Kaʻū News Briefs Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023

A mock care room at the new Hopena Kuloli Medical Training Institute in Ocean View Town Center. Photo from Hokulani Porter

A CERTIFIED NURSE ASSISTANT SCHOOL IS SET TO OPEN IN OCEAN VIEW. Called Hopena Kūloli Medical Training Institute, it is located in Ocean View Town Center. An open house will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 11 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. with detailed information to register. Classes are set to begin Oct. 11 for seven weeks on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Clinical practicum dates will be announced and are usually four days in length. Hopena Kūloli Medical Training Institute plans to offer evening classes later in the year.
    Founder Hokulani Porter said that Hopena Kūloli Medical Training Institute "is catalyzing a monumental change." She and other health care providers, including physicians, have described the communities from Pāhala through Nāʻālehu and Ocean View to Captain Cook as a desert for home health care, particularly for the elderly.

    Porter is a nurse practitioner and owner of the training institute. She started in nursing as a single mom by signing up for a Certified Nurse Assistant course. She said, "It changed my life to start making a living wage that helped me to get my head above water as well as to escape the need of dependency on the welfare system." After being employed in several long-term care homes as a CNA, Porter returned to school to become a Licensed Practical Nurse, then Registered Nurse and Nurse Practitioner for the past 11 years.
    Porter received an 'Ike Ao Pono scholarship that helps Hawaiian students to enter the professional nursing field at University of Hawai'i, Mānoa and to bring more health practitioners out to Hawai'i's rural communities. She came to to Kaʻū Hospital for all her clinical study hours and graduated in 2012. She said, "I greatly enjoy the people and community of Kaʻū and feel at home here." She said her roots include her great grandmother from Kaʻū.

Hokulani Porter to train
Certified Nursing Assistants
in Ocean View 

    

    When working in Kaʻū, Porter said, she realized the dire need for more health care and started laying her foundation to help solve the problem. Nearly a decade later while working as a personal care provider for patients at Kaʻū Wellness Clinic in Ocean View, she said she sees that the lack of health care resources "are even scarcer, especially access to home health services that assist our elderly."
    Porter said she also wants to increase employment opportunities in Kaʻū, so more people can work near home, avoid long drives and save on fuel. The mission of Hopena Kūloli Medical Training Institute is "to inspire students to refocus and rebuild, to enhance oneself through education. We want our students to build themselves a career that will support themselves and the needs of their families." CNA's can work in home health on a schedule that works for them. They can also find employment in a hospital or acute care setting and continue to rise in the nursing field.

    Skills learned as a CNA can also be applied to a variety of work settings. Porter said the school teaches attention to detail, verbal and written communication, consistency, interpersonal skills, record-keeping, knowledge of medical terminology and the understanding of common health disorders.
    To take the classes for the CNA certification, students must be 18 years of age or older, have a high School graduate or GED equivalent, be able to read, write, and communicate in English language. At completion of the course, students sit for a national board exam that awards them a certificate allowing them to work for any health facility throughout the United States.
   For more information, call Hokulani Porter at 808-777-0674

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THE MEASURE TO KEEP THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FUNDED for the next 45 days was successfully supported by Hawai'i's Congressional Delegation on Saturday and includes funding to help with the Maui firestorm disaster. Sen. Mazie Hirono noted that the bill includes $16 billion in supplemental funding for the federal Disaster Relief Fund. It passed the Senate by a vote of 88-9 on Saturday night. The bill passed the House earlier in the day by a vote of 335-91. Pres. Joe Biden signed it into law.

   Hirono said, “Today, I voted to keep the federal government open and deliver critical disaster relief for Maui. With $16 billion in disaster relief funding, this legislation will help ensure FEMA and the federal family of agencies have the resources they need to continue their important recovery work on Maui and in other communities impacted by disasters across the country. This bipartisan agreement benefits the people of Hawai'i and our country and prevents the chaos a shutdown would cause.
    “Radical House Republicans were willing to bring us to the brink of a government shutdown in a failed attempt to slash safety net programs, endangering the welfare of children and families across our country. Astoundingly, 90 of them still voted to shut down the government today without any alternatives. In the critical days ahead, Congress must also keep its commitment to fund and support Ukraine, as we’ve consistently done on a bipartisan basis. Failure to do so would send a dangerous message to Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping about our commitment to defending democracy and our national security. Work remains over the next 45 days.”

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WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THE KULANAOKUAIKI TEPHRA OF KĪLAUEA VOLCANO? That is the title of this week's Volcano Watch, the monthly column written by USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists and affiliates. This week's author is HVO intern and University of Deleware graduate student Abigail R. Nalesnik, who writes:

A paint brush is very useful to discern individual Kulanaokuaiki Tephra units

 by clearing away overlying younger ash and Pele's hair. At this field site on the

 south flank of Kīlauea, the Kulanaokuaiki Tephra is overlain by Observatory Shield

lava flows and underlain by the Kīpuka Nēnē lava flows. This helps give great time

 constraints to the deposition of this tephra. USGS photo by Kendra J. Lynn.

   My work has been focused on finding and sampling parts of the Kulanaokuaiki Tephra, which erupted from Kīlauea 1,000–1,600 years ago (400–1000 CE).
    The Kulanaokuaiki Tephra is part of the Uēkahuna Ash, and it has been best studied on the south flank of Kīlauea. Five stratigraphically distinct subunits, K-1 through K-5, make up the Kulanaokuaiki Tephra. All of them are composed of tephra—rock pieces ejected from a vent during explosive volcanic eruptions.
    After they are ejected from the vent, tephra travel through the air for a distance; where they fall is determined in part by their shape and mass. These particles may travel far when a large explosive eruption has a plume high enough to reach trade wind and even jet stream heights. The plume that produced some of the Kulanaokuaiki Tephra deposits on the south flank of Kīlauea is estimated to have reached 9–11 miles (14–18 km) 
    I am studying the Kulanaokuaiki Tephra deposits to learn more about where the tephra settled, how the eruptions happened and what the physical properties of the tephra itself can share about magmatic processes. It’s important to study a tephra unit with primary deposition, meaning that the deposit appears exactly as it was originally deposited.
   Let’s examine the typical sequence of Kulanaokuaiki Tephra from the bottom (the first eruptions) to the top (the last eruptions). K-1 is usually the thickest of the units and is commonly found resting on the Kīpukanēnē lava flow field (350–190 BCE). It is made up of small 0.2–0.4 inch (0.5–1 centimeter) pumice from high lava fountains that lofted this lighter material for several miles (kilometers).
    K-2 is reworked and appears similar to K-1 but is chemically distinct making it useful as a geochemical marker between field sites.
    There is a stark color and grain size change in K-3. It’s mostly made up of dark scoria ranging from less than 0.04 inches (1 millimeter) to over 1.2 inches (3 centimeters) in size. K-3 is a loose deposit and if I poked an exposure of it with a paint brush, pieces quickly fall out of the outcrop. I sub-sample K-1 and K-3 at several localities, which will be useful to explore the properties of each unit from beginning to end.
    K-4 is a bright orange, fine grained layer that feels like cement when trying to dig into it. You certainly know it when it is present, so like K-2, it is a useful marker in the stratigraphy.
    Lastly, K-5 is a scattered scoria deposit. It’s not always present but it begins poking out when you dig down from the top to sample. It can sometimes also be found embedded in the top of K-4!

 Stratigraphic column of the Kulanaokuaiki Tephra sequence, and an in-the-field
 look at this section with closer photographs of subunits K-1, K-3, and K-5. At
some localities, there are interbedded lava flows that help correlate unitd across
 units across larger distances on Kīlauea volcano.USGS photos by Abigail Nalesnik.

    During my ventures on Kīlauea’s south flank, I’ve found that the thickness of subunits K-2 and K-4 are variable over short distances and are typically thicker in low-lying areas. Does this mean that more tephra truly fell in these localized areas (unlikely), or was some of it moved by wind or water in a process known as reworking?
    We ask these questions because explosive eruptions like those that generated the Kulanaokuaiki Tephra have never been seen in the modern era at Kīlauea, so only their primary deposits can give us clues. The variable thickness of K-2 and K-4 suggests that the deposit was reworked, so my study of the Kulanaokuaiki eruptions focuses on units K-1, K-3, and K-5.
    Farther down Kīlauea’s south flank, the Kulanaokuaiki Tephra deposit quickly changes. K-5 disappears, lost in the weeds of the soil and local vegetation. The bright orange K-4 becomes thinner, and the grains of K-3 become smaller. The once-abundant K-1 also disappears, as we are farther from the assumed source area of the summit.
    As I follow these units to the coast, the only remaining discernible unit is K-3. This part of the deposit made it all the way to Halapē and beyond, ultimately settling in the ocean.
    After making observations and sampling the Kulanaokuaiki Tephra deposit in the field, I’ll begin the work of analyzing samples in the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory's new state-of-the-art lab. My work will help to better interpret the explosive eruptions that produced the Kulanaokuaiki Tephra, giving us more insight into Kīlauea’s eruptive processes over time.
    Volcano Activity Updates: Kīlauea is not erupting. Its USGS Volcano Alert level is ADVISORY.
The Kīlauea summit eruption that began on September 10th stopped on September 16. Summit seismicity has remained low, with very few earthquakes over the past week, and tremor is at background levels. Summit tilt showed a couple of deflation and inflation cycles (DI-events) over the past week, with several microradians of net inflation. The most recent sulfur dioxide (SO2) emission rate, of approximately 150 tonnes per day, was measured on September 25.
    Mauna Loa is not erupting. Its USGS Volcano Alert Level is at NORMAL. Webcams show no signs of activity on Mauna Loa. Seismicity remains low. Summit ground deformation rates indicate slow inflation as magma replenishes the reservoir system following the recent eruption. SO2 emission rates are at background levels.
    No earthquakes were reported felt in the Hawaiian Islands during the past week.

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Kaʻū News Briefs Friday, Sept. 29, 2023

A visiting school from New Zealand brought Maori dancing to students at the Herkes Kaʻū District Gym on Friday. A public performance is planned for Sunday at 'O Kaʻū Kakou Marketplace in Nāʻālehu at 3 p.m. See more below. Photo by Julia Neal

A STEWARDSHIP TRAINING PROGRAM FOR PUNALU'U and other sites in Kaʻū is being launched by Hawai'i Tourism Authority and Ka 'Ohana O Honu'apo in partnershp with Hawaiʻi Wildlife Fund. The funding for this Kaʻū Hoa Pili ʻĀina Training Program is from Hawai'i Tourism Authority, which recently named Punalu'u as one of the hotspots on the island that needs more stewardship.

    Ka 'Ohana O Honu'apo, which has been helping to steward the Kaʻū Coast for many years, received the contract for the training from Hawai'i Tourism Authority. Ka 'Ohana announced Friday that it is recruiting a part-time Mālama ʻĀina Coordinator for training efforts for ten young-adult stewards for a four-month pilot program that may be extended if funding and capacity allows. The statement from the organizations says, "This work is being offered as a part-time seasonal position by HWF (with KOOH) that is being funded by the Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority as part of its destination management and community efforts."
    Kaʻū Hoa Pili ʻĀina Training Program's Mālama ʻĀina Coordinator will work approximately 19 hours per week for this 18-week program beginning Oct. 15, and will work closely with team members of Ka ʻOhana O Honuʻapo and Hawaiʻi Wildlife Fund, says the job summary. This position includes working with HWF staff and KOOH volunteers approximately two days per week in the field and additional hours remotely to support the establishment and operations of the Kaʻū Hoa Pili ʻĀina Training Program for young-adult trainees.    

Logo for Ka 'Ohana 'O Honu'apo

    The job summary also notes that "Communication and coordination will be required for the 16 training sessions (with Guest Kumu), plus logistics for transport, makana, meeting supplies for any huakaʻi or workday planned for the program. Coordinator may request to work additional time, as needed, and permission will be granted on a case-by-case basis and as HWF resources allow. After primary tasks outcomes are achieved, in consultation with supervisor, staff member may spend time on secondary or 'subtasks' and support other HWF conservation activities as possible."
    The announcement states that the position will be open until filled, closing on Oct. 6 unless no qualified applicants apply. Work is expected to begin on Oct. 15. This work is being offered as a part-time seasonal position by HWF in partnership with KOOH.

    Ka 'Ohana O Honu'apo holds Hawai'i Tourism Authority's Hawai'i Island Community-Based Action Stewardship Program contract for Punaluʻu and the project is supported by HTA's Hawaiʻi Island Destination Management Action Plan, Island of Hawai'i Visitors Bureau, and Hawai'i Visitors & Conventions Bureau.
    More info about Hawai'i Wildlife Fund and Ka 'Ohana O Honu'apo is available on their websites at www.wildhawaii.org/ and www.honuapopark.org/.

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High School students from Aotearoa, New Zealand share their traditions with students of Kaʻū at the Herkes District Gym on Friday. A free public performance is at 3 p.m. Sunday at the OKK Market Grounds in Nāʻālehu. Photo by Julia Neal

AOTEAROA, NEW ZEALAND DANCE AND SONG come to the O Kaʻū Kakou Market Grounds in Nāʻālehu this Sunday at 3 p.m. Called Te Maurea Whiritoi Community Performance, the free event features students from Hamilton Boy's High School and Hamilton Girl's High School. They shared their program with local students on Friday at Kaʻū High & Pāhala Elementary School.

    The program provides a full Kapa Haka rapu. The free Nāʻālehu public event is sponsored by Kaʻū High & Pāhala Elementary School, Hawaiian Civic Club of Kaʻū, O Kaʻū Kakou, Ka 'Ohana O Honu'apo, Kamehameha Schools & Kahuku Ranch, Kaʻū  Global Learning Lab and Hawai'i Health Harm Reduction Center.

Kaʻū News Briefs Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023

Pros and cons of a Pāhala sewage treatment plant versus Individual Wastewater Systems for each property
serviced by the old sugar plantation gang cesspool were discussed Thursday at a community meeting led by Brenda 
Iokepa Moses. The County is asking for opinions from the community. Photo by Julia Neal

VOTE FOR A PĀHALA SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT OR INDIVIDUAL WASTEWATER SYSTEMS IN EACH YARD. County of Hawai‘i asks those with houses on the old sugar plantation wastewater gang cesspool to make a choice. It would be one or the other for everyone affected.

    The county Department of Environmental Management held a meeting Thursday evening at Pāhala Community Center and asked folks to give their opinions. Those who couldn't attend can fill out a survey that was mailed to each affected property owner. Comments can also be sent to codem@hawaiicounty.gov and through https://www.hawaiicounty.gov/departments/environmental-management/pahala-naalehu. 

    The website offers in-depth information on the project, including communications from the federal Environmental Protection Agency, a Preliminary Engineering Report, detailed descriptions of the options and maps. It also includes information on an Environmental Information Document that will explore the
environmental and cultural impacts on the options.
    Pāhala resident and Deputy Director of county Department of Environmental Management, Brenda Iokepa Moses, reviewed the project and opened it up for public discussion.

Sewer treatment plant or Individual Wastewater Systems? Pāhala
 residents weigh in on which way to go. Map of Pāhala Village
 from County of Hawai‘i Department of Environmental Management

     Pāhala resident Gary Domondon said he was concerned that Individual Wastewater Systems for each property could be a solution for the short term but if a sewer system were built later, homeowners on the IWS could be required to hook up and shut down and seal off their Individual Wastewater Systems at their own expense.
    Another speaker asked whether Individual Wastewater Systems installed in each yard would provide the capacity for homeowners to add bedrooms for growing families or build 'ohana units for kupuna in the future, where setbacks and lot sizes allow it. County representatives said that the maximum would be five total bedrooms per house. Planning for adding bedrooms could require bigger leach fields on the properties and each property owner would be involved in the decision.

      Currently, for houses on the old plantation gang cesspool system, additions are prohibited by the federal government until the county closes down the old system and builds a new sewer plant or installs Individual Wastewater Systems for each house. For houses with individual cesspools, seeking permits for adding bedrooms or other additions can trigger the requirement to build a septic system. 

    Another speaker talked about the cost of a sewage treatment plant versus Individual Wastewater Systems. County officials said the treatment plant could cost some $30 million and IWS around $10 million. It was noted however, that the sewage treatment plant could later be expanded to accommodate some growth in the town and to accommodate the ban that goes into effect in 2050 on some 200 individual cesspools in the newer neighborhoods of Pāhala. 

    Money for the chosen option to treat wastewater that goes into the old plantation system could come from county, federal and possibly state funding. For the individual homeowners, county sewer fees are the same across the island, the cost of constructing and maintaining public wastewater systems spread across the communities.
   The options the Department of Environmental Management presented for the public to consider and vote on are:
    A package sewage treatment plant with new sewer pipes collecting wastewater from the homes and carrying it to the plant in sewer pipes under the streets and other public right of ways.
    A package sewage treatment plant using the old plantation collection system with the old sewer pipes. Several speakers during and after the meeting noted the leaky, poor condition of the pipes.
    County Stewarded Individual Wastewater Systems in each yard with a sewer fee for each homeowner. 
    Homeowner Stewarded Individual Wastewater Systems in each yard with homeowners receiving vouchers and hiring contractors, with county overseeing compliance. There would be no sewer fees and owners would be responsible for pumping the septic tanks, perhaps every five years.

    Concerning the Individual Wastewater System option, several speakers during and after the meeting asked about the differences in disturbance to yards between having a sewer pipe to the road and an Individual Wastewater system with leach field. Would the county be responsible for replacing unpermitted structures like garages, cottages, workshops, dog kennels and warehouses where land underneath them would be needed for leach fields to accommodate the Individual Wastewater Systems? A county attorney said the county could not rebuild or pay to rebuild unpermitted structures but could replace such improvements as a rock wall.
    Another option in the county's quest for public opinion allows homeowners to say they don't have enough information to make a choice. They can send questions to the county on the back of the questionnaire sent to each affected homeowner or email codem@hawaiicounty.gov.
    The county website for the project is https://www.hawaiicounty.gov/departments/environmental-management/pahala-naalehu.

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NĀ‘ĀLEHU FLOOD CONTROL WATERSHED PROJECT received its annual inspection recently by Kaʻū Soil & Water Conservation District, state Department of Transportation and USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.
    The Nāʻālehu flood control structure, developed in the mid-1960s is located behind Punalu‘u Bake Shop off Ka‘alaiki Road and makes its way down the slope, exiting below Nāʻālehu subdivision and  Nāʻālehu Park makai of Highway 11. The flood control infrastructure consists of a concrete chute, debris basin, reinforced concrete-lined channel, transition section and 840 feet of unlined channel.
    The flood channel was constructed to convey floodwaters through the village of Nāʻālehu to a disposal area on the porous lava formations in the rangelands. Before the watershed project was completed, flash flooding devastated Nāʻālehu. A statement from Kaʻū Soil & Water Conservation District said:
    "This project not only protects the homes, in the community, it prevents oil erosion and

washing out of agricultural crops and infrastructure important to the farming and ranching community of Kaʻū. Today, we conduct annual inspections of the project, reassuring the community of its safety. We ask all to be mindful of where they dispose of their trash, green waste cuttings, logs, dead animals, animal waste products, and any other waste.
    "These types of unlawful dumping in any intermittent waterway, gulch or stream, will likely cause obstruction in the watercourse and could potentially accumulate at culverts and bridges, resulting in the clogging of these water control structures, preventing the natural water flow and resulting in flooding and erosion.
    "We would like to thank the County of Hawai‘i Department of Public Works Highways Division, USDA NRCS, and the Kaʻū SWCD directors and staff for their dedication, support and annual operations and maintenance of this watershed project."

    For more information, call Jennifer Lopez Reavis, Ka‘ū Soil & Water Conservation Service at 808-933-8350.

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HPD ARRESTED 13 FOR DUI from Sept. 18 - 24. Hawai‘i Island police arrested 13 motorists for driving under the influence of an intoxicant. Four of the drivers were involved in a traffic collision. None of the drivers were under the age of 21.
    So far this year, there have been 705 DUI arrests compared with 737 during the same period last year, a decrease of 4.3 percent.

    Hawai‘i Police Department’s Traffic Services Section reviewed all updated crashes and found 604 major collisions so far this year compared with 601 during the same period last year, an increase of 0.50 percent.
    To date, there have been 12 fatal crashes, resulting in 13 fatalities, (one of which had multiple deaths); compared with 24 fatal crashes, resulting in 26 fatalities (one of which had multiple deaths, and one was reclassified to a medical condition) for the same time last year. This represents a decrease of 50 percent for fatal crashes and 50 percent for fatalities.
    To date, the non-traffic fatality count (not on a public roadway) so far this year is one compared to zero non-traffic fatalities for the same time last year. Police promise that DUI roadblocks and patrols will continue island-wide.

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Trojans continued a perfect season for Girls Volleyball on Wednesday,
 winning its eighth straight  match. Scoreboard by Jen Makuakane

TROJANS GIRLS VARSITY VOLLEYBALL REMAINS UNDEFEATED for the season, winning all eight of its matches with only three left on the schedule. 

     Trojans posted another win on Wednesday at home against Kanu O Kai ‘Aina in three sets, 25-9, 25-5 and 25-5. Kaʻū Trojans beat Christian Liberty Academy on Monday, 25-17, 25-7, and 25-15. Trojans beat Hawai'i Preparatory Academy last Saturday, 28-26, 18-25, 25-23 and 25-16. JV lost to HPA 17-25 and 15-25.
    On Sept. 16, Kaʻū beat Parker 25-21, 23-25, 25-11 and 25-18. On Sept. 13, Trojans defeated Makua Lani, 25-9, 25-10 and 25 -11. On Sept. 11, Kaʻū beat Kohala 25-14, 25-15 and 25-18.

    On Sept. 8, Kaʻū beat Lapahoehoe 25-7, 25-6 and 25-4. On Aug. 30. Kaʻū  beat Pahoa 25-11, 25-10 and 25-20.

    The next match is at St. Joseph's in Hilo at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 30, followed by the last home game, playing Ka Umeke Ka'eo Charter School on Wednesday, Oct. 11. The final match is at Honoka'a on Friday, Oct. 13.

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