HAR §13-5-2. Definitions

As used herein unless otherwise provided: "Accessory use" means a land use that is conducted on the same property as the principal land use, and is incidental to, subordinate to, and customarily found in connection with the principal land use. "Aquaculture" means the cultivation and production of aquatic life in a controlled salt, brackish, or freshwater environment. "Artificial reef" means an area of the sea where objects have been placed on the ocean bottom to create a habitat for fish and other marine organisms. "Average annual [coastal erosion] shoreline change rate" means the average annual rate of shoreline change as determined by [the] a historical shoreline change [coastal erosion] study performed under this chapter. "Beach" means a coastal landform primarily composed of sand from eroded rock, coral, or shell material, or any combination thereof, that is established and shaped by wave action and tidal processes. "Beach" includes sand deposits in nearshore submerged areas, or sand dunes or upland beach deposits landward of the shoreline. "Board" means the board of land and natural resources. "Board permit" means a permit approved by the board of land and natural resources. "Cabin" means a permanent structure not more than six hundred square feet under roof, intended for use in §13-5-2 5-5 managing large or remote land areas or both; having access by existing foot trail or unimproved access roads. The cabin cannot be used as a principal residence, for rental, or any commercial purposes. "Chairperson" means the chairperson of the board of land and natural resources. "Clearing" means the removal of vegetation, with no ground disturbance. [“Coastal erosion study”] "Historical shoreline change study" means a quantitative study of historical shoreline behavior utilizing orthorectified aerial photographs,[or] other imagery (e.g., drone, satellite, etc.), maps, or other accurate indicators of past shoreline position to carry out a high-resolution [mapping] analysis of historical shoreline positions to [obtain a statistically valid annual erosion rate of the shoreline change reference feature] determine the annual rate of historical shoreline change. The [coastal erosion] historical shoreline change study shall be carried out by a qualified professional consultant following procedures described in the Hawaii Coastal Hazard Mitigation Guidebook, or other credible publications that provide similar procedures. "Coastal hazards" means elevated risk to public health or safety, property, and the environment in coastal areas resulting from physical phenomena (e.g. high waves, storm surge, tsunamis, sea level rise, coastal erosion, and other hazards). "Coastal hazard mitigation disclosure statement" means a disclosure statement that identifies and describes the potential frequency and severity of coastal hazards that may impact property with a discussion of potential measures that can be taken to mitigate impacts from coastal hazards. "Coastal high hazard area" means an area where wave action or high velocity water flow or both can cause structural damage in the [hundred-year flood] one percent annual chance flood event, primarily defined as an area where a three foot or greater wave height could occur (V and VE Zone), in accordance with the Federal Emergency Management Agency-designated [federal] flood insurance rate map flood zones. §13-5-2 5-6 "Commercial purpose" means those land uses which entail or comprise the exchange or buying and selling of commodities, or the providing of services, or relating to or connected with trade, traffic in goods and services or commerce in general; provided, however, that the use of land for regulated public utility purposes shall not be considered a commercial purpose. "Communications systems" means towers, antennas, buildings, cables, and other accessory structures for electronic, radio frequency, or microwave transmissions or receptions. "Comprehensive management plan" means a [comprehensive] plan to manage multiple uses and activities to protect and conserve natural and cultural resources. "Conservation district" means those lands within the various counties of the State and state marine waters bounded by the conservation district line, as established under provisions of Act 187, Session Laws of Hawaii, 1961, and Act 205, Session Laws of Hawaii 1963, or future amendments thereto. "Department" means the department of land and natural resources. "Departmental permit" means a permit approved by the chairperson. "Emergency" means an imminently dangerous situation that poses a substantial threat to public health, safety, and welfare as declared by the chairperson, or deputy director of the department in the absence of the chairperson. Situations lasting more than one year are considered "on-going hazardous conditions". "Emergency shoreline hardening" means the installation of temporary shoreline stabilization structures or materials authorized by the chairperson pursuant to section 13-5-35, designed to fix the shoreline in place while a longer-term solution is developed and implemented. "Flood zone" means those areas in the "V" or "A" zones that require mandatory flood insurance, in accordance with the Federal Emergency Management §13-5-2 5-7 Agency-designated [federal] flood insurance rate map flood zones. "Forest reserves" means those lands set aside as forest reserves by the department pursuant to section 183-11, HRS. "Grading" means the excavation of earth material, fill, or combination thereof. "Grubbing" means the [removal of vegetation by scraping, dislodging, or uprooting vegetation that breaks the topsoil]. "Historic property" means any building, structure, object, district, area, or site, including heiau and underwater site, which is over fifty years old, or otherwise defined in section 6E-1, HRS. "Hoala loko ia program" means a program process by the board to revitalize traditional Hawaiian fishponds. "Imminently threatened" means an inhabited dwelling, essential cultural or natural resource, or other (non-movable) major structure or public facility that is in danger of destruction or severe damage due to natural hazards. [.] "Invasive species" means [any terrestrial or aquatic plant or animal that can directly or indirectly injure or cause damage to the environment, native species, natural or cultural resources, navigation, or to the public health, safety and welfare.] non-native species whose introduction does or is likely to cause economic, cultural or environmental harm. "Kuleana land" means those lands granted to native tenants pursuant to L. 1850, p. 202 entitled "An Act Confirming Certain Resolutions of the King and Privy Council, passed on the 21st Day of December, A.D. 1849, Granting to the Common People Allodial Titles for Their Own Lands and House Lots, and Certain Other Privileges", as originally enacted and amended. "Land" means all real property, fast or submerged, and all interests therein, including fauna, flora, minerals, and all such natural resources, unless otherwise expressly provided. "Landowner" means an owner of land, or of any estate or interest in that land. "Land use" means: §13-5-2 5-8 (1) The placement or erection of any solid material on land if that material remains on the land more than thirty days, or which causes a permanent change in the land area on which it occurs; (2) The grading, removing, harvesting, dredging, mining, or extraction of any material or natural resource on land; (3) The subdivision of land; or (4) The construction, reconstruction, demolition, or alteration of any structure, building, or facility on land. For purposes of this chapter, harvesting and removing does not include the taking of aquatic life or wildlife that is regulated by state fishing and hunting laws nor the gathering of natural resources for personal, non- commercial use or pursuant to Article 12, Section 7 of the Hawaii State Constitution or section 7-1, HRS, relating to certain traditional and customary Hawaiian practices. "Landscape plan" means a visual representation of the proposed layout of an outdoor space which shows the locations of proposed natural elements (e.g. flowers, trees, or grasses) to be planted as well as any native plants or trees proposed for removal. The plan shall be accompanied by a list of the species to be removed or planted and their quantities, as well as discussion of construction methods. "Landscaping" means the alteration of plant cover (including clearing, grubbing, and tree removal for non-commercial purposes), including chemical and mechanical control methods, in accordance with state and federal laws and regulations. "Legal lot of record" means a lot or parcel that was created through compliance with land use laws and regulations in effect at the time of creation, or that existed prior to the enactment of any such laws or regulations. "Major alteration" means work done to an existing structure, facility, or use that results in more than fifty percent increase in the size of the structure, facility, or use. §13-5-2 5-9 "Management plan" means [a project or site based plan to protect and conserve natural and cultural resources.] a long-term planning document for a specified site that identifies a desired outcome which includes implementation and monitoring procedures to measure the progress of actions to protect and conserve natural and cultural resources. "Minor alteration" means work done to an existing structure, facility, or use that results in a ten percent or less increase in the size of the structure, facility, or use. "Minor repair" means routine work done to an existing structure, facility, use, land, and equipment, that involves mostly cosmetic work or like-to-like replacement of component parts, and that results in negligible change to or impact to land, or a natural and cultural resource. "Moderate alteration" means work done to an existing structure, facility, or use that results in more than a ten percent increase, but no more than a fifty percent increase, in the size of the structure, facility, or use. "Mooring" means a device for holding a vessel in place, where an anchor, concrete block, or similar device is placed or dropped on submerged land with a line attached to a buoy to which the vessel is attached. "Native habitat restoration" means the preservation or restoration of ecosystem functions which incorporates the best available science, utilizes traditional ecological knowledge, considers climate change impacts, and will have a positive ecological benefit on native species, water quality, or living coastal or marine resources. "Natural resource" means resources such as plants, aquatic life and wildlife, cultural, historic, recreational, geologic, and archeological sites, scenic areas, ecologically significant areas, watersheds, and minerals. "Nonconforming use" means the lawful use of any building, premises, or land for any trade, industry, residence, or other purposes which is the same as and §13-5-2 5-10 no greater than that established prior to October 1, 1964, or prior to the inclusion of the building, premises, or land within the conservation district. "On-going hazardous condition" means an imminently dangerous situation lasting more than one year that poses a substantial threat to public health and safety as declared by the chairperson, or deputy director of the department in the absence of the chairperson. "Presiding officer" means the person conducting the hearing, which shall be the chairperson or the chairperson’s designated representative. "Property" means real property. "Public purpose use" means not for profit land uses undertaken in support of a public service by an agency of the county, state, or federal government, or by an independent non-governmental entity, except that an independent non-governmental regulated public utility may be considered to be engaged in a public purpose use. Examples of public purpose uses may include but are not limited to public roads, marinas, harbors, airports, trails, water systems and other utilities, communication systems, flood or erosion control projects, recreational facilities, community centers, and other public purpose uses, intended to benefit the public in accordance with public policy and the purpose of the conservation district. "Renewable energy" means energy generated or produced by using the following sources: wind, the sun, flowing water, geothermal energy, ocean water, or currents and waves, including ocean energy conversion. "Repair, maintenance, operation" means land uses and activities necessary and incidental for the continued conduct of a use, whether nonconforming or permitted, including repairs not exceeding fifty percent of the replacement value in today’s dollars of the originally authorized or legally nonconforming structure or use. "Scenic area" means areas possessing natural, scenic, or wildland qualities. "Sea Level Rise Exposure Area" (SLR-XA) means the sea level rise exposure area delineated in the Hawaii Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Commission’s §13-5-2 5-11 Hawaii Sea Level Rise Vulnerability and Adaptation Report, and the Hawaii Sea Level Rise Viewer, or their successors. "Shed" means a roofed structure used as a storage space for items such as tools and equipment, with a maximum floor area of one hundred square feet. "Shelter" means a structure used for sheltering from the elements, with a maximum floor area of six hundred square feet. "Shoreline" means the upper reaches of the wash of the waves, other than storm and seismic waves, at high tide during the season of the year in which the highest wash of the waves occurs, usually evidenced by the edge of vegetation growth, or the upper limit of debris left by the wash of the waves, or as otherwise defined in section 205A-1, HRS. "Shoreline hardening" means the installation of a seawall, revetment, or similar structure along the shoreline provided that it does not include structures intended to stabilize or restore beaches, such as groins, or installation of emergency shoreline hardening authorized by the chairperson pursuant to section 13-5- 35. "Shoreline setback area" shall include all of the land between the shoreline and the shoreline setback line, provided that if the highest annual wash of the waves is fixed or significantly affected by a structure that has not received all permits and approvals required by law or if any part of any structure in violation of this chapter extends seaward of the shoreline, then the term "shoreline setback area" shall include the entire structure. "Shoreline setback line" means the line established by this chapter running inland to and parallel to the certified shoreline at a horizontal plane. "Single family residence" means a building or structure used or designated and intended to be used as a home or dwelling place for a family. "Site plan" means a plan drawn to scale, showing the actual dimensions and shape of the property, the size and locations on the property of existing and §13-5-2 5-12 proposed structures and open areas including vegetation and landscaping. "Small-scale beach restoration program" means a program approved by the board to restore beaches and improve coastal hazard resilience. "State marine waters" means all waters of the State, including the water column and water surface, extending from the shoreline seaward to the limit of the State's police power and management authority, including the United States territorial sea, notwithstanding any law to the contrary. "Storm and seismic waves" mean waves of unusual magnitude which occurred on a specific date as part of a specific and identifiable hurricane storm or tsunami event, to exclude annual high surf. "Subdivision" means a division of a parcel of land into more than one parcel. "Submerged lands" means lands from the shoreline seaward to the extent of the State's jurisdiction. "Subzone" means a zone established within the conservation district that is identified by boundaries and resource characteristics pursuant to this chapter. ["Temporary variance" means an exception to zoned use, where good cause is shown and where the proposed variance is for a use determined to be in accordance with good conservation practices.] "Topographical features" means natural and artificial geographical features that appear on a topographical map, such as, but not limited to, mountains, hills, valleys, rivers, gulches, streams, wetlands, shorelines, beaches, submerged lands, roads, unimproved roads, trails, and other such features. "Transient rental" means the use of a single- family residence or structure for less than one hundred eighty consecutive days in exchange for compensation, including but not limited to monetary payment, services, or labor of employees. "Transportation system" includes the means to transport people, animals, or goods or any combination thereof from one place to another, including roads, harbors, airways, and their related facilities. “Visual intactness” means the integrity of visual §13-5-2 5-13 features in the landscape and the extent to which the existing landscape is free from non-typical visual intrusions. "Water system" means a network of pipelines, storage, pumps, water sources, and other appurtenances (e.g., ditches, channels, canals, flumes, siphons, telemark lines, drainage systems, etc., all of which are part of a surface water collection system) that furnishes a supply of water to water users. The water sources may include diversions, impoundments, or wells, and may include water treatment facilities to achieve necessary water quality standards. ["Wilderness area" means an area designated by the department having a diversity and abundance of native flora and fauna, geological formation, or both, largely undisturbed by human influences, in which the introduction of non-indigenous plants and animals, mining, grazing of domestic animals, removal of vegetation, overnight camping, and the construction of roads or structures is prohibited or restricted.] [Eff 12/12/94; am and comp 12/05/11; am and comp ] (Auth: HRS §183C-3) (Imp: HRS §183C-2)