Tuesday, June 28, 2022

Ka‘ū News Briefs, Tuesday June 28, 2022

Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park reports its 1.3 million visitors in 2021 spent $117 million in local communities,
supporting 1,220 local jobs and generating a total benefit to the island of $154 million. NPS Photo
HAWAIʻI VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK DREW 1.3 MILLION VISITORS in 2021, says the latest National Park Service report, which notes that those coming to the park spent an estimated $117 million in local communities. "That local spending supported 1,220 jobs, mostly in recreation, lodging and transportation, with a total benefit to the island of Hawaiʻi of $154 million," says the Park statement released on Tuesday.
    "Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park is a World Heritage Site cherished by visitors and our community who come to discover the active volcanoes of Kīlauea and Mauna Loa, and the incredible natural and cultural resources that extend from sea level to summit," said Superintendent Rhonda Loh. "Visitor spending benefits the island economy, and visitors who recreate responsibly, plan ahead and respect this sacred Hawaiian landscape also benefit the national park."
    The report on Hawaiʻi Volcanoes comes from the 2021 National Park Visitor Spending Effects report,  an annual peer-reviewed economics report prepared by economists from the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Park Service. It includes information by parks and by states on visitor spending, the number of jobs supported by visitor spending and other statistics.
    Across the nation, visitor spending in communities near national parks resulted in a $42.5 billion benefit to the nation's economy and supported 322,600 mostly local jobs, according to the report.
    The eight national park units in Hawaiʻi welcomed 3.9 million visitors in 2021 who spent an estimated $438 million in local gateway communities. This spending supported a total of 4,610 jobs, and had a cumulative benefit to the state of Hawaiʻi of $607 million, the report states.
     The statement recommends that the public "Find out more about Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park and how to plan like a park ranger during the busy summer months by visiting the park website. The current eruption from Kīlauea volcano continues to attract thousands of visitors each day. A massive lava lake within the summit crater, Halemaʻumaʻu, can be viewed from a safe distance from numerous vantage points along the crater rim. Parking lots and overlooks often fill up during peak hours of 10 a.m. to 8 p.m." See www.nps.gov/havo.

    About the National Park Service: More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 423 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram,
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes reported on its economic
impact to the community this week.
NPS photo
Twitter, and YouTube.

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TWO FULL TIME POSITIONS ARE AVAILABLE AT HAWAIʻI VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK.
One job is with the Natural and Cultural Resources Management programs which seeks a permanent full-time Budget Technician. Go to USAJobs.gov for the details, the application closing date is 7/2/22:
https://www.usajobs.gov/job/661802400
    The Park is also seeking a permanent full-time permanent Maintenance Mechanic Supervisor. Visit this link on USAJobs.gov for more information:
https://www.usajobs.gov/job/661202400
    USAJobs.gov is the official employment website of the federal government. Other jobs within the park and other National Park Service locations are also listed on this site.

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see www.facebook.com/kaucalendar. See latest print edition at www.kaucalendar.com. See upcoming events at https://kaunewsbriefs.blogspot.com/2022/04/upcoming-events-for-kau-and-volcano.html.

Congressman Kai Kahele talks with Kaʻū Coffee farmer
 Joan Obra on Pāhala Plantation House lānai where
 he will hold a talk story for his campaign for governor
on Friday at 8:30 a.m. Photo by Julia Neal
KAI KAHELE WILL VISIT KAʻŪ ON FRIDAY with the public invited to a talk story session at Pāhala Plantation House lanai from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m.. Kahele, who is Kaʻū's congressman and is running for governor, visited Pāhala several times to meet with coffee farmers about their quest to purchase their coffee farms which were subdivided. Coffee farmers also asked the congressman for help with controlling pests that threaten the production of coffee here. 
    Kahele also recently attended a virtual meeting discussing life on family farms in Kaʻū and gave a talk at the Hawaiʻi Coffee Association annual conference where he noted the work of Kaʻū Coffee Growers Cooperative President Gloria Camba. Coffee farmers are expected to give an update to Kahele on purchasing of their farms and their challenges with production and marketing. 
    Patrons of libraries in Kaʻū are expected to ask how Kai Kahele will continue the legacy of this father, the late state Sen. Gil Kahele, in saving rural libraries like those in Kaʻū from shutting down and improving their service to the community.
     Kahele said he invites people to give their input on his race for governor and wants to learn more about needs and issues in Kaʻū, from housing to health, education, infrastructure and environment to economic development. Spearheading the talk story is former west Kaʻū state legislator, Dr. Richard Creagan.

Coffee farmer John Ah San talked to Congressman Kai Kahele about the Kaʻū Coffee
farmers' quest for land security. Many of the farmers recently purchased their lands.
Photo by Hanale Lee Loy
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THE TRANSFER OF STEWARDSHIP OF MAUNAKEA 
from University of Hawaiʻi to a new authority will happen, according to a U.H. statement on Tuesday, which notes that Gov. David Ige did not put the measure passed by the 2022 Hawaiʻi Legislature on his veto list. The U.H. statement says:
    "On Monday, June 27 Governor Ige released the list of bills he intends to veto, HB 2024 was not on that list. This means HB 2024, which would transfer stewardship and management of Maunakea from the University of Hawaiʻi to a new authority, will pass into law. 
U.H. says it will cooperate in transferring its Mauna Kea stewardship
to a new authority. Photo from U.H. by Andrew Hara
    "The University of Hawaiʻi is committed to working collaboratively with the new authority, created by the legislation, to ensure a smooth transition of all stewardship responsibilities. An internal analysis is currently underway to determine how to best transfer UH’s complex long-term obligations to the new management entity including leases, easements, subleases, permits, etc. 
    "Some of this transition work was laid out in the university’s letter to the Chair of the Department of Land and Natural Resources (PDF) on May 30, 2022. The university will also provide information and support to transition the many stewardship programs currently caring for the natural and cultural resources and ensuring safe public access to the mauna, including the critically important work being performed by the Maunakea Rangers. Until the transition occurs, the university is committed to responsible stewardship of Maunakea."

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THE SEARCH IS ON FOR JESUS SANCHEZ and Hawai‘i Island police are requesting the public's
Jesus Sanchez is missing.
assistance in finding the 39-year-old who was reported missing by his family. Sanchez was last seen in the area of the Ola‘a Forest Reserve hunter station near the Volcano transfer station on Monday, June 27, 2022, wearing a hoodie and shorts.
    He is 5 feet 6 inches to 5 feet 8 inches tall, 180 to 185 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.
    Sanchez is also known to frequent the Volcano, Pāhala, and Hawaiian Ocean View Estate areas.
    Police ask anyone with information on his whereabouts to call the police department’s non-emergency line at (808) 935-3311, attention Officer Kenneth Ishii.

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POLICE ARRESTED 18 MOTORISTS FOR DUI during the week of June 20 through June 26. Hawaiʻi Island police arrested them for driving under the influence of an intoxicant. Three of the drivers were involved in a traffic accident. One was under the age of 21. 
    So far this year, there have been 511 DUI arrests compared with 578 during the same period last year, a
decrease of 11.6 percent.
    There have been 375 major accidents so far this year compared with 382 during the same period last year, a decrease of 1.8 percent.
    To date, there were 18 fatal crashes (one fatal crash reclassified on 5/30/22 due to a medical condition) resulting in 20 fatalities (one of which had multiple deaths, and one of which was reclassified due to a medical condition), compared with 12 fatal crashes, resulting in 12 fatalities for the same time last year. This represents is an increase of 50 percent for fatal crashes, and 66.7 percent for fatalities.
    The police department promises that DUI roadblocks and patrols will continue island wide.

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see www.facebook.com/kaucalendar. See latest print edition at www.kaucalendar.com. See upcoming events at https://kaunewsbriefs.blogspot.com/2022/04/upcoming-events-for-kau-and-volcano.html.

VOLCANO VILLAGE FOURTH OF JULY PARADE welcomes walking and riding groups and individuals. It is sponsored by Volcano Community Association in Volcano Village from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Monday, July 4 parade starts at the Post Office at 9 a.m. and ends at Cooper Center on Wright Rd., followed by Cooper Center's Independence Day celebration packed with live entertainment, craft and food vendors, keiki games and a large silent auction from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Parking maps can be found at www.thecoopercenter.org. (No parking at Cooper Center except handicap permitted vehicles with prior reservation.)

SPONSOR A BUCKLE, VOTE FOR RODEO QUEEN ahead of the Saturday, July 9 Rodeo organized by Kaʻū Roping & Riding Association and ʻO Kaʻū Kākou. Event to be held on the rodeo grounds behind Nāʻālehu Park. Call 808-854-7917.   

BECOME A SPONSOR AT THE 3RD ANNUAL EXPERIENCE VOLCANO FESTIVAL on Saturday, July 30th and Sunday, July 31st from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Last year, over 2,500 visitors attended and over 40 events were featured during the EVH festival. Sign up as a sponsor at experiencevolcano.com. If you have questions, contact experiencevolcano@gmail.com. All vendor locations are taken.

SIGN UP FOR KAʻŪ COFFEE TRAIL RUNS with a change of date from July 3 to Sept. 17. Registration deadline for the annual event is Sept. 14. Organized by Hawaiʻi Island Racers, the 50K begins at 6 a.m., Half Marathon at 7 a.m., and 5K at 7:15 a.m., all starting from Kaʻū Coffee Mill at 96-2696 Wood Valley Road in Pāhala. Proceeds go to support ʻO Kaʻū Kākou. For more details on the event and registration fees, visit https://www.kaucoffeetrailruns.com/.


LEARN MORE ABOUT SPONSORS OF THE KAʻŪ CALENDAR