Ka`u News Briefs Sept. 28, 2012

One of the new ideas for spaceports in Hawai`i would have passengers lifted into high altitude but suborbital flights between O`ahu and the Big Island.  Photo from Rocketplane Global

COMMERCIAL SPACE LAUNCH licensing is in the sights of the state Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism, which was recently awarded a $250,000 matching grant from the Federal Aviation Administration and at least another $250,000 from local sources. Space Transportation Infrastructure grants also went to Colorado and California.
      U.S. Transportation secretary Ray La Hood said, “These investments will help us continue to develop a safe and robust commercial space industry in the United States."
      FAA acting administrator Michael Huerta said, “Government and private sector partnerships are essential to carrying out our national space policies. Today’s grants help keep America competitive by investing in space transportation infrastructure development.”

      The Hawai`i grant will be used to conduct environmental and other feasibility analysis for potential FAA Commercial Launch Site Operator’s License. The FAA grant requires that a minimum of 10 percent of the total project cost come from private funding. According to an FAA statement, “the United States’ space program has three sectors – civil, military and commercial. The FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation is responsible for licensing, regulating and promoting the commercial space transportation industry. 

One plan on the state website shows weddings in space during the flight
between O`ahu and the Big Island.

      “Since the office was created in 1984, the FAA has issued licenses for more than 200 launches, licensed the operation of eight FAA-approved launch sites known as spaceports and has helped ensure that no loss of life or serious injury has been associated with these efforts."
      During past proposals for spaceports, Ka`u, with its uninhabited coastal lands, has been a top candidate. One plan, for which an Environmental Impact Statement was written. was for what are now former sugar plantation-owned lands makai of Pahala. The plan called for traffic along Hwy 11 to be halted during spacecraft liftoff.
      According to Wikipedia, in 1961, “Ka Lae was on the list of final sites to be considered by NASA to launch manned rockets to space. However, it was considered too remote. From 1964 to 1965, a space tracking station was operated there, and in 1979 as a missile launching site. The low latitude of the location also made it (and nearby areas that are as remote) attractive as a site for private rocket launches, but these plans were dropped in the face of high costs and local opposition.”
      The newest spaceport plan does not necessarily involve Ka`u. One plan posted on the State of Hawai`i website calls for two planes that would travel at high altitudes, but suborbital, between a spaceport near Keahole Airport and another in Honolulu. The package would include luxury lodging for customers at existing five-star luxury resort developments on O`ahu and the Kohala Coast. Anothre calls for suborbital weddings.
      The plan says $2 billion dollars could come in during the first five years of the space tourism industry for Hawai`i.

Archaeological and cultural surveys will be undertaken by the county in
its planning for Kawa to become a public park and preserve.
Photo by Julia Neal

ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL SURVEYS will be undertaken by the county in its planning for Kawa to become a public park and preserve. A story in this morning’s West Hawai`i Today says the 784 acres, recently acquired by the county with state, federal and county 2 percent funding, was the subject of Native Hawaiian families with ties to the area, meeting yesterday with representatives of the state Office of Historic Preservation. Families claim gravesites and house sites on the property, for which they want access and stewardship. The Nancy Cook Lauer story quotes Mayor Billy Kenoi saying, “We’re going to take care of Kawa Bay by working with the families, protecting the cultural and archaeological sites. We want to put our management plan in place and then execute a transition. It’s all about doing it right.” 

      In question is whether the county will allow Abel Simeona Lui, who says he has been living at Kawa for 20 years, to stay on the county property as a caretaker. Lui has gone to court numerous times claiming his family inherited the land, a claim that some other families connected with Kawa reject. The courts have authorized the county to evict Lui and other people living there, but the mayor says he wants to resolve the situation in a peaceful way.

Dr. Josh Green, center front, who championed funding for rural doctors,
celebrates donations to the cause yesterday in Honolulu.
Photo from Gov. Neil Abercrombie

THE NEW HAWAI`I HEALTH CORPS received an extra boost yesterday at a press conference where Gov. Neil Abercrombie announced government and private support. The initiative is a mission of Dr. Josh Green, the incumbent state senator, whose district has been changed to include Kona to Honu`apo. Green got his start in medicine in Hawai`i at Ka`u Hospital and lived in a house at Punalu`u Beach. The new Hawai`i Health Corps will help doctors pay off medical school loans in exchange for serving rural areas like Ka`u. HMSA and The Queens Health Systems donated $150,000 to the program yesterday to match federal funding.
      The 2012 Legislature passed Senate Bill 596, championed by Green, allowing the state to spend a maximum of $40,000 a year for educational expenses of physicians when they serve the most needy communities in the Hawaiian Islands.

THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IN DISTRICT 3 is looking for precinct officers in the 7th Precinct, where the polling place is Ka`u High School cafeteria. Registered Democrats who might be interested in being involved can contact District 3 chair Ed James at 966-6380 or edjames808@gmail.com.

A portion of Oct. 13 Roller Derby ticket sales go to Hawai`i Wildlife Fund.

HAWAI`I WILDLIFE FUND thanks the community for its support of the group’s conservation efforts on Hawai`i Island. Fundraising opportunities to help the group continue its efforts include donating HI-5s to HWF at Mr. K’s Recycling & Redemption Center in Hilo. Also, through this Sunday, Sept. 30, Foodland, Sack ‘n’ Save and Western Union locations will match any donations up to $249 when shoppers use Maika`i cards at check-out and select Hawai`i Wildlife Fund #77187 from their list of organizations. On Saturday, Oct. 13, a portion of ticket sales from Paradise Roller Girls roller derby bout will be donated to HWF. Big Island Babes Junior derby scrimmages at 5:45 p.m., and bout starts at 7:30 p.m. Presale tickets are $8 and $10 at the door. Be there and cheer on HWF’s very own “Smash Yo Face” Stace #111. For more information or to purchase tickets, contact her at sk8ofmind111@gmail.com. For more information about HWF’s efforts, visit wildhawaii.org. 

KA`U HIGH TROJANS almost won their first football game of the season through a forfeiture decision by the Big Island Interscholastic Federation. Konawaena forfeited its first three wins for having an ineligible player on the field, who did not live in the Konawaena High School territory. While the Sept. 8 game against Ka`u was the third game of the season, and Konawaena won 86 to 0, the league allowed a preseason game against a Maui team to be counted in the forfeitures, leaving the win against Ka`u in place.

ENTRIES FOR KA`U CHAMBER OF COMMERCE’S art show and Directory 2013 art contest are being accepted today until 5 p.m. and tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at CU Hawai`i credit union in Na`alehu. Entry fee is $5 for each artwork in categories of Graphics, Sculpture, Wood, Photography and Craft. The entry fee for Keiki is $1 in categories of Graphics and Photography.

NATIONAL PUBLIC LANDS DAY is tomorrow, and to celebrate, Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park is waiving entry fees. Friends of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park will station volunteers at the entrance to solicit donations to support projects in the park and offers restoration activities. For more information, contact the Friends at 985-7373, admin@fhvnp.org or see www.fhvnp.org. 

ALSO IN CELEBRATION of National Public Lands Day, Kilauea Military Camp in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park holds an open house, inviting all park visitors to experience how KMC serves America’s troops. All facilities and services will be available to the general public. Call 967-8371 for more information. 

OKTOBERFEST CELEBRATION at St Jude’s Episcopal Church on Paradise circle in Ocean View is a week from today, Friday, Oct. 5. Dinner includes sauerkraut and bratwurst, boiled potatoes, dill pickles, cookies and beverages. Doors open at 6 p.m., and dinner will be served at 6:30 p.m. A live polka band will add to the fun. There will also be a drawing for a hand-quilted wall hanging. Tickets for dinner are $13 each or 2 for $22. Tables may be reserved for larger parties. Half of the proceeds will be donated to Ocean View Food Basket. “This was a popular event last year, so get tickets early,” said publicity committee member Madalyn McWhite-Lamson. Call 939-7555 for tickets or to sign up to help at the event.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS NOW OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

ALSO SEE KAUCALENDAR.COM AND FACEBOOK.COM/KAUCALENDAR.

Ka`u News Briefs Sept. 27, 2012

TSUNAMI DEBRIS washing up in Ka`u, on the longest uninhabited coast in Hawai`i, may need more help for Hawai`i Wildlife Fund and others to clean it up. The timeline earlier predicted by research scientists for the landing of plastics and other flotsam from Japan’s March 9, 2011 earthquake and tsunami, has been shortened and trash is expected to keep on coming through next Spring.
Several large items – a concrete dock and a floating plastic blue seafood bin, both identified as from Japan - were recently found floating in Hawaiian waters. Such floating debris is a hazard to navigation, potentially destructive to reefs, and potentially carries invasive marine species.
     According to a story in Civil Beat this morning, state Department of Land and Natural Resources chair William Aila, said he plans to ask the 2013 state legislature for $2 million to help with the unknown size of an upcoming cleanup. Another $1 million was approved by congress last year, pushed through by Sen. Dan Inouye. According to Hawai`i News Now, the state has received $10,000 for debris cleanup and the state Department of Transportation has set aside $10 million to help remove any debris that blocks harbors and channels.
     Anyone seeing any items in the water or washed up on shore, suspected of being from Japan, can email and, if possible, send a photo to marinedebris@soesthawaii.edu and disasterdebris@noaa.gov. Also call the DLNR at 808-587-0400. See  marinedebris.noaa.gov/tsunamidebris.

A soccer ball found in tsunami debris from Japan
Photo from NOAA

PLASTICS ARE THE MAIN COMPONENTS of debris carried by currents from the tsunami. Metal and wood having already deteriorated, most of it falling to the bottom of the Pacific. According to scientists studying the great Pacific Garbage Patch and other gyres that collect wastes and circulate them in the major currents of the world’s oceans, plastics create a somewhat toxic soup.
     Surfrider Foundation states that “an estimated 100 million tons of plastic debris have accumulated in two areas of the Pacific Ocean that together are larger than the continental United States. There is so much plastic, that it outnumbers the zooplankton six to one.”
     States Surfrider, “Plastic, like diamonds, are forever. It doesn’t biodegrade and no naturally occurring organisms can break it down. Plastic photo-degrades, which means that sunlight breaks it down into smaller and smaller pieces. Those small pieces drift in the ocean and are mistaken for food by fish and birds. Seabirds are often found dead with innards full of plastic. Sadly, 1 million seabirds and 100,000 marine mammals die each year due to ingestion of or entanglement in plastics.”
     Surfrider has launched a Rise Above Plastics campaign, to discourage the use of single-use plastics and encourage everyone to reduce, reuse and recycle. Surfrider recommends: “Use reusable bottles for water and other drinks. Use cloth bags for groceries and other purchases. Recycle the plastic bags and bottles you already have.” See www.surfrider.org.

PLASTICS NOT ONLY ENDANGER WILDLIFE. According to a recent story in Honolulu Weekly, scientists report that for humans “most plastics are made with chemical additives like bisphenol-A (BPA) and phthalates, known endocrine-disruptors that can lead to obesity, infertility, cancer and other health problems. Micro-plastics also absorb the toxic chemicals from pesticides, flame-retardants and polluted runoff.”

Dr. Marcus Eriksen studies plastics in
the ocean. Photo from 5gyres.org

   Honolulu Weekly quotes Dr. Marcus Eriksen who studies plastic pollution in the oceans: “There’s a chemical body burden that all humans carry, especially women,” Eriksen said. “The Environmental Working Group did a study in which they looked at the umbilical cord blood of 10 newborn babies. On day one, the cord between the baby and the placenta was analyzed, and it showed that the blood found in all 10 babies had 287 synthetic chemicals.”
     “We are walking synthetic chemistry experiments,” Eriksen told Honolulu Weekly. “If you look at the breast milk of the Inuit [people], for example [who eat primary marine mammals],they have some of the highest pollutant loads in their breast milk.” 

     Eriksen recommends that government agency and consumers incentivize Extended Producer Responsibility so that manufacturers and food producers become responsible for the life cycle of their products and packaging, so containers can be recaptured and recycled. Eriksen argues that by promoting EPR, companies will design better, safer and less wasteful products, which could lead to less plastics in the ocean. He points to the styrofoam, other plastics and more debris washing up on shores from the tsunami that happened more than a year ago.  See www.5gyres.org.

HAWAI`I ELECTRIC LIGHT CO, In celebration of Energy Awareness month in October, invites the community to its HELCO Community Energy Fair 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday at the Prince Kuhio Plaza in Hilo.
     Through educational displays, interactive exhibits, and hands-on activities, attendees can learn about electricity generation, power distribution, renewable energy, electrical safety, emergency preparedness, and customer services. The fair also features demonstrations by school robotics programs, electric vehicles, and keiki IDs. Starting at 10 a.m., performances begin with Halau Na Lei Hiwahiwa O Ku`ualoha, Energy in Motion Dance Company, and Waiakea Intermediate School Ukulele Band.
     Attendees who visit each of the exhibits and submit acompleted “energy passport” will receive a free reusable bag. For more information, call 969-0118.

Mako sharks would be further protected with new agreements.

MIGRATORY AND OTHER SHARKS, many of them seen in Hawai`i, are expected to receive more attention, not to eradicate them but to preserve them, following an agreement reached this week by more than 50 countries. 

   Participants under the UN Convention on Migratory Species, adopted a new conservation plan, which aims to catalyze regional initiatives to reduce threats to migratory sharks.              

     Signatory states agreed to involve fishing industry representatives, NGOs, and scientists in implementing the conservation plan. The meeting was held in Germany. Sharks seen in Hawaiian waters to be covered in the conservation plan include basking, whale sharks and mako, along with the occasional great white. 

In addition to being caught intentionally for shark fin soup, the meat of the mako and other uses, many sharks are caught accidentally by fishing nets and hooks. 

A MAILE DAVID coffee hour will be held Sunday, Sept. 30 at 2 p.m. at 94-5819 Aouli Place in Disovery Harbour, hosted by Irv and Carol Massey. Area residents are invited to meet David, who is running for County Council to represent Ka`u. For more information, call the Masseys at 929-9001 or Bobby Gomes at 928-8227.

RESIDENTS INTERESTED IN JOINING the newly incorporated Ha`ao Springs & Mountain House Ag Water Co-op are encouraged to attend the meeting tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. at Wai`ohinu Park. The co-op is looking for members to help survey and GPS the proposed water line route, organize a membership outreach meeting at Na`alehu Community Center and begin research and exploration of water use rules. For more information, contact Alison Yahna at beeoracle@hotmail.com.

ARTISTS ARE INVITED TO ENTER Ka`u Chamber of Commerce’s art show and Directory 2013 art contest. Entries are accepted Friday from noon until 5 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at CU Hawai`i credit union in Na`alehu.
Categories are Graphic, Sculpture, Wood, Photography and Craft, and all pieces must have been completed in the last 12 months. The popular winner will become the cover of The Directory, the annual publication of the Ka`u Chamber of Commerce. The fee is $5 for each artwork. A Keiki Division is new this year for children in grades one through six, one entry per keiki. Keiki categories are Graphics and Photography, no larger than 8.5 by 11 inches, including frames, if any. The entry fee for Keiki is $1, and these entries are not eligible for the cover of The Directory 2013. Only the first 60 Keiki exhibits will be accepted. Voting takes place all next week at CU Hawai`i.

Ka`u News Briefs Sept. 26, 2012

Land would be cleared of invasive trees, shrubs and plants. Some would be replaced with biofuel crops
to feed `Aina Koa Pono's proposed diesel refinery.  Photo by Julia Neal

`AINA KOA PONO PARTNER CHRIS ELDRIDGE released an opinion piece today to the media headlined `Aina Koa Pono Outlines Benefits to Ka`u. Eldridge is a partner and on the management team of `Aina Koa Pono. He has 20 years of entrepreneurial and start-up experience, founding four companies including America’s Mattress and PortaBox Storage. Eldridge serves on the Board of Kapi`olani Medical Center for Women and Children and is a member of The Nature Conservancy of Hawai`i’s Corporate Council for the Environment, the press release notes.

      Edridge writes that the `Aina Koa Pono refinery, which is planned near Wood Valley Road above Pahala, “will fuel 18 percent of Hawai`i Island’s electricity needs and produce a transportation fuel."
       Eldridge says, “AKP’s biofuels project will bring hundreds of jobs to Hawai`i County, replace imported fossil fuel-based diesel at the Keahole power plant, and add eight million gallons of transportation biodiesel a year. Eldridge contends, “Importantly, it will not impede other renewable energy projects.”

      He states that, with `Aina Koa Pono on board, “Hawai`i’s reputation as a renewable energy incubator will be enhanced by the cutting-edge technology AKP has licensed. The microwave catalytic depolymerization (Micro Dee) takes biomass (in the case of the Ka`u facility, locally grown feedstock) and accelerates the natural process of converting it to oil to just over an hour.”

A Micro Dee unit in North Wilkesboro, NC is the prototype
for `Aina Koa Pono's equipment to be used at its proposed
refinery in Ka`u. Photo from biofuels-solutions.com

      Eldridge promises that “the technology is safe and is not new—it’s been used in herbal extractions and pharmaceuticals for years. Using higher temperatures and a catalyst, it produces a biofuel. The 900-ton-a-day operation will be modular—each microwave handling 33 tons. Once the first unit is tested and accepted, it will be set it up at Ka`u so it can run in place and give the community the opportunity to see its operation.”
      Eldridge writes that “the acreage AKP has leased for crop production will enhance the island’s agriculture industry. A first step will be to clear invasive species and use them as feedstock.”
      He makes a promise that “building `Aina Koa Pono’s project will employ 400 and increase badly needed construction jobs by 13 percent on Hawai‘i Island. These jobs have been cut in half to 3,000 since 2007, economist Leroy Laney, PhD reported in August for First Hawaiian Bank.
      “When the facility is operational, there will be 200 permanent jobs, positively impacting Hawai`i Island’s 8.8 percent unemployment rate, which in May was 2.5 points higher than the state’s average (6.3 percent).

      “AKP will generate nearly $200 million in general excise and payroll taxes over 22 years, compared to $2.2 million if the same fuel is imported,” Eldridge writes. He says the economy will be further helped: “Dollars paid for services and salaries will re-circulate— buying groceries and school supplies instead of being sent to foreign oil producers. Once operating, AKP will contribute $250,000 a year to Hawai`i Island in community benefits focused on education and the environment. An immediate contribution will help fund preservation of books at the Pahala library.
      “Other renewable energy projects won’t be affected by AKP, which will replace imported fossil fuel at Hawai`i Electric Light Company’s Keahole power plant. It is fact, not opinion, that liquid fuel will be needed at Keahole for many years to come," states Edlridge. 

      Eldridge reports that “estimates are that additional geothermal power would take seven to 10 years to develop, as HELCO gears up to issue a request for proposals, probably next year.
      “In the meantime, AKP will supply virtually 100 percent of Keahole’s needs with 16 million gallons of biodiesel a year. Should the utility no longer need it at Keahole, it can transport the fuel to another plant, including on O`ahu or use it for transportation.

Meyer Camp Road, between Pahala and Wood Valley, is where `Aina Koa
Pono plans to build their more than ten-acre biofuel refinery.
Photo by Julia Neal 

      “The private investors who will put up approximately $450 million for the project assume the risk—not the utility.
      “The eight million gallons of biofuel produced annually will be distributed by Mansfield Oil Company, with preference to Hawai`i. If sold here it would represent 16 percent of Hawai`i’s transportation diesel demand based on the 2011 data of the Federal Highway Administration,” Eldridge predicts, saying, “Mansfield is an industry leader in fuel handling and distribution and will handle all the fuel logistics from the Ka`u facility.”
      Eldridge defends the proposed rate hikes that HELCO and `Aina Koa Pono are proposing to the Public Utilities Commission. “Yes, there is a cost— electric bills will be higher for a while—a dollar or less for a typical monthly 500 to 600 KWH user. That would change as the price of fossil climbs beyond the biodiesel. We cannot say how long that will be; we can say that since 2009 oil has trended upward, from about $40 to more than $116 a barrel. With worldwide demand growing and supplies at risk, it is likely that trend will continue.”
      He defends HELCO and `Aina Koa Pono fixing the diesel price from the proposed refinery for 20 years: “AKP’s 20-year fixed-price contract with HELCO makes the cost of energy more stable and predictable. Sudden increases in oil prices will have less budgetary and economic impacts on business and government.”
      Eldridge invites the public to “investigate www.ainakoapono.com to learn more about `Aina Koa Pono. Contact us through the site if you have questions, which we will try our best to answer. We believe AKP is a win/win/win for Hawai`i — jobs, sustainability and community benefits.”
      The contract between HELCO and `Aina Koa Pono, along with other related documents and public testimony, is available online at puc.hawaii.gov/dockets. Docket number is 2012-0185.

AN INVITATION TO THE KA`U DISTRICT GYM and Shelter groundbreaking was issued by the State of Hawai`i Department of Education and the County of Hawai`i today. It says the Ka`u District Gym and Shelter will be a 43,000-square-foot structure with three basketball and volleyball courts, a kitchen, offices, locker rooms, storage space for disaster relief organizations and meeting spaces. “The facility will provide a safe haven for Ka`u residents in the case of a natural disaster or compromised air quality,” says a flyer for the event. The project is funded by the state of Hawai`i and will be cooperatively managed by the County Department of Parks and Recreation for both school and public use. For more information and to RSVP, call the Office of Mayor Billy Kenoi in Hilo at 961-8211 or email tigionson@hawaii.gov.us. 

HAZEL BECK, of Hawai`i Small Business Development Center, teaches how to write a business plan tomorrow from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at Na`alehu Community Center. Registration begins at 9 a.m.

RESIDENTS INTERESTED IN JOINING the newly incorporated Ha`ao Springs & Mountain House Ag Water Co-op are encouraged to attend the meeting tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. at Wai`ohinu Park. The co-op is looking for members to help survey and GPS the proposed water line route, organize a membership outreach meeting at Na`alehu Community Center and begin research and exploration of water use rules. For more information, contact Alison Yahna at beeoracle@hotmail.com.

ARTISTS ARE INVITED TO ENTER Ka`u Chamber of Commerce’s art show and Directory 2013 art contest. Entries are accepted Friday from noon until 5 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at CU Hawai`i credit union in Na`alehu. 

      Categories are Graphic, Sculpture, Wood, Photography and Craft, and all pieces must have been completed in the last 12 months. The fee is $5 for each artwork.
      A Keiki Division is for children in grades one through six, one entry per keiki. Keiki categories are Graphics and Photography, no larger than 8.5 by 11 inches, including frames, if any. The entry fee is $1, and these entries are not eligible for the cover of The Directory 2013. Only the first 60 Keiki exhibits will be accepted.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

ALSO SEE KAUCALENDAR.COM AND FACEBOOK.COM/KAUCALENDAR.