata. It is of the Amarantaceae (Kulu`i family). The Achyranthes is a low coastal shrub growing to an average height of 3 feet. It is an extremely salt and drought tolerant plant. It has silvery leaves and spiky flowers. Its silvery leaves have what seem to be traces of silvery hair that may be used to collect water on humid days. It does extremely well growing in close proximity to open sinkholes. Have noticed beads of water on its leaves on hot humid days. Have also noticed a distinct rise in the humidity as one approaches healthy plants growing in close proximity to sinkholes.

The Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda grows very well from seeds and cuttings. It is on the Federal list of endangered plants and thus requires the proper permits to be grown commercially. Such permits can be acquired from the State of Hawaii’s Department of Forestry and Wildlife.

In 2003 the City Department of Environmental Services was conducting an in-depth study into the effects of constructing an Alternative Technology Park on property containing 2 plant sanctuaries of the endangered species known as the Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda, which was and still is listed on the U.S.F.W Endangered Plant List. This study was meant to help the City and County of Honolulu to better understand how to avoid and reduce the environmental impacts of activities on this species.

The subject property is a 23-acre parcel on the makai side of the existing H-POWER facility. It was purchased by the City in October of 2002 to serve as the site of the City’s planned Alternative Technology Park. When purchased it had 2 fenced in enclosures in the middle of the parcel. In October of 2003 the City fenced in the entire parcel and placed a gate fronting Kaomi Loop. These 2 enclosed plant sanctuaries have the last remaining natural plant populations of the Endangered Species the Achyranthes Splendens Rotunda surviving in their natural habitat. The entire 23-acre parcel had been cleared and grubbed by the previous landowner with the exception of the areas within the plant sanctuaries. When the City purchased the property from Campbell Estate attached to the deed were covenants and a Mitigation Plan identifying the sanctuaries and their required care and responsibilities of the landowner. It provided detailed information on the federal protection afforded the Achyranthes under the Endangered Species Act.

Achyranthes plant sanctuary adjacent to H-POWER facility.

Substrate of the subject property is typical of the entire region. It is a raised fossil reef characterized by large coralline outcrops and sinkholes which are formed by dissolution of the limestone as fresh water passes through its porous structure. Almost no true soils are found. Small amounts of organic matter accumulate in cracks and crevasses in the coral but most of the vegetation grows out of seemingly solid coral.

In October of 2003 a meeting was held between members of the Department of Environmental Services and Vickie Caraway of the Division of Forestry and Wildlife of the State of Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources. Focus of the meeting was to discuss mitigation measures regarding the proposed treatment of the Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda and the proposed future construction of an Alternative Technology Park to the Waimanalo Landfill. The Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda is an endemic plant unique to Hawaii and is listed on the Federal Endangered Plant List and consequently afforded Federal and State protection.

A brief discussion concerning the drafting of a Habitat Conservation Plan was considered. It was agreed that the first step would be to gather information and identify outplanting sites in an attempt to establish wild sites preferably on property owned by the City. Recommendation was made by State of Hawaii Botanist that the City Department of Environmental Services consider working with me to take the initial steps in gathering information and identify possible out planting sites.

Starting in November of 2003 and continuing to February of 2004 a series of inspections were conducted to determine the condition of the Achyranthes Splendon Rotunda plant sanctuaries on the H-POWER 23-acre proposed Alternative Technology Park property. Those series of field inspections included the identifying of all past preservation efforts, the location of those past efforts, and the present status of those efforts. This all being done in an effort to determine the historical range of this plant and the present populations in existence.

There is very little historical records to indicate where the Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda may have existed outside of the island of O`ahu. We do know that on the island of O`ahu it may have existed from Pu`uloa to Kaena Point. This is a result of having an understanding of the geology of the region and the preference the Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda have for growing in close proximity to sinkholes. Even within this historical range there may be slight genetic variations of the same plant.

A review was made of records, communications and source documents on file at the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFW), Kalanimoku Building located at 1151 Punchbowl Street. This all being done with the assistance of State of Hawaii Botanist. Assistance was also provided by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

A series of communications in 1994 between Marilyn Corn, then State Botanist for the DLNR, DOFW, Michael Buck, Administrator for the DOFW and the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Estate of James Campbell and the U. S. Coast Guard indicated that the last remaining populations of the Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda were located in 5 sanctuaries in Campbell Industrial Park. Communications indicated that the conditions of these 5 sanctuaries were in an extremely deteriorated state of condition although there were some healthy populations. It was recommended that some serious steps needed to be taken to clean up, cut back and remove the encroaching alien species within these 5 sanctuaries. This was now 20 years ago.

An inspection was done of all 5 sanctuaries. A check of the Coast Guard Lighthouse and Germaine’s Luau sanctuary revealed that none of the plants survived due to negligence whether that negligence was intentional or a lack of interest. The sanctuary was overwhelmed with trash and invasive weeds and species. There is also evidence that it was used as a dump site for trash. A check was also conducted of the Malakole site sanctuary and similar results were found. None of the Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda survived. The site was found in extremely deteriorated condition with large Kiawe trees with fallen branches and filled in sinkholes totally depriving the plant of all chance of existence. An extremely sad situation for a plant that once thrived all over this region.

An inspection of the C. Brewer plant sanctuary was much more positive with some healthy populations of Achyranthes Splendon Rotunda. This sanctuary was a site that received transplanted seedlings and cuttings. It serves as a model for the successful establishment of wild sites which will become a goal when a Habitat Conservation Plan is pursued. This site however may have had more plants than what was observed by this writer. It was also in an extremely deteriorated condition with many invasive species crowding the Achyranthes and taking away all sunlight. The existing plants were struggling and it was highly recommended that an immediate cleanup be conducted before this sanctuary also deteriorates further. That was in 2004. In 2007 the City hired “Island Recycling” to clean up and thin out the overcrowding of the invasive species. They did an excellent job.

An intensive field inspection of the condition of the Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda in both sanctuaries of the 23-acre parcel purchased by the City was conducted. An attempt was made to determine whether these populations of plants were stable, improving or deteriorating since the establishment of these sanctuaries. A detailed inventory of the existing numbers of surviving plants in both sanctuaries were made. A comparison was made of this inventory and an inventory that was made in 1996. This review indicated a total decline in the number of plants. That decline and the deteriorated condition of both sanctuaries is being attributed to the failure of the landowner to fulfill its responsibility as agreed upon in the “Mitigation Plan for the Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda at Campbell Industrial Park”. Attempts were made to stabilize the deteriorated condition of the sanctuaries by cutting back some of the alien species and removing them from the enclosures. Also within the sanctuaries can be found other native populations of Naio, Ohelo Kai and Akulikuli. These native plants although not endangered are doing extremely well.

Native plant species Ohelokai (left) and Naio (right) growing within Achyrantes sanctuary in the shadow of the H-power plant. Click to enlarge.

When the City purchased this 23-acre parcel from the Estate of James Campbell for the proposed Alternative Technology Park in October of 2002, they also acquired the responsibility in the care and maintenance of the 2 plant sanctuaries of the Endangered Achyranthes Splendon Rotunda. The description of this responsibility is defined in the “Mitigation Plan for Achyranthes Splendon Rotunda at Campbell Industrial Park”. This was agreed upon and signed by the Estate of James Campbell, landowner, Hawaii Project Management, Michael Buck, Administrator of the Division of Forestry and Wildlife and William Paty, Chairperson of the Department of Land and Natural Resources in February of 1990.

It acknowledged the existence of the Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda on the U.S. Endangered Plant list and being afforded both federal and state protection. It also identified the last remaining population of this plant on a 23-acre parcel on the ocean side of H-POWER. The plan was to establish two fenced in sanctuaries and identify a third site to relocate plants from outside the sanctuaries and propagated plants in an effort to strengthened the exiting populations in hopes that the plant would ultimately be taken off the Endangered Plant list and afford future development of the region.

After the 2 sanctuaries were established and the 3rd site was established with transplanted Achyranthes Splenden Rotunda of cuttings and seedlings a program of monitoring took place. The 3rd site is identified as the C. Brewer site and is located at the end of Kaomi Loop at the cul-de-sac.

The result of these activities established that these 3 sanctuaries be preserved by the Estate of James Campbell and its leasees and all future landowners for as long as these endangered plants require state and or federal protection.

Although the Alternative Technology Park did not come to fruition there have been many changes since all these discussions took place a few years ago. Island Recycling purchased a portion of the City’s 23 acre parcel. It however included a portion of one the plant sanctuaries. Island Recycling has proven to be good caretakers by conducting monthly monitoring of their portion of the sanctuary. The numbers of plants in their plant sanctuary has more than doubled in the few years that they have owned this property.

The City is presently in the process of installing a third boiler to their existing waste to energy system. It is meant to increase the capacity of H-POWER and reduce the amount of trash disposed of at our municipal landfill at Waimanalo Gulch. It is difficult to argue the good that comes from these changes but regardless how one looks at these changes there is always a cost. In the years that I have monitored the condition of this native plant species of Kanehili there are several things that I have learned. They have thrived for hundreds of years without human intervention. They have thrived and evolved in a hot, dry, harsh landscape. This is a coastal area where there has always been very little rainfall. Its survival has depended on 2 things. First of all it scatters large numbers of seeds. Very few seeds germinate. Most of these seeds die in the heat of the sun. Only a few will bring seedlings and of those few maybe only one will make it past the hot summers. In most cases none will make it or survive. In all the years that I have watched this plant it seems that those plants that seem to do best are those that live in close proximity to a sinkhole.

What appears most obvious when one walks into a sanctuary is the humidity. On a hot humid day it is easy to see water drops or condensation on the hairy leafs of a plant. It seems that these plants survive on the moisture or condensation provided by the sinkholes. I have come to see these plants as a means of determining the integrity of the sinkholes. They depend on the karst system of caves and the porous coral geology of the region without which these plants would not survive. It also means that maybe these plants do not have a future if we continue to build on its coral infrastructure.

The choices are difficult. The City is close to cleaning one of their plant sanctuaries. Island Recycling has been doing their best in an effort to care for the Achyranthes. Its numbers has been reduced to a level where it might be difficult for them to recover without major human intervention. As much as we would like for them to recover on their own that might be a difficult task.

You will not find this Native Hawaiian plant in any chants, mele or oral traditions. Nothing is said of them. For now you can find them in 3 locked fenced enclosures behind the H-POWER Plant on Kaomi Loop. Perhaps its last remaining days are not too far off in the distant future. Maybe our interest in plants such as the Achyranthes is that they remind us of ourselves and our struggles and our challenges. Maybe our day will come soon too. Maybe there are parallels here that can benefit us. What is it meant to teach us. What is the lesson learned. Maybe it is meant to help us find something within each of us that will help us see what once was…………..Maybe the lesson is finding ourselves……………….