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Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Ka`u News Briefs Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2014

Hula halau from Lana`i come to Ka`u for Ho`okupu Hula No Ka`u Cultural Festival Friday and Saturday. Photo by Malian Lahey
WORK BEGINS FRIDAY ON THE KA`U SIDE of Chain of Craters Road in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park to connect the district with Kalapana in Puna. The emergency route is being built to assist residents of lower Puna, whose access to the rest of the island would be cut off if lava from Kilauea Volcano’s June 27 flow reaches the ocean.
      Hawai`i County crews, overseen by the National Park Service and Federal Highways Administration, will grade the 5.4 miles through the park to the Kalapana boundary.
County workers are rebuilding Chain of Craters Road.
NPS Photo by David Boyle
      The half-mile section of paved road that pedestrians use to access the lava that covered it in 2003 will be closed as of Friday. The popular “Road Closed” sign enrobed in lava will be removed to become part of park history. Other closures include the historic flows and coastal area alongside the construction.
      Holei Sea Arch, the turnaround, bathrooms and concession stand near the turnaround will remain open.
      Motorists can expect traffic delays early tomorrow and Friday mornings as large bulldozers and heavy equipment are transported from the summit of Kilauea down the 19-mile stretch of Chain of Craters Road to the turnaround.
      “We intend to reopen the closed area as soon as it is safe to do so and the bulldozers move closer to Kalapana,” said Park Superintendent Cindy Orlando. “But now is the time to take those last photos of the iconic ‘Road Closed’ sign before it is removed on Friday,” she said.
      Last week, bulldozers from the Kalapana side graded the 2.2-mile portion of Hwy 130 covered in lava to where it meets the park boundary and becomes Chain of Craters Road. Opened in 1965, Chain of Craters Road has been covered and blocked by lava for 37 years of its 49-year existence.
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A CIVIL DEFENSE OVERFLIGHT THIS MORNING found that the breakout on the June 27 lava flow in Puna that has been advancing about 90 yards per day along the southeast edge of the flow since early last week has overtaken the former leading edge of the flow. The former flow tip also advanced about 25 yards.
      According to Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, geologists will conduct investigations of the leading edges of the flow on foot today.
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According to Hawai`i DOE, its budget has been flat while the Consumer
Price Index and collectively bargained salaries have increased.
Graph from DOE
SUPERINTENDENT KATHRYN MATAYOSHI HAS PRESENTED the Hawai`i State Department of Education’s 2015-17 Fiscal Biennium budget request, which focuses on investments in strategic reforms and basic school operations. More than 94 percent of the proposed budget request goes directly to fund school-level operations. 
      The proposed budget aims to provide the most benefit to students by preserving school funds for core instruction and enhancing technology. At a presentation before the Hawai`i State Board of Education’s Finance and Infrastructure Committee, Matayoshi reiterated that state funding for education has remained stagnant for the last seven years.
      Since starting reform efforts four years ago, the DOE is in the midst of executing its strategic plan to transform public education system to ensure graduates are prepared for success in college or careers.
      Matayoshi said, “Despite the flat budget, we have managed to increase school-level Weighted Student Formula funding, and our schools have performed extremely well over the last few years.”
Hawai`i Wildlife Fund collected 500 pounds of derelict
fishing net from the Ka`u Coast last month.
Photo from HWF
      Each request falls into one of two major categories: Basic Operations or Strategic Investments. Basic Operations expenditures include health and safety, compliance, facilities, staffing and employee benefits. Strategic Investments enhance the capacity of the public school system to improve student success, staff success and ensure successful systems of support.
      “This annual budget reflects input from the schools and complex area personnel from the field on the needs and priorities of the Department of Education, and we fully support the schools and the effort to improve student achievement consistent with our strategic plan,” said BOE Finance Committee Chair Brian De Lima.
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HAWAI`I WILDLIFE FUND SENDS MAHALOS to the 43 people who helped remove over 1,858 pounds of marine debris from along the coastline at Ka`u’s Kamilo Point during last month’s cleanup event. 
      This debris consisted of approximately 1,750 pounds of miscellaneous debris collected in 83 large bags, plus 100 pounds of derelict fishing nets. In addition, three participants picked up another 580 pounds of debris (180 pounds in 10 bags, plus 400 pounds of nets) of extra debris the following week. Of the 32,204 items removed and tallied by volunteers, over 91 percent were plastic, and the remainder were cloth/fabric, glass, rubber or glass/metal.
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HAWAI`I WILDFIRE MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATION will hold community input meetings next week to update Hawai`i County Community Wildfire Protection Plans for Volcano and Ka`u.
      “Community input is critical to the CWPP process to determine priority wildfire concerns, needs and action steps to better prepare and protect fire-prone areas from wildfires,” said HWMO representative Ilene Grossman. “Your input is vital to the plan being well rounded and informed.”
Fuel reduction workdays are part of some communities' Wildfire Protection Plans.
Photo from HWMO
      Meetings will be held Tuesday, Oct. 28 from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Cooper Center in Volcano and from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Na`alehu School. Another meeting takes place Wednesday, Oct. 29 from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center.
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HONOLULU STAR-ADVERTISER HAS ENDORSED SEN. DAVID IGE in the race for governor. The endorsement mentions Ige’s action plan, Engineering Hawai`i’s Future and highlights his approach to balancing the state budget, supporting business growth through targeted tax credits and improving education by getting resources directly to each school’s leaders.
      The paper’s editorial board also described Ige as “a conciliator, one who has deep working relationships with lawmakers who can bring plans to fruition,” a reference to Ige’s 29-year history at the state Legislature.
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WALK-IN VOTING IN ADVANCE OF THE NOV. 4 General Election is available at Pahala Community Center weekdays through Friday, Oct. 31. Hours are 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

TODAY’S MEETING OF THE KA`U CHAPTER of Hawai`i Farmers Union United has been rescheduled for Thursday, Oct. 30 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Na`alehu Community Center. 
      For more information, call 503-575-9098.

LANA`I COMES TO KA`U TO PARTICIPATE in Ho`okupu Hula No Ka`u Cultural Festival in Pahala. As a cultural exchange, practitioners will be coming from Lana`i to share their talents with Ka`u and Hawai`i Island.
      Kumu hula Debbie Ryder created the festival when she lived on Lana`i, and Pahala members of her Hula Halau O Leionalani traveled to Lana`i to participate. Ryder recently moved to Pahala and brought the festival with her.
      The festival takes place on the grounds of the Plantation Manager’s House in the afternoons and evenings this Friday and Saturday.
      All entertainment is open to the public with no fees.
Diane Ferlatte
      Workshops, some with minimal fees, are scheduled Saturday morning.
      For more, see www.hookupukau.com.
      See more on the festival in this week’s Ka`u News Briefs and in this month’s issue of The Ka`u Calendar.

DIANE FERLATTE, AN INTERNATIONALLY ACCLAIMED and award-winning storyteller, will share ghostly tales, just in time for Halloween, at Pahala Public & School Library a week from today on Wednesday, Oct. 29 at 3 p.m. In Haunted Bayou: Ghostly Tales, Spirits Have Souls, Too, Ferlatte uses expression, gesture and intense emotion to create multiple characters for each story. Through stories, songs, American Sign Language and humor, she brings her tales to life.
      Ferlatte is a native of New Orleans and has visited almost every state in the U.S., including Hawai`i and Alaska, to perform at libraries, major festivals, theaters, conferences and schools. Nominated for a Grammy Award in 2008, Ferlatte said she especially loves performing in public libraries, as she believes that they are one of the places where the tradition of storytelling is to be nurtured and lessons of the stories most need to be heard.
      This 45-minute program is suitable for ages 5 and older. Young children must be accompanied by a parent or caregiver.
      For more information, call 928-2015.

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




See kaucalendar.com/Directory2014.swf.