Kaʻū News Briefs, Friday, Oct. 21, 2022

County of Hawai'i operated a hydrogen bus and Da Rubbah Slippah Group hopes to make more cheap fuel to run more

 vehicles by using excess geothermal electricity to create hydrogen from water. A zoom meeting is set for Saturday. 

Photo from County of Hawai'i

USING EXCESS GEOTHERMAL ELECTRICITY TO MAKE HYDROGEN FROM WATER AND ENERGY, COULD FUEL MORE VEHICLES. That is a goal of Da Rubbah Slippah Group, founded by Richard Ha. The presentation will be this Saturday at 10 a.m. on zoom at www.darubbahslippahgroup.com. See Events.

        Ha said that a special Public Utilities Commission docket and approval would allow the purchase of unused PGV energy at 10 cents per kilowatt hour, with Millennium Reign Energy company is prepared to set up a network of five hydrogen fueling stations located around the island.

    County of Hawai'i received its first hydrogen Hele On Bus late last year.

Richard Ha organized a zoom meeting
for Saturday on using excess geothermal
to produce hydrogen for transportation.

    Ha called the project a "build it and they will come situation. Once we have those hydrogen fueling stations, people could get hydrogen electric vehicles instead of driving fossil fuel-based cars. This island would be the first place in the nation to have a functioning hydrogen hub. It would be a model where people from around the world would come and see what we’ve achieved and if they can do the same.”
    Ha said he organized the presentation for the public as well as state Sen. Glenn Wakai and state Rep. Nicole Lowen, who are chairs of energy committees at the Hawai'i Legislature. Ha said the public is largely unaware with hydrogen technology, how it could replace fossil fuel, and the ease of creating it.
    Presenters at Saturday's session include: Ha representing Da Rubbah Slippah Group; Desmon Haumea, a cultural practitioner, educator and traditional healer; Chris McWhinney of Millennium Reign Energy; Nicole Lautze, of Hawai'i Groundwater and Geothermal Resources Center; Mike Kaleikini of Ormat/Puna Geothermal Venture; Peter Sternlicht of Sustainable Energy Hawai'i; and Jennifer of Zelko-Schleuter, representing Hawaiian Electric.

     A County of Hawai'i statement earlier this year said, "Hawai'i Island took the lead in sustainable public transportation by implementing a hydrogen fueled bus into the County fleet. Now operating on multiple routes, the hydrogen bus has set a standard for the future of Hawai'i’s public transportation. Striving to achieve net-zero emissions by 2035, the Island is planning to convert the County’s fleet to align with Hawai'i’s Renewable Portfolio Standard of implementing 100 percent clean energy by 2045.
   "Hydrogen boasts many benefits in terms of fueling, and this includes a reduced reliance on imported fuel sources, improved efficiency compared to fossil fuels, and no CO2 emissions (only energy and water!)"

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HAWAIIAN ELECTRIC CALLED ON CUSTOMERS FOR EMERGENCY ENERGY CONSERVATION AGAIN FRIDAY EVENING, the second night in a row, saying that its Hill 5 generator is back online but some others remain out of service.

    A statement from the utility said: "Last night, conservation efforts by households, businesses and government agencies helped ensure there was sufficient power to meet the evening peak demand, preventing the need for rolling outages. Hawaiian Electric asked its larger commercial customers, including government, hotels and retail, to voluntarily reduce electricity use. Hawaiian Electric thanks

businesses for their help and asks the public to continue to patronize stores and restaurants tonight — they'll still be open."

    Hawaiian Electric's combustion turbine units Kanoelehua CT-1 and Puna CT-3, which normally supply about 32 megawatts of power, are offline with mechanical issues. In addition, two units at the Keahole Power Plant are undergoing annual scheduled maintenance. These units usually supply about 36 megawatts of power. Wind resources are forecast to be lower than usual.
    According to Hawaiian Electric, its combustion turbine units Kanoelehua CT-1 and Puna CT-3, which normally supply about 32 megawatts of power, are offline with mechanical issues. In addition, two units at the Keahole Power Plant are undergoing annual scheduled maintenance. These units usually supply about 36 megawatts of power." Hawaiian Electric's Hill 5 unit unexpectedly tripped offline Thursday but was returned to service.
    The utility stated, "By reducing demand, Hawaiian Electric can ensure enough electricity is available and prevent the need to initiate rolling, 30-minute outages to prevent a loss of power to an even greater number of customers. If outages are necessary, Hawaiian Electric will notify customers in advance through social media. Please check @HIElectricLight on Twitter for updates."
    Hawaiian Electric noted that the forecast for wind to power windmills, including those in Ka'u, remains low.

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PĀHALA POST OFFICE HAS RESUMED ALL SERVICES. The front lobby was closed during the last week, following minor damage to the facility during last Friday's earthquakes. Servicing of post office boxes and handing packages out the backdoor continued throughout the week.
Sending out packages and buying stamped along with making appointments for passport photos have resumed.

County Parks & Recreation Director
Maurice Messina will hire partime caretakers
for parks. Photo from Hawai'i County

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ON-CALL, PART-TIME CARETAKERS FOR COUNTY PARKS will soon help steward some of the 300 facilities islandwide. The County Council unanimously passed a measure on Wednesday to enable the intermittent hiring of extra park workers when needed. A pilot program, presented by Parks & Recreation Director Maurice Messina, will begin in Kona, Hilo and Hamakua. Kaʻū parks are not yet part of the pilot program.

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HAWAI'I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK IS HIRING three permanent full-time positions FOR Recreation Fee Clerks. Go to USAJobs.gov for the details, the application is open to the first 125 applicants or until 10/24/2022 whichever comes first: https://www.usajobs.gov/job/682808800
USAJobs.gov is the official employment website of the federal government. Other jobs within the park and other National Park Service locations are also listed on this site.

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Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park is seeking three
full time Recreation Fee Clerks. NPS photo

THE DAILY MAUNA LOA SEISMIC UPDATE reported Friday morning shows 24 hours with 40 small-magnitude (below M3.0) earthquakes 2–3 miles (3–5 km) below Mokuāʻweoweo caldera and 4–5 miles (6–8 km) beneath the upper-elevation northwest flank of Mauna Loa. "Both of these regions have historically been seismically active during periods of unrest on Mauna Loa," said the statement from USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

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EXPORTING HAWAI'I PRODUCTS TO FOREIGN COUNTRIES is the subject of a webinar next 

Wednesday, Oct. 26 at 10 a.m., sponsored by the state Department of Business and Economic Development & Tourism. HiSTEP, the Hawai'i State Trade Expansion Program, fosters export development, supported by a grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration to help Hawaiʻi companies expand sales outside of the United States. It offers an Export Readiness Program with trainingand consulting to help begin or expand export market development plans. It involves Hawai'i Pavilions with support at major trade shows such as the Tokyo International Gift Show. It also provides Company Assistance with awards up to $5,000 for new-to-export companies and up to $15,000 for market expansion companies.
    This year, island-specific HiSTEP 2023 kick-off webinar sessions will be held. There is no cost, but pre-registration is required. Deadline to register is this Monday, Oct. 24. Register for the Hawai'i Island Webinar at: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_JLVxEvKWR_GigulmprdVOA.

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A HALLOWEEN EVENT FOR OCEAN VIEW IS SET FOR Wednesday, Oct. 26 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center at 92-8924 Leilani Circle. There will be Goody Bags for the first 200 keiki and entertainment by Mr. Kneel, as well as Hip Hop for Families. Costumes are optional. It is sponsored by Neighborhood Place of Kona.

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