HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	154
TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2018
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

 

urging the department of land and natural resources to remove abandoned vehicles and garbage from PUBLIC parks and beaches in the state within ten business days of the date that the abandoned vehicle or garbage was reported to the Department.

 

 

 

     WHEREAS, abandoned vehicles and garbage in public parks and beaches have become a growing environmental concern, public safety risk, and public health issue; and

 

WHEREAS, places that have abandoned vehicles or that are heavily littered with garbage tend to attract illegal activities, since they deter the public from visiting and create privacy that invites illegal drug use, vandalism, graffiti, illegal dumping, and other harmful activities; and

 

WHEREAS, abandoned vehicles can remain in public parks and beaches for months at a time, leaking chemicals and other liquids into the ground and water that is toxic to the surrounding ecosystems; and

 

     WHEREAS, abandoned vehicles frequently become occupied by homeless individuals; and

 

     WHEREAS, public parks and beaches with abandoned vehicles or a large amount of garbage are areas where communities of homeless encampments tend to develop, and these encampments often monopolize the areas and restrict the public's access; and

 

WHEREAS, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported on March 8, 2018, that some Hawaii residents have complained that their local parks and beaches are so littered with discarded drug needles and used condoms that the area has become too dangerous for people to walk around and for children to play there; and

WHEREAS, there are some areas where people can no longer surf or swim because homeless individuals who camp at nearby beaches dump buckets of feces into the water, which makes surfers and swimmers who are in the water sick; and

 

WHEREAS, abandoned vehicles are frequently in unsafe conditions and positions, such that they can fall on people passing by who get too close or collapse on homeless individuals who camp inside; and

 

     WHEREAS, the stench from the garbage and homeless encampments makes people no longer want to visit certain public parks and beaches; and

 

     WHEREAS, removal of abandoned vehicles and garbage from public parks and beaches advances the State's commitment to protecting its beaches and keeping its public areas clean and safe for all users to enjoy; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-ninth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2018, that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is urged to remove abandoned vehicles and garbage from public parks and beaches in the State within ten business days of the date that the abandoned vehicle or garbage was reported to the Department; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources and Mayor of each county.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title: 

Department of Land and Natural Resources; Abandoned Vehicles; Garbage; Parks; Beaches