The Rev. Ai Hironaka, resident minister of the Lahaina Hongwanji Mission, bends down to look at the rubble where the altar once stood on the grounds of his temple destroyed by a wildfire, Dec. 7, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Maui Mayor Richard Bissen speaks at a network data assembly for citizens impacted by last month’s wildfire, Sept. 24, 2023, in Kahului, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Mengshin Lin, File)
WAILUKU, Hawaii (AP) — The mayor of the Hawaiian island of Maui said Thursday that a selection of space debris from last year’s deadly wildfires that ravaged the city of Lahaina would not be stored permanently.
WAILUKU, Hawaii (AP) — The mayor of the Hawaiian island of Maui said Thursday that a selection of space debris from last year’s deadly wildfires that ravaged the city of Lahaina would not be stored permanently.
Instead, the debris will remain at the Olowalu site, south of Lahaina, until a permanent location is known and a landfill is built there, Mayor Richard Bissen said at a county council committee meeting, according to a statement from his office.
Most of the metal and concrete left through the chimney will be recycled. Most of the debris that will reach the site will be ash and small particles, which tests by the state Department of Health have shown are loaded with arsenic, lead and other toxins.
Some citizens have objected to the use of the Olowalu site and a protest held last week. Conservationists have expressed their considerations because it is located just 400 meters (365 meters) offshore, where a reef is home to the largest known population of manta rays in the U. S. It is the main source of coral larvae for the waters of Lanai, Molokai and West Maui.
Bissen said the temporary site is needed so the debris can be removed from Lahaina and residents can return to their properties and rebuild. About 6,000 survivors are still staying in hotels, unable so far to find new places to live in Maui’s tight housing market.