Against Update No. 3

Something to Think About

It is only natural to think first of one’s nose and lungs when it comes to the prospect of having a waste processing facility almost in one’s backyard (700 yards from it). However, for those residents who practically live on Hwy. 270, OK, 20 to 30 feet from its edge, the ears also come into play.

The planned waste processing facility could only be reached, by most residents, going east on Hwy. 270, heading towards Pololu, a dead end. As a result, all traffic either bringing or removing waste from such a facility will have to travel the same road inbound and outbound, i.e. create noise (and air) pollution twice for each trip. Especially those heavily loaded refuse trucks, yes those that shake the dishes in the cupboards, would be extra fun to listen to. When those windows looking out on Hwy. 270 are open one can also enjoy a change of air, called Carbon Monoxide. One would no longer have to guess where one’s headache is coming from; one immediately knows, it’s the Carbon Monoxide that keeps coming through the open widows, or any unsealed areas in your home.

Currently, residents drop off their rubbish, at the existing transfer station, on the way to somewhere, like going to work or shopping. The planned waste facility is on the way to nowhere; OK its on the way to the Pololu valley, but then again I don’t recall seeing anybody work there, nor do I recall any shopping facilities there either. O well, fuel is cheap (or is it?) so its no problem to go out of one’s way to drop off a bag of rubbish at this so called more convenient waste processing facility.

As working people, we would have to getup a little earlier to make time for this out-of-the-way rubbish deposit, or maybe we can make up the time lost by speeding a little more, to arrive at work on time. Some may find an economic solution, and drop their rubbish on the roads (as was fearfully expressed by several residents), on the way to somewhere. The possibilities seem endless.

Another item to think about is the fact that tourists travel this road to the Pololu valley, expecting a quiet pristine environment, one that all travel brochures are promising them.  How would they feel following a heavily loaded, noisy refuse truck, perhaps dropping bits and pieces of rubbish onto the road before them?  Perhaps we should have the travel industry warn them about the change in the environment, or better still, include the waste processing station as one of the must see sites, to show the world how advanced we are.

One has to wonder what goes on in the heads of those who think and say, this planned waste processing facility is something good coming to North Kohala.