Ka‘ū News Briefs, Monday, Jan. 17, 2022

Redistricting will likely leave Kaʻū with one instead of two members to represent the rural community in the state
 House of Representatives. How much urban area will be in the district is still in question. These two maps show
 proposals to combine the two districts now in Kaʻū. The map below shows the current two districts. 
Maps from the state Reapportionment Commission

KAʻŪ WOUULD LOSE ONE OF TWO MEMBERS IN THE STATE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES under both options being considered by the Reapportionment Commission, which aims to set districts, according to the one-person, one vote ideal. Currently, West Kaʻū is represented by Jeanne Kapela, of Kona, who replaced Dr. Richard Creagan, when he declined to run for office again in 2020. He held the position for years representing a district from Honu'apo into Kona.

The current state House of Representative districts provide
 two seats for Ka'u, one for the eastside and one for the westside.
Map from state Reapportionment Commission

    

   East Kaʻū is represented by Richard Onishi, a Hilo resident. He has held the position for a decade.
    Whether Kaʻū would be better represented by two representatives or one is a question, but the decision has already been made to put all of Ka'u in one House District 5. Still to be determined is how much of Kona and which parts of Puna will be included. One option for House District 5, based on revised permanent resident population data adopted by the Reapportionment Commission on Jan. 6, would make District 5 span from Honaunau through all of Kaʻū and into Puna, including both sides of Hwy 11 almost to Kurtistown, and the mauka side of Hwy 11 into Kea`au.                            See https://elections.hawaii.gov/wp-content/uploads/v1231HawaiiHouseProposed2022.pdf

     See public submissions for redistricting the state House at https://elections.hawaii.gov/about-us/boards-and-commissions/reapportionment/
    One view is that the more the district covers rural Hawai'i, with its agriculture and natural resources, the more Kaʻū interests would be represented, without being sidelined by interests from urban Kona and Puna. The aim, however, is to draw the lines to get the populations in each district as close to equal as possible.

     See more on redistricting the state Senate and County Council districts in upcoming Kaʻū News Briefs.

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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speaking during Civil Rights Week at University of Hawaiʻi in1964.
Photo from University of Hawaiʻi News

MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY, the national holiday on Monday, drew a message from Hawai'i's U.S. Senator Mazie Hirono, who wrote:

   “Today, we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day by honoring civil rights leaders who fought against inequality and sacrificed so much to move our country closer towards justice for all.

    “But this year, on a day when we should be coming together to commemorate these civil rights achievements and recommit to the road ahead, we are instead fighting a battle we thought was won decades ago. 

This contingent from Hawai'i provided Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
 with lei to wear during the Civil Rights March in Selma in 1965.
Photo from the Human Flower Project

   “In 1957, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his Give Us the Ballot address where he said, “The denial of this sacred right is a tragic betrayal of the highest mandates of our democratic tradition.” But here we are, in 2022, fighting back against hundreds of bills introduced in states with the clear intention of making it harder for certain people to vote.

    “Our country’s legacy of racial discrimination in voting is undeniable.  And it’s undeniable that we are witnessing history repeat itself today. If we want to honor Dr. King’s legacy, we must put politics aside and pass the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.”

     Ka'u's Congressman Kai Kahele said, "Today, we celebrate the vision and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Tomorrow, we forge ahead to keep his dream alive by continuing our fight for equal opportunity and justice for all. #MLKDay"

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A NEW TONGAN VOLCANO ERUPTION REPORT from Pita Taufatofua includes a message from journalist Barbara Dreavor regarding the islands struck by tidal waves on Saturday, and a  resulting breakdown in communications. "It is going to take at least two weeks before international phones and internet are working again, despite initial indications the submarine cable is intact, that is not the case. there are two breaks in it, one of them close to the volcano.
    "The vessel which will repair it is in Papua New Guinea and it will take three to four days to prepare it.
    "It will head to Samoa to pick up critical equipment, then head to the sites. There may be delays if there are more eruptions or if the cable is buried in the seabed. It will get fixed but Tongans living overseas should prepare themselves for a longer wait to contact loved ones," reported Dreaver.
    Taufatofua, the recent Tongan Olympic flag bearer, set up a fundraiser for victims of the tsunami at
https://www.gofundme.com/f/tonga-tsunami-
relief-by-pita-taufatofua?utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link_all&utm_source=cu.  

    Taufatofua also reported that the ship S.S. Adelaide has set sail through UNICEF bringing aid to Tonga.
He also reported the loss of a British woman who had sent up an animal shelter in Tonga. She was washed away by the tidal wave, her body found.

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www.kaucalendar.com and find the
monthly print copy in mailboxes from 
Volcano through Ocean View.

Ka‘ū News Briefs, Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022

This old Ninole bridge was replaced in recent years along Hwy 11, mauka of Punalu'u. State DOT photo

REPAIRING AND IMPROVING BRIDGES IN HAWAI'I is the aim of funding announced on Friday by U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz. He said Hawai'i will receive $339 million in new federal funding over five years with the first round totaling $67.8 million this year.  He said more than 80 bridges across the islands are in need of repair or replacement.

    The federal funding comes from the Department of Transportation’s newly launched Bridge Replacement, Rehabilitation, Preservation, Protection, and Construction Program, which was created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed by Congress and signed into law last November.
    “This historic investment will help rebuild bridges across Hawai‘i, making them safer and more resilient for everyone,” said Schatz, Chair of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation and Housing. “The bipartisan infrastructure law is already helping our state, and I’m proud to have supported it.”

This old Hilea Bridge was recently replaced
along Hwy 11 in Kaʻū. State DOT photo

    

    The program, to be administered by the Federal Highway Administration, represents the single largest dedicated bridge investment since the construction of the interstate highway system – providing $26.5 billion to states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico over the five years of the law and $825 million for Tribal transportation facilities. The total amount that will be available to states, D.C. and Puerto Rico in Fiscal Year 2022 is $5.3 billion, along with $165 million for tribes.
    The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law includes an incentive for states to direct the new Bridge Formula Program funds to off-system bridges owned by a county, city, town or other local agency. While states normally must match federal funding with up to 20 percent state or local funding, the guidance issued today notes that federal funds can be used for 100 percent of the cost of repairing or rehabilitating such locally owned off-system bridges.

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Kass Ulmer, Research Corp. of the University of Hawaiʻi
 seismologist at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, deploys a
 temporary seismometer at Kīlauea summit on 1/1/2021.
 USGS image by P. Dotray

COLLABORATION BETWEEN U.H. AND HAWAIIAN VOLCANOES OBSERVATORY is the subject of this week's Volcano Watch written by U.S. Geological Survey scientists and affiliates:
    Thanks to late Hawai'i Senator Daniel Inouye, the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo (UHH), and the Center for the Study of Active Volcanoes (CSAV), a cooperative agreement with the Research Corporation of the University of Hawaiʻi (RCUH) was established in 1998.          Since then, many RCUH employees have played crucial roles at HVO, helping with real-time volcano monitoring, assessing hazards, disseminating information, and conducting research on Hawaiian volcanoes.    Much of this work is done behind the scenes, but the start of Kīlauea's ongoing summit eruption on Sep. 29 helped shine a spotlight on these RCUH employees as HVO rapidly responded to an eruption that showed very little precursory activity. The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) is made up of experts with a wide variety of specializations. Seismologists, geodesists, geochemists, geologists, technicians, and support staff all work together to accomplish the same mission: to monitor, research, and assess hazards related to volcanoes and earthquakes in Hawaii. HVO's staff is mostly made up of federal employees; however, many critical tasks are handled by staff members affiliated with the University of Hawaiʻi.
    Kass Ulmer, a RCUH seismologist, is generally one of the first people at the observatory to spot changes occurring within the volcanoes. They monitor seismic data to look for subtle low-frequency signals, small earthquake migrations, and deep tremor. The recent Kīlauea eruption was no different. Ulmer quickly identified complex patterns in seismic activity below Halema'uma'u crater that suggested an eruption was imminent. They immediately notified other HVO staff and the decision was made to raise the alert level, notify field crews, and prepare for an eruption.

Lil DeSmither uses a thermal imaging infrared camera to measure surface temperatures
 on a cracked road with steam coming up from lava. USGS photo

    HVO quickly released information to the public thanks to Katie Mulliken, another RCUH scientist who specializes in public communication. Mulliken worked closely with others at HVO to raise Kīlauea's Volcano Alert Level prior to the eruption; she continued to put eruption information on the HVO website after the eruption started to keep Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park staff and the public informed. The entire event from first detection to eruption unfolded in less than forty-five minutes.
    Real-time monitoring, forecasting and detecting eruptive activity is a major part of HVO's mission, along with informing the public of changes in activity. But there are other important HVO responsibilities including data collation, documenting activity, and historical analysis that cooperative projects with UHH/CSAV help HVO accomplish.
  Lil DeSmither and Miki Warren are two other RCUH employees who participate in crucial projects at HVO. DeSmither is often part of the geology field crews; she's gained experience by routinely monitoring volcanic activity during the Pu'u'ō'ō, 2018 lower East Rift Zone, and recent Kīlauea summit eruptions. In the field, DeSmither measures Halema'uma'u lava lake, lava fountain heights, and other features using a laser rangefinder. She also helps collect, organize, post, and archive visual and thermal photographs and videos during helicopter overflights. These products are then used to create eruption maps, Digital Elevation Models (DEMs), and eruption chronologies.

Miki Warren conducts most of USGS' S02
 emission rate measurements. UH photo

   

    Warren conducts the majority of Kīlauea's sulfur dioxide (SO2) emission rate measurements—one of the most critical gas datasets at HVO. Sulfur dioxide emissions inform us about eruption intensity and potential for vog (volcanic air pollution) in communities downwind. Miki also calculates the height of the summit volcanic gas plume from camera imagery and assists with water sampling, gas sampling, and other gas measurement campaigns.
    Several RCUH postdoctoral researchers at HVO work on projects related to volcanic ash deposits, volcanic plumes, and lava flow modeling. HVO is also in the process of bringing a ground deformation specialist on board through RCUH. The cooperative agreement has also supported Dr. Cheryl Gansecki and Dr. Steven Lundblad's real-time geochemistry lab at UHH that played an important role in monitoring the 2018 eruption.
    These current RCUH employees are just a small sample of the many RCUH staff that have aided HVO over the years. The dedication and passion that the RCUH employees bring to work every day contributes to HVO's mission and several RCUH employees have gone on to have careers with the USGS.
    Collaborative and cooperative work between USGS and RCUH staff enhances data acquisition, hazard assessments, and information distribution at HVO. At times, this work is difficult and can go unnoticed, but it is vital to volcano and earthquake monitoring in Hawai'i. USGS and RCUH staff at HVO, with diverse backgrounds, and specialties, work together to accomplish our mission at the highest possible level.

This Uplink program is at the Pāhala public school campus.

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COVID COUNTS STATEWIDE SWANG WILDLY OVER THE WEEKEND.  The highest daily count of new cases to date reached 5,997 on Saturday and declined to 3,787 on Sunday.
    In the last 14 days the number of cases from Volcano through Ocean View were 19 in Volcano, 20 in Pāhala, 23 in Nāʻālehu and 13 in Ocean View. The state Department of Health reported a positivity rate for Hawai'i Island on Friday at 18.1 percent, which is a decline. Continued decline over the next week or two could indicate that perhaps the disease has reached its peak and may drop away in the near future.

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A SCAM SEEKING SOCIAL SECURITY AND LICENSE PLATE NUMBERS has drawn a warning from the state Department of Transportation. DOT reports that the phishing link comes via an email from profileinfos@hat.kr and stays, “You have an incomplete Hawaii DMV contact informations on your Hawaii Department of Motor Vehicle."

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See archives of The Ka`u Calendar at
www.kaucalendar.com and find the
monthly print copy in mailboxes from 
Volcano through Ocean View.

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