Ka`u News Briefs Dec. 28, 2010

Applications are being taken fro the state Senate seat of Russell Kokubun (l),
who resigns to head the Department of Agriculture. Sen. Dwight Takamine
resigned to head the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations.

THE SEARCH IS ON for a new senator to represent Ka`u, Volcano, Puna and South Hilo. Steven Pavao, Hawai`i County chair of the Democratic Party, announced yesterday that all members of the Democratic Party who have been members and residents of Senate District 2 for at least six months can apply to be nominated for the state Senate seat being vacated by Senator Russell Kokubun. 

     Precinct officers from Ocean View, Na`alehu, Pahala, Volcano, Mountain View, Kurtistown and into Puna and Hilo will review resumes and interview candidates. They will vote on the candidates, and three names will be presented to Governor Neil Abercrombie, who will make the final selection. Resumes must be turned into Pavao no later than midnight on Monday, January 3, with a cover letter including a summary of qualifications, activities in support of the Democratic Party over the last three years, demonstration of support for the Democratic platform, and the applicant’s top three legislative goals. These can be emailed to pavaos002@hawaii.rr.com.
     The new senator will serve for two years, as all state senators sit for a shorter term this time since reapportionment will change district boundaries for the 2012 election.

Buying locally grown food can put more money into Hawai`i's economy.

RUSSELL KOKUBUN becomes head of the state Department of Agriculture at the end of December, after resigning from his Senate seat. He is serving as Department of Ag interim chair and director until confirmation by the senate, probably in February. He said he is particularly inspired by Governor Neil Abercrombie’s New Day in Hawai`i plan for agriculture that seeks food and energy self-sufficiency, to conserve agricultural lands and to rehabilitate old plantation water systems to support agriculture. Hawai`i consumes $3 billion in imported food each year – money that could go to local farms and ranches, said the governor. 

     “Our dependency on imported food is a problem we ignore at our peril,” said Abercrombie, noting that as recent as 50 years ago, Hawai`i grew half its food. Now it is only ten to 20 percent, with a week or two of food on hand should shipping be blocked by disaster, an international crisis, or a labor dispute.

THE KEAUHOU BIRD SANCTUARY in Volcano, where young endangered birds are raised and placed back into the wild, is the topic of After Dark in the Park tonight at Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park Visitor Center Auditorium. The presentation begins at 7 p.m.

LOOKING FOR A NEW YEAR’S CELEBRATION? Kilauea Military Camp has a New Year’s Eve fish luncheon from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., a New Year's Eve party, and a New Year's Day dinner buffet. Hana Hou in Na`alehu will feature Ernie Kalani and his Back to the 50s trio and a special meal on New Year's Eve. Shaka's in Na`alehu plans food and dance music to ring in the New Year.

THE HAWAI`I FIRE DEPARTMENT is reminding everyone that fireworks are legal only between 9 p.m. on New Year's Eve and 1 a.m. on New Year's Day. Stay 1,000 feet away from the hospital, senior housing and school grounds, as the law protects these places. Most fireworks are being banned on O`ahu, and the same could happen here if the rules are disregarded.

THE OCEAN VIEW FOOD BASKET at the community center is open today from noon to 2:30 p.m.

CHRISTMAS TREES without ornaments and flocking are being accepted for recycling daily at Wai`ohinu transfer station.

December 27, 2010

The Fire Department says that Fireworks are allowed from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. New Years Eve.

HOTEL OCCUPANCY ON the Big Island remains low, with only 39 percent of the rooms having visitors for the week ending Dec. 18. O‘ahu posted the highest occupancy - 84 percent, up 16.5 percent over the same week last year. Maui’s 53.2 percent occupancy rate was 7.3 percentage points higher than last year. Kaua‘i’s occupancy rate of 37.9 percent was lowest. The average statewide room rate was $171.49, with the Big Island’s average room rate of $170.21.

PERMITS FOR FIREWORKS DISPLAYS are available at limited locations this year including TNT Fireworks Tent at Prince Kuhio Plaza on Maka`ala Street in Hilo, at Pacific Fireworks in Hilo Shopping Center, Pacific Fireworks on Kuakini Hwy in Kona and Thunder Fireworks on Henry Street in Kona.

Each permit, costing $25, entitles the holder to buy 5,000 firecrackers. Permits are for people 18 years or older. They are non-transferable and non-refundable. The legal hours for fireworks is between 9 p.m. on New Years Eve and 1 a.m. on New Years Day.

FIRE CHIEF DARRYL OLIVEIRA says he is thinking of the public’s safety when he reminds everyone that it is illegal to remove the contents from fireworks, throw them from a car or truck or set them off within 1,000 feet of a hospital, nursing home, or senior housing, and on school grounds.

THE OCEAN VIEW FOOD BASKET will be open tomorrow, Tuesday, for the needy from noon to 2:30 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center.

AFTER DARK IN THE PARK will focus on the Keauhou Bird Sanctuary in Volcano Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Volcano Visitor Center auditorium. The session will be on the future of Hawai`i’s endangered birds.

Miss Ka`u Coffee walks in the Pahala Christmas Parade.

REMEMBER TO DROP YOUR Christmas trees off  daily at the Wai‘ōhinu transfer station through Jan.16. Trees should be free of all decorations, lights, tinsel and ornaments – no artificial or flocked trees allowed. The County Department of Environmental Management and Department of Public Works are teaming up to support Treecycling. Public Works will provide on-site tree chipping at some locations around the island.     

      The county also reminds everyone to recycle Kadomatsu decorations, normally a combination of bamboo, pine and flowers, a tradition that began 600 years ago in Japan as a way of offering luck in the New Year.

      By chipping the trees and making the material available for use in gardens, the County can divert thousands of trees from landfills and add valuable mulch to island soils. In addition, it reduces illegal dumping of holiday trees.

THE COUNTY’S Treecycling Program and additional information are on the website at www.HawaiiZeroWaste.org. For further information, contact the County Solid Waste Division at 961-8339.

YOU CAN ALSO HEAR THE KA’U NEWS BRIEFS online and on the air at KAHU RADIO, 91.7 FM.

December 26, 2010

Today is the last day to vote on the Christmas decorations at Kilauea Military Camp.

THE STATE LEGISLATURE goes back to work in early January and Gov. Neil Abercrombie has put forth his New Years resolutions early to help Hawai`i get through tough times. He said he hopes the legislature will help him to:

Reconfigure, retool and strengthen  fractured governmental services to better serve the people of Hawaii and to become a better partner with the private sector;

Create jobs with a significant capital improvement program that improves the infrastructure and economic landscape for sustained economic and social advancement;

Pursue every available federal funding and private partnership opportunity; and to

Invest in our long-term economic and social well-being, including clean energy, food security, technology, education and health.

The biggest challenge, Abercrombie said, is that from January to June 2011. the state is facing a $71.6 million shortfall because of rising costs that have not been addressed. 
“We have hit a point where it’s almost impossible for government offices to perform its most basic functions and for people to receive government services,” he pointed out. To address immediate needs, he said, he will request emergency appropriations in January for:

 Medicaid, which has expanded over the years. The recent ruling to restore services for citizens from Micronesia, Palau and the Marshall Islands contributes to that ongoing expansion. Additionally, the state will stop receiving federal funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for Medicaid next year.

Santa Came to Ocean View Community Center this Christmas season with gifts.

 The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, a time-limited welfare program for families with the goal of achieving financial self-sufficiency. Over the last several years, the program has expanded to help more Hawai`i families and as a result, program costs have increased.

 Operating requirements of the Office of the Governor and Office of the Lieutenant Governor, which have essentially no funds to operate for the next six months without an emergency appropriation.

Abercrombie said he is confident that the citizens of Hawai`i can and will do better, stimulating the economy and creating the breathing space needed to reinvest in core priorities. “Our approach will be recognizing that as island people we work together and acknowledge the contribution each of us makes. We will not look to someone else to blame for the situation we confront. We are going to face the realities of our challenges,” he declared.

TODAY IS THE LAST DAY to vote on the Kilauea Military Camp Christmas decoration competition and receive tokens to use at KMC facilities. The cottages were decorated by employees.

THE OCEAN VIEW FOOD BASKET will be open this coming Tuesday for the needy from noon to 2:30 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center.

AFTER DARK IN THE PARK will focus on the Keauhou Bird Sanctuary in Volcano this Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Volcano Visitor Center auditorium. The session will be on the future of endangered birds.