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Friday, October 03, 2014

Ka`u News Briefs Friday, Oct. 3, 2014

Ka`u High Trojans eight-man football team is on the road the next two Saturdays for the final games of the regular season.
Photo by Taylor's Treasures Photography
THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH HAS EXTENDED the deadline for comments regarding proposed new rules calling for septic tanks to be installed when residences with cesspools are sold. Comments are due by Friday, Oct. 17 at 4:30 p.m.
      Public meetings are also scheduled. One will be in Kona on Thursday, Oct. 9 at 5 p.m. at West Hawai`i Civic Center. Another will be in Hilo on Thursday, Oct. 16 at 5 p.m. at Aupuni Center.
      According to DOH, “cesspools are substandard systems. They don’t treat wastewater, they merely dispose of it. Cesspools concentrate the wastewater in one location, often deep within the ground and in direct contact with groundwater, causing groundwater contamination. This groundwater flows into drinking water wells, streams and the ocean, harming public health and the environment, including beaches and coral reefs.”
At a forum yesterday, State House District Five candidates
discussed a proposal to replace cesspools with septic tanks.
Diagram from state Department of Health
      To send comments by email and read the proposal, see health.hawaii.gov/wastewater/home/public_notice. Written comments can also be mailed to Wastewater Branch, Environmental Management Division, State Department of Health, 919 Ala Moana Blvd, Room 309, Honolulu, HI 96814-4920.

CANDIDATES FOR STATE HOUSE DISTRICT FIVE discussed the proposed wastewater rule change at a forum yesterday in Kona. According to a story in West Hawai`i Today, they agreed it would be a huge burden for residents to have to convert existing cesspools to septic systems.
      “I’d hate to see this burden put on the people,” Libertarian Jon Lalanne, of Ocean View, said. “I’d hate to pay for it myself.”
      Reporter Bret Yager said Lalanne shared his experiences in Malibu, Calif., when during winter months the sewage treatment plant would break down and pollute the ocean where he surfed. “I’m still here,” he said.
      Republican Dave Bateman, of Holualoa, said the proposal is “a ridiculous move on the part of the DOH.
      “I went through the petition and supporting materials and found none. We have very good basalts here and rifts in the earth that will purify (waste). I don’t know of anyone being treated in the ER for coliform. If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.”
      Rep. Richard Creagan, of Na`alehu, said the cesspool issue needs to be studied at the state Legislature. “We need to really examine the science,” Creagan said. “I don’t think the geology of the island mandates septic in the upper elevations. Along the shoreline, of course.”
      Creagan said that if the rules are adopted, he would support tax credits for composting toilets.
      See westhawaiitoday.com.
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

A CONSORTIUM OF NATIVE HAWAIIAN community groups leading the process of building a Native Hawaiian government is considering postponing the election of officers until June. The original plan was to hold elections between May and September, and the most recent plan was to have the elections in January.
      According to an Associated Press story in Hawai`i Tribune-Herald, the groups want more time to educate voters.
      “They thought it was too soon and too impractical,” said Derek Kauanoe, governance manager at the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. “I think they’re more interested in the quality of the nation building process” than the speed.
      They are drafting a new timeline they hope to present to the OHA board on Thursday, Oct. 16.
      See hawaiitribune-herald.com.
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Poultry and livestock consume 70 to 90 percent of all genetically
engineered crops, according to a UC-Davis study.
Thinkstock photo from UC-Davis
THE PERFORMANCE AND HEALTH OF FOOD-PRODUCING animals consuming genetically engineered feed, first introduced 18 years ago, has been comparable to that of animals consuming non-GE feed, according to a new scientific review from the University of California at Davis. The review study also found that scientific studies have detected no differences in the nutritional makeup of meat, milk or other food products derived from animals that ate genetically engineered feed. 
      The review, led by UC-Davis animal scientist Alison Van Eenennaam, examined nearly 30 years of livestock-feeding studies that represent more than 100 billion animals.
      Entitled Prevalence and Impacts of Genetically Engineered Feedstuffs on Livestock Populations, the review article is now available online in open-access form through the American Society of Animal Science: https://asas.org/docs/default-source/jas-files/jas8124_final.pdf?sfvrsn.
      Genetically engineered crops were first introduced in 1996. Today, 19 genetically engineered plant species are approved for use in the United States, including the major crops used extensively in animal feed: alfalfa, canola, corn, cotton, soybeans and sugar beets.
      Food-producing animals such as cows, pigs, goats, chickens and other poultry species now consume 70 to 90 percent of all genetically engineered crops, according to the UC Davis review. In the United States alone, nine billion food-producing animals are produced annually, with 95 percent of them consuming feed that contains genetically engineered ingredients.
      “Studies have continually shown that the milk, meat and eggs derived from animals that have consumed GE feed are indistinguishable from the products derived from animals fed a non-GE diet,” Van Eenennaam said. “Therefore, proposed labeling of animal products from livestock and poultry that have eaten GE feed would require supply-chain segregation and traceability, as the products themselves would not differ in any way that could be detected.”
      See news.ucdavis.edu.
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

HO`OKUPU HULA NO KA`U CULTURAL FESTIVAL has finalized its lineup of events and workshops to take place in Pahala on the grounds of the Old Plantation Manager’s House three weeks from today, on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 24 and 25. All entertainment is open to the public with no fees. Friday and Saturday night will feature emcee Skylark and chanter Na`auao Vivas.
      The Ho`okupu Hula Cultural Festival is in its fifth year. The first four were held on Lana`i. Kumu Hula Debbie Ryder, who founded the festival, said that her own Kumu Hula, Uncle George Na`ope, encouraged the creation of festivals, including the Merrie Monarch and other festivals in Hawai`i, Canada, Washington, Japan, Germany and California. “Every place he placed his footprint and visited throughout his life, he planted a seed. It grew wherever he traveled,” said Ryder. “He also planted a seed in me to carry on his legacy to perpetuate the hula and its history, which is what I am trying to do.” Ryder and her husband Kawehi recently moved from Lana`i to Pahala and brought the festival with them. “It is painful to realize that Uncle George will no longer be with me in support of this legacy of the hula; therefore my heart reaches out in Thanksgiving and Aloha as I attempt to carry the torch that he lit in me so long ago.”
      The first Ho`okupu Hula No Ka`u Cultural Festival will begin on Friday, Oct. 24 with `Ohana Night and an Opening Pule at 4 p.m., followed by Ho`okupu by Kumu Hula Haumana and others wishing to participate. At 4:30 p.m., Ernest Kalani takes the stage, followed by Keoki Kahumoku at 5 p.m. A Kukui Ceremony honoring ancestors will be held at 5:45 p.m., followed by music from the South Side Serenaders at 6 p.m. Cyril Pahinui performs at 6:30 p.m., with music by Makanau at 7 p.m. At 8:15 p.m. will be music by Steven Sioloa, Wailau Ryder and Ricky Masaoka.
      On the grounds will be cultural practitioners, cultural demonstrations, artisans, crafts, food booths, informational booths and more.
      On Saturday, Oct. 25 at the Old Pahala Clubhouse will be workshops, beginning with hula with Kumu Hula Debbie Leionalani Ryder at 8 a.m. At 9:30 a.m. will be lei-making. At 11 a.m. lauhaula weaving, at 12:30 p.m. an `ukulele workshop and at 1:30 p.m. a slack key workshop.
See kaucalendar.com/Directory2014.swf.
      On Saturday evening at 4 p.m. will be an opening pule performed by dancers who attend the hula workshop and an introduction of Kumu Hula. At 4:30 p.m. will be Hands of Time. At 5 p.m. will be Halau Hula O Kawaimaluhia with Kumu Hula Keoni Jennings. At 5:45 p.m. will be Hula Halau Kahoku Kauhiahionalani with Kumu Hula Sammy Fo. At 6 p.m. will be the Gomes `Ohana. At 6:30 p.m. a Kukui Ceremony; at 6:45 p.m. Keaiwa, featuring Demetrius Oliveira and Halau Hula O Leonalani, with Kumu Hula Debbie Ryder and Haumana from Japan, Okinawa, O`ahu and Pahala. At 7:30 p.m. will be Ka `Imia Na`auao Kahiko from Ka`u School of the Arts and Kumu Hula Marsha Bolosan. At 8 p.m. is Victor Chock & Friends, with the evening ending at 9 p.m. with Hawai`i Aloha.
      For more, see www.hookupukau.com.

JUDGING IS TAKING PLACE TODAY at Ka`u Chamber Of Commerce’s Art Show at CU Hawai`i Federal Credit Union in Na`alehu. Winners in all categories, including People’s Choice, which will be on the cover of The Directory 2015, will be announced at a reception tomorrow morning.

KA`U HIGH SPORTS TEAMS HAVE A BUSY DAY tomorrow. Girls volleyball teams host Makua Lani at 10 a.m. The Trojan eight-man football team travels to Pahoa for a game at 2 p.m., and the cross country team has a 3 p.m. meet in Kea`au.

VOLUNTEERS MEET AT KILAUEA VISITOR CENTER to help remove invasive Himalayan ginger from park trails tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Free; park entrance fees apply.

LISA LOUISE ADAMS TEACHES HOW TO MAKE books styled after fourth-century copts tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Volcano Art Center’s Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village. Call 967-8222 to register.

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