Slashdot Mirror
Amid Controversy, Construction of Telescope In Hawaii Halted
An anonymous reader sends word that Hawaii Gov. David Ige has asked for a week-long hold in the construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope atop Mauna Kea. "After more than a week of demonstrations and dozens of arrests, Hawaii Gov. David Ige said Tuesday that the company building one of the world's largest telescopes atop Hawaii's Mauna Kea has agreed to his request to halt construction for a week. 'They have responded to my request and on behalf of the president of the University and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs have agreed to a time out on the project, and there will be no construction activities this week,' Ige said at a news conference. Thirty Meter Telescope is constructing the telescope on land that is held sacred to some Native Hawaiians. Scientists say the location is ideal for the telescope, which could allow them to see into the earliest years of the universe. Ige said he hopes the temporary pause in construction will allow the interested parties to have more discussions about the project. Native Hawaiian groups have been protesting the construction of the telescope since its inception last year."
Just for the record: none of the spills have contacted the earth. Those are "spills" like when you spill coffee on your desk. All mirror cleaning water is trucked off the mountain. There are no palila birds or mamane trees at 13,000 ft. The TMT does not plan to have a cesspool. The EIS calls for a sealed building, everything except photons are trucked in and trucked out. There has been over a decade of very detailed planning and study focused on mitigating impact from all observatories and all of these documents are freely available online.