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| Ka`u High and Pahala Elementary School welcomed back students today to its large, uncrowded campus. Photo by Julia Neal |
In Ka`u, Na`alehu School provides education to 420 students from kindergarten through sixth grade. At the helm is principal Darlene Javar and vice principal Karen Pare.
Pahala Elementary School is teaching 154 students. Ka`u Intermediate is educating 135 students in grades 7 – 8. Ka`u High School is preparing 252 students for their futures. The principal for all three is Sharon Beck, assisted by vice principal Stacy Bello.
Ka`u is unaffected by the statewide loss of some school bus routes. Elsewhere, some 2,000 students are making it to school without a school bus. About 1,000 of them will be able to go to school on city buses. For Ka`u, however, the school bus service will remain the same, and the Hele-On public bus service continues to provide after-school routes enabling student participation in sports and other activities.
TEACHERS ARE WORKING WITHOUT A CONTRACT. Those who teach full time belong to the Hawai`i State Teachers Association, and the union has urged them to return to work as union leaders attempt to go back to the bargaining table for a final settlement with the state Department of Education. Gov. Neil Abercrombie notified the teachers they could not use the contract they first rejected and then accepted in May and urged starting with a clean slate.
Pahala Elementary School is teaching 154 students. Ka`u Intermediate is educating 135 students in grades 7 – 8. Ka`u High School is preparing 252 students for their futures. The principal for all three is Sharon Beck, assisted by vice principal Stacy Bello.
Ka`u is unaffected by the statewide loss of some school bus routes. Elsewhere, some 2,000 students are making it to school without a school bus. About 1,000 of them will be able to go to school on city buses. For Ka`u, however, the school bus service will remain the same, and the Hele-On public bus service continues to provide after-school routes enabling student participation in sports and other activities.
TEACHERS ARE WORKING WITHOUT A CONTRACT. Those who teach full time belong to the Hawai`i State Teachers Association, and the union has urged them to return to work as union leaders attempt to go back to the bargaining table for a final settlement with the state Department of Education. Gov. Neil Abercrombie notified the teachers they could not use the contract they first rejected and then accepted in May and urged starting with a clean slate.
TSUNAMI CLEANUP GRANTS of up to $50,000 for each state are available from the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration. Selected states are Hawai`i, Alaska, Washington, Oregon and California. All of them face the Pacific, where debris from the Japan tsunami last year is expected to land.
NOAA has also launched an online reporting system and Marine Debris Handling Guide at http://marinedebris.noaa.gov/tsunamidebris/debris_handling.html.
Nancy Wallace, director of NOAA’s marine debris program, said federal funds will help with disposal fees, cleanup supplies and dumpster rentals and that NOAA will help the states address contingency planning, monitoring and research.
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Nancy Wallace, director of NOAA’s marine debris program, said federal funds will help with disposal fees, cleanup supplies and dumpster rentals and that NOAA will help the states address contingency planning, monitoring and research.
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| Matson delivers cargo to Hawai`i. Photo from matson.com |
MATSON AND PASHA may have to pay more for fuel, which could raise cargo shipping costs for Hawai`i. An EPA rule goes into effect this week requiring lower sulfur fuel content when ships travel within 200 miles of land. The state of Alaska has been aggressive in lobbying for relief from the new EPA ruling. The Alaska Economic Journal reports that fuel costs could go up 20 to 25 percent for the required “special blended diesel.” Some shippers are predicting an eight percent rise in shipping rates. They also contend that a larger quantity of fuel will be necessary to travel the same distances, as the low sulfur mix produces less energy. They also claim that engines will eventually have to be replaced or modified to handle the new fuel.
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| Pasha's Jean Anne Photo from pashahawaii.com |
Alaska is more affected by the new rule since ships travel close to land when sailing between large West Coast ports and Alaska. On their journey between Hawai`i and the mainland, however, shippers are allowed to switch to the higher sulfur fuel once they are 200 miles off the coast.
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| Four candidates are on the ballot for County Council District 6. |
THE PRIMARY ELECTION COMING UP IN LESS THAN TWO WEEKS could end up in a number of run-offs. One of the County Council candidates - Brenda Ford, Maile Davis, Lee McIntosh or Bradley Westervelt - would have to receive 50 percent plus one vote to make the primary the determining election for District 6. With no clear majority, a run-off would be scheduled for the general election on Nov. 6. For the mayor’s race between incumbent Billy Kenoi, former mayor Harry Kim, County Council chair Dominic Yagong and candidates Share Christie, Daniel Cunningham, Anne Marsh and Rand Walls, the top two vote-getters will campaign for the win in the general.
EARLY VOTING FOR THE PRIMARY starts today in Hilo, Kona and Waimea, but no longer at Pahala Community Center. Voters can cast ballots at West Hawai`i Civic Center Community Room, Waimea Community Center and Aupuni Center Conference Room in Hilo through Thursday, Aug. 9 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., including Saturday, Aug. 4.
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| State lands in Ka`u are in light green, showing a large swath next to Ocean View, the Wai`ohinu ahupua`a going to the ocean, property near Punalu`u and the largest holding, the Ka`u Forest Reserve. |
THE NEW PUBLIC LAND DEVELOPMENT CORP. is starting to move on its mission to make more efficient and economic use of state lands. On the Big Island, the agency is proposing to take control of a kiawe forest and protect it. On O`ahu, it’s tidying up a lease for the golf course in Waimanalo. The agency is taking proposals from private developers to develop farmland in Ewa.
According to this morning’s Honolulu Star Advertiser, it is the director of the Public Land Development Corp. who is allowed to select projects for state land. The agency is tasked with increasing state revenues from land managed by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources. Projects could include harbors, resorts, commercial centers and recreational centers. The Public Land Development Corp. is exempt from land use classification and zoning regulations. The Star Advertiser reported on an O`ahu public hearing last week where the Sierra Club protested the process and a historian said, “We don’t trust what you guys are up to,” and several Ewa residents said they would fight the development on farmland owned by the state.
No lands have been proposed for development in Ka`u, although the state does own properties along the Ka`u Coast, including parcels adjacent to Punalu`u.
No lands have been proposed for development in Ka`u, although the state does own properties along the Ka`u Coast, including parcels adjacent to Punalu`u.
BEGINNERS ARE WELCOME to play Duplicate Bridge, tomorrow and every Tuesday at 1 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center. Contact Pat at 375-6271 or Susan at 375-6821 or stbrown@hawaii.edu for more information.
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