Mauna Kea: Permits, Applications and the Board of Land and Natural Resources

Mauna Kea Comprehensive Management Plan 

April 2009 - Mauna Kea Comprehensive Management Plan

• Appendices 
• Comprehensive Management Plan Approval by BLNR
  • Outlines the conditions in which the comprehensive management plan (CMP) was approved by the Board of Land and Natural Resources and identifies the University of Hawaiʻi Board of Regents as the entity to implement the CMP. Contains maps of the site 

Comprehensive Management Plan Sub-Plans

October 2009 - Mauna Kea Cultural Resources Management Plan

September 2009 - Mauna Kea Natural Resources Management Plan 

January 2010 - Mauna Kea Public Access Plan 

Mauna Kea Comprehensive Management Plan Implementation 

February 2010 - Implementing & Evaluating the CMP for UH Managed Lands on Mauna Kea

• Note: According to OMM this document was submitted to the BLNR, but no Board action was taken

February 2015 - Maunakea Invasive Species Management Plan - Technical Report 191 (CMP Management Action NR-2) 

Standard Operating Procedures

• SOP 01: Cleaning of Vehicles and Personal Belongings
• SOP 02: Inspection of Vehicles, Construction Materials, Scientific, and Supplies 
  • List of approved carries for regular deliveries without an inspection by a DLNR approved biologist
• SOP 03: Cafeteria Food Shipment (Receiving)
• SOP 10: Invasive Invertebrate Early Detection Surveys of Facilities 
• SOP 11: Annual Alien Invertebrate Early Detection & Wēkiu Bug Monitoring
• SOP B: Maunakea Vertebrate Threats, Identification, Collection, and Processing Guide
• SOP C: Maunakea Invertebrate Threats, Identification, Collection, & Processing Guide
• SOP D: Maunakea Plant Threats, Identification, Collection & Processing Guide
• SOP Z: Revising the Invasive Species Management Plan 

February 2017 - Maunakea Sign Plan (CMP Management Action EO-4) 

February 2017 - Maunakea Operations, Monitoring, and Maintenance Plan (CMP Management Action IM-1)

January 2018 - Board Briefing on Maunakea Management that was presented by the OCCL to the BLNR Board (Non-action item)

• Written comments from the public regarding the Board Briefing can be found here

Mauna Kea Management Board

Calendar of Events
You can view events scheduled in the future and past historical events. Use arrows on the calendar to the upper left hand of the page to navigate.

Meeting Agenda, Materials, Minutes 
Most recent meeting at the top of the page. Archived meeting minutes at the bottom of the page 

February 1998 - Report No.98-6: Audit of the Management of Mauna Kea and the Mauna Kea Science Reserve 

December 2005 -  Report No.05-13: Follow-Up Audit of the Management of the Mauna Kea Science Reserve

August 2014 - Report No.14-07: Follow-Up Audit of the Management of Mauna Kea and the Mauna Kea Science Reserve

July 2017 - Report No.17-06: Follow-Up on Recommendations from Report No. 14-07, Follow-Up Audit of the Management of Mauna Kea and the Mauna Kea Science Reserve 

The Comprehensive Management Plan for Mauna Kea was approved by the BLNR in 2009. Per the outlined conditions of the approval letter, annually, BOR is required to provide a report about their progress on implementing both the CMP and the sub-plans. Each report ranks the BOR's and its' authorized designees' progress on each CMP action as "In Progress", "Short to Long Term", "Completed" and "As Needed" which was later refined to "Short to Long Term", "In Progress", "Ongoing" and "Completed". 

April 2010 - The 2010 Annual Report on the Status of the Development of the CMP's Management Actions 

April 2011 - The 2011 Annual Report on the Status of the Implementation of the CMP 

April 2012 - The 2012 Annual Report on the Status of the Implementation of the CMP 

April 2013 - The 2013 Annual Report on the Status of the Implementation of the CMP

April 2014 - The 2014 Annual Report on the Status of the Implementation of the CMP

June 2015 - The 2015 Annual Report on the Status of the Implementation of the CMP

September 2016 - The 2016 Annual Report on the Status of the Implementation of the CMP

• A 2016 clean copy is available here, the above link for the 2016 Annual Report contains the date and time stamp that DLNR received the document. 

August 2017 - The 2017 Annual Report on the Status of the Implementation of the CMP

• A clean copy of the 2017 report is available here, the above link contains the date and time stamp that DLNR received the document from the permittee. 

August 2018 - The 2018 Annual Report on the Status of the Implementation of the CMP

Office of Mauna Kea Management Library 

Contains documents that were produced by the OMKM and records that are hosted by other institutions, organizations and libraries. Over 900 results are available using the keyword "Mauna Kea". The records are listed in chronological order. Entries without dates are listed first, followed by the earliest date to the most recent. Most links will take the user to a different website. Having the original record from the OMKM Library open for you to reference is helpful to see what page numbers and/or sections pertain to Mauna Kea. 

Maunakea is in the Conservation District - areas necessary for protecting historic areas, wilderness, open space, habitats for endemic plants, fish, wildlife, watersheds and water sources - administrated by the Board of Land and Natural Resources and are governed by Department of Land and Natural Resources rules. 

Conservation District Use Permits and Applications 

• May 1974 - Canada-France-Hawaiʻi Telescope (CDUP 0527)
• June 1974 - Mauna Kea Access Road (CDUP 0537)
• September 1975 - United Kingdom Infrared Telescope; NASA InfraRed Telescope Facility (CDUP 0653)
• May 1976 - UKIRT dormitory at Hale Pōhaku  (CDUP 0781)
• May 1977 - Hale Pōhaku dormitories (CDUP 0895)
• September 1977 - Air Force Telescope, Planetary Patrol Telescope, 2.2 Meter Telescope (After-the-Fact) (CDUP 0954)
• April 1982 - Hale Pōhaku Midlevel Facilities and Visitor Center (CDUP 1430)
• December 1982 - Cal Tech Submillimeter Observatory (CDUP 1492)
• January 1983 - James Clark Maxwell Telescope (CDUP 1515)
• September 1984 - Keck I (CDUP 1646)
• February 1986 - Hale Pōhaku subdivision and construction workers camp (CDUP 1819)
• January 1989 -  Very Long Baseline Array (CDUP 2174)
• October 1991 - Subaru Telescope (CDUP 2462)
• August 1992 - Keck II (CDUP 2509)
• April 1994 - Gemini North (CDUP 2691)
• November 1994 - Smithsonian Submillimeter Array (CDUP 2728)
• June 2018 - Infrastructure improvements at the Maunakea Visitor Center (CDUP 3812)

The Thirty Meter Telescope Conservation District Use Application (CDUA)

September 2010 - Conservation District Use Application for the Thirty Meter Telescope 

The Environmental Impact Statement is a document that was a part of the TMT CDUA application. The government approved and accepted TMT's final EIS in the spring of 2010. 

• May 2010 - Final EIS Summary Sheet 
• May 2010 - Acceptance Letter of the Governor to the Chancellor, University of Hawaii at Hilo Regarding Mitigation Measures in the Final Environmental Assessment for the Thirty Meter Telescope Observatory on Mauna Kea

March 2011 - OCCL staff report regarding Conservation District Use Application HA-3568 for the Thirty Meter Telescope

March 2011 - Exhibits for OCCL staff report regarding Conservation District Use Application HA-3568 for the Thirty Meter Telescope

September 2017 - Final Findings of Fact, Conclusion of Law and Decision and Order in the contested case hearing about Mauna Kea and TMT's CDUA application that was scheduled at the Naniloa Hotel in Hilo, Hawaiʻi on September 20, 2017. 

The Thirty Meter Telescope Specific Permits

June 2014 - National Pollutant Discharge Elimination (NPDES Permit - HI S000431) 

June 2019 - DLNR Issued Notice to Proceed to the TMT  

July 2019 - DLNR Issued Two Year Extension of Construction Deadlines 

TMT Management Plan and Additional Documents 

October 2010 - Thirty Meter Telescope Management Plan 

September 2012 - Historic Preservation Plan for TMT 

May 2013 - TMT Archeological Monitoring Plan 

TMT Invasive Species Prevention and Control Program 

• The Invasive Species Prevention and Control Program was mentioned in the Construction Plan within the TMT Telescope Management Plan that was submitted in 2010. This document outlines broadly the process that the TMT will undertake for invasive species. The program document is meant to be refined, contain additional details and be submitted with the TMT construction plans. 

TMT Cultural Resources Management Plan

• The TMT project is subject to compliance to parts of the OMKM's Management Plan in addition to their own Comprehensive Management Plan (CMP) Actions (Section 7.1.1 of the TMT's 2009 CMP). This two page document contains tables that briefly outline how TMT will care for and address cultural resource issues on Mauna Kea. This section is highlighted from TMT's complete CMP.

TMT Arthropod Access Way Monitoring Plan  (September 2010)

• This monitoring plan was originally introduced in the environmental impact statement that TMT completed in May of 2010 and was submitted with TMT's Conservation District Use Application. This six page document was highlighted from that original application. Within the monitoring plan are two maps that outline where TMT plans to put arthropod monitoring sites, the monitoring methods that will be used (these methods were tested in the mid to late 2000s and the results are available here from 2009) 

The Office of Mauna Kea Management (OMKM) and the DLNR have the capability and authority to modify TMT's monitoring plan. The monitoring plan was modified by OMKM and DLNR in 2011 and a 2012 report was released.   

Board of Governors of the Thirty-Meter-Telescope International Observatory (TIO) 

The TIO is comprised of members from California Institute of Technology, the University of California, the National Institutes of Natural Sciences of Japan, the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Department of Science and Technology of India, and the National Research Council (Canada); the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA).

Additionally, the TIO has a Science Advisory Committee (SAC) meant to represent the scientific interests of TIO members. SAC members. Due to the sublease that the University of Hawaiʻi has decided to engage with TMT, UH is allotted one nomination for a representative to serve as a member of the SAC. 

Funding for the TMT comes largely in part from the Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation.

Contact for TIO 
100 West Walnut Street, Suite 300 
Pasadena, CA 91124
 inquiry@tmt.org

BLNR Meeting - July 10, 2015 Testimonies 

11 videos in the series

• Video 1: Doug Chin
• Video 2: Kahoʻokahi Kanuha
• Video 3: Stewart Hempter
• Video 4: Scotty Paiva
• Video 5: Mililani Trask
• Video 6: Robert McLaren
• Video 7: Lilikalā Kameʻeleihiwa
• Video 8: Tiffnie Kakalia
• Video 9: Andre Perez
• Video 10: Doug Simon
• Video 11: Andrew Fabian

December 13, 2018 - "Internal audit of UH managed Maunakea lands finds no irregularities" (UH News) 

August 19, 2018 - "Maunakea administrative rules public announcement" (UH News) 

April 15, 2019 - "DLNR Chairs gives Pohakuloa, Mauna Kea, TMT update" (Big Island News) 

June 20, 2019 - "Dismantled On Mauna Kea: Hale Kukiaʻimauna, Hale Kūhiō Taken Down" (Big Island News) 

August 15, 2019 - Decommissioning Mauna Kea Telescopes Not As Easy As Switching Off The Lights (Hawaiʻi Public Radio) 

September 12, 2019 - "Maunakea: Concern Over Protection of Resources Goes Both Ways" (Maui Now) 

September 29, 2019 - Board votes to leave UH-Hilo observatory in place — for now (Hawaiʻi Tribune Herald)

• Video of oral testimony given at the Mauna Kea Management Board meeting on September 27, 2019 can be seen here

October 07, 2019 - Why Dismantling of Mauna Kea Telescopes Raises Questions (Hawaiʻi Public Radio)

October 14, 2019 - Protesters challenge Mauna Kea ‘industrial uses’ (Honolulu Star-Advertiser) 

• UH Username and Password to Access the Honolulu Star-Advertiser Article 
• Access to the article via Kāhea: The Hawaiian-Environmental Alliance 

October 23, 2019 - Classification of state land on Maunakea summit challenged (Hawaii-Tribune-Herald)

Major Project Review Sequence - Mauna Kea Management Board approved on Oct. 14, 2009

• File is a flow chart of the process it takes for a proposal to be approved 
• Marks which governing bodies and agencies review parts of the process 

Schedule for Processing Proposals Submitted to the Office of Maunakea Management - Mauna Kea Management Board approved on Jan. 29, 2008

• Shows steps between Minimal Impact/Minor Project versus a Major Project
• Contains timeframe for certain actions by agencies 

The Mauna Kea Science Reserve Master Plan is managed in part by the Office of Maunakea Management. The Master Plan outlines policies on how UH is to manage lands on Maunakea. The 2000 version of the plan is an update to the 1983 Complex Development Plan for the Mauna Kea Science Reserve.  

 Mauna Kea Science Reserve Master Plan and Appendices  - adopted by the University of Hawaiʻi Board of Regents June 16, 2000

January 2010 - Decommissioning Plan for the Mauna Kea Observatories 

Hilo Hoku Kea Telescope 

September 2015 - Notice of Intent to Decommission: University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Hoku Kea Telescope 

Caltech Submililmeter Observatory 

February 2016 - Notice of Intent to Decommission: Caltech Submillimeter Observatory (Corr HA-16-118)

• Applicant submitted the request to decommission the observatory in December 2015. The Department of Land and Natural Resources reviewed the request and returned correspondence for acceptance of the Notice of Intent in February of 2016. 

March 2016 - Addendum to Notice of Intent to Decommission: Caltech Submillimeter Observatory (HA-16-118 addendum)

• Applicant submitted a request to amend their original Notice of Intent in the spring of 2016 

December 2017 - Pre-assessment consultation and scoping on draft EIS for decomissioning of the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory on Maunakea (Corr HA-18-119) 

• The assessment was sent to various DLNR Divisions for comments. 

Further information regarding the decommissioning of the CSO is available here. Additionally, you can sign up for email alerts with public announcements and updates here.  

As of August, 9, 2019 - Governor Ige signed into law new environmental impact statement rules. Hawaiʻi Administrative Rules Chapter 11-200.1, Environmental Impact Statement Rules are now in effect. 

• Hawai'i Administrative Rules (HAR) Chapter 11-200.1 - PDF version of the Environmental Impact Statement LAw
• Changes from the 1996 Rules to the Final Proposed Rules in 2019 - Unofficial Ramseyer Format 

Mauna Kea Science Reserve: Complex Development Plan - January 1983

Volume 1 - Final Environmental Impact Statement 

• Pg. 333 contains letter from Sportsmen of Hawaiʻi Conservation Committee regarding comments on areas they find to be of critical concern, namely protection of game sanctuary (hunting reservoir), lack of staffing will contribute to poaching problems with the development of the road.  
• Pg. 347 contains letter from the Conservation Council for Hawaiʻi regarding concerns about 

Amendment to the Mauna Kea Science Reserve Complex Development Plan - October 1985
Volume 1 - Final Environmental Impact Statement for Construction Camp Housing (Hale Pōhaku)

Amendment to the Mauna Kea Science Reserve Complex Development Plan - September 1988 
Volume 1 - Final Environmental Impact State for Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) Antenna Facility

Mauna Kea Science Reserve - December 1999

Volume 1 - Final Environmental Impact Statement 

Volume 2 - Final Environmental Impact Statement 

Thirty Meter Telescope - May 2010

Volume 1 - Final Environmental Impact Statement  

Volume 2 - Final Environmental Impact Statement 

Volume 3 - Final Environmental Impact Statement