Ka`u News Briefs March 17, 2012

The Kohala Center shows growing and consuming locally produced food crops leads to better health.
Photos from The Kohala Center

GROWING MORE FOOD LOCALLY could decrease hunger, increase community food security and strengthen the island’s economy, according to a report from The Kohala Center, state Department of Agriculture and Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research Hawai`i. The Health Impact Assessment addresses the Hawai`i County Agriculture Development Plan, which underscores island food self-reliance in supporting community well-being. The county Ag Development Plan aims to guide government, local businesses and industry organizations to revitalize agriculture as a basis for economic development. 

      Recommendations in the health impact assessment include:
* Modifying state procurement practices to allow schools and other government institutions to purchase locally produced foods more easily;
* Promoting agricultural career pathways at the high school and college levels;
* Making the purchase of fresh local food more convenient and affordable in rural areas;
* Increasing local food processing capacity through public-private partnerships.

      Betsy Cole, a former businesswoman in Ka`u who now serves as a deputy director of The Kohala Center and co-authored the report, said, “We found that increasing local food production and providing some of that food to our school lunch programs would have positive economic impact and a number of more direct health benefits — for example, shaping children’s preferences for healthy food and making more fresh fruits and vegetables accessible to all island residents.” 

Na`alehu School has a garden and supports healthy eating
with its food service program. Photo by Julia Neal

      “As most people know by now, increased consumption of produce is linked to lower rates of obesity and associated chronic diseases,” Cole said.
      The report cites links employment from expanded agricultural production to better family health outcomes, while home production increases physical activity and improved mental health. The research was supported by a grant from the Health Impact Project, a collaboration of The Pew Charitable Trusts and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. See it at: www.kohalacenter.org/research.html.

MORE ALTERNATIVE ENERGY PROJECTS would be allowed on agricultural land,  but only “small scale systems” for agricultural use, rather than residential or industrial development, according to House Bill 2150. It passed the state Senate Agriculture Committee this week and is headed for the Senate Committee on Energy, Water, Land and Housing. Hydroelectric, photovoltaic and biogas are among the renewable alternative energies in the proposal. The language said it must be “solely for use in the agricultural activities of the fee or leasehold owners of the property.” The bill has the support of Department of Agriculture chief Russell Kokubun but only for “bona fide farmers,” he testified. 

Biofuel refineries like this one in Danville, IL would be allowed on land
classified Agriculture in Hawai`i. Older industrial plants from the defunct
sugar companies around the islands are on lands zones for industry.
Photo from Renewable Energy Group

      Kamehameha Schools presented testimony saying that allowing more production of alternative energy on ag land would reduce costs of running irrigation pumps. Kapu C. Smith testified that one pump costs Kamehameha Schools $20,000 a month in electric bills. He said the ability to provide photovoltaic systems to support farm operations “is an important tool to fight for economic feasibility.” He noted that a hydroponic farmer on Kamehameha Schools lands spends $10,000 a month to operate a diesel fuel pump. 

THE AG BILL also includes language allowing biofuel refineries on ag land where biofuel crops are grown “provided that biofuels processing facilities and appurtenances do not adversely impact agricultural land and other agricultural uses in the vicinity.” HB 2150 describes appurtenances as “operational infrastructure of the appropriate type and scale for economic commercial storage and distribution, and other similar handling of feedstock, fuels, and other products of biofuels processing facilities.” A biofuel processing facility is defined as producing “liquid or gaseous fuels from organic sources such as biomass crops, agricultural residues and oil crops, including palm, canola, soybean and waste cooking oils; grease food wastes; and animal residues and wastes that can be used to generate energy.”

Alapaki Nahale-a
Photo from DHHL

ALAPAKI NAHALE-A is resigning as chief of the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands on May 15, he announced yesterday. The 44-year-old resident of Pepeekeo said the decision was personal, as he has a family here on the Big Island. In a press release, Gov. Neil Abercrombie, who appointed him, said “Alapaki is a man who has and will do good things for Hawai`i, especially Native Hawaiians. While I am saddened by his resignation, I am very proud of the work that he has done. He has reminded me of the sacrifice that many state workers are making to better Hawai`i.” 

MAYOR BILLY KENOI and directors of county departments hold a talk story this Monday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Na`alehu Elementary School. The event is hosted by Ka`u Rural Health Community Association and Hawaiian Civic Club of Ka`u.

AN EVENING OF GREEN, HAWAIIAN STYLE, takes place today at 7 p.m., at Kilauea Military Camp’s Kilauea Theater in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Brittni Paiva, Keoki Kahumoku and Aloha Bluegrass perform. Tickets are $20 for VAC members, $22 for non-members. For more, call 967-8222. Park entrance fees apply.

Entries are still being accepted for FHVNP's
photo contest. Photo by Jack Jeffrey

IMAGES FROM THE EDGE, a photo contest sponsored by Friends of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, is accepting entries through Monday, April 2. The contest is open to anyone with an original photograph taken in the park within the last three years. Photos may be color or black and white and can cover any subject matter. Entries can be submitted through Monday, April 2. All images will be considered for inclusion in a slideshow on Saturday, April 28 at Kilauea Visitor Center, and all finalists’ photographs will be exhibited from June 9 to 17 at Volcano Art Center Gallery. 

      For full contest rules and to enter, visit www.fhvnp.org. The entry fee for up to three photos is $25, payable online by credit card.

WATCH FOR THE HURRICANE a week from today. The original three-act murder mystery is set for next Saturday at 4 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center. The performance benefits the Food Pantry. Attendees are asked to bring canned food equivalent to $10 or a check to Hawaiian Food Pantry for the same amount. For more information, call 929-7236 or email marge@hawaii.rr.com.

VISIT OUR SPONSORS AT WWW.PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND
WWW.KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM.

Ka`u News Briefs March 16, 2012

Volunteers cleaned two miles of the Ka`u Coast last Saturday. Photo from Hawai`i Wildlife Fund

DEVELOPMENT OF A GEOTHERMAL energy transmission system that could deliver electricity from the Big Island to other larger population centers through an undersea cable will face federal regulations. They could also be strapped with paying leases, much like offshore oil wells. According to a Civil Beat story by Sophie Cocke, “For the first time, the federal government will charge companies in Hawai`i for placing renewable energy projects in its waters, which extend from three miles to 200 miles offshore.” She quotes a Department of Interior report showing that the fed collected $156 billion in the past 50 years. Other alternative energy projects that may be on the Hawai`i horizon include offshore windmills, and they too would require federal leases. Civil Beat reports that a state and federal task force has started talks to understand how the leases could affect energy projects here. See more at civilbeat.org. 

Mark Kimura documented results of volunteers' efforts along Ka`u's Coast.

LATEST KA`U COAST CLEANUP results are in. Hawai`i Wildlife Fund reports that 43 volunteers cleaned four different coves from Pulehua, south of Ka`alu`alu Bay, to the `Onikinalu lava flow to the south, covering more than two miles of coastline last Saturday. “We estimate that 3,742 pounds of marine debris were removed, including 300 pounds of derelict fishing nets,” said coordinator Megan Lamson. Findings included 2,000 oyster spacers from international mariculture, tinsel, several plastic helmets and a metal plaque with Japanese writing. As usual, plastic was the biggest component of the rubbish at almost 95 percent, followed by rubber, cloth, metal and less than a half-percent each of wood and glass. 

      HWF also sponsors cleanups of anchialine ponds in Ka`u, with the next one set for Tuesday, March 27. Volunteers can sign up with Lamson at 769-7629 or meg.hwf@gmail.com.

COMMENTS ON THE KA`U DISTRICT Gym & Shelter Draft Environmental Assessment are due a week from today - next Friday, March 23. The draft lists alternatives, including renovating or replacing the old gym, which would leave the open, grassy field. Demolition or retrofitting would have cost a lot of money and reduced funds to be used for a bigger and better gym. Also, the land around the old gym would have precluded construction of the newer, bigger gym. The EA also pointed out that the old gym is on the Register of Historic Places. 

Other open spaces at Ka`u High were considered but deemed too small for
the shelter and gym, according to the draft EA. Photo by Julia Neal

      Alternative sites within Pahala school grounds and within the district were also considered. Open areas other than the grassy field would limit the size of a new building to a size comparable to the existing gym, according to the draft EA. While using another site at the school would have maintained view planes from houses in the town and left the grassy field open for other recreation, the goal of creating a bigger gym and a disaster shelter with a large capacity could not have been met, the EA says.
      Alternative locations considered within the district included Na`alehu and Ocean View. According to the EA, however, a facility is already proposed for Ocean View that would supplement the Pahala shelter gym to meet full shelter needs of the district’s existing and projected population. “Both facilities are needed,” the draft EA states. “The advantage of locating the project in Pahala over Na`alehu is primarily to have the facility available for elementary, middle, and high school.” Another advantage to placing the project in Pahala is that school buildings “already serve as the district shelter, so the project does not introduce any new traffic impacts to Pahala as a shelter,” the draft EA states.
      The Draft Environment Assessment is available at Pahala and Na`alehu Public Libraries and online at hawaii.gov/health/environmental/oeqc/index.html. Comments can be sent to Tammy Kapali, Planner, PBR Hawai`i & Associates, Inc., 1001 Bishop Street, Suite 650 Honolulu, HI 96813 or faxed to 808-523-1402. Comments can also be sent to County of Hawai`i Department of Public Works, Attn: David Yamamoto, Aupuni Center, 101 Pauahi Street, Suite 7, Hilo, HI 96720 or faxed to 808-961-8630.

MAYOR BILLY KENOI and directors of county departments meet and talk with Ka`u residents about projects and issues important to their communities this Monday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Na`alehu Elementary School. The visit is hosted by Ka`u Rural Health Community Association and Hawaiian Civic Club of Ka`u.

A GARAGE & BAKE SALE is offered in the Volcano Golf Course Subdivision tomorrow from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., with proceeds benefiting Halau Hula Kalehuaki`eki`ekia`iu.

David Richey and Aloha Bluegrass offer An Evening of
Green tomorrow at Kilauea Theater.

AN EVENING OF GREEN, HAWAIIAN STYLE, a music concert hosted by Volcano Art Center, is held tomorrow at 7 p.m., at Kilauea Military Camp’s Kilauea Theater in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Brittni Paiva, Keoki Kahumoku and Aloha Bluegrass perform. Tickets are $20 for VAC members, $22 for non-members. For more, call 967-8222. Park entrance fees apply.  

A WRITING WORKSHOP, Zen Pen, takes place at Volcano Art Center’s Niaulani Campus tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tom Peek leads participants in deepening the conversation with their souls by using writing as a means to explore the human spirit, foster compassion for others, understand suffering and ease anger and conflict. The workshop is $77 for VAC members and $85 for non-members. Call Julie at 679-8222.

A ST. PATRICK’S DAY DINNER SPECIAL is offered by Kilauea Military Camp’s Crater Rim Café in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. The dinner includes roast lamb, corned beef & cabbage, soup, salad, potatoes, green beans and dessert priced at $14 for adults and $7.50 for children 6 to 11 years old. Open to authorized patrons and sponsored guests. Park entrance fees apply.

`Alala, bred at Keauhou Bird Conservation Center,
are extinct in the wild. Photo by NPS/Jay Robinson

A TOUR OF THE KEAUHOU BIRD CONSERVATION CENTER, which is closed to the general public, is offered by the Friends of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park on Friday, April 6 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. By using intensive captive propagation and release techniques, the center strives to re-establish self-sustaining populations of critically endangered birds in the wild. Friends general manager Julie Mitchell said, “Since the tour is during the breeding season, we may even have the unique chance to see chicks being fed.” $20 for Friends members, $30 for non-members and students with valid ID are half-price. A percentage of the proceeds will be donated to the conservation center. To register, call 985-7373 or visit www.fhvnp.org. 

THE HURRICANE, an original three-act play about a murder that occurs during an approaching hurricane, is set for Saturday, March 24 at 4p.m. at Ocean View Community Center. Marge Elwell says the play is “an old-time whodunnit!” Attendees are asked to bring canned food equivalent to $10 or a check to Hawaiian Food Pantry for the same amount. During intermission, cookies and beverages will be served, and prizes for the best answers will be awarded. Doors open at 3:30 p.m. For more, call 929-7236 or email marge@hawaii.rr.com.

VISIT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM.

Ka'u News Briefs, March 15, 2012

Kamehame, protected by The Nature Conservancy, is one of the pristine, undeveloped beaches along the Ka'u Coast.  
Photo by Geneveve Fyvie

HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK could expand again along the Ka`u Coast if legislation introduced by Rep. Mazie Hirono passes the U.S. Congress and funding is found. The movement on the federal level started in 2005 when then congressman Ed Case wrote to the National Park Service asking for a survey of the Ka`u Coast to determine suitability for inclusion as a unit within the National Park System.
      This study was done and Hirono has taken up the cause for further evaluation. She recently reintroduced the Ka`u Coast Preservation Act for lands between Kapa`o Point and Kahuku Point.
      Hirono told congress the National Park Service reconnaissance showed the Ka`u Coast meets National Park Service’s “demanding criteria as a resource of National Significance.”
     She noted the report recommends Congress proceed with a full resource study of the area.
      “Although under significant development pressure the coastline of Ka`u is still largely unspoiled,” Hirono testified. “The study area contains significant natural, geological and archaeological features. The northern part of the study area is adjacent to Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park and contains a number of noteworthy geological features, including an ancient lava tube known as the Great Crack, which the National park Service has expressed interest in acquiring in the past.”

A monk seal rests along the Ka'u Coast at Honu'apo.  
Photo by Julia Neal

      Hirono noted the study area “includes both black and green sand beaches as well as a significant number of endangered and threatened species, most notably the endangered hawksbill turtle,” and that at least half of the Hawaiian population of the rare sea turtle nests within the study area. It is also home to threatened green sea turtles, endangered Hawaiian monk seals, endangered Hawaiian hawks, native bees, endangered and very rare Hawaiian orange-black damselflies (the largest population in the state), and native endemic birds. Humpback whales and spinner dolphins also frequent the area, Hirono told Congress. “The Ka`u Coast boasts some of the best remaining examples of native coastal vegetation in Hawai`i,” the congresswoman testified. She pointed to archaeological resources related to ancient Hawaiian settlements along the Ka`u Coast as “very impressive. These include dwelling complexes, heiau (religious shrines), walls, fishing and canoe houses or sheds, burial sites, petroglyphs, water and salt collection sites, caves and trails. The Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail runs through the study area,” Hirono noted.
      She also said Ka`u’s “spectacular viewscapes, are an important part of Hawai`i's and our nation's natural and cultural heritage. I believe a full feasibility study, which was recommended in the reconnaissance survey, will confirm that the area meets the National Park Service's high standards as an area of national significance,” Hirono concluded.

Signs similar to these that remain at Kawa were
removed from the mauka side of Hwy 11 yesterday.  
Photo by Geneveve Fyvie

BANNERS AND SIGNS ALONG HIGHWAY 11 AT KAWA proclaiming Hawaiian sovereignty and illegal takeover of lands were removed yesterday by the rancher leasing the adjacent land. Noni Soares, who leases the land for cattle along with her husband Kyle, said that under the watchful eye of a police officer, they removed the signs and took them to the makai side of the highway for retrieval by people who supported the signage. Soares said that fences needed to be repaired so that the pasture could be used again. She said that with the signs on the fences the ranchers had been unable to maintain them for several years. She said her husband also used equipment on the makai side of the highway to locate a waterline that goes under the highway. She said they are coordinating with the state Department of Transportation for the preservation of the waterline when the state builds its highway project that will raise Hwy 11 above sea level at Kawa Flats to lift it up out of the flood zone. Soares said they were filmed as they were working on the waterline and fence by a group of people who objected to their activities, including taking down the signs. Supporters of Kawa sovereignty planted aloe and taro where the rancher cleared vegetation to look for the water line.

Kawa sovereignty supporters planted aloe and taro after
the rancher cleared away vegetation to look for waterlines.  
Photo by Geneveve Fyvie

      The county recently completed the purchase of Kawa to preserve it for wildlife, wetlands, surfing, fishing, and other public use, a plan that was opposed by Abel Simeona Lui who has lived on the property for some two decades. West Hawai`i Today quoted Deputy Managing Director Wally Lau as saying on Monday that he is in charge of putting together a stewardship plan for Kawa and other open space land the county purchases. The newspaper reported Lau saying that, “Any stewardship program, for any county property, would start with lineal and cultural descendants of the region.” According to the report, “That means Lui could end up being a steward for Kawa,” even after court decisions that would allow eviction. Lau said, “If he wants to be a player or a participant, we can’t exclude anybody,” according to West Hawai`i Today.

Kaua`i Coffee Company's estate. Photo from kauaicoffee.com

A PRIVATELY OWNED COFFEE COMPANY could be funded to build a new factory with state revenue bonds to make Hawaiian coffee into instant, freeze dried, syrups and other value added products. Senate Bill 2352 would “authorize $10 million in special purpose revenue bonds to assist Kaua`i Coffee Company, Inc. in the planning, construction and operation of a coffee processing facility for the production of Hawai`i-based coffee products.” The standing committee report says that “in order to develop additional markets for Hawai`i-grown coffee, the coffee industry must be able to offer new and innovative products. Therefore, creating a new coffee processing facility would allow the coffee industry to create products that the global market is demanding. The coffee processing facility will also benefit all Hawai`i coffee producers by allowing them to process their product in Hawai`i,” the legislation states. The legislation names liquid concentrated coffee and freeze dried coffee as examples. “Prospective buyers for these products include the United States military, overseas markets, and niche markets that demand portable and durable food products,” the legislation says.

Photo from mjbcoffee.com

      In support yesterday, state Department of Agriculture Chair Russell Kokubun noted that 54.4 million pounds of coffee have been produced in the state since 2003, with about 55 percent in Hawai`i County and the rest of the state producing 45 percent. “All counties have need for a processing facility for coffee as well as other agricultural commodities to add value to their production,” Kokubun contended.
      Dr. Bryce Decker, a member of the Kona Coffee Farmers Association, testified against the bill. “Department of Agriculture needs to allocate resources to combat the coffee berry borer, which threatens the entire Hawaiian coffee industry. There are some 600 hundred coffee farmers affected. Bills that favor a single large producer, while neglecting 99 percent of them in real trouble with the borer, strike me as very unwise policy. We can do better,” he wrote.
      Coffee farmers Page Trygstad and Yoko Harada also opposed the measure. “This is inappropriate construction of a facility for a foreign owned company.” In the meantime coffee farmers suffer “from inadequate or no assistance from the state in its battle against the coffee berry borer,” they wrote.

Photo from hillsbros.com

      Coffee farmer Bruce Corker also opposed the measure. He wrote, the “committee is giving a hearing to a bill to provide special financial assistance to a ‘Big Ag’ corporation-while providing no apparent support for coffee farmers facing economic devastation…Why does the HDOA support allocation of economic resources to Kaua`i Coffee Co. when it is unable to hire and place an entomologist in Hawai`i County?” he asked.
      Coffee farmer Sandra Scarr wrote that in January 2019, Alexander & Baldwin “sold its coffee operations to global coffee giant Massimo Zanette. MZ is the world’s largest privately owned coffee group, comprised of 49 companies operating in over 35 countries. In addition to Kaua`i Coffee, their brands include Hills Bros, MJB, Chock-Full-Of-Nuts, Chase & Sanborn and others. Why does MZ need Hawai`i state-guaranteed bonds? Is this just cheap money or were the bonds part of an A&B promissory note on the sale?” asks the coffee farmer.
      The bill is scheduled for decision-making in the House Agriculture committee tomorrow. Anyone can testify by going to www.capitol.hawaii.gov.

Photo from Blue Planet Foundation

REPLACING OLD LIGHT BULBS with new energy efficient bulbs is once again a fundraiser possibility for Ka`u community groups. Blue Planet Foundation hopes residents across Hawai`i will replace 25,000 incandescent light bulbs with CFLs. Schools community groups, social clubs, churches and athletic teams are welcome to apply for up to a thousand free CFLs at a time. The groups will receive 50 cents for each old bulb turned in that has been replaced by a CFL. Replacing 25,000 light bulbs is calculated to save $4.8 million during the life of the light bulbs and reduce Hawai`i’s dependency on importing fossil fuel. Interested organizations can call 954-6161 to sign up and attend an orientation. Deadline is March 30.

MAYOR BILLY KENOI and directors of county departments meet and talk with Ka`u residents about projects and issues important to their communities this Monday, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., at Na`alehu Elementary School. The visit is hosted by Ka`u Rural Health Community Association and Hawaiian Civic Club of Ka`u.

Keoki Kahumoku performs at
Kilauea Theater Saturday.

EVENTS PLANNED FOR ST. PATRICK’S DAY, in Volcano, include a workshop, concert and dinner. A zen inspired writing workshop, Zen Pen, taught by Tom Peek is hosted at Volcano Art Center's Niaulani Campus from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. $77 for VAC members, $85 for non-members. Call Julie, 967-8222. VAC offers An Evening of Green, Hawaiian Style bluegrass concert that evening at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Military Camps, Kilauea Theater in Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. A St. Patrick’s Day Dinner Special is open to authorized patrons and sponsored guests at Kilauea Military Camp’s Crater Rim Café, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.