The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which is leading the remediation effort, has been plagued by shoddy work and multiple regulatory disputes, according to an investigation by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser and ProPublica.
by Rob Perez, ProPublica and the Honolulu Star-Advertiser
For the better part of two years, Liliu Ross had lived in a one-room tin-roofed shack in the rural outer reaches of Hawaii’s Big Island. It had no running water and no electricity. But it provided shelter for Ross as she raised sheep and grew crops on land that her Native Hawaiian ancestors once called home. From the open fields and gentle slopes of her five-acre farm lot, she marveled at the stunning views of nearby Mauna Kea, one of the world’s tallest island mountains. Still, there were challenges to living under such conditions. At night she read by candlelight, and during the day she bathed outside with water she warmed in a pot over a fire.
So, in 2014, Ross secured a loan under a special program funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to help Native Hawaiians build or purchase homes on Native lands. An architect created drawings for a two-bedroom, one-bathroom house, complete with energy-efficient appliances and a covered lanai. And she even picked the location for the new home.

Within months, though, her plan collapsed. Ross learned in a phone call from her builder that HUD had imposed a freeze on federal housing funds throughout the region. As it turned out, her property had been part of the Waikoloa Maneuver Area, a 185,000-acre site that was used by the U.S. military for live-fire training in the 1940s. Troops had fired an unknown number of grenades, mortars and other munitions that failed to explode, and many of the potentially deadly weapons remained, hidden beneath years of soil and vegetation buildup. Federal authorities wanted to ensure the land was safe to use.
Recent Posts
‘Textbook Authoritarianism’: Trump Aims IRS Criminal Division At Left-Leaning Groups, Donors
October 16, 2025
Take Action Now Reporting by the Wall Street Journal indicates the active “weaponization” of the agency to target the far-right president’s political…
Trump Knesset Speech Displays Complete U.S. Backing Of Israel
October 15, 2025
Take Action Now Trump stirred controversy in several off-script moments in his address to the Israeli Knesset, including spotlighting a top…
When Far-Right Voters Learn Wage Inequality Facts, Their Support For Policy Solutions Jumps
October 15, 2025
Take Action Now A new study of voters in the United States and five other countries finds that those on the far right become much more supportive of…
The Ancient History Of Socialism In North America
October 14, 2025
Take Action Now There was nothing simplistic about moving — in many ways back to earlier traditions — to a system of governance not…