HILO, Hawai'i — Building tent-like structures to house inmates on the Big Island won't significantly affect the environment, according to a final environmental assessment.

The conclusion by the Office of Environmental Quality Control on Monday brings the state one step closer to housing inmates in "prefabricated temporary housing structures" on the grounds of existing correctional facilities.

The Department of Public Safety wants to use the new structures "to address the current backlog of inmates awaiting program opportunities, and to relieve overcrowding and open up bed space in higher-security facilities," according to the environmental assessment.

One of the buildings would house up to 64 female inmates at the Hawaii Community Correctional Center in Hilo.

The Kulani Correctional Facility would receive two of the structures, each capable of housing 128 male inmates.

Both the Kulani and Hale Nani Annex would receive one structure each for drug abuse treatment programs.

Most of their $3.8 million cost would be paid by the U.S. Department of Justice through grants to purchase the tents. The state will cover 10 percent of the cost, or $380,000, to pay for assembling the structures later.

To make room for the tents, the state proposes demolishing the 103-year-old yellow Hilo Jail building and a dilapidated metal building at Hawaii Community Correctional Center in Hilo.

The State Historic Preservation Division objected to the demolition of the old Hilo Jail, which was occupied from 1906 to 1978. A 1978 report by the division considered the jail significant only for its architectural properties, and it's not listed on either the state or national registers of historic places.

The public will have 30 days to submit comments on the environmental assessment.

The Public Safety Department is also trying to acquire similar structures on Maui.

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Information from: Hawaii Tribune-Herald, www.hilohawaiitribune.com