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Friday, October 21, 2016

Ka`u Calendar News Briefs Friday, Oct. 21, 2016

Pele's hair from the active lava lake at Halema`uma`u is covering parts of the Ka`u Desert.
See more below. Photo from USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
KAPAPALA RANCH COOPERATIVE GAME MANAGEMENT AREA and Kapapala Forest Reserve will be open for game bird hunting Saturdays, Sundays,and state holidays for the entire upcoming season. The 2016-2017 Game Bird Hunting Season opens on Saturday, Nov. 5. State biologists are predicting a below average season of bird hunting, with lingering drought impacts in many parts of the state. The fall game bird hunting season will run through Sunday, Jan. 29. A valid hunting license and a game bird stamp are required for all game bird hunting on public and private lands. All game bird hunting is regulated by Hawai`i Administrative Rules Title 13, Chapter 122. See http://hawaii.gov/dlnr/dofaw “Administrative Rules” for all legal hunting days.
Game bird hunting season begins soon.
Painting by Mike Brown from DLNR
      Other game bird hunting areas on Hawai`i Island include Mauna Kea GMA & Forest Reserve and Pu`u Mali Mitigation Site, Pohakuloa Training Area, Pu`u Wa`awa`a Forest Reserve & Pu`u Anahulu, Pu`uanahulu GMA, Kaohe GMA & Mitigation Site, Kipuka `Ainahou, Kahua/Ponoholo Ranch Special Permit Area.
      Hunters are required to check in and out at established check stations. First obtain permission from landowners when seeking to hunt on private land. Prevent wildfires by not parking or driving in tall grass or brush. Report fires to 911.
      Report game law violators to the Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement at 643-DLNR (3567).
      Further information may be obtained by contacting Division of Forestry & Wildlife in Hilo at 974-4221. 
Sen. Brian Schatz
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U.S. SEN. BRIAN SCHATZ CALLED FOR PASSAGE of a bill he co-introduced to “fix our broken college accreditation system and reduce college debt.” The bill would require the federal Department of Education to develop standards regarding rates of graduation, job placement and loan repayment.
      “A higher education is meant to help people move up the economic ladder, but too many students are being left deep in debt and without a degree,” Schatz said. “Our college accreditation system should be working to weed out bad schools, but as we’ve seen with the recent closures of fraudulent institutions that remained accredited up until the day they closed, that just isn’t happening. For the protection of students and taxpayers, our bill will put common sense standards in place to improve the quality of higher education and hold accreditors accountable for failing schools.”
      To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see Facebook. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter.

Pahala Community Center opens Tuesday for early voting and late
registration. Photo from Hawai`i Office of Elections
EARLY VOTING AND LATE REGISTRATION for the general election begins Tuesday. Although the deadline to register to vote on Nov. 8 has passed, residents can still register and vote at several locations prior to Election Day.
      Pahala Community Center will be open to vote and register Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
      Other Hawai`i Island sites are Aupuni Center Conference Room in Hilo, West Hawai`i Civic Center Community Room and Waimea Community Center.

KTA IS RAISING FUNDS FOR BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS. Ka`u supporters can donate at any KTA checkout stand throughout the Big Island. One hundred percent of donations taken at KTA go to support the Boys & Girls Clubs. Many Ka`u children spend the afternoons after school at the Boys & Girls Clubs in Ka`u.

AMBER WAVES OF PELE’S HAIR ARE COVERING the Ka`u Desert downwind of Halema`uma`u. Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists explain why in the current issue of Volcano Watch
      “The lava lake within Halema`uma`u Crater at the summit of Kilauea Volcano is creating a scene remindful of a messy barbershop floor, except that it’s acres and acres wide rather than a few square feet,” the article states. “The ground downwind of the crater is strewn with Pele’s hair, and it is almost impossible to avoid stepping on it.
This close-up of Pele's hair shows how individual strands of volcanic
glass can become aligned with wind direction. Photo from HVO
      “Such a scene has not been reported before at Kilauea. What’s happening? 
      “Pele’s hair consists of long glass fibers that form when gas bubbles burst in the lava lake. Pieces of the fluid bubble skin are propelled violently into the air, drawing out into long, hair-like strands that cool to a golden-colored glass. Since the lake is bubbling almost constantly, large volumes of Pele’s hair are made daily. The resulting hair blows downwind from Halema`uma`u, across the caldera and into the Ka`u Desert.
      “The Pele’s hair collects against embankments, such as gully walls or curbs in the now-closed Halema`uma`u Crater parking lot. It also is strewn across the ground surface, catching on small rocks and ultimately creating a web of interwoven hair. The web is streamlined, with most pieces of hair aligned with the wind direction.
      “When a south (kona) wind blows, Pele’s hair can easily reach the Jaggar Museum Overlook area in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, where it drapes `ohi`a like tinsel on a Christmas tree.
      “Drifts of Pele’s hair can survive for years and even decades, but, once the eruption has ended, wind will strip the hair from most surfaces. The photos included here show scenes what many will never see first-hand, because most of the Pele’s hair is blown downwind of the summit vent – an area of the national park that has been closed since 2008 due to elevated sulfur dioxide emissions and other ongoing volcanic hazards.”
      See hvo.wr.usgs.gov/volcanowatch. To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see Facebook. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter.

Learn about bookbinding techniques Saturday.
Photo from VAC
A WILD AND UNHINGED WEEKEND IS BEING PLANNED for a week from tomorrow by Volcano Art Center.
      Hawai`i’s year-round growing
 season offers a wide array of wild food options for intrepid localvores. From seeds to leaves, stems to fruits, participants learn what is edible and what is not in the Edible Wild Plants workshop from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Interact first-hand with many of these under-appreciated edibles during an outing at Kipuka Pua`ulu (Bird Park) in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.
      Class size is limited; cost is $40/$30 VAC members. Participants bring lunch.
      VAC reminds residents to never eat anything from the wild without first consulting an expert and forage responsibly. Attendees will carpool from VAC in Volcano Village to Bird Park.
      Charlene Asato dispels mysteries of the piano hinge book in a workshop from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Utilizing paper and rods, this structure can be highly sculptural and textural. Piano hinge books are nice to look at and feel in your hands because they move differently than a regular book. You’ll be entranced by the possibilities of this binding, devised by Hedi Kyle, who is well known for her unconventional book structures.
      Cost is $35/$32 VAC members plus a $10 materials fee. Prior bookbinding experience is not necessary.

Hikers on Palm Trail. NPS Photo by Sami Steinkamp
KAHUKU UNIT OF HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK offers free programs this weekend.
      Participants discover the Hawaiian goddesses Hi`iaka & Pele and the natural phenomena they represent on a moderate, one-mile walk tomorrow from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.
      The Palm Trail Hike on Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. follows a moderately difficult, 2.6-mile, loop-trail that provides one of the best panoramic views Kahuku has to offer.

A WORKSHOP TOMORROW FOCUSES ON THE LATEST coffee processing equipment, coffee berry borer control, crop nutrition, subsidy programs and legislative updates.
      The workshop takes place at Pahala Community Center from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. with a one-hour lunch break at 11:30 a.m.
      RSVP to Laura Diaz at laura@ldomarket.com, 928-8188 or 408-306-5596.

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

See kaucalendar.com.
See kaucalendar.com/TheDirectory2016.html
and kaucalendar.com/TheDirectory2016.pdf.