Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2006

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Public Safety & Military Affairs and Water, Land, & Ocean Resources, to which was referred H.C.R. No. 288 entitled:

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this concurrent resolution is to request the Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR) and the Adjutant General to conduct a study of all public and privately owned dams in the state.

The Department of Defense and Kaneohe Neighborhood Board supported this measure. BLNR supported the intent of this measure.

Your Committees find that many of these dams are earthen dams built in the 1800s to retain irrigation water. Moreover, 20 dams in this state have deficiencies that raise safety concerns and are classified as high-hazard due to their proximity to urban areas that would cause loss of life and significant property damage.

Furthermore, the catastrophic failure of Kaloko Reservoir dam in Kauai causing the loss of life and millions in property damage serves as a tragic example of the necessity of this study.

Your Committees have amended this measure to:

Technical, nonsubstantive amendments were also made for clarity, consistency, and style.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Public Safety & Military Affairs and Water, Land, & Ocean Resources that are attached to this report, your Committees concur with the intent and purpose of H.C.R. No. 288, as amended herein, and recommend its adoption in the form attached hereto as H.C.R. No. 288, H.D. 1.