Hawaii Superferry Plies and Dies

Abstract

The Hawaii Superferry was a novel idea brought to the Islands of Hawaii not only as a business venture but also as a means of providing visitors and locals alike the opportunity to quickly and easily travel between the state’s unique islands. As the project progressed, several unexpected yet critical issues arose, posing significant threats to the Superferry’s success. The largest threat was the lack of a completed Environmental Impact Study by the Hawaii Superferry. This gave way to numerous underlying issues that were attacked by environmental activists who opposed the operation of the Superferry. The scope of concerns by protesters continued to grow as they increasingly realized that they were actually able to fight this encroaching business venture. The Superferry’s battle then became highly visible in the community and lines were drawn between sides: those who were for and those who were against the Superferry. Facts were gathered from primary sources such as audio recordings of court proceedings, interviews with the Superferry’s founder, and legal acts and statutes. In the end, the Superferry’s opposition was able to stonewall it in the courts for long enough that the vessel was taken out of service and consequently forced into bankruptcy due to the loss of critical revenue streams. The Hawaii Superferry was then turned over to the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) and made available for future government use. The Superferry event served to highlight a number of lessons, particularly in the arena of conflict resolution. Numerous steps could have been taken at various junctures in the project’s life cycle to ensure that the appropriate community engagement was in place. The rush to commence the vessel’s service, coupled with the tremendous amount of stonewalling by special interest groups, led to a tumultuous existence. The final outcome could have been significantly different had management employed some critical conflict resolution techniques. Unfortunately, this case has now become iconic for businesses in the State of Hawaii. As such, the poor implementation of conflict resolution has soured a great deal of potential economic development throughout the islands.