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There has been relatively little fanfare around the fact that our notoriously dysfunctional House of Representatives recently actually did something that directly impacts us here in Hawaii.

Thanks to Representative Colleen Hanabusa’s efforts, the House adopted an amendment that paves the way for greater renewable energy development on public lands. This matters.

I have for years advocated for a public policy environment that is more conducive to moving Hawaii towards energy independence and reducing the vulnerability that comes from being heavily dependent on oil that is shipped to our shores.

This amendment is a step in that direction.

As Congresswoman Hanabusa said in her remarks on the House floor, Congress created the Hawaii Homes Commission Act in 1920, which put more than 200,000 acres of land in Hawaii under their control.

Congress retained that control even after Hawaii attained statehood.

Through the amendment she introduced, she made sure that the Hawaiian Home lands selected to be used for the development of geothermal, solar, wind, and other renewable sources will be included in the Quadrennial Federal Onshore Energy Production Strategy.

This policy move and recognition of federal jurisdiction over lands that have largely been forgotten by Congress should propel us forward and enable us to broaden our energy portfolio.

We are better situated to replace imported oil with geothermal as our firm power base and make the most of the diverse forms of renewable energy that Hawaii is blessed with.

This is a policy move that is foundational and one we should build on.

Good for Native Hawaiian Homesteaders

The Hawaii homestead community welcomes the freedom this gives them to improve their economic status by developing the assets on their lands. In the long run, it also promises to deliver some relief from the punishingly high rates that have hindered small businesses and job development.

As Paul Richards, President of the Waimanalo Hawaiian Homes Association remarked after learning about this amendment, “We should move forward, full steam ahead — literally — to develop geothermal on our lands and become better stewards of our destiny and especially our aina.”

This is a step in the direction of economic sovereignty and we welcome it.

About the author: Mililani Trask is an adviser to Innovations Development Group, a Native Hawaiian company engaged in geothermal development for the Maori Trusts in New Zealand.

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