A Letter to the Editor

Aloha!

My name is Tiana Lum-Tucker, and I attended a meeting at the Convention Hall on Monday, January 8, 2007. Many people came to voice their opinions about the proposed Master Plan for Koke`e and Waimea Canyon State Parks. I enjoyed listening, and I'd like to share some of my thoughts in response to what was said.

Presented in a wonderful video featuring highlights from a series of interviews with Kaua`i's Living Treasures, Carol Yotsuda's and Frances Frazier's comments were especially striking. Yotsuda hopes that Koke'e will be a place where future generations will see what we see today. Telling our children stories of the majesty of what Koke'e once was is not an attractive option. I, too, want to be able to stand beside our children quietly amid magnificent Koke'e, letting them see for themselves.

Yotsuda's words struck a chord with me because I belong to a generation that has only heard what once was Hanalei. Last week, while my Uncle was visiting for New Year's, we drove through the town of Hanalei to a chorus of, "This used to be...". I could only guess what Hanalei may have felt like in the 1950s and 60s when my Mom and Uncle would steal away from O`ahu to spend the summers here with family.

Do we want to restore places to what they were 50 years ago? Even if we do, would that be realistic? It may not be realistic, because there are many luring things about development. However, I think that after a certain point, the conveniences of development are too much of a homogenizing force. Kaua`i is a unique place. An O`ahu resident at the meeting commended the people of Kaua`i for keeping our island (relatively) undeveloped. His tone seemed to reflect that of an older sibling urging one to continue to be an individual.

It is said that hindsight is 20-20. Now that we have seen much of Hawai`i transition into a developed place, we all need to challenge ourselves to find a responsible approach to change- lest we find ourselves lamenting the loss of what "used to be." As Living Treasure Frances Frazier has said, once it's gone, we can't get it back. It may seem like a difficult balance to strike between profits and natural beauty, but it is undeniably important, because tourism drives the economy, and the main reason that people come to Kaua`i is for its natural beauty.

Koke'e is deserving of conservation; it is a beautiful and humbling place that should be enjoyed and preserved. I am not convinced that commercialization is necessary to fund improvements.

All of us who visit Koke'e should bear the cost of maintaining it. Of course, bearing the cost of maintaining a natural resource need not involve money; volunteering to wipe out invasive species and provide a better home for native species is a way for one to show appreciation. Nonetheless, I think that we are being challenged to develop an economy that offers reasonable incentives for being a steward of the land. How can we support Koke`e to show that we appreciate its serenity? It's a place that values of ownership and profitability are continually encroaching upon, a place that has a voice, but only through the people.

I fondly remember my 5th grade excursion up to Koke`e, when David Boynton took us through the Iliau Nature Loop, showing us plants and birds and sharing facts and anecdotes about them. Years from today, will it be possible to experience such a unique habitat? Might this Master Plan sacrifice the ecosystem?

The proposed Master Plan is challenging us to reevaluate our appreciation for Koke`e. Please go to see it, and think about what it may look like one, ten, and even a hundred years from now.

Regardless of your opinion, I hope that you will share it, and soon. The Master Plan can be found at http://www.state.hi.us/dlnr/dsp/. The state has extended the deadline for public comment to February 8, 2007. Please send your comments to:

DLNR-Division of State Parks, Attn: Lauren Tanaka, PO Box 621, Honolulu, 96809
(with copies to the Governor of Hawaii c/o OEQC, 235 Beretania No. 702, Honolulu, 96813).

You can also go to http://talkstorykokee.blogspot.com/ to tell the world what you think.

Thank you very much for your time.

Tiana Lum-Tucker