Kaua'i County Council Committees Meeting: Landfill, Harm Reduction Briefing - August 5, 2026
Kaua'i County Council Committees Meeting: Landfill, Harm Reduction Briefing - August 5, 2026
On August 5, 2026, the Kaua'i County Council convened for committee meetings starting at 8:30 AM. The agenda included a briefing on the closure of Malama Pono and the expanded services of the Hawaii Health & Harm Reduction Center (H3RC), followed by an update on the Kekaha Landfill Cell 3 vertical expansion, the proposed new landfill at Ma'alo, and the status of the alternative technology Request for Proposals (RFP). Council members expressed support for collaborative efforts, raised concerns about transparency and timelines, and received public testimony.
Public Safety & Human Services Committee: Briefing on Malama Pono Closure and H3RC Services
- Councilmember Holland introduced the briefing, highlighting the urgent need for harm reduction services after Malama Pono's sudden closure in January 2026. He noted ongoing discussions with H3RC about a pilot project for needle disposal boxes on the bike path, stating, "if even one third of the needles that would have ended up maybe sprawling in the park are instead dropped in those boxes, it's a win for safety."
- Heather Lask, Executive Director of H3RC, presented a detailed overview. She reported that H3RC has had a 25-year presence on Kaua'i and took over Malama Pono's clinic space in February 2026, serving 42 individuals living with HIV. The clinic offers free/low-cost testing for STIs, HIV, hepatitis, wound care, and medication-assisted addiction treatment (buprenorphine for opioid use disorder). They are recruiting for four open positions and aim to expand behavioral health services. Lask emphasized a collaborative model, citing partnerships with Ho'ola Lahui, YWCA, and Project Vision. She also noted that H3RC runs the sterile syringe exchange program and is working on a methamphetamine pilot project using contingency management.
- Councilmember Holland asked about the financial resilience of H3RC, and Lask confirmed that Malama Pono's closure was purely financial. She explained H3RC uses braided funding (federal, state, donors, insurance) to reduce vulnerability.
- Councilmember Kuali'i commended the collaborative approach and urged support for the adolescent drug treatment center.
- Councilmember Bulosan shared his personal sobriety date (March 17, 2020) and thanked H3RC for filling the gap.
- Public testimony: Elena Oldman expressed gratitude and stressed the need for more mental health and drug abuse services.
Committee of the Whole: Kekaha Landfill Update and Alternative Technology RFP
- Troy Tuningal, Department of Public Works, emphasized the critical need for landfill capacity and support for the administration's initiatives.
- Alison Fraley, Solid Waste Division Chief, provided an update on the Cell 3 vertical expansion. She reported that a permit for phase two vertical expansion (50-foot height increase) has been received, extending capacity through October 2030. The Cell 3 project will add 10 more years of capacity (to 2040) and includes vertical expansion over the unlined phase one area, with environmental protection and tsunami mitigation measures. The draft EIS is scheduled for publication on December 8, 2026. She noted that the BLNR permit was received but with conditions regarding tsunami mitigation, which are being addressed.
- Regarding the new landfill at Ma'alo, Fraley stated the site is 270 acres, with a 200-year capacity based on current waste stream. The timeline is approximately 10 years for planning, permitting, and construction. She highlighted reassessment of wildlife hazard mitigation after FAA and HDOT involvement, noting that on-site visits confirmed the site's actual topography reduces bird strike risks. Land acquisition from ADC is being discussed, but only verbal commitments have been made so far.
- Councilmember Cowden expressed concern about the lack of written commitment from the state on land transfer and asked about design and spring water impacts. Fraley responded that the design is being developed and that springs are not expected to be affected.
- Councilmember Kuali'i asked about community engagement; Fraley confirmed it is ongoing.
- Councilmember Chock asked about visibility from the airport; Fraley said it would be largely obstructed.
- Councilmember Rapozo (Chair) inquired about the number of permits needed; Fraley listed four: county use permits, special management area permit, state land use commission approval, and a solid waste permit.
- On the alternative technology RFP, Fraley explained that step one (exempt RFP) identified three priority candidates, and step two (detailed proposals) was sent only to those candidates, with a deadline of October 9, 2026. The evaluation committee's composition and details are confidential under state procurement law. The successful candidate would likely require a put-or-pay agreement, needing council approval. Fraley estimated a minimum of five years for full implementation after contracting.
- Councilmember Cowden expressed frustration with the lack of transparency, saying, "I would be deeply disappointed if at the end of this we have a selection that is not in alignment with what is most important." She also questioned whether alternative technology truly replaces the landfill, noting that residual waste (ash, etc.) would still require a landfill.
- Councilmember Chock asked about costs; Fraley said they are not yet available but will be updated.
- Councilmember Kuali'i requested a full cost comparison including a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) for the alternative technology.
- Public testimony: Michael Nakamura (waste conversion technology consultant) argued that Kaua'i could achieve 90% diversion and even mine the existing landfill, stating, "We can extend the life of Kekaha... we can almost stop using the landfill, period." He criticized the reliance on consulting reports and urged immediate action on diversion.
- Bruce Hart supported the RFP process, noting the separation of powers and the council's ultimate authority over funding. He asked about the cost and lifespan of alternative technologies.
- Councilmember Bulosan acknowledged the community of Kekaha for bearing the burden and urged focus on timelines.
Key Outcomes
- Motion to receive the briefing on H3RC services: All in favor, motion carried.
- Motion to receive the landfill update: All in favor, motion carried.
- No binding votes were taken; the briefings were informational. The council directed the Solid Waste Division to provide written responses to questions, including cost comparisons and updates on permits.
- The RFP process continues with step two proposals due October 9, 2026. The council will have oversight when funding approval is required for a eventual contract.
Meeting Transcript
All right, you guys are ready? Welcome to our committee meetings today's August fifth. We will start off with our public safety and human services committee. I'd like to call the order that the public safety and human services committee. Item COW 2026-03 communication from Councilmember Holland requesting the presence of Alan Bennington Castro, Hawaii Health and Harm Reduction Center to provide a briefing relating to the closure of Malamapono and Kauai. Move through Corry. Thank you, Chair. Yeah, I have been working with Hawaii Harm Reduction or Health and Harm Reduction Center on Oahu this year. As part of my commitment to trying to address obviously the ongoing drug issues that we have here on Kauai. And after meeting with them and learning about the closure of Malamapono, I believe in January, I felt that it was important that we just get a briefing and that all of you are also aware of the services that they're now providing. And Heather is here to kind of share some of that with us. So Heather, you can just join us here at the front. And you just tap your microphone at the little circle there, and it'll allow you it'll go green. And yeah, I'll just basically let you say one more thing before we jump in is that you know I've been working with them on some solutions. I know we all were aware of the amount of needles that were recently found on the bike path. Um in stuff like that, we have been talking and trying to partner with our parks team and them to discuss a possible pilot project of uh needle dispos depository boxes along that stretch of bathrooms to see if there's a certain amount of um you know disposal there that we see happening instead of our beaches. And to me, if even if one third of the needles that would have ended up maybe sprawling in the park are instead dropped in those boxes, it's a win for safety in our community and possibly the protection of our Kiki in our park. So to me it's worth it. I just am trying to navigate some of those things, and they've been helping me with that. Um but I just thought that the overall changes are important for all of you to understand. So with that, I'll pass it over to you. Thank you so much, Councilmember. Um Aloha Kako, good morning. I'm Heather Lask. I'm a licensed clinical social worker, and I'm the executive director of the Hawaii Health and Harm Reduction Center. My apologies for the confusion around my slides. I really apologize. Also, Alan is my assistant who I think that they signed him instead of me. Um but I'll make sure that you get the slides afterward, and I think we're trying to um print them out. Um so uh my remarks are really around um well, first of all, the Hawaii Health and Harm Reduction Center actually's had a 25-year presence on Kuwait, but just one um one staff member. So I'm gonna share a bit about a little bit about our history, but more importantly, what we're doing now because of the sudden closure of Malamapono Health Services. So we are a statewide organization that started in 1983 as the Life Foundation, um, and then we merged with the Chow Project, which is a statewide uh outreach um and linkage to drug treatment program, um, and we merged in 2018 to become the Hawaii Health and Harm Reduction Center. But we have over 40 years of history in the islands, and as I mentioned, we've had a staff member here on Kauai for 25 years, Sheila Calketno. And uh we work at the intersection of homelessness, substance use, mental health, chronic diseases like HIV and the criminal legal system. And our whole effort is to, and our tagline is to reduce harm, promote health, create wellness, and fight stigma in Hawaii in the Pacific. So we started as an HIV organization, um, but through our growth and through our clinical services, we now um on Oahu, and we're trying to replicate that here, have a fully functioning medical clinic that focuses on people living with HIV as well as sexual health wound care and a very growing addiction treatment and behavioral health program. So when Malamapono closed in January, at the end of January, we were appropriate in all transparency. We had been in talks with Malamapono because of their challenges of potentially merging with the organization. Um but then the board decided to suddenly close at the end of January, and so literally on February 4th, um, we popped open to support people with HIV on the island. As you probably know, they were the only organization funded to support people living with HIV. Um so we support about 42 current individuals living with HIV on in Kauai, Kauai County. Um and so then uh through uh coordination with the district health office. Uh we luckily got to work with doctor before she retired, um, and now with Lauren and then with the um what the harm reduction services branched um part of the health department, they realized that they're um because their one employee who had been providing the sexual health services through the district health office retired in December, that there were no free sexual health, sexually transmitted infection or HIV screenings on the island. So that's why with their support, um we were able to open up on February 1, and then on March 1, we invited another staff, um and we currently have three more openings. Um so we'll have a total of seven at our clinic, which is at Kakui Grove. We were blessed to have the opportunity, um, and I'm still hoping that I made the right decision, but I took a um I took a educated and heartfelt um guess, and we took over their space. So I'm still trying to ensure that I have the resources to maintain that space. But as any of you have known, and thank you so much, Councilmember, for coming and visiting us. Wellamapono had just updated the clinical space to be the state of the art. And so we're now able to operate out of that space.
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