"The biggest issue we have is we don’t think all the alternatives were looked at equally," says Matthew Darnell, Kalaheo Hillside Residents Association.
In May the city announced it received federal approval to construct a 10-13 foot diameter tunnel about 3 miles long through Oneawa hillside. The goal would be to use gravity to move sewage from the Kaneohe Pre-Treatment Facility to the Kailua Wastewater treatment plant.
But residents who live along the ridgeline have concerns.
"We’ve had an independent company do soil analysis on the neighborhood and they found lava tubes which means there might be unstable land what we are concerned for residents is rock slides or sinkholes," says Annika Seavey, Healani Gardens resident.
The city says an Environmental Impact Statement showed no significant impacts along this route.
The city had previously considered putting a tunnel below Kaneohe Bay, an option unanimously rejected by residents and environmentalists. But some have another idea.
"We feel going down Mokapu Boulevard, a traditional force main alternative, under the street is a much more cost effective near term and a long term," says Darnell.
The city says a roadway route would be more costly and would become troublesome to drivers. But residents say they’d prefer that over a hillside tunnel.
"No one can guarantee me that this sewer line will not affect development of my land and acreage," says May Gady, Kaneohe Bay Drive resident.
The city says the project is set to begin with demolition in December.
See the original article at: KHON2 Local News
