---
title: "Opposition to the Mauna Kea Observatories"
chunk: 2/3
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_to_the_Mauna_Kea_Observatories"
category: "reference"
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
date_saved: "2026-05-05T04:32:06.129220+00:00"
instance: "kb-cron"
---

== Expansion renews opposition ==
Some of the people on the Big Island were concerned that the whole thing had got out of hand and the University of Hawaii was going to take over the top of the mountain, push all the skiers off and push all the hunters off, and essentially develop, in the worst sense, the side of the mountain. The Big Island is a rural community and there are a lot of people there who are not very sophisticated, as you know. They are nervous about changes in lifestyles, and they see those following on the development of the program of astronomy as just about as far removed from their daily pursuits as they possibly can be. And they do not trust the University, State, or Federal government worth a damn.
They feel—and in some cases I’ve had this said to me—that they are going to lose all access to the mountain because of these programs. The Federal government is going to come in and it's going to slowly move down the mountain, taking more and more of the mountain over as more and more programs go up there, and no-one will be able to get there. It is very hard to fight a fear of this kind—a formless, baseless concern—except through the same kind of backwoods interaction, at a grassroots level.
In Honolulu, the governor and legislature, enthusiastic about the development, set aside an even larger area for the observatory causing opposition in the main city of the Big Island, Hilo. Native Hawaiians believe the entire site to be sacred and that developing the mountain, even for science, would spoil the area. Environmentalists were concerned about rare native bird populations and other citizens of Hilo were concerned about the sight of the domes from the city. Using town hall meetings, Jefferies was able to overcome opposition by weighing the economic advantage and prestige the island would receive.
There has been substantial opposition to the Mauna Kea observatories that continues to grow. By 1977 Jefferies stated that the Mayor of Hawaii County had joined existing hunting and environmentalist opposition. Over the years, the opposition to the observatories may have become the most visible example of the conflict western science has encountered over access and use of environmental and culturally significant sites. Opposition to development grew shortly after expansion of the observatories commenced. Once access was opened up by the roadway to the summit, skiers began using it for recreation and objected when the road was closed as a precaution against vandalism when the telescopes were being built. Hunters voiced concerns, as did the Hawaiian Audubon Society, which was supported by Governor George Ariyoshi.
The Audubon Society objected to further development on Mauna Kea over concerns to habitat of the endangered palila, an endemic species to only specific parts of this mountain. The bird is the last of the finch billed honeycreepers existing on the island. Over 50% of native bird species had been killed off due to loss of habitat from early western settlers, or the introduction of non-native species competing for resources. Hunters and sportsmen were concerned that the hunting of feral animals would be affected by the telescope operations. A "Save Mauna Kea" movement was inspired by the proliferation of telescopes, with opposition believing development of the mountain to be sacrilegious. Native Hawaiian non-profit groups, such as Kahea, (whose goals are the protection of cultural heritage and the environment), oppose development on Mauna Kea as a sacred space to the Hawaiian religion. Today, Mauna Kea hosts the world's largest location for telescope observations in infrared and submillimeter astronomy. The land itself is protected by the U.S. Historical Preservation Act due to its significance to Hawaiian culture, but this still allowed development.

== Outrigger telescopes ==
Development of the Mauna Kea observatories is still opposed by environmental groups and Native Hawaiians. A 2006 proposal for the Outrigger Telescopes to become extensions of the Keck Observatory was canceled after a judge's determination that a full environmental impact statement must be prepared before any further development of the site. The "outrigger" smaller telescopes would have been linked to the main Keck I and Keck II telescopes. Environmental groups and Native Hawaiian activists were much stronger in their opposition this time than they had been in the past, but NASA went ahead with the proposal for lack of an alternate site. The group Mauna Kea Anaina Hou made several arguments against the development, including that Mauna Kea was a sacred mountain to Native Hawaiians where many deities live, and that the cinder cone location being proposed was holy in Hawaiian tradition as a burial site for a demi-god. The group raised several other concerns, such as environmental, concern for the preservation of native insects, the question of Ceded lands, and an audit report critical of the mountain's management.

== Thirty Meter Telescope proposal ==