HILO, Hawai'i — State auditor Marion Higa is faulting the state for failing to enforce lease and permit conditions on astronomy facilities atop Mauna Kea, a criticism that comes as plans advance for up to six new telescopes on the mountain.

"Without vigilant monitoring of its observatory tenants for compliance with conservation district use permits, the university risks damage to the summit, as well as other areas of the science reserve used by its tenants," according to the audit released yesterday.

The auditor's report noted the state Department of Land and Natural Resources fined the University of Hawai'i $20,000 last year after DLNR found unauthorized equipment and construction materials at four observatories overseen by the UH Institute for Astronomy.

The DLNR countered that it does monitor compliance with permits, citing those same fines it imposed on the observatories last year.

The 13,796-foot summit of Mauna Kea is considered sacred to Hawaiians, and is home to rare plant and insect species. It also is home to some of the world's most advanced telescopes and is a premier site for astronomy.

At the W.M. Keck Observatory, NASA plans to build four to six smaller telescopes next to the existing twin Keck telescopes in an array that would produce sharper images. That effort has been opposed for years by critics who say there has been too much development on the mountain.

The audit concludes that while DLNR and the university have improved their management of the mountain since the last audit in 1998, "much remains to be done."

The audit praised the hiring of five rangers to oversee the mountain, calling that effort "central to the improvement of resource protection on the mountain."

However, the report questioned why the University of Hawai'i still doesn't have the authority it needs to write rules to limit public access to the portion of the mountain the university leases for the 13,321-acre Mauna Kea Science Reserve.

Some critics have oppose such rules because they might limit public access to the mountain or limit cultural practices there, but the audit contends the public will have a chance to raise those issues during rule-making.

UH plans to ask the Legislature for the authority to limit public access to the science reserve, according to the audit.

The audit also faulted the university for issuing rules governing commercial activity on the mountain, although UH obtained authority to write those rules in 2000.

The report also notes that cultural and natural resources haven't been inventoried on Mauna Kea, leaving open the possibility that conditions could deteriorate and no one would know.

For example, almost three-quarters of the UH-controlled Mauna Kea Science Reserve still hasn't been inventoried for archeological sites. On the 3,000 acres that were surveyed, 93 archeological sites were found, and the audit cited reports that some sites on the mountain have been "altered." A study of the area is planned for next year.

The report also faults the state Department of Land and Natural resources for failing to complete historic preservation or cultural management plans for the mountain.

"Without planned protections and commitments to implement plans, irreversible damage to Mauna Kea's cultural and historic resources is likely to continue," the audit warned.

The report also warns that vacancies at the DLNR's State Historic Preservation Division suggest the division may not be able to meet its duties on Mauna Kea, including monitoring historic sites and citing people who tamper with them.

The report also noted that there was no consensus on what limits should be placed on future development of astronomy facilities on the mountain, and no "carrying capacity" for Mauna Kea was ever defined.

AUDIT FINDINGS

Among the findings of a state audit of the Mauna Kea Science Reserve: