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Environmental clean up costs kill land transfer deal with US Navy

“The Flying Tiger” cargo ship at Kalaeloa Barbers Point Harbor.
Hawaiʻi State Energy Office
File - “The Flying Tiger” cargo ship at Kalaeloa Barbers Point Harbor.

The Hawaiʻi Community Development Authority has rejected a land transfer offer from the U.S. Navy for a little more than 200 acres in Kalaeloa.

The state agency said it is concerned about the cost of conservation and environmental cleanup of the property, including a pond that’s been contaminated by ordnance disposal.

HCDA Asset Manager Lindsey Doi Leaverton told agency board members, “We would be accepting a lot of liability if we were to take on such parcels.”

The Navy has been transferring portions of its 3,700-acre former Barbers Point Naval Air Station to various state, city, and private entities since the base closed in 1999.

The Navy recently finalized a deal to transfer about 400 acres of nearby land to the City and County of Honolulu, which includes shoreline areas, a campground and several cultural sites.

Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi is an HPR contributor. She was previously a general assignment reporter.
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