Mauna Kea Anaina Hou v. Board of Land & Natural Resources

Opinion of the Court by

RECKTENWALD, C.J.

This case requires us to determine whether the procedure followed by the Board of Land and Natural Resources (Board or BLNR) in issuing a permit to construct an observatory in a conservation district1 comported with due process.

Specifically, the University of Hawaii at Hilo (UHH) applied for approval from the Board to construct the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) on Mauna Kea on the island of Hawaii. The Board held two public hearings on the application, at which more than 80 people spoke. Proponents asserted that the “next generation” large telescope…