Kaʻū News Briefs March 13, 2024

A new poster with Hawai‘i Volcanoes National depiction by late minimalist graphic artist and illustrator Charley Harper is printed in large size and available from U.S. Department of the Interior for $16 each. The art was commissioned in 1986.
See https://bookstore.gpo.gov/products/hawaii-volcanoes.

HAWAI‘I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK PLANT RESTORATION - Ke Ēweiēwe – will host volunteers led by Eric Hamren of Nursery Operations for six more days before he wraps up his time at the program. Days available for volunteers to sign up are:

    March 19th - Tuesday - Nahuku Restoration (Clearing invasives and planting)
    March 22nd - Friday - Mauna Loa Strip Rd (Clearing invasives and planting)
    March 23rd - Saturday - Nahuku Restoration (Clearing invasives and planting)
    March 26th - Tuesday - Nahuku Restoration (Clearing invasives and planting)
    March 28th - Thursday - Nahuku Restoration (Clearing invasives and planting)
    March 30th - Saturday- Hamren's last day iwth clearing ginger and potluck.

    Register at https://forms.office.com/g/p3JY61KZyD

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KAʻŪ BUSINESSES ARE INVITED TO HAWAI‘I ON THE HILL TO PROMOTE LOCAL PRODUCTS and services. U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono collaborates with Chamber of Commerce of Hawai‘i to host the four-day event in Washington, D.C. June 15-18 to showcase Hawai‘i to the nation's leaders and the D.C. community. The eighth annual Hawai'i on the Hill offers opportunities to gain insights into federal resources and support.
     The Taste of Hawai‘i on Capitol Hill, a highlight of the gathering, draws thousands to the Hart Senate Office Building, providing a tantalizing taste of what Hawaii has to offer. It is the largest such event each year on Capitol Hill. Other highlights include a Welcome Reception presented by Alaska Airlines and The Queen's Health System, Policy Summit presented by Papa Ola Lokahi, a Manufacturing Tour and general visitor tours. Registration packages range from $500 to $25,000 and Alaska Airlines is offering a 25 percent discount on air tickets roundtrip to D.C. For more information, contact Tricia Fetui, VP of Events and Business Development, at tfetui@cochawaii.org.

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2023 first prize winner in Congresswoman
Jill Tokuda's Art Competition.

KAʻŪ STUDENTS CAN ENTER THE CONGRESSIONAL ART COMPETITION FOR 2024. Ka‘u's Congresswoman Jill Tokuda is accepting applications through Monday, April 15 from high school students in her Hawai‘i Second Congressional District. The winning artwork will be displayed for one year in the U.S. Capitol in the Cannon Tunnel, where Members of Congress and tens of thousands of visitors walk and ride underground from the offices of the members of Congress to the U.S. Capitol. The winning artwork is also featured on House.gov's Congressional Art Competition page and Tokuda's website and social media pages. A photo of the completed art and a completed student release form must be submitted to Shaun Kim at Shaun.Kim@mail.house.gov by Monday, April 15, 2024. The physical artwork must be mailed or delivered by Friday, April 19, 2024, 5 p.m. Hawaiʻi time to office of Rep. Jill Tokuda at Topa Financial Center, 700 Bishop St. Suite 1902, Honolulu, HI 96813.
    Contact Tokuda's Hawaiʻi District Office at (808) 746-6220 with any questions.

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THE NEW SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT OPTION FOR PĀHALA is tentatively identified by the County as a "package wastewater treatment plant with new collection system." It is set back from the corner of Hwy 11 and Maile Street that comes into town along the pine tree road. It is described in the Amended Draft Pāhala Environmental Information Document, which became available on Wednesday through the County's monthly status updates at https://www.dem.hawaiicounty.gov/projects/pahala-na-alehu-large-capacity-cesspool-closures and for direct download at https://www.dem.hawaiicounty.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/307481/638459178461591134.
    The document will also be available at the Pāhala Public and School Library. The community is invited to the Pāhala Community Center at 6 p.m., Wednesday, April 10, to provide comments on the Revised Draft EID and the County’s preferred option. The link to join the meeting by Zoom on April 10 is: https://www.zoomgov.com/j/16031058165.
Under the 2024 Revised AOC, the Final EID is due to EPA on July 30, 2024. The final deadline for the County to close the large-capacity cesspools is Jan. 22, 2027.
    The document not only presents the analysis of plans for dealing with the closure of old polluting gang cesspool left over by the sugar plantation when it shut down, it offers an overview of the geography of the area, including:
    "Even though Ka‘ū was one of the originally settled areas in the Hawaiian Islands, it remains a vast remote area. Only a fraction of a percent of the Ka‘ū District has been developed with residential properties, and the remainder is largely used for agricultural purposes or remains undeveloped. The Ka‘ū District covers about 922 square miles (approximately 590,000 acres), with over 80 miles of virtually undeveloped coastline. Nearly two-thirds of its total land area is in the Conservation District. The Ka‘ū District consists of several communities, including the Pāhala community, which had a population of approximately 2,210 persons according to the US Census Bureau American Community Survey, 2021. The distance to the communities of Hilo and Kailua-Kona means that the Ka‘ū District is relatively isolated from the major infrastructure systems found in those communities, including wastewater treatment and disposal facilities."

    The Environmental Information Document also describes the location tentatively selected:
    "The Project Area includes approximately 200 parcels (in whole or in part) and portions of eight County of Hawai‘i streets in Pāhala. The Proposed WWTP Site is located adjacent to the intersection of Maile Street and Māmalahoa Highway within a 14.9-acre portion of Tax Map Key (TMK): (3) 9-6-002-018. The Proposed Collection System Area will include five streets in the western portion of the community (Maile, 'llima, Huapala, Hinano, and Hala Streets) and three public streets in the eastern portion of the community (Puahala, Pikake, and Kamani Streets). The two LCCs slated for closure are located within TMKs (3) 9-6-002:016 (por.), LCC 1, and 9-6-016:041 (por.), LCC 2."

This illustration shows the sewage treatment plant set back from the scenic pine tree entry to Pāhala village. 
See https://www.dem.hawaiicounty.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/307481/638459178461591134

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Kaʻū News Briefs March 12, 2024

Akiapōlā‘au (Hemignathus munroi) is one of the rarest birds in the  Kaʻū forests. Photo from National Park Service

KAʻŪ HAS THE LARGEST NATIVE FOREST IN HAWAI‘I AND HOSTS THE LARGEST POPULATIONS OF NATIVE BIRDS. County of Hawai‘i is honoring native birds and their forest homes islandwide with Mayor Mitch Roth proclaiming 2024 Ka Makahiki o Nā Manu Nahele, The Year of the Forest Birds. Gov. Josh Green made the same designation statewide.

    In addition to being the coastal conservation leader in all of Hawai‘i, Kaʻū is the forest conservation leader in the Hawaiian Islands. The state's Kaʻū Forest Reserve is 61,000 acres. Its Kapāpala Forest Reserve is 37,276 acres. The Nature Conservancy Kaʻū Preserve consists of four separate areas totaling 3,548 acres that enable management access to state forest reserve lands. Kamehameha Schools holds about 67,357 acres in Kaʻū, planted acres of koa trees above Pāhala and hosts a captive breeding facility for the endangered Hawaiian crow on its property at Volcano.

    Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park acquired 116,00 acres stretching from Kahuku above South Point through lands above Nā‘ālehu, Pāhala and the state forest Forest Reserves to Volcano. Most of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park is in Kaʻū, all the way to Halema‘uma‘u Crater. Residents in Volcano have protected the trees on their lands to provide a flyway for birds.

   Hawaiian Homelands in Kaʻū total 11,312 acres, including native dry and wetland forests. The county, nonprofits and private owners have preserved forest land for conservation. Resource managers from government and nonprofits, as well as private landowners help protect the native birds. Among the rarest are ‘Akiapōlā‘au (Hemignathus munroi), Hawai‘i Creeper (Oreomystis mana) and Hawai‘i ‘Akepa (Loxops coccineus).

A portion of the native forests and habitats of Hawaiian native birds in Kaʻū.
 Map from DLNR

    The state and many landowning entities allow but regulate access to hunting, hiking, gathering and other cultural practices in the forest. 
     A statement from the Mayor's office says:
    "For millions of years prior to human contact, Hawaiʻi’s forests were the dominion of our native nā manu nahele (forest birds), comprising at least 84 species including honeycreepers, honeyeaters, flycatchers, thrushes, warblers, hawks, owls, and crows. Nā manu nahele have critical ecological roles in Hawaiʻi as pollinators, seed dispersers, and insect managers in our Hawaiian forests, sometimes so closely co-evolved with plant species that native plants cannot reproduce without them.
    "The threats to the remaining manu species, particularly honeycreepers, include habitat loss; habitat degradation by invasive plants, insects, and diseases; predation by invasive rats, cats, and mongoose; and deadly diseases spread by mosquitoes, particularly avian malaria.
    "Nā manu nahele are an inextricable part of Native Hawaiian culture in their roles as ʻaumakua (family deities) and messengers between akua (gods) and kānaka (people). Nā manu nahele are celebrated in mele (songs) moʻolelo (stories), ʻōlelo noʻeau (proverbs), kaʻao (legends), and in the creation of feather adornments.
    'Hawai‘i is experiencing a bird extinction crisis, with roughly two-thirds of its known native manu nahele species having become extinct. Nearly all of the remaining 26 species are facing critical threats.
    “'Protecting our natural and cultural resources is at the core of our vision for a sustainable Hawaiʻi Island where our keiki can raise their keiki for generations to come,' said Mayor Mitch Roth. 'We are proud to declare this year the year of the forest birds, honoring all those who dedicate their careers to the restoration and conservation of our native forests so that the many creatures, including our endemic birds, can thrive and continue calling Hawaiʻi Island home.'
    "Continued community awareness and active support for native forest stewardship are essential to mālama native nā manu nahele as part of the Hawaiʻi ʻohana," concluded the statement from the Mayor's office.

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‘Alala is extinct in the wild but raised in captivity in Ka‘ū near Volcano to be released into the native forest.
Bret Mossman Photo from DLNR

WILMA RODDY, OF NĀ‘ĀLEHU ELEMENTARY, IS ONE OF THE TOP 15 PRINCIPALS IN HAWAI‘I'S PUBLIC SCHOOLS, according to sponsors of the 2024 Masayuki Tokioka Excellence in School Leadership Award. State Department of Education and Island Insurance Foundation honored them on Saturday in Honolulu, where each received $1,000 as finalists. 

    The top 2024 Masayuki Tokioka Excellence in School Leadership Award recipient and two semi-finalists will be announced during the official program at the Public Schools of Hawai‘i Foundation annual dinner on Thursday, April 18.

Wilma Roddy, right, Principal of Nā‘ālehu Elementary, is one of 15 finalists in the Excellence in School Leadership Awards.
The other two principals are Hanana Loyola of Kohala Elementary, and Tiffany Pratt, of Kaumana Elementary.
Photo from Island Insurance Foundation

    At the gala fundraiser, the Masayuki Tokioka Excellence in School Leadership Award winner will receive $25,000: a $10,000 personal award and $15,000 toward a school project of the principal’s choice. Two semi-finalists will each receive a $2,000 cash award.
    Other principals in the finals from Hawai‘i Island are Hanana Loyola of Kohala Elementary School and Tiffany Pratt of Kaʻūmana Elementary School.
    The award is named for the late Masayuki Tokioka, founder of Island Insurance Company, Ltd. and a graduate of Hawai‘i public schools. It was established in 2004 and is underwritten by the Island Insurance Foundation.
    Last year, Pāhala High & Elementary School Principal Sharon Beck won the statewide honor and $25,000 award.

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Kaʻū News Briefs March 11, 2024

Women's History month is being celebrated at Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. Photo from HVNP

POWERFUL HAWAIIAN WOMEN IN HISTORY are some of the Women's History Month individuals highlighted by Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park during March. One of them is Princess Ruth Ke‘elikōlani, who owned thousands of acres of in Kaʻū, which became Kamehameha Schools property, sugar plantation lands and some of the recently protected coastal shoreline properties. Hawai'i Volcanoes posted a link to a story about Princess Ruth, written by Faith Bennett:
    Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani was a direct descendent of Kamehameha I, the leader who united the Hawaiian islands and founded the kingdom of Hawai‘i. She was an advocate for Hawaiian culture who was best known for defending the town of Hilo during the 1880–1881 eruption of the Mauna Loa Volcano, which is part of the Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.

Princess Ruth Ke‘elikōlani owned thousands of acres in Kaʻū.

    Keʻelikōlani was born in Pohukaina, Oahu in 1826. Her mother, Chiefess Pauhi, married her third husband, Mataio Kekūanāoʻa, only three months before she died while giving birth to Princess Ruth. Both Kekūanāoʻa and the Chiefess’s second husband, High Chief Kahalaiʻa Luanuʻu, claimed Keʻelikōlani as a daughter. She was publicly recognized as keiki po‘olua, a “two heads” child, or someone who would inherit the mana (spiritual energy) of both fathers. This early controversy surrounding her paternity presented enduring challenges as she navigated the U.S. legal system to secure a vast land inheritance.

    When she was sixteen, the princess married Leleiohoku with whom she had two children. After Leleiohoku’s death, Keʻelikōlani married Isaac Young Davis, grandson of the haole (a white person) advisor to Kamehameha I. Together they had a son, whom she gave to her cousin Bernice Pauahi Bishop to raise in the Hawaiian tradition of hānai.
    Ke‘elikōlani maintained distinctive Hawaiian beliefs and practices during a period of ongoing tensions between self-proclaimed traditionalists and Christian Hawaiian chiefs. Educated by missionaries in English, she insisted on conducting business in the ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i (the Hawaiian language). Inheriting palaces from her father, she preferred to live in a traditional grass house (hale pili) in Kailua.
    Her rejection of Christianity and the Anglo-American culture made her revered by her countrymen and women, and they turned to her for intervention when the volcano Mauna Loa began erupting in 1880. Six months later in a second wave of eruptions, Mauna Loa’s rift zones released three steady streams of lava flowing toward the town of Hilo, as well as the bases of Mauna Kea and the district of Ka‘ū. Though the lava flows toward Ka‘ū District and Mauna Kea ceased, the lava heading toward the town of Hilo steadily advanced for months. In August 1881 Queen Liliʻuokalani and Princess Ke‘elikōlani arrived in Hilo. At the foot of the lava flow, Keʻelikōlani chanted (oli) and made offerings (ho‘okupu) to Pele, the volcano goddess. The lava flow soon ceased and, according to some reports, Keʻelikōlani then camped overnight just beyond the lava’s reach.

Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani chanted (oli) and made offerings (ho‘okupu) to Pele, the volcano goddess at the foot of a lava flow from Mauna Loa during the 1880-1881 eruption. The lava flow soon ceased and, according to some reports, Keʻelikōlani then camped overnight just beyond the lava’s reach. Charles Furneaux completed this painting of the eruption in 1880, as seen from Hilo Bay. Image from Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park

    She died in May 1883 after a brief illness. At the time of her death, she was proclaimed to be the highest-ranking descendant of Kamehameha I. She laid claim to 353,000 acres of Kamehameha land, all of which she bequeathed to Bernice Pauahi Bishop, who established the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate to set aside land for the preservation of Hawaiian culture and the advancement of Native Hawaiian people. In her will, Pauahi Bishop dedicated the estate to the development of the Kamehameha Schools for Hawaiian Children.
    A statement from Hawai‘i Volcanoes regarding Women's History Month says, "We're celebrating the remarkable women whose dedication has shaped the legacy of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park! From powerful eruptions to the lush landscapes, women have always played a vital role here. We're honoring the women scientists, conservationists, and cultural leaders who've worked hard to protect this special place. Their dedication helps keep our park beautiful and safe for everyone to enjoy." This and more stories about influential women of Hawaiʻi can be found here: https://go.nps.gov/Hawaii-women.

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Chris Manfredi, Government Affairs Coordinator
of Hawai‘i Coffee Association, pushes for 
a truth in labeling bill. Photo from HCA

HAWAI‘I COFFEE ASSOCIATION AND CHRIS MANFREDI are asking for support from Hawai‘i coffee consumers and the general public to push the 2024 Hawai‘i Legislature to require coffee sold as Hawai‘i Grown to be at least 50 percent of actual-Hawai‘i Grown coffee. The legislation is House Bill 2298.

    Manfredi, who worked as a Kaʻū land manager, coffee broker, leader of Hawai'i Farm Bureau and Hawai‘i Coffee Association, as well as a Kaʻū Coffee Fest organizer for years, remains Government Affairs Coordinator for Hawai‘i Coffee Association.
    The statement is titled Preserving the Integrity and Future of Hawai‘i-Grown Coffee. Manfredi writes: A bill advancing through the legislature establishes a timeline by which coffee sold as 'Hawai‘i-grown' must contain at least 50% of actual Hawai‘i-grown coffee. Coffee growers throughout the state overwhelmingly support this measure. A recent state-funded study showed this change would increase income to nearly 1,500 small farms that are only marginally profitable under the current law.
    Currently, farmers who built and preserve the reputation of Hawai‘i-grown coffee are unfairly forced to compete with fake products, often priced below their own cost of production.
    A few members of Hawai‘i's coffee industry import foreign-grown coffee and mix it with Hawai‘i-grown coffee at a ratio of 9 to 1, so it may be sold as a Hawai‘i origin product. The raw coffee they import commonly sells for less than $2/lb., is not subject to the strict grade standards applied to Hawai‘i-grown coffee, and can contain invasive pests and disease. These foreign-grown blends are then priced many times higher than the commodity coffee that comprises 90% of the blend; often selling for more than $20/lb. solely because of the Hawai'i origin name. Blenders are reaping huge profits while farmers get squeezed.
    When substandard fakes are profiteered in the market, Hawai‘i's reputation is undermined because the consumer can't taste one bean in 10 – they're tasting the $2 commodity coffee and paying a premium for it.
This is important because the practice creates downward price pressure. It's more expensive in Hawai‘i to produce coffee than any other growing region. The high cost of land, labor, farm inputs, transportation

and regulatory compliance have all risen sharply. Hawai‘i's growers are known for producing exceptionally high-quality coffee which allows them to earn prices that enable them to meet these elevated costs.
    After years of debate over this inequity, Hawai‘i's legislature directed the state's Department of Agriculture to conduct a market study to examine the impacts of increasing the minimum blend ratio of Hawai‘i coffee products. The study found increasing the blend ratio to 51 or even 100% will shift revenue away from the blenders and back to the growers. The study also indicated that consumers would be able to better identify and understand the authenticity of the product on the shelf.
   Farming is hard work. That's why the USDA has seen the average age of a farmer increase to nearly 60 years old. Shouldn't we be supporting our local farmers? Shouldn't we be encouraging young people to take up agriculture by rewarding them with a livelihood? Tell your legislature to preserve the integrity of Hawai‘i-grown coffee by supporting HB2298, writes Manfredi. He can be contacted at cmanfredi@hawaiicoffeeassoc.org.

COFFEE GROWERS LEARN ABOUT the world of fighting Coffee Leaf Rust in Puerto Rico at the University of Hawai‘i ag extension webinar on Tuesday. The disease also threatens coffee farms here. It starts at noon and features Paul Bayman of the University of Puerto Rico, and his presentation will be on Coffee Leaf Rust in Puerto Rico: Patterns and Pathogens.
    Andrea Kawabata will present on coffee pruning on March 19th and Melissa Johnson's presentation has been moved to April 9. Register at https://www.hawaiicoffeeed.com/coffeewebinars.html.

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Shane Curry Bloking

HAWAI'I POLICE DEPARTMENT REPORTED MONDAY that Hawai‘i Island police arrested 49-year-old Shane Curry Bloking, of Nā‘ālehu, with fourth-degree sexual assault following an incident that occurred on Friday evening, March 8, on board an airline flight bound for Honolulu, from Hilo International Airport.
    As the flight was taxiing on the runway, Bloking reportedly touched and squeezed the leg of a 14-year-old girl he did not know, who was seated next to him, causing her to feel alarmed and unsafe. A passenger seated on the opposite side of the girl observed her to appear emotionally traumatized by Bloking’s actions, alerted a flight attendant, which resulted in the plane being diverted back to the terminal gate, where Bloking was detained by airport police until officers arrived and took him into custody.
   The 14-year-old victim had been in Hilo for several days for a function with other students and chaperones. After the plane returned to the terminal gate and Bloking was arrested, the flight was able to leave.
    On Saturday afternoon, March 9, after conferring with the County Prosecutor’s Office, detectives from the Area I Juvenile Aid Section were advised to release Bloking for the sexual assault offense, as according to the Hawai‘i Revised Statutes, the elements for sexual assault had not been met by the actions of Bloking. He was then arrested and charged for harassment. The sexual assault case will be forwarded to the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney for further review.
    Bloking was later released from police custody on the harassment charge after posting $100 bail. He was issued a notice to appear for his initial court appearance schedule for Tuesday, April 2, at 1:30 p.m. in Hilo District Court.

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