A property owner has been charged with lighting an illegal green waste fire in the Ola‘a Reservation Lots in Glenwood off of Highway 11 and near Mauna Kea Drive Thursday morning.
According to a report from the Hawai‘i Fire Department, the landowner intentionally lit a mix of native and nonnative trees and roots, which were bulldozed into several large mounds, each approximately 750-1,500 cubic yards in size. When firefighters arrived on scene, seven mounds had been burned and eight or nine were engulfed in flames. Seven more mounds remained unburned.
Due to the lack of a water source, HFD allowed the fire to burn while monitoring potential spread to other mounds and the nearby forest. An HFD unit remained on scene to monitor the fires overnight. The Hawai‘i Police Department has since taken action against the landowner, HFD reported.
The state of Hawai‘i does not allow any burning without a permit, with the exception of cooking fires. Fines range up to $10,000 daily per violation.
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