The U.S. military announced plans to construct and operate rocket cargo landing pads at Kalama (Johnston Atoll)—an ecologically and culturally significant area protected within the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument (PIHMNM) and a National Wildlife Refuge.
These waters tell the stories of our ancestors and connect us to our cultural heritage and cousins across the Pacific. Johnston Atoll, given the Hawaiian name Kalama, acts as a stepping stone of connectivity for marine life–including fishes, corals, and other organisms–bridging the main Hawaiian Islands and Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, with the broader tropical Pacific, including the Marshall Islands and Kiribati.
Despite Kalama’s status as a protected area, the U.S. military plans to begin testing as soon as 2025 after releasing only a limited Environmental Assessment (EA) and Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) with a 30-day public comment period expected this April.
The construction and operation of commercial rockets pose significant risks from habitat destruction, contaminants, debris, noise, and potential catastrophic landings in a protected area. The Pacific is not a dumping ground or a place for high-risk activity threatening our ocean, communities, and cultural heritage.
The CWG supports the position of the Pacific Islands Heritage Coalition and strongly opposes this reckless plan and calls for the U.S. military to halt the project and conduct a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to assess the risks to Kalama and this significant area
This toolkit provides key messages, sample posts, and ways to take action, including signing this petition to share your voice.
✔️ Sign and share the petition with your networks
✔️ Post on social media using our sample messages & hashtags.
✔️ Share this toolkit with your networks.
✔️ Submit a public comment when the Draft EA is released later this April.
