The military has released a factbook detailing its importance and contributions to Hawaiʻi, but continues to wrestle with its shortcomings, especially when it comes to environmental stewardship.
This week, the Military and Community Relations Office released the economic impact factbook, highlighting the $10.2 billion spent in the state in 2023 — money that supports jobs, businesses, and other parts of the local economy.
The report touted the military's contributions to the community, including the $1.2 billion the military spent on local businesses and $230 million on Native Hawaiian organizations, and various efforts to protect the environment and support education.
MACRO Executive Director Laurie Moore said the report “is the first consolidated public-facing snapshot of the military's economic role in Hawaiʻi.”
She also said the factbook was released intentionally ahead of the state legislative session, and during ongoing discussions about the military's land use in the state.
“We want to bring clarity, coordination and transparency to the conversations that need to occur, and we want to ensure that those conversations are grounded in facts informed by community perspective and approach with respect,” Moore said at a Wednesday news briefing.
Among those conversations is the Army’s lease of 23,000 acres of land on Hawaiʻi Island — the Pōhakuloa Training Area — which is used for live-fire training. The lease ends in 2029 and has led to negotiations between the Army and Gov. Josh Green about what it would take to retain that land.
Efforts by the Army to extend that lease have already hit snags, following the recent rejection of its environmental assessment by the state Board of Land and Natural Resources.
The public has also overwhelmingly rejected the lease extension.
Part of MACRO's report was a community survey conducted in November. The office said about 540 participants were surveyed, and the report was weighted to reflect Hawaii’s population.
The office said 62% of those surveyed “feel positively” about the military’s presence in the state.
But public sentiment wasn't all positive.
“The survey clearly highlights areas of concern. Environmental stewardship stands out as a major trust gap. Only about one-third of residents believe the military does a good job protecting natural resources,” Moore said.
The military’s reputation for environmental degradation in Hawaiʻi is decades in the making.
Chief among the most recent examples of that is the Navy's 2021 fuel spill at Red Hill catastrophe. That led to thousands of gallons of jet fuel spilling into the environment and into an aquifer, contaminating water used by the community.
Additionally, many of the issues the public and state officials have with Pōhakuloa and other training areas involve the ecological impacts of military training and the left-behind ordnance littering ground.
MACRO said it's aware of its public image, and said this year it will expand its community outreach, “ especially in communities that are most affected by the military activity or land use decisions,” Moore said.
She said the military will have a series of community open houses in March and has plans to improve the public’s access to data and information.
MACRO anticipates the factbook to be released and updated annually.
