Pohakuloa Training Area

There's also another military base on Hawaii Island, which is the largest military base in all of Hawaii.

It's called Pohakuloa.

And this land is the most actively used by the US military for training exercises, including live fire training exercises that similarly have major environmental impacts to Makua.

So the cynical look at this is the reason that the military is returning Makua, Kalaeloa, and Poamoho is because they wanna ensure that they have continued use of Pohakuloa on Hawaii Island for their training practices.

Another cynical approach, understanding of this is all part of the federal government to increase efficiency and to trim down their land holdings, to trim down their expenses.

But I also wanna emphasize that the return of Makua and the Kalaeloa Poamoho lands is a response to decades of community organizing, as well as the military's complete and utter negligence in managing and caring for this land.

At Makua, there was previously active training, but they haven't been able to because of the organizing and the lawsuit.

And this...

Okay? Because there are so many issues, you know, facing the native Hawaiian community right now.

You see what is happening at Pohakuloa.

Mm.

You see what is happening with Kamehameha Schools.

browserSome activists claim the US Army is firing depleted uranium on gunnery ranges in Hawaii, contaminating the state with radioactive fallout.

They recently took Geiger counter readings downwind from Pohakuloa on the Big Island.

KITV's Dick Allgire joins us live now with details.

Dick?

Normal background radiation would be five to 20 counts per minute.

On this day, she says she took readings of up to 93, which experts say is abnormal and quite high.

That is horrendous, and it could only be because they were doing live fire with depleted uranium at Pohakuloa while we were doing the measurements.

Leuren Moret claims the Army is using depleted uranium on the Pohakuloa firing range, and the wind is blowing radiation over South Kona.