Planning

Planning methods based on projected population growth must consider that the available resources, economic activity, and environmental conditions that were assumed in the planning stages, have changed dramatically.

We are currently dependent upon, and planning for, an oil-based economy. Oil-based energy sources figure in significantly with our growth and development, as well as our import of food, goods and supplies. Currently, tourism, our main industry, depends 100 percent on the availability of oil. This industry also depends on the health of outer economies being strong enough to generate tourism activity to Hawaii. Our economy is already feeling the effects of our dependence on this particular commodity. Planning for Maui Nui's future must take into account these current and long-term trends.

Agriculture, our second major industry, is also subject to outer economic circumstances. Much of our agricultural activity is reliant on petroleum for both fertilizers and sending products to markets. Continued planning on the premise of oil availability is not sustainable; this practice will render our islands in Maui Nui vulnerable, should circumstances beyond our control further cut off our supply of oil.

It is time for us to plan our future based on the fact that Maui Nui are small islands in the middle of the largest ocean on Earth. We have finite resources of land and water, yet our culture has a long history of being sustainable. We can look toward the wisdom of the past as we plan for our future. Our planning should be based on our current economic and resource conditions, with a mind toward best-case and worst-case scenarios. In this way, we can be prepared for the shifting conditions of today's world.