Mark Zuckerberg buys land on Hawaiian island of Kauai – economy

The billionaire Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg owned 526 hectares in Hawaii, yes, now he’s struck again. Critics and locals alike accuse him of neo-colonialism.

Zuckerberg has bought 44.5 acres of land on the island of Kauai. The $ 17 million deal was closed last month, reports the Honolulu Star Advertiser, Hawaii’s largest daily newspaper.

The area is home to most of a reservoir that caused a deadly flood 15 years ago. The reservoir was flooded in 2006 after part of a dam broke after 40 days of almost continuous rain. Seven people died.

The dam’s administrator, James Pflueger, was blamed for the tragedy. He was sentenced to seven months in prison in 2014 and released in 2015. Pflueger died in 2017 at the age of 91. The reservoir has not yet been repaired and is on the state’s list of high-risk dams.

Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan are determined to do their part to meet legal requirements and promote the safety of the reservoir, said Ben LaBolt, a spokesman for the couple. The two want to continue to cultivate the land, raise cattle and campaign for animal welfare.