Ka`u News Briefs March 26, 2013

A consultant for the state Consumer Advocate has testified that the cost of biofuel, proposed to be refined near Wood Valley from crops grown between Pahala and Na`alehu, is reasonable. Photo by Julia Neal

FUNDING FOR IMPROVEMENTS to Ka`u irrigation system has been approved by the state House of Representatives and sent to the Senate for further consideration. The Capital Improvements Project funding amounts to $2.5 million. Several other House Bills regarding agriculture have also made their way to the Senate for further consideration.

Rep. Richard Onishi

      HB353 would appropriate funds to the Department of Agriculture for the United States Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center to research and develop methods for the prevention and treatment of coffee berry borer infestations. It would provide a grant for the coffee berry borer task force for control of the coffee berry borer and mitigation of damage.
      HB487 would expand livestock feed subsidy to include feed for goats, sheep, lambs, fish and crustaceans. It would create a subsidy for qualified feed developers.
      HB489 would provide, under certain circumstances, an exemption from building code and permit requirements for nonresidential buildings or structures on farms.
      HB1264 would allow for agricultural loans to be administered for livestock biosecurity projects. It would modify the new farmer loan program of the Department of Agriculture to promote the development of innovative technologies and to assist new farm enterprises.
      “Agriculture is an important component of life for residents who live in my district and for all of us on Hawai`i Island,” said East Ka`u Rep. Richard Onishi. “I am pleased that the House has approved legislation that supports, improves and strengthens this vital part of our economy and lifestyle. If we truly want to achieve food sustainability for Hawai`i and put more local food in our markets and homes, we need to assist farmers in every way we can.”

Sen. Brian Schatz

“DENYING COMMITTED COUPLES the right to marry is unacceptable,” said Sen. Brian Schatz in a statement as the Supreme Court hears arguments to determine the constitutionality of Proposition 8, California’s ban on same-sex marriage. “Because we all have friends, relatives and loved ones in devoted same-sex relationships, I encourage everyone to stand up for equality. It affects all of us. It is my hope that the arguments heard in the Supreme Court will further prove what millions of Americans know is just — marriage equality must be a constitutional right for all Americans. I am a proud supporter of marriage equality, and I will continue to join President Obama in speaking out to end this type of discrimination. My hope is that the Supreme Court does what is right for this country.”
      The Supreme Court will also hear a challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage between a man and a woman, thereby denying federal benefits to same-sex couples.
      Schatz joined his Senate colleagues in filing testimony in the DOMA case that is before the Supreme Court.

James Richard Hornby

IN TESTIMONY TO THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION on behalf of the state Consumer Advocate regarding the proposed contract for `Aina Koa Pono to sell biofuel refined in Ka`u to Hawaiian Electric Co. and Hawai`i Electric Light Co., James Richard Hornby, an energy consultant hired by the Consumer Advocate, concludes that “the cost of biofuel under the proposed Biofuel Supply Contract is reasonable. The AKP Biofuel Supply Contract will enable the Companies to provide reliable service at reasonable rates relative to continuing to rely upon fossil fuels.”
      Hornby is a senior consultant at Synapse Energy Economics of Massachusetts, a research and consulting firm specializing in energy and environmental issues including electric generation, transmission and distribution system reliability, market power, electricity market prices, stranded costs, efficiency, renewable energy, environmental quality and nuclear power. Hornby has presented testimony and provided litigation support on these issues in the United States and Canada. His clients have included staff of public utility commissions, state energy offices, consumer advocate offices and marketers. He has a Master of Science degree in energy technology and policy from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a bachelor of industrial engineering degree from Technical University of Nova Scotia.

      To reach his conclusions, Hornby said he relied on responses to various information requests, recent projections of prices for relevant fossil fuels, Commission orders in other relevant proceedings, Hawai`i energy policies and relevant resource planning proceedings of other utilities in which he has participated or which he has reviewed.
      Hornby acknowledges that “the prices the Companies will pay for biofuel under the AKP contract are likely to be higher than diesel prices according to current Reference Case forecasts for diesel prices.” However, he considers other factors that he claims justify the higher prices. “In exchange,” Hornby says, “the Companies and their customers will receive a number of benefits from the AKP contract.” He lists following benefits that would be received:

• reduced dependence on fossil fuels; 
• reduced exposure to increases in electricity costs in periods when diesel prices prove to be higher than current Reference Case forecasts as well as reduced exposure to the volatility associated with diesel prices; 
• reduced emission of air pollutants; 
• a contribution to compliance with Renewable Portfolio Standard requirements (Hornby says “HECO needs the AKP biofuel supply in order to meet its requirements under the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard statute.); and 
• diversification of the resources used to meet Renewable Portfolio Standard requirements. 

      Hornby also says his “analyses indicate that entering the AKP contract will not prevent the Companies from acquiring additional resources that prove to be cost-effective in the future. The Companies will continue to have that flexibility.”
      This and other testimony is available at puc.hawaii.gov.

Ocean View Community Center has videoconferencing
facilities for county government meetings.

KA`U RESIDENTS CAN PARTICIPATE in this week’s county government meetings via videoconference at Ocean View Community Center, 92-8924 Leilani Circle. Council committees meet tomorrow, and the full Council meets Thursday at West Hawai`i Civic Center in Kona. The videoconferencing system is available until 3 p.m. or later if public witness testimony has not been completed. For more information, call 961-8536 or edistrict6@co.hawaii.hi.us.
      Agenda items include several improvements to Kahuku Park in Ocean View being pursued by Council member Brenda Ford. Agendas for the meetings, along with information on how to submit testimony, can be viewed at hawaiicounty.gov.

KA`U AG WATER COOPERATIVE DISTRICT members and potential members are invited to learn about being ag water co-op members and how the development process is proceeding at a workshop tomorrow at Pahala Community Center from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
      Another workshop for co-op board members takes place Thursday from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Ka`u Coffee Mill.

      The workshops will present the basics of co-op membership and board directorship while allowing for ongoing questions and answers. A few exercises will help participants work through the basics. Workbooks will be passed out to take home or show those who couldn’t make it.
      For more information, email mbondera@kohalacenter.org.

Volunteers Paul and Jane Field remove Kahili ginger on a park trail.
NPS Photo by Jessica Ferracane

STEWARDSHIP AT THE SUMMIT is the name of the weekly program in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park that has volunteers help cut invasive Kahili ginger along trails. On Thursday from 9 a.m. to noon, participants hike into Kilauea caldera down Halem`auma`u Trail, leaving from Kilauea Visitor Center. The hike involves walking over rough, uneven terrain on a dirt and rock path, with up to a 400-foot elevation change.

VOLUNTEERS HAVE ONE MORE opportunity this year to count humpback whales and record their behavior during the Sanctuary Ocean Count Saturday from 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Sites for the count in Ka`u are South Point, Punalu`u Black Sand Beach and Ka`ena Point at the end of Chain of Craters Road in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Sign up at sanctuaryoceancount.org.

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.

Ka`u News Briefs March 25, 2013

Teachers carried signs in downtown Pahala. They vote April 17 on a new contract.

TEACHERS PLAN TO VOTE on a proposed four-year agreement between the state and Hawai`i State Teachers Association on Wednesday, April 17. HSTA union president Wil Okabe told Civil Beat that the union plans to spend the weeks making sure teachers understand contents of the contract, saying teachers rejected an earlier contract “because they didn’t understand it.”
     HSTA Board of Directors approved the contract yesterday. Okabe said, “I believe that this tentative agreement is the beginning of providing professional salaries that will attract and retain the best and the brightest into Hawai`i’s classrooms.” The agreement removes the five percent pay cut and reduced health care benefits that the state imposed in July 2011.
      It also calls for pay raises. On July 1, all teachers move up one step on the salary schedule. Three annual 3.2 percent across-the-board salary increases take place beginning in 2014.

 A teacher evaluation system that has been an issue with union members is also part of the deal. The system measures teacher effectiveness and student growth, and teachers will be involved in its development. The contract also requires the union to drop its complaint filed with the Hawai`i Labor Relations Board charging that the state violated collective bargaining rights.

     “This is a major breakthrough for our teachers, our students, and the future of our state,” said Gov. Neil Abercrombie. “I believe this contract is fair and provides opportunities for pay increases, which are long overdue after years of sacrifice from teachers and other public employees. With the state now being administered in a fiscally sound manner and improving economic estimates by the Council of Revenues, we were able to offer a comprehensive and favorable contract.”
     Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi said, “Public school teachers and their union representatives are critical partners in transforming education for our students and our state. We’ve worked very hard to get to this point, and we remain committed to providing teachers with necessary resources and support to achieve our strategic goals.”
     Don Horner, chair of the Board of Education, said, “The Board is appreciative of the dedication, sacrifices, and achievements of our teachers. This agreement will allow us, together, to better support our teachers in reaching the objectives of our educational strategic plan.” 

A NEW YORK TIMES editorial this morning on changing the immigration system credits Sen. Mazie Hirono. The opinion piece praises Hirono for speaking “movingly of her own experience immigrating to Honolulu as a young girl; and yet joined other witnesses in explaining how the system falls short: she noted that it treats women unequally – women who arrive as dependent spouses are denied the right to work legally and face discrimination and several obstacles to assimilation.”

Sen. Mazie Hirono meets with Hawaiian youth visiting the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Photo from www.hirono.senate.gov

    The editorial states that “the momentum in Washington for immigration reform has been growing with amazing speed in recent weeks, and it seems that the question now is not whether Congress will try to fix the immigration system this year, but how big and effective the repairs will be. We hope that whatever bill emerges will continue to protect and unite families, preserving and strengthening a bedrock value of America’s immigration system,” says the New York Times.
      The newspaper points out that “it might be hard to imagine that America’s long tradition of allowing immigrants to sponsor spouses, children and siblings for visas would be threatened. But anti-immigration groups and lawmakers have long attacked the practice, using the slanderous and misleading term “chain migration,” which summons images of a relentless flow of undesirables, usually from south of the border. Even as some of the staunchest resistance to reform is crumbling — legalizing 11 million immigrants was unthinkable for leading Republicans a few months ago, and now even rock-ribbed Tea Partiers like Representative Rand Paul favor it — right-wing resistance to family migration persists.

Mee Moua, president of Aisan
American Justice Institute.

    “Bills are still being drafted, but some lawmakers are reportedly trying to reduce or eliminate visas for extended family members in order to expand employment-based immigration. Advocates are resisting this zero-sum game.”
      The editorial also quotes Mee Moua, president of the Asian American Justice Center, explaining “how backlogs kept families separated for years, if not decades. ‘As of November 2012,’ she said, ‘nearly 4.3 million close family members were waiting in the family-visa backlogs’ — with Latino and Asian-American families most affected.”
      The New York Times opined that “immigration is more than a business relationship America has with selected foreigners. It’s a process that renews this country; it means going all-in on America, through binding ties of love and blood. Recruited workers enrich the country. Reunited families do, too.”

COUNTY GOVERNMENT MEETINGS take place this week, with Council committees meeting on Wednesday and the full Council meeting Thursday at West Hawai`i Civic Center in Kona. Agendas for the meetings, along with information on how to submit testimony, can be viewed at hawaiicounty.gov.
      Ka`u residents can participate in the meetings via videoconference at Ocean View Community Center, 92-8924 Leilani Circle. The system is available until 3 p.m. or later if public witness testimony has not been completed. For more information, call 961-8536 or edistrict6@co.hawaii.hi.us.

MEMBER TRAINING FOR Ka`u Ag Water Cooperative District takes place Wednesday at Pahala Community Center from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Members and potential members of the regional water systems’ cooperatives, including Ha`ao, Mountain House, Moa`ula, Alili, Hilea, Keaiwa, Wood Valley and Kapapala can learn about being an ag water co-op member and how the development process is proceeding. For more information, email mbondera@kohalacenter.org.

Volcano resident and state Department of Agriculture Chair
Russell Kokubun, right, presented an award for using local beef
at last year's Ag Day. Photo from Hawai`i Cattlemen's Council

AGRICULTURE AWARENESS  DAY AT THE CAPITOL will be held this Thursday, March 28 in Honolulu, with Ka`u Farm Bureau and `Aikane Plantation Coffee Company representing Ka`u. Phil Becker of `Aikane said the Hawai`i Seal of Quality will have a booth next to the Ka`u Farm Bureau booth, which will be manned by Ka`u Farm Bureau President Chris Manfredi. Samples and written materials celebrating the diverse agriculture of Ka`u, from flowers to vegetables, fruits, nuts, beef and coffee will be displayed, Manfredi said. Farm Bureau members wanting to submit samples and information can call him at 929-9550.

VOLUNTEERS CAN HELP CUT invasive Kahili ginger in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park Thursday from 9 a.m. to noon. The hike is a one-mile, moderate round trip into Kilauea caldera down Halem`auma`u Trail, leaving from Kilauea Visitor Center. It involves walking over rough, uneven terrain on a dirt and rock path, with up to a 400-foot elevation change.

THE FINAL SANCTUARY OCEAN COUNT for this year takes place Saturday from 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., when volunteers throughout the state count humpback whales and record their behavior. Sites for the count in Ka`u are South Point, Punalu`u Black Sand Beach and Ka`ena Point at the end of Chain of Craters Road in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Sign up at sanctuaryoceancount.org.

IN SPORTS over the weekend, Ka`u Trojans boys volleyball beat Kohala in five sets at Kohala. Scores were 25-21, 25-27, 19-25, 25-16, and 16-14. In girls softball, Ka`u played Konawaena, losing at home 2-17.

Ka`u News Briefs March 24, 2013

More than $3,500 was raised for Discovery Harbour's volunteer fire department at last weekend's rummage sale.
Photo by Liz Stabo

“A STRONGER JAPAN ECONOMY with hope, vision and confidence in the future will bode well for the Japan outbound tourism to Hawai`i,” said Dave Erdman, president and CEO of PacRim Marketing Group Inc. & PRTech LLC. His comments followed an announcement that the Japanese government plans to fund job creation and reconstruction efforts, enhance innovation, strengthen domestic demand and create global opportunities following the earthquake and tsunami that devastated the Tohoku region of the country two years ago this month.

      A story in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser said that Hawai`i Tourism Authority is projecting Japanese arrivals to increase by 13 percent and expenditures to grow by 16.4 percent this year. “In partnership with the Japan Association of Travel Agents, Hawai`i has committed to reaching two million Japanese visitors by 2016,” said HTA president and CEO Mike McCartney.

Toyoei Shigeeda

      Japan also is interested in “Two-Way Tourism,” inbound tourism from Hawai`i and the U.S., Erdman said. “Two-way tourism is good for all of us. Building bonds of friendship and giving our aloha spirit as we travel will encourage more first-timers to come to Hawai`i from Japan, and not just to O`ahu, but to visit our neighbor islands,” he said. “I encourage those thinking of an overseas vacation to consider going to Japan and exploring areas outside of central metropolitan cities to learn more about our friends and neighbors, and return to them the support that they need in this time of reconstruction and revitalization.”
      The Star-Advertiser story quoted Consul General of Japan Toyoei Shigeeda: “The people of Japan have been encouraged by the continued and generous support from Hawai`i. There has been a variety of financial and spiritual support, which has been the most precious. I have been asked to convey the gratitude of the Tohoku people and to encourage the people of Hawai`i to pay a visit to them.”

ALLOWING FOREIGN-BUILT SHIPS to carry cargo to Hawai`i from the mainland is the goal of House Resolution 119 introduced by Hawai`i state legislators last week. The resolution calls for a limited exemption to the Jones Act, which requires ships carrying cargo between United States ports to be built in the U.S.
      Rep. Gene Ward, of O`ahu, said in a written announcement that the high cost of building new ships at domestic shipyards is the main cost driver in Hawai`i shipping, and so residents would save money without it. Ships carrying cargo between two U.S. ports would still be required to have U.S. crews, owners and flags.
      Ward also said the exemption would help Hawai`i’s efforts to import liquefied natural gas as an alternative to oil to generate electricity. He said U.S. shipyards haven’t built ships to carry LNG since the 1970s.

Matson opposes the proposed Jones Act exemption. Photo from Matson

      The Hawai`i Shippers Council, an organization representing companies that ship goods on carriers including Matson, Inc., Horizon Lines and Pasha Hawai`i Transport Lines, said in a statement that allowing foreign-built ships to serve Hawai`i from other U.S. ports would make trade more competitive by lowering a major barrier to entry. “The proposed reform will create significant economic benefits that will flow through the system to businesses and consumers in Hawai`i and other noncontiguous jurisdictions,” the council said in a statement. The council estimates that U.S.-built ships cost five times as much as foreign-built ships.
      However, Matson opposes the proposed exemption, saying the cost of ships represents a small percentage of overall operating costs and that other U.S.-flag cargo transportation companies support building ships domestically. The company also said the U.S.-built requirement helps ensure the country has strong shipyards. “We should not become dependent on foreign shipyards to support the U.S.-flag maritime industry,” the company said.
      The exemption is similar to exemptions for Guam and cruise ships serving Hawai`i. Other introducers of the measure include Big Island Reps. Cindy Evans and Clift Tsuji.

SOFTBALL FIELD IMPROVEMENTS at Ka`u High and Pahala Elementary Schools are listed in Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s announcement of more that $26 million released for statewide capital improvement projects for education facilities. Projects may include field improvements, drainage improvements, new or replacement backstops and fences, dugouts, bleachers, scoreboards, walkways and grading.

       Other statewide projects include science facility upgrades at various high schools, minor renovations and improvements and noise and heat abatement.
      “These priority CIPs will help address the many needed repair, maintenance and upgrade projects that have accumulated at our public schools over many years,” Abercrombie said. “The majority of these funds will go toward statewide projects and programs aimed at providing the suitable, learning-friendly environment for students and teachers that they each deserve.”

COUNCIL MEMBER BRENDA FORD is seeking improvements to Kahuku Park in Ocean View. Ford has introduced five bills that break improvements down into phases. Four of the bills are on the County Council agenda for its upcoming meeting on Thursday, March 28. 

      Phase 1 lists water system improvements to address public health and safety relating to water for drinking, irrigation and an auxiliary source of potable water in a disaster).
      Phase 2 addresses improvements related to Americans with Disabilities Act and seeks $600,000 for installation of ramps to the pavilion and ball field.
      Phase 3, budgeted at $250,000, would add, replace, improve and repair children’s playground equipment, regulation matting, a gazebo and BBQ apparatus.
      Phase 4 calls for construction of a community center, gymnasium, restrooms, certified kitchen, storage for Civil Defense supplies and a second water reservoir to serve the community center. Funding for this $5,100,000-phase as well as the other phases would be provided from general obligation bonds, capital projects fund and/or other sources.
      The bill for Phase 5 is on the Finance Committee’s agenda for its meeting this Wednesday, March 27. It calls for $100,000 for grading to provide an additional area to the park for future use.

Ocean View Park & Ride bus lot at the corner of Hwy 11 and Prince
Kuhio Blvd. may be purchased and upgraded by the county
if Council member Brenda Ford's bill passes.

OCEAN VIEW PARK & RIDE BUS LOT is another item on the Finance Committee’s agenda. Council member Brenda Ford is introducing a measure to purchase property for a permanent bus station and park and ride location, along with design and construction of the facility and placement of a streetlight. The project would cost $94,000.
      Another measure introduced by Ford would authorize the Finance director to initiate any funding mechanisms required for acquisition of the parcel to be used for the Ocean View Park & Ride location and bus station. The parcel on the corner of Hwy 11 and Prince Kuhio Boulevard is owned by Oceanview Partners, LLC, of Honolulu. 

      County Council and committee meeting agendas, along with information on how to submit testimony, can be viewed at hawaiicounty.gov.
      Ka`u residents can participate in committee and Council meetings via videoconference at Ocean View Community Center, 92-8924 Leilani Circle. The system is available until 3 p.m. or later if public witness testimony has not been completed.
      For more information, call 961-8536 or edistrict6@co.hawaii.hi.us.

MORE THAN $3,500 WAS RAISED for Discovery Harbour volunteer firefighters at last weekend’s bi-annual rummage sale. Proceeds for Volunteer Company 11-Charlie will be used to equip new members with optional firefighting equipment that veterans already have, said organizer Suzanne Brady. The company also plans to investigate purchasing some radio equipment to improve communication among crew members. “These funds will need to see us through the next two years and will also go a long way in purchasing uniform items, service recognition awards, flashlights, batteries, water and snack bars, etc.,” Brady said. “It’s events such as this one that help us to keep each member’s personal expenses to a minimum.”

TWO BY TENN WITH TEA, a performance of two of Tennessee Williams’ one-act plays at Pahala Plantation House, takes place today. University of Hawai`i-Hilo drama department senior Julie Dobbs directs Dick Hershberger and Arlene Araki in Talk to Me Like the Rain and Let Me Listen and I Can’t Imagine Tomorrow. The plays begin at 3 p.m. Tea and cookies will be served, and a potluck dinner follows.

Lehua Domingo's lauhala hats will be displayed tomorrow.
NPS photo by Jessica Ferracane

LEI HULU A ME ULANA PAPALE LAUHALA are topics tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on the lanai of Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Kilohana Domingo demonstrates feather work and displays his na lei hulu (feather lei). His mother, Hawaiian artist and master weaver Lehua Domingo, shares the `anoni style of weaving pandanus leaves into a hat and other art objects with assistance from her granddaughter, Kawai Domingo. Free; park entrance fees apply. 

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.