HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Gov. Josh Green’s controversial appointee to the state Water Resources Management Commission is now facing an investigation by the Hawaii State Ethics Commission.

Critics say Hinano Rodrigues is friends with a powerful West Maui developer and gave the developer special treatment when he disturbed ancient burials.

There were rumors that Rodrigues was close to landowner Peter Martin. They have now been put in writing and are being investigated by ethics staff.

Martin owns more than 5,000 acres, mostly former sugar lands in West Maui, and the plantation-era water systems that came with them.

The ethics complaint says Rodrigues, whom the governor appointed to the water commission after a nine-month process, is a close friend.

Clare Apana, president of the nonprofit ancient burial protection group Malama Kakanilua, was among those who filed the complaint, who said Rodrigues gave Martin preferential treatment when his contractors discovered a known burial site.

“Mr. Rodriguez was willing to overlook the law, not to make a violation for his friend,” she said.

Rodrigues retired last year as chief of the History and Culture Branch of the State Historic Preservation Division (SHPD) of the Department of Land and Natural Resources. It is charged with ensuring the proper and respectful care of Hawaii’s burial sites.

A resident of Olowalu, West Maui, Rodrigues has been at the center of many disputes over iwi kupuna and occasionally found himself in conflict with Maui conservationists.

The ethics complaint says state staff claimed that “Rodrigues stated that it would be inappropriate for him to comment on Martin’s entities’ requests and requests to SHPD. Rodrigues traveled with Martin and his family to Las Vegas. Rodrigues told SHPD personnel that he “won big” during a trip to Las Vegas with Martin over a Christmas vacation.”

Apana said: “I travel and holiday with Peter Martin and it is widely accepted and known in the community that they are associates and friends.”

The complaint also says that archaeologist Andrew “McAllister created a file of SHPD violations regarding Rodrigues and Martin’s business entities and placed that file on the SHPD server. McAllister later resigned from the SHPD.”

Protectors of iwi kupuna say the conflict should disqualify Rodrigues from the water commission.

“If you find that a person has not performed their job in an ethical and honest manner, then how would you expect them to do so on a commission basis?” Apana said.

Although Gov. Green’s office said it could not comment on the allegations in a confidential complaint, he strongly defended Rodrigues two weeks ago in an interview with Hawaii News Now.

“This person has a lot of years of very relevant experience, but in our beautiful state, if people don’t line up perfectly, then we demonize them,” he said.

The governor’s office said in water permit applications to the commission: “Mr. Rodrigues will comply with the code of ethics appropriately and identify conflicts of interest and must recuse himself from any decision-making when such conflicts arise.”

Martin has many pending water requests for his developments and irrigation systems. Advocates say the recusal alone isn’t enough because Rodrigues holds the commission seat reserved for an expert on traditional Hawaiian water use.

“We’re losing a lawyer,” Apana said. “Okay, so he’s not voting, but we’re also losing a person to stand up for those traditional rights that we have.”

Hawaii News Now reached out to Rodrigues and forwarded the ethics complaint to him. He did not respond to questions about his relationship with Martin or whether he planned to apologize when Martin’s properties come up.

I also contacted Martin through one of his directors who said he forwarded the request but Martin did not respond.

Previous coverage

• The representative of the water commission takes place over the objections of the lawyers
• Governor defends controversial water commission appointment in exclusive interview

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