Ka`u News Briefs Nov. 19, 2012

Beach at the end of Road to the Sea and 3,128 acres will be preserved with Legacy Land and Two-Percent funds.

KA`U AGRICULTURAL WATER COOPERATIVE DISTRICT is making progress toward using old plantation water systems for new agriculture across an area from Kapapala Ranch, through Wood Valley, above Pahala, the lands to Na`alehu and on to Wai`ohinu.
      During last week’s monthly water meeting, user groups from the various water source communities gave updates. Agriculturalists around Ha`ao Springs have approved bylaws and filed with the state. They are also working to clear and develop the best route for a pipeline and awaiting response from the state Department of Land and Natural Resources on access to state land where water sources are located.

Work is progressing to restore Ka`u's plantation water systems for ag use.
Photo from state Department of Agriculture

      The Moa`ula group has bulldozed a new route to the main cane haul road with pipeline installation to follow.
      The Mountain House hui reported that an overflow supplying the system is down to 12 gpm. The line will be checked for leaks or other problems.
       The Hilea group reported that it is organizing using the template of the Onomea Water Users Association.
      The Water Cooperative District is awaiting surveying through the state Department of Agriculture for the project to restore old sugar plantation tunnels and distribution systems, which has been funded by the state Legislature and is being overseen by the state Department of Agriculture.
       “The regional entities stand ready to assist survey crews as needed,” reports Jeffrey McCall, a flower grower and secretary of the organization.
      The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Dec 13 at 4 p.m. in the Royal Hawaiian Orchards Macadamia Field Office at the corner of Maile and Pikake Streets in Pahala. All meetings are open to the public.

KA`U RESIDENTS ARE INVITED TO OCEAN VIEW COMMUNITY CENTER to participate in committee meetings tomorrow at 9 a.m. and the County Council meeting on Wednesday at 9 a.m. This is the first time the meetings will be broadcast through an interactive system in Ka`u. The address is 92-8924 Leilani Circle.
      At Wednesday’s County Council meeting, citizens can testify on agenda items, which include the following:

Hawai`i County is purchasing a 3,128-acre parcel along the Ka`u Coast.

RES. 314-12 AUTHORIZES THE MAYOR to enter into an agreement with the state of Hawai`i, Board of Land and Natural Resources, Legacy Land Conservation Commission, and to accept funds for the acquisition of Kahuku Coastal Property. On Sept. 16, 2011, the County applied for funding by grant in the amount of $621,245 from the state, BLNR and LLCC for acquisition of Kahuku Coastal Property, Tax Map Key parcel (3)9-2-01:75, comprised of 3,127.95 acres. The request was approved by LLCC on Dec. 14, 2011 and by BLNR on May 11, 2012.

BILL 323 ADDS $10,640,000 TO THE COUNTY BUDGET for Ka`u Water Source and Storage Expansion Project. Funds would be provided from general obligation bonds, capital projects funds and/or other sources such as grants. Funds would be used for water infrastructure improvements, which will add a new well source, expand water storage and replace buried water lines where appropriate.

BILL 324 ADDS $9,900,000 TO THE COUNTY BUDGET FOR South Point Road Water Infrastructure Expansion Project. Funds would be provided from general obligation bonds, capital projects funds and/or other sources such as grants. Funds would be used for water infrastructure improvements to replace and realign an existing water line above Hwy 11, add a new well source, expand water storage and bring a new six-inch, buried, ductile pipe water line and fire hydrants to the area below Hwy 11.
      Other agenda items and information about how to submit testimony can be viewed at http://www.hawaiicounty.gov/lb-council-meeting.

Donna Durgin demonstrates the mobile solar
electric unit she built for Na`alehu School.

NA`ALEHU ELEMENTARY TEACHERS can now check out a new mobile solar electric unit for science projects and support science curriculum in their classrooms. Donna Durgin, owner of Solarworks! in Ocean View, built the unit and presented it to Na`alehu Elementary students and staff in the school garden. The unit consists of an 85-watt solar panel with a 100-amp storage battery and inverter all attached to a handcart that is easy to move from classroom to classroom.
      The solar panel, which contains 36 cells and has a 25-year warranty, is angled so it can absorb sunlight while sitting near classroom windows. The battery, which is housed in a plastic, vented container at the bottom of the unit, consists mainly of a jelly material and is 97-percent recyclable.
      “We are working on making our science studies more hands-on,” said school principal Darlene Javar. “We have a beautiful garden and days of sunshine. Many of our students use solar energy in ‘real life.’ The solar electric unit is a wonderful opportunity to bridge standards-based science and instruction with relevant application to our students. The solar electric unit will be used for garden projects and also for a range of applications across the school. Each application is an opportunity to connect learning.”

IT’S TIME TO GATHER IN GIFTS for Ocean View Community Association’s annual keiki Christmas party. With Star Trees in place, residents can pick a star, then buy a gift for a child and return the unwrapped gift, with the star, to the store or to Ocean View Community Center. “We need your generous donations of gifts for the keiki, so be a star and pick a star or two or three!” said coordinator Sandy Honnold.
      Star trees are set up at Aloha Dreams Computers, Malama Market, Ocean View Community Center, Kahuku Country Market, Ocean View Ace Hardware, Ocean View Pizzaria, South Hawai`i Realty, Solarworks!, Ocean View Auto Parts, Ocean View Market, St. Jude’s Episcopal Church, Spin Zone Wash, Coffee Grinds Café and South Point U-Cart.

Frosty the Snowman greets keiki during Pahala Christmas Parade last year.
This year's parade is on Sunday, Dec. 9. Photo by Julia Neal

PAHALA CHRISTMAS PARADE is organizing for Sunday, Dec. 9 at 1 p.m., winding its way around Pahala town from the old armory to the hospital and back to Holy Rosary Catholic Church for refreshments. Organized for some 35 years by Eddie Andrade, the parade features, floats, walking groups, tractors and classic cars, choirs, Filipino community groups, public officials, churches, schools, members of Ka`u Coffee Growers Cooperative, Santa giving out candy and much more. Everyone is welcome. For more information, call Andrade at 928-0808.

THE ANNUAL RUBBERBAND TURKEY SHOOT is Wednesday from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Pahala Community Center. Call Nona at 928-3102 for more information.

NA LEO MANU, the Heavenly Voices program, presents Kalapana `Awa Band Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Sam Keli`iho`omalu, Ipo Quihano and Ikaika Marzo, from Kalapana, have been playing together for more than ten years. The event is free, and park entrance fees apply. 

OCEAN VIEW COMMUNITY CENTER hosts its annual Thanksgiving dinner Thursday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Call 939-7033 for more information.

THANKSGIVING DAY BUFFET is available at Kilauea Military Camp’s Crater Rim Café in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park Thursday from 2:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Menu includes roast turkey with stuffing, pineapple honey-glazed ham, candied sweet potatoes, corn chowder, bacon green beans, jellied cranberry, mashed potatoes, rice, salad bar, pumpkin squares, apple crisp, ice cream and a beverage. Price for adults is $18.95 and $9.50 for children ages 6 to 11. Open to authorized patrons and sponsored guests. Park entrance fees apply. 967-8371

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

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

Ka`u News Briefs Nov. 18, 2012

Ka`u residents are invited to enter a contest to name three newborn dolphins at Dolphin Quest Hawai`i.
 Here, Kona swims with her male calf. Photo from Dolphin Quest

STATE SEN. JOSH GREEN said this morning: “I absolutely support any strengthening of our ethics rules so that people have complete trust in what elected officials do. I always have stated, as an ethical person, as a doctor and a legislator, that my first instinct is always to fight to make sure that people are treated justly.”

Image from state Ethics Commission

Senator and physician
Josh Green 

      Green was responding to a story in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser that reported Hawai`i State Ethics Commission executive director Les Kondo saying no ethics rules were violated when Green asked the City & County of Honolulu for expediency in reaching a settlement over a billing dispute. The billing involved a company that facilitates physicians filling prescriptions for their patients in doctors’ offices. The city contended that the drugs were too expensive, which delayed the bills from being paid. The company involved is one of the contributors to Green’s campaign, donating $4,000 toward his recent re-election.
     Green told The Ka`u Calendar that he was urging that such billing issues be put to rest in a timely fashion so that physicians and their staffs can be paid and stay in business.
He said that many of these cases involve worker injuries, and that delays and failures to pay physicians have created a climate in which many doctors decline to treat worker compensation patients.

Les Kondo, Director
of Ethics Commission

      Under previous ethics rules, campaign contributions to Green by the company with the dispute may have been investigated, said the Ethics Commission executive director. However, legislation passed last year exempts lawmakers from a section of the ethics code that prohibits “state employees from using their positions to gain unfair advantages for themselves or others,” the Star-Advertiser reported.

Rep. Gil Keith-Agaran

       Rep. Gil Keith-Agaran, who sits on the House-Senate conference committee that worked on the ethics legislation, told the Star-Advertiser that the intent of Act 208 was to make it more reasonable for members of the general public to serve on state task forces. The intent was never to relieve lawmakers from a section of the ethics code, he said.
      House Speaker Calvin say told the Star-Advertiser that he would support restoring wording in Act 208 that would prohibit lawmakers from using their positions to benefit personally or benefit others with whom they are involved.
      Green said this morning that he will also support such a clarification and re-strengthening of the ethics rules for legislators.
      Green, who started his career as a physician at Ka`u Hospital, will represent Ka`u from Honu`apo through Na`alehu, South Point, Ocean View and up the coast through Kona when the 2013 Hawai`i State Legislature convenes. He is chair of the Senate’s Committee on Health.
      Green will be on Insights, the PBS Hawai`i program hosted by Dan Boylan, on Thursday, Nov. 29 at 8 p.m. in a roundtable discussion on the state of health care in Hawai`i.

PLANNERS FOR DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE COAST may want to take into consideration that future coastal flooding may not come only from climate change and rising sea levels. Inundation may also come from groundwater that usually flows into the ocean through underground lava tubes and springs. That’s according to research by University of Hawai`i published in the Nov. 11 edition of Nature Climate Change, a scientific online journal. Authors Kolja Rotzoll and Charles H. Fletcher explain: “Besides marine inundation, it is largely unrecognized that low-lying coastal areas may also be vulnerable to groundwater inundation, which is localized coastal-plain flooding due to a rise of the groundwater table with sea level.”

Freshwater and saltwater will inundate the coast as climate changes,
according to UH researchers. Image from UH

      When the sea level rises, ocean water pushes against groundwater and can block it from flowing out to sea. New wetlands could be created as soils become more saturated and underground water systems break out onto the surface of coastal lands. Also complicating the natural flow of water will be the rise in the ocean water lifting the lens of fresh water within the interior of the island, causing new water flow patterns down the sides of the volcanoes.
      The scientists state that rising sea levels will increase groundwater inundation so that flooding could cover “more than twice the area of marine inundation alone. This has consequences for decision-makers, resource managers and urban planners, and may be applicable to many low-lying coastal areas, especially where groundwater withdrawal is not substantial.”
      The research is being conducted at UH School of Ocean & Earth Science & Technology, where Fletcher is an associate dean, and by UH Water Resources Research Center, where Rotzoll is a postdoctoral research fellow.
      See http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nclimate1725.html.

WITH THE SCHEDULED RESUMPTION OF COLLECTIVE BARGAINING between the state and Hawai`i State Teachers Association, Gov. Neil Abercrombie said he looks forward to a positive resolution. While the state proposed meetings in November, HSTA proposed to meet in December. “The state team committed to meeting on the first date proposed by HSTA and is willing to meet on all available dates in order to advance negotiations,” Abercrombie said.

      “As always, our priorities are Hawai`i’s students and teachers. Together with the superintendent and Board of Education, I share the goal of achieving an agreement that reflects the importance of teachers’ contributions to student achievement.”
      A response from HSTA is on its website at hsta.org: “Of course he is excited. The state is taking more steps backward by offering us a regressive proposal for 2013 – 2015.”
      On Friday, HSTA president Wil Okabe told Honolulu Star-Advertiser reporter Sarah Zoellik, “It is a regressive package. It has limited resources, in a sense, and it doesn’t put students’ learning first, and also student achievement. The last contract that the teachers were able to ratify in May addressed all of those issues.”

WHILE ENROLLMENT AT SCHOOLS IN HAWAI`I increased by 1.1 percent this year, Ka`u has 13 fewer students. Five hundred twenty-seven students are enrolled at Ka`u High and Pahala Elementary, 388 at Na`alehu Elementary and 162 at Volcano School of the Arts & Sciences. Enrollment in Ka`u schools this year makes up 4.65 percent of the Big Island’s total of 23,180 students.
      Statewide, enrollment is 183,251 students, compared to 181,213 last year. Hawai`i Department of Education attributed the increase to the large number of births in 2007, as well as the overall state of the economy.

Dolphins with their calves. Photo from Dolphin Quest

KA`U RESIDENTS ARE INVITED TO ENTER a contest to name three baby dolphins born at Hilton Waikoloa Village’s Dolphin Quest Hawai`i. Suggestions can be submitted in person at Dolphin Quest Hawai`i or online and should be a Hawaiian word that may represent a quality, a person, place or thing related to Hawai`i or that reflects the baby dolphin’s personality. 

      The latest updates and photos of the moms and calves can be found at facebook.com/DolphinQuest.

CHRISTMAS IN THE COUNTRY continues today from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Volcano Art Center Gallery in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. The event includes art demonstrations, a selection of handcrafted decorations and gifts offered only during the holiday season and the 13th annual invitational wreath exhibit where gallery artists, working in a wide variety of media, materials and techniques, present their concepts of “wreath,” from the whimsical to the traditional. Dietrich Varez signs books he has written and illustrated, including Pele and Hi`iaka, as well as his 250-plus Hawaiiana prints, from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Park entrance fees apply. For more, visit volcanoartcenter.org or call 967-7565.

THANKSGIVING CELEBRATIONS begin Wednesday, when all ages are invited to the annual Rubber Band Turkey Shoot at 3:30 p.m. at Pahala Community Center.

KALAPANA `AWA BAND performs Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Group members are all `ohana who originated from Kalapana and have been playing together for more than ten years. The event is free, and park entrance fees apply.

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

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

Ka`u News Briefs Nov. 17, 2012

Beginning  Tuesday, citizens can testify from Ka`u during County Council and committee meetings. Sessions will be broadcast live to Ocean View Community Center  through an interactive system.
Photo from ovca.alohabroadband.com

KA`U RESIDENTS CAN NOW PARTICIPATE in County Council and committee meetings without traveling to Hilo, Kona or Waimea. A new County of Hawai`i remote testimony site opens next week at Ocean View Community Center, 92-8924 Leilani Circle.
      Councilmember Brittany Smart said, “It is extremely import for the people to participate in local government. The Ka`u region is underserved by County of Hawai`i services, and this is one small step in the right direction.”
      Council chair Dominic Yagong said, “Smart worked extremely hard to provide her district the opportunity to conveniently participate in government. The Council is pleased to support her vision and leadership."
      All are encouraged to attend these meetings and have their voices heard. The meetings begin at 9 a.m. Committee meeting agendas for Tuesday, Nov. 20 are available at http://www.hawaiicounty.gov/lb-council-committee/. The Council agenda for Wednesday, Nov. 21, as well as information on how to submit testimony, can be viewed at http://www.hawaiicounty.gov/lb-council-meeting/. For more information, call Jen Knippling at 961-8536 or edistrict6@co.hawaii.hi.us.

A HEALTH INSURANCE EXCHANGE for Hawai`i is expected to be in motion by Jan. 1 and available to the public by Jan. 1, 2014. Hawa`i was the first of 16 states and Washington, D.C. to announce its plans to proceed to create a health insurance exchange, under what has come to be known as Obamacare.

      The statewide Hawai`i Health Connector submitted a “blueprint” application to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services two weeks ahead of yesterday’s deadline. Gov. Neil Abercrombie announced that “Hawai`i was the first state to declare intent to have a state-based health insurance exchange, and now we are continuing to be a leader by submitting our blueprint ahead of schedule. We are working proactively as a team to ensure that all Hawai`i residents will have access to high-quality health care and insurance coverage in a seamless, efficient and fair system.”

      Hawai`i Health Connector executive director Coral Andrews said, “This marks another significant milestone in the establishment of the health insurance exchange in Hawai`i. Across the nation, states are racing to meet this deadline. We are all working under very strict timelines. For Hawai`i to have successfully completed this blueprint ahead of schedule reflects a high degree of collaboration at all levels.” Andrews, a retired Navy captain, said the exchange will provide the opportunity to sign up for health care online, somewhat like using Tavelocity, a website where travel industry providers are aggregated for easy selection.

Coral Andrews

      As part of the regulations implementing the federal Affordable Care Act, the federal Health & Human Services department is required to complete approval or conditional approval of state-based exchanges no later than January for operation in 2014. 

      A story by Associated Press writer Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar explains that, by Jan. 1, 2014, “Individuals, families and small businesses will be able to buy private coverage through an exchange in their state, with most consumers getting government assistance to pay premiums. The exchanges will also help steer low-income, uninsured people into expanded Medicaid programs in many states.”
      The plan is to make sure everyone has health insurance and will pay for as much of it as they can, according to their income. Currently, many of the uninsured, with no preventive care, use expensive emergency rooms for medical care or wind up in hospitals with advanced illnesses that are expensive to treat and difficult to pay for without insurance.
      See more at HawaiiHealthConnector.com.

Dr. Nisha Parikh

SMOKE-FREE LAWS in Hawai`i are significantly reducing stroke and heart attack deaths, according to Dr. Nisha Parikh, a cardiologist at Queen’s Medical Center and assistant professor at University of Hawai`i Medical School. Parikh studies cardiovascular epidemiology and reminds readers that “heart disease and stroke are the number one and number three causes of death among men and women in both the United States and Hawai`i” and that smoking and second-hand smoke are major causes. Writing in Civil Beat, she notes that “Hawai`i celebrates our sixth year of comprehensive smoke-free legislation. Hawai`i was a leader in enacting smoke-free legislation in the United States, in being only the fourteenth state to go smoke-free through a comprehensive law that protects workers and patrons throughout our state from exposure to second-hand smoke.”

      The cardiologist attributes a 30 percent decrease in cardiovascular disease mortality rates in Hawai`i in part “due to our early enactment of smoke-free legislation.” Nationwide, a recent study showed a rapid 15 percent decrease in heart attack hospitalizations and 16 percent decrease in stroke hospitalizations following smoke-free legislation. Smoke-free laws were also quickly followed by a 24 percent decrease in hospitalizations for respiratory diseases, including asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease,” she writes. See more at www.civilbeat.com.

SEN. DANIEL INOUYE’S fall and visit to the doctor this past week could have happened to anyone, according to his staff members who are reporting that he is well and up for the job. The fall happened Thursday morning. Inouye missed a vote in the Senate Wednesday night, which brought up concern for his health, but was reportedly attending a high-level meeting at the White House.

Mazie Hirono is front and center as the new senator to represent rural
Hawai`i at the Senate Women Power Workshop this week in Washington,
D.C. Hirono will be sworn in as a U.S. senator on Jan. 2.
Photo from Sen. Barbara Mikulski

U.S. SENATOR-ELECT MAZIE HIRONO, poised to serve all of rural Hawai`i, joined Dean of the Senate women Barbara Mikulski this week for the bipartisan Senate Women Power Workshop for the newly elected women senators. The workshop, said Mikulski, is a forum for Senate women to “discuss everything from how to set up their offices to getting on the power committees that make them effective advocates for their states, using the Senate rules to achieve their objectives and building coalitions to get things done in the Senate.” 

THE JOB OF HAWAI`I COUNTY CLERK may be taken by Stewart Maeda, of the state Department of Human Services, according to KHON News reports that quote incoming County Council chair J Yoshimoto. Maeda would replace Ka`u native Jamae Kawauchi, if the County Council confirms his appointment after its Dec. 3 swearing in ceremony.
      Kawauchi faced tough times as clerk when she fired several employees and shut down the voter registration office for an audit before the primary election. After some polling places opened late on primary election day, she was accused of running the elections division inefficiently. 

KA`U SCHOOL OF THE ARTS hosts its Fall Fling today at Punalu`u Bake Shop until 4 p.m. with music, hula, creative corner, talent contest and arts and crafts sale. 

`OHANA CELEBRATION DAY takes place today at Pahala Plantation House, with exhibits from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and a concert and lu`au at noon. Kama`aina rate is $50, and keiki are free. Call Kumu `Ola Leina`ala Brown at 961-3118 for more information.

CHRISTMAS IN THE COUNTRY begins today and continues tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Volcano Art Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Special holiday celebrations include art demonstrations and print and book signings by gallery artists, plus a selection of handcrafted decorations and gifts offered only during the holiday season. Dietrich Varez signs books he has written and illustrated, including Pele and Hi`iaka, as well as his 250-plus Hawaiiana prints, tomorrow from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. The event is also held Friday, Nov. 23 through Sunday, Nov. 25 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Park entrance fees apply. For more, visit volcanoartcenter.org or call 967-7565. 

ALSO OPENING AT VOLCANO ART CENTER GALLERY today is the 13th annual invitational wreath exhibit. Gallery artists, working in a wide variety of media, materials and techniques, present their concepts of “wreath,” from the whimsical to the traditional through Sunday, Jan. 6 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Park entrance fees apply. For more, visit volcanoartcenter.org or call 967-7565.

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

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