The existing wooden Judges Tower-b. Photo: Supplied
Indigenous people are not being heard on the proposed new judging tower in Tahiti for the Paris Olympics surfing competition, professional surfer and scientist Cliff Kapono says.
The judging tower has become a controversial project, with many locals opposing its construction raising concerns the coral reef would be irreversibly damaged.
Kapono was among a group of scientists who travelled to Teahupo'o - the site of the event - last year with the intention to map the wave.
"We went down for another reason but when we got on the ground and we realised there was this issue," he said.
Using Hawai'i valuation measuring metrics, the team attributed US$170,000 to living organisms in the proposed judge tower location, which covers about the size of a tennis court.
"Living things that will be disrupted, that can't run away," Kapono said.
"If you build something in that spot, there is someone who already lives there and that something else is either algae, soft coral or hard coral."
Kapono said the proposed site is in the centre of the lagoon which will require a path to be carved out to construct the tower.
He said it meant US$1.3 million of coral will be affected in some way.
"Will it be $1.3 million of destroyed coral reef, we don't know. Will $170,000 of live corals be destroyed by building the tower, that we don't know.
"We just want to assign that the area that is going to be affected to some degree or capacity is currently worth this under the place we live in Hawaii."
Kapono said outside of "empirical evidence" there is a concern by the indigenous people in the area.
"Whether or not that risk is real or not to the outside world, it's very real to these people whose home it belongs to.
"For the outside people of this world to think that their priorities and foreign interest supersede the concern of indigenous people on this planet, that, to me is very, very sad."
An online petition against the construction of the tower has gained close to 250,000 signatures.
Other professional surfers have been opposing the construction.
Most vocal has been Teahupo'o local and professional surfer Matahi Drollet.
"The impact and the risk are too important for only three days of contest," he said on social media.
Drollet and others are asking for the existing judging tower used by the World Surf League to be used for the Olympics.
The new aluminium Judges Tower artists impression in Teahupoo. Photo: Supplied
The International Surfing Association (ISA) which will provide the judges for the Olympic competition are also opposing the towers construction.
"We believe a fair and accurate competition can be run, with different technological and operational solutions," an ISA spokesperson said.
The ISA suggested having the judges tower on land while using a camera platform on the reef using the existing footings used by the World Surf League judging tower. As another option the organisation suggested having both cameras and judges on land.
"The ISA proposal included judging the competition remotely, with live images shot from land, water and drones," the spokesperson said.
"Subsequently the French Polynesian Government decided to go forward with a plan to build a new aluminium tower on the reef."
Kapono said public sentiment is against the towers construction.
"Even the judges who this tower is being built for say they don't need it.
"I don't know how much more evidence needs to be provided, I don't know how much more statements need to be made.
"It seems that the agenda of the Olympics are superseding the priorities of sadly, not only the indigenous community within Teahupo'o, but also the larger surfing community as a whole.
"It's very saddening to think this is where surfing is going."
French Polynesia's President Moetai Brotherson said the location of the surf competition would be maintained.
The Paris 2024 Olympics organising committee had ruled the wooden tower previously used by the WSL did not meet safety standards.
"Contrary to the accepted practice over the past 24 years, it is increasingly difficult for the WSL to find an insurance company that accepts to cover the even with the old tower and they were threatening to cancel the Tahiti leg and withdraw Tahiti from its world tour if the new (aluminium) tower was not ready in time for this year's competition", French High Commissioner in French Polynesia Eric Spitz told public television Polynésie la 1ère.
Tetuanui Hamblin, mayor of West Taiarapu (where Teahupoo is administratively located) said: "For our municipality, this new tower was necessary, a tower that is up to safety standards so there is no problem regarding the staff and personnel that will come and work here (...) We're already behind on schedule so works have to resume".
