Saturday, November 13, 2010

Ka`u News Briefs Nov. 13, 2010


Kahumoku `Ohana students practice at Pahala Plantation House
for a free concert today at 1 p.m.

A HAWAIIAN MUSIC MASTERS CONCERT is on today at Pahala Plantation House from 1p.m. to 5 p.m. The lineup includes Ledward Kaapana, George Kahumoku Jr., James Hill, Herb Ota Jr., David Kamakahi, Uncle Richard Ho‘opi‘i, Keoki Kahumoku, Tony Selvage and Konabob. Also performing will be students of the annual Keoki Kahumoku music workshop, including local youth attending on scholarships. 

THE POHUE PLAZA FUN FESTIVAL happens in Ocean View today from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Spirit Gas celebrates its new look and twenty-fifth anniversary with live entertainment, food vendors, arts and crafts and a raffle giveaway.

Royden Okinishi is a Ka`u bow hunter.
NEW REGULATIONS FOR HUNTING are posted on the Internet and open for public comment at www.gov.dlnr/rules. Public meetings will be held at 6 p.m. this Tuesday, November 16 at Hilo High School cafeteria and on Wednesday, November 17 at Kealakehe High School in Kona. New rules call for removing some Natural Area Reserves from hunting, while adding others. Comments can be emailed to dlnr@hawaii.gov or mailed in by Monday, November 29. Public hunting areas in Ka`u include sections of Kapapala Forest Reserve and Ka`u Forest Reserve. Huntings grounds described as unencumbered portions of Manuka, Kaulanamauna and Kipahoehoe are being changed to Waiaha Springs Forest Reserve and the Kapua-Manuka section of the South Kona Forest Reserve (also known as the Honomolino tract). For the Kapapala Ranch Cooperative Game Management Area, conditions for entry and public use for hunting are subject to landowner's approval.

HUNTING IS OPEN for game birds on Saturdays, Sundays and State Holidays on public lands where the hunting is approved. The season lasts through the third Sunday in January. Hunting is allowed on Wednesdays and Thursdays on land managed by cooperators. There are limits on the number of game birds that can be taken. They include pheasants, quails, partridges, francolins, sandgrouse, doves, turkeys and pea fowl. Licenses can be purchased online with a credit card or at the state Department of Forestry and Wildlife office in Hilo and Kamuela.

PRESERVATION OF EIGHT THOUSAND acres in Ka`u for agriculture and nature will be the subject of a public meeting sponsored by the Ka`u Chamber of Commerce this coming Monday at 6 p.m. at Pahala Plantation House. John Henshaw, of The Nature Conservancy, and representatives of the Hawai`i Land Trust will be speaking. Establishing easements on such lands has made it possible for ranchers, farmers and other landowners to prevent subdivision of their properties for generations to come.

LIBRARIES IN KA'U are always on the chopping block when it comes to cutting state funding. However, the state is allowing people to raise funds for their favorite libraries to improve them and keep them open. Groups can adopt a library and host a fundraising event. Donations are tax deductible, and checks can be made to the Hawai`i State Public Library System, with a designation of the library targeted for your donation.
     Our local libraries are expanding into the electronic world by offering tens of thousands of e-books. See librarieshawaii.org or visit public libraries in Na`alehu and Pahala.

MAYOR BILLY KENOI has proposed a prohibition on companies winning contracts with the county when county employees or their spouses and dependent children have a controlling interest in the company. The measure will come up before the County Council on Nov. 17 after being turned away by the county Board of Ethics. According to the West Hawai`i Today newspaper, one ethics board member called the propsal "speed bumps for free enterprise. In Hilo we are only two degrees removed. We're all related in some way," said David Heaukulani, according to the West Hawai`i Today story.

MICHAEL DWORSKY is leaving his post as Solid Waste Division Chief for the county Department of Environmental Management. He worked in the position for five years, overseeing landfills, transfer stations and the ever-growing challenge of taking care of garbage on the island. Incoming County Council member Brittany Smart, who is hoping to fast track a new transfer station for Ocean View, said she looks forward to keeping all the solid waste projects on track. "This is one of the most important services the county can provide,” she said.

ALL TRANSFER STATIONS will be closed on Thanksgiving, which means Wai`ohinu and Volcano will be closed on a day they are usually open. Pahala and Wai`ohinu will re-open Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, and Volcano re-opens the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF HAWAI`I are looking at a new way to provide housing for a group that is underserved. They are grandparents raising grandchildren, mothers reuniting with their children and aging parents who have a hard time taking care of their disabled children. The first such transitional housing project will be opened in Makiki on O`ahu, but the model could serve for other locations around the state, including Ka`u.