Big Island News: Series of Public Meetings to be held on the Draft EIS for the Proposed TMT on Mauna Kea

The Draft Environmental Impact Statement(EIS) for the Thirty Meter Telescope(TMT) on Mauna Kea, and there is a series of upcoming meetings for the public to give input for the final statement.

The Project has some serious hurdles to clear before it is even close to being a reality, but the process has started. For more info on the project and the obstacles it faces, click here

The proposed project involves the construction and operation of an optical/infrared observatory on an estimated five acres of presently undeveloped land on the northern plateau within the 525-acre Astronomy Precinct of the Mauna Kea Science Reserve near the top of Maunakea.

The northern plateau is the area that starts at the base of the summit cinder cones and extends approximately half a mile to the north. The northern plateau varies in elevation between 500 feet and 700 feet below the summit of Maunakea and the existing observatories near the summit.

The entire Science Reserve is part of the State of Hawai‘i Conservation District, resource subzone.

The Draft EIS for the project is now available for review. It can be downloaded from the Document Library on this website.

Meeting Schedule


- June 16: 5 to 8 p.m. at Waimea Elementary School Cafeteria in Waimea.

- June 17: 4 to 8 p.m. at the Hilo High School Cafeteria in Hilo.

- June 18: 5 to 8 p.m. at the Pahoa High School Cafeteria in Pahoa.

- June 22: 5 to 8 p.m. at the Ka'u High and Pahala Elementary School Cafeteria in Pahala.

- June 23: 5 to 8 p.m. at the Kohala High School Cafeteria in Kapaau.

- June 24: 5 to 8 p.m. at the Kealakehe Elementary School Cafeteria in Kailua-Kona.

- June 25: 5 to 8 p.m. at the Farrington High School Cafeteria in Honolulu.


Comments may be submitted via the Internet at TMT-HawaiiEIS.org, by calling (866) 284-1716, at public meetings or by mail to TMT Observatory Project, Office of the Chancellor, University of Hawaii at Hilo, 200 W. Kawili Street, Hilo, HI 96720-4091.

Comments must be submitted or postmarked by July 7.