Ka`u News Briefs Sept. 10, 2012

Public scoping meetings for the Hawai`i Clean Energy Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement start Thursday.

DELAYING LONG-TERM HELCO CONTRACTS like the `Aina Koa Pono proposal, until public comments are taken and two studies on renewable energy in Hawai`i are completed, is suggested in filings by Life of the Land with the Public Utilities Commission. One study is Hawaiian Electric Companies’ Integrated Resource Planning, for which HECO has a year to file a five-year Action Plan and a 20-year Master Plan to outline scenarios and strategies for Hawai`i’s long-term energy future. The other is the Hawai`i Clean Energy Initiative, for which the U.S. Department of Energy is holding scoping meetings and taking public testimony this week on the Big Island for a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement to develop guidance for federal funding of the Clean Energy Initiative through 2030.

Life of the Land suggests delaying `Aina Koa Pono and other long-term
contracts. Pegge Hopper logo image from Life of the Land

      Life of the Land contends that the HECO Companies, including Hawai`i Electric Light Co, are filing numerous specific applications with the PUC and issuing many Requests for Proposals, “placing into the pipeline everything needed for the next several years. The timing of these filings will result in negating the costly, time consuming and comprehensive approaches” of the two studies, Life of the Land contends.
      HECO has also opposed Life of the Land’s request to intervene in the PUC discussion of the `Aina Koa Pono proposal to sell biofuel to HELCO, which `Aina Koa Pono plans to produce from existing trees and brush it would clear between Pahala and Na`alehu, followed by crops it would attempt to grow there.
      The Life of the Land filing contends that “`Aina Koa Pono proposed selling power to HELCO at such a high price that neither party will mention the amount, although they state that the cost to ratepayers over the 20-year contract was $120 million less than the initial outrageous proposal,” which was turned down last year.
      Read more at http://puc.hawaii.gov/ where numerous `Aina Koa Pono documents can be found under “What’s New?”

Image from www.hawaiicleanenergyinitiative.org

PUBLIC SCOPING MEETINGS will be held by the federal Department of Energy at 5 p.m. this Thursday, Sept. 13, at Kealakehe High School in Kona and at 5p.m. on Friday, Sept. 14, at Hilo High School. The meetings are to gather public input for a programmatic environmental impact statement on the future of renewable energy in the Hawaiian Islands. According to the Department of Energy, its analysis will include “all forms of renewable energy, energy efficiency, alternative transportation fuels and electrical transportation and distribution.” DOE officials will make presentations on the programmatic EIS process under the National Environmental Policy Act. There also will be a question-and-answer session followed by a formal commenting session, which will be transcribed by a court reporter to ensure that all comments are available for DOE officials to consider during the preparation of the programmatic EIS. The EIS “will allow the DOE to develop guidance that it would use in making future decisions on whether to fund projects or take other actions to support the state in meeting its clean energy goals,” says the website at http://hawaiicleanenergypeis.com. Also see www.hawaiicleanergyinitiative.org.

DEADLINE TO SUBMIT TESTIMONY on proposed rules to govern the new Public Land Development Corp., which would allow more private sector economic development on state owned lands, is this Friday, Sept. 14. Comments can be emailed to joy.y.kimura@hawaii.gov and randal.y.ikeda@hawaii.gov. The PLDC has oversight from the state Board of Land and Natural Resources.

Brenda Ford meets with residents in
Ocean View tonight.

COUNTY COUNCIL CANDIDATE Brenda Ford met with area residents at Kilauea Lodge yesterday. The incumbent whose council district has been changed to include Ka`u into Volcano – she runs for reelection against Maile David on Nov. 6 – said she would push for implementation of the Volcano component of the Puna Development Plan. “I have always supported this plan. It is not even an issue for me. I believe in Community Development Plans,” she said. She said the group also talked about the need for a new Volcano garbage transfer station. Ford said the Volcano transfer station “is in very bad shape,” and that the Volcano and Ocean View transfer stations should be built simultaneously. She noted that the construction of the Volcano station was put on the side when the Pahoa one collapsed.
      She said the group was “very concerned” about the proposed `Aina Koa Pono biodiesel refinery project in Ka`u. She said: “it doesn’t matter to me that the inputs would be agriculture. This is a toxic substance coming out of the refinery. It’s diesel and needs an Environmental Impact Statement.” She said that people attending her talk story were also concerned about the number of trucks that would travel on roads and highways, carrying the diesel to the power plant near Kona Airport.
      Ford said that some of those attending discussed whether the county should take over Hawai`i Electric Light Company to make it a quasi-government owned utility, pointing to HELCO’s long term fuel contracts that end up costing citizens a lot of money.

A TALK STORY IN OCEAN VIEW with County Council candidate Brenda Ford and candidate for Prosecuting Attorney Mitch Roth is scheduled for tonight from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Ocean View Community Center. All are welcome to bring questions and concerns. The General Election is Nov. 6.

Candidate for Prosecuting Attorney Mitch Roth
meets with residents in Ocean View tonight.
Photo by Chuck Green 

NEW SEWAGE TREATMENT SYSTEMS FOR PAHALA AND NA`ALEHU were discussed by County Council candidate Brenda Ford at her talk-story session in Volcano yesterday. Ford said she would advocate for a system that would treat and reuse the water in the sewer system for agriculture “rather than putting it down a hole.” She said she wants to renew a resolution she penned, which passed the County Council for 27 sewer projects. She said the resolution will ask, once again, for federal money for sewers including those in Pahala and Na`alehu where gang cesspools are being closed down by the EPA. “We are hearing rumbles that if Pres. Barack Obama is re-elected, he will do another stimulus program. Sewer funding could be part of the stimulus to the local economy,” she said.

A CANDLE CAUSED A FIRE at a Volcano home and gutted it over the weekend. The unattended candle apparently set the house ablaze with residents inside, reporting the fire at 11:09 p.m. Saturday at 7th and Pearl Streets in Mauna Loa Estate. Residents escaped. Estimated value of the damage is $210,000, a total loss. At 2 a.m. Sunday, the Hawai`i County Fire Department declared the fire pau.

SUMI-E JAPANESE BRUSHSTROKE PAINTING is offered at Na`alehu Hongwanji tomorrow from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

KA`U’S KULEANA LANDOWNERS are invited to learn how the Office of Hawaiian Affairs can help them apply for property tax exemption at a meeting tomorrow, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Pahala Community Center.
      Handed down through Hawaiian families for generations, kuleana lands are usually small parcels surrounded by larger tracts of property and sometimes are landlocked. Call 808-594-1967 for more information.

REGISTERING FOR MOLD CERAMICS, for grades 4 through 8, must be completed by this Thursday. The classes, held at Pahala Community Center from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., start Thursday, Sept. 20, and end Thursday, Oct. 25. There is a fee for supplies. For more, call Nona at 928-3102.

A RED CROSS VOLUNTEER MEETING is hosted Thursday, 7 p.m., in Ocean View at the H.O.V.E. Road Maintenance Corp. office. The meeting is geared towards current volunteers and those interested in becoming volunteers. For more, call Hannah Uribes at 929-9953.

HAWAI`I WILDLIFE FUND hosts a beach clean up at Kamilo Saturday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. All volunteers will meet at Wai`ohinu Park on Hwy 11 near mile marker 65 at 7:45 a.m. and are asked to bring sturdy shoes, bag lunch, sun and wind protection, plenty of drinks and four-wheel-drive vehicles if possible. HWF will supply cleanup materials. Those interested can contact Megan Lamson at 769-7629 or kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com.

INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PEACE will be celebrated at Honu`apo Park next Friday, Sept. 21. The public is invited to gather at 3 p.m. and all who attend are encouraged to wear white for a human peace sign photo at 4 p.m. The photo will be “shared with the world,” says one of the event coordinators Communication Facilitator Shary Crocker. For more info on the event, call 939-9461 or 929-7647.

  SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM.

ALSO SEE KAUCALENDAR.COM.AND FACEBOOK.COM/KAUCALENDAR.

Ka`u News Briefs Sept. 9, 2012

Maile David, left, and Brenda Ford, second left, face a runoff in November for District 6 County Council.
Photo from Big Island Video News

KA`U’S TWO COUNTY COUNCIL CANDIDATES heading into a November runoff, each qualified for $48,893 in public funding for the primary and general elections, the most of all candidates running for council islandwide. After the primary election, both Maile David and Brenda Ford received the last installment of the funding - $7,320 each to spend until the Nov. 6 election.
      While the public funding comes from $3 donations checked off on state tax returns, the amounts for each district vary. District 6 has the most funding, which is based on the amount of private money raised for council campaigns before public funding started. In one election, Guy Enriques raised a large sum for this County Council campaign, more than any other candidate around the island, leading to the big publicly funded money pot in this election for Ka`u council district candidates.
      The public funding is a test, conducted by the state elections office, being carried out only in Hawai`i County. It ends after the 2014 elections unless the Hawai`i legislature votes to take it statewide or approve another round of testing.

Maile David and Brenda Ford both received public funding to run
for County Council. Photo by Charles Tobias

      Five of the nine Hawai`i County Council seats were decided in the primary election, some of the candidates using public funding and some using private funding. Those council seats already decided will be held by Karen Eoff and J Yoshimoto, who ran with public funding, and Dru Kanuha, Zendo Kern and Dennis Onishi who raised money on their own.
      A story in this morning’s Hawai`i Tribune Herald sums up the ongoing campaigning for County Council islandwide, noting that the state Campaign Spending Commission gave out $215,344.23 to eight County Council contenders on this island.
      According to the Tribune Herald story, in Puna, incumbent and finalist Fred Blas, who declined to apply for public funding and rejecting the idea of using tax money for campaigning, has far less money than Greggor Ilaga, who took the public funds and still has $6,554 to spend on the general election.
      According to the Peter Sur story, for the Waimea District race, attorney Margaret Wille accepted public funding and received $11,427.46 for the primary and $173 for the general, since her district had little spent on campaigning in past elections. Her opponent New Hope pastor Oliver Sonny Shimaoka chose not to accept public funding and raised $14,235.08. The newspaper reports that Wille says a political action committee may be set up to campaign for her issues, which include support of the Hawai`i Clean Elections law.

Brenda Ford holds a talk story in Ocean View tomorrow.
Photo by David Howard Donald

      In Hamakua, Valerie Poindexter and Chelsea Yagong are running on private funding. The public funding was very small there leading both candidates to opt out.
     See more at hawaiitribune-herald.com.

A TALK STORY IN OCEAN VIEW Ford and candidate for Prosecuting Attorney Mitch Roth is scheduled for tomorrow evening from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Community Center. All are welcome to bring questions and concerns. 

      Ford held a talk story at Kilauea Lodge in Volcano Village this morning.

KA`U’S KULEANA LANDOWNERS are invited to learn how the Office of Hawaiian Affairs can help them apply for property tax exemption at a meeting Tuesday, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Pahala Community Center. 
Handed down through Hawaiian families for generations, kuleana lands are usually small parcels surrounded by larger tracts of property and are sometimes landlocked. Call 808-594-1967 for more information.

THE NEXT KA`U AGRICULTURAL WATER COOPERATIVE DISTRICT meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 13, at 4 p.m. at the ML Mac Nut Field Office. Each region between Kapapala and Ha`ao Springs is expected to send a representative. The organization is restoring agricultural water from the old plantation system. Meetings are open to the public. For more information, call Jeff McCall at 928-6456.   

THE NEXT HA`AO AGRICULTURAL WATER MEETING will be hosted Thursday, Sept. 27, at Wai`ohinu Park at 2:30 p.m. All are welcome to attend. For more, call Jane at 939-9461.

AN ANCHIALINE POOL RESTORATION WORKDAY takes place tomorrow, where volunteers will help remove sediment from the pool. Sign up with Megan Lamson at 769-7629 or kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com. 

Ali`i Keanaaina performs at Hawai`i Volcanoes
National Park on Sept. 19. Photo from HVNP

ALI`I KEANAAINA is scheduled to perform at Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park on Wednesday, Sept. 19, from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium. Singer, songwriter and musician Keanaaina debuts his first solo album, He Mele No, an album dedicated to those who inspired him to sing and write. Keanaaina's stories he has set to melody are brought to life by his band, He Mele No, which is comprised of his twin brother Nui, and cousins Pililani Pua-Kaipo and Bradshaw Ellis. CD’s available for purchase at the concert. The concert is part of Hawai‘i Volcanoes’ ongoing Na Leo Manu “Heavenly Voices” presentations. The public event is free, but entrance fees may apply.

SUMI-E JAPANESE BRUSHSTROKE PAINTING is offered at Na`alehu Hongwanji Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.



BEGINNING MACHINE QUILTING CLASSES are offered at Pahala Quilting starting this Tuesday, with additional classes on Sept. 18 and 25. For more, call Donna at 238-0505.  


REGISTERING FOR MOLD CERAMICS, for grades 4 through 8, must be completed before Thursday, Sept. 13 for those who want to attend. The classes held at Pahala Community Center from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. start Thursday, Sept. 20, and end Thursday, Oct. 25. There is a fee for supplies. For more, call Nona at 928-3102.

HAWAI`I WILDLIFE FUND hosts a beach clean up at Kamilo on Saturday, Sept. 15, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. All volunteers will meet at Wai`ohinu Park on Hwy 11 near mile marker 65 at 7:45 a.m. and are asked to bring sturdy shoes, bag lunch, sun and wind protection, plenty of drinks and four-wheel-drive vehicles if possible. HWF will supply cleanup materials. Those interested can contact Megan Lamson at 769-7629 or kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com.

 SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM.

ALSO SEE KAUCALENDAR.COM.

Ka`u News Briefs Sept. 8, 2012

Pu`u O`o Crater at the end of the Napau Trail. A guided walk takes Friends members on an eight-hour hike over the Napau Trail.
Photo from letsgo-hawaii.com

THE BIG ISLAND COMMUNITY COALITION is looking for “huge numbers” of citizens to testify at the Public Utilities Commission hearings on both Hawai`i Electric Light Co.’s proposal for a 4.2 percent rate hike, as well as `Aina Koa Pono's proposed biofuel project, says leader Richard Ha. The `Aina Koa Pono contract with the utility would raise electric bills an average of $1 for every 600 kilowatts of residential electricity used. It would also involve cuting trees, brush and crops between Pahala and Na`alehu and making them into pellets to feed a refinery at the mouth of Wood Valley. The end product would be biofuel trucked to HELCO's oil burning power plant near the airport in Kona. The company promises 200 permanent jobs.

       The hearings are Monday, Oct. 29, 6 p.m. at Hilo High School cafeteria, and Tuesday, Oct. 30, 6 p.m. at Kealakehe High School cafeteria. No hearings are scheduled for Ka`u but one is set for O`ahu in November. Last year PUC chair Mina Morita and the commission turned down a similar proposal for `Aina Koa Pono.

      According to Ha, the Big Island Community Coalition opposes both the 4.2 percent rate hike and the new `Aina Koa Pono contract “because they would raise, rather than lower, our electricity rates.” Ha said that if many people show up, “we can make a difference.” 

Mina Morita, Chair of the PUC.

      The Big Island Community Coalition was formed to come up with low cost energy solutions. Its steering committee includes two members of the state Board of Agriculture, Richard Ha, of Hamakua Springs Country Farms, and Michelle Galimba, of Kuahiwi Ranch in Ka`u. It also includes Big Island Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustee and Ka`u sugar mill site co-owner Robert Lindsey. Other steering committee members are geothermal proponent Ku`ulei Kealoha Cooper, of Kealoha Estate; John E.K. Dill, member of the state Contractors License Board; Rockne Freitas, vice president for student affairs at University of Hawai`i; Wallace Ishibashi, of the ILWU; D. Noelani Kalipi, a former military attorney and advocate of economic and energy development; Ka`iu Kimura, executive director of `Imiloa Astronomy Center; H. “Monty” Richards, of Kahua Ranch; Marcia Sakai, Dean of University of Hawai`i – Hilo School of Business and Economics; Kumu Lehua Veincent, principal of Big Island Kamehameha School; and Bill Walter, president of W.H. Shipman, Ltd.
      Advisors to the coalition are state House of Representatives Energy Committee chair Denny Coffman, who is running to represent Ka`u into Kona in the November election; Don Thomas, of UH geology schools at Manoa and Hilo; and Robert Rapier, an energy expert who lives in Kamuela.
      In calling for citizens to attend the rate hike public hearing, Ha calls PUC members “caring human beings. But they have to know what the people want.” Ha also says that the “Big Island is in trouble. We have one of the highest electricity rates in Hawai‘i – almost 25 percent higher than O`ahu’s.” He compares high electricity rates to “a giant regressive tax, only worse. As people leave the electric grid to escape its high cost, those who cannot afford to do so pay even more.”

A photo of Richard Ha from the Kohala Center,
 which describes him as "Working at the
intersection of food and energy."

      Ha writes that the Big Island has a robust supply of alternatives to oil. “We need to mobilize and make meaningful change. The world has been using twice as much oil as it’s been finding for 20 to 30 years now, and this trend continues.
      “In the last 10 years, the price of oil has quadrupled. Something significant has changed: This has never before happened in the 150 years comprising our ‘Age of Oil.’” Ha says that in China, “they use two barrels of oil/person/year, and even when oil costs $100/barrel, their economy continues to grow. Here in the U.S., we use 23 barrels of oil/person/year, and at $100 oil, our economy is sputtering. It is reasonable to assume that the price of oil will continue to rise as it continues to be influenced by China’s demand.” Ha asks, “Who here is most vulnerable to rising electricity costs?”
      He gives two answers: Senior citizens on fixed income, who sometimes have to make choices between food, medicine and electricity. “We cannot leave our kupuna – our moms and dads, grandmas and grandpas – out there to fend for themselves. These are the ones who sacrificed so we could have a better life.” He also points to single moms as vulnerable. “I talked to a person who has several kids she hopes to send to college. She told me the threat of rising electricity prices weighs on her every day.”
    See more at hahaha.hamakuasprings.com. See HELCO proposals and community comments at puc.hawaii.gov.

Bob Linsey is running for reelection
as a trustee for OHA.

ROBERT KAMAILE LINDSEY, JR., who is running for re-election as Hawai`i Island Trustee for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, has issued a statement on his background and beliefs. “I bring Aloha to OHA’s table,” he said. “I am mission focused and results driven, my total commitment and passion is “to better conditions for our people. Lindsey said that he has advocated to have OHA’s Strategic Plan updated and operationalized, encouraging his colleagues to “pursue systemic and long term change by establishing strategic priorities, developing strategic outcomes, performance goals aligned to budgets with ongoing reviews. This has been done. We are moving forward and doing our people’s business in a rational, deliberate and thoughtful way.” He said the OHA Strategic Plan is accompanied by a budget “aligned to that plan and a team of committed, energetic employees working tirelessly daily to advance that Plan and give you the quality of life and a tomorrow you so well deserve.”
      Lindsey said he believes “in the democratic process. I see myself as an independent, not aligned with any particular faction or group. I act and vote on issues. I believe in majority rule and I don’t take things personal. There have been moments when I’ve been on the losing side. I accept the will of the majority and move on to other business that needs attention.”
       He says he is a “peacemaker and a believer in consensus building” and that his values include: Aloha I ke kahi I ke kahi; Aloha ke Akua; Pono; Laulima; Ka Manaoio; Ka Manaolana; Ho’olohe; and Pa`a ka waha hana ka lima. See more at boblindsey.net, where the website describes him as family, friend, servant and leader.
      Lindsey is also co-owner of the old sugar mill site in Pahala.

INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PEACE will be celebrated at Honu`apo Park Friday, Sept. 21. The public is invited to gather at 3 p.m. and all who attend are encouraged to wear white for a human peace sign photo at 4 p.m. For more info on the event, call 939-9461 or 929-7647.
     Shary Crocker, one of the facilitators of the event, said she and a group of community members that meet once a week to watch films about encouraging compassionate non-violent communication, watched a documentary called Peace One Day and were inspired to host an event of their own. Crocker is a Communication Facilitator and says her late husband lived by the motto "May Peace Be With You." For more on the world agreements around this day, visit http://cultureofpeace.org/idp.

REGISTERING FOR MOLD CERAMICS, for grades 4 through 8, must be completed before Thursday, Sept. 13 for those who want to attend. The classes held at Pahala Community Center from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. start Thursday, Sept. 20, and end Thursday, Oct. 25. There is a fee for supplies. For more, call Nona at 928-3102. 

Trojans last night at Konawaena High School.  Photo by Tanya Ibarra

DESPITE A TOUGH LOSS TO KONAWAENA, 85-0, Ka`u Trojan fans and team sang an arousing rendition of the Ka`u song on the Konawaena campus.

KA`U TROJANS SPORTS LINE-UP FOR TODAY starts with a home volleyball match versus Hilo starts at 10 a.m. Away events include a cross-county meet at Kamehameha at 10 a.m., an air riflery match at Waiakea at 10 a.m., and a bowling match at Kona Bowl in the afternoon. For more, call athletic director Kalei Namohala at 928-2012.

HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTE is collected at Wai`ohinu Transfer Station today from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

RECYCLABLES ARE ACCEPTED IN OCEAN VIEW at Atlas Recycling at South Point U-Cart today from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

PEOPLE AND LAND OF KAHUKU, a guided 2.5 mile moderately difficult hike offered tomorrow, takes visitors over rugged terrain and focuses on the human history in the Kahuku Unit of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. The hike starts at 9:30 a.m. and is expected to finish around 12:30 p.m. For more, call 985-6011.

A guided walk takes participants on a 14 mile round trip
hike to explore Napau Trail. Photo from farschman.com

SUNDAY WALK IN THE PARK, a strenuous eight-hour, 14 mile round trip hike exploring the Napau Trail, is offered tomorrow by Friends of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. The hike is fast-paced and includes a 620-foot elevation gain. Participants are asked to bring a bag lunch and at least three quarts of water. The hike is open to members but non-members are welcome to join in order to attend. Park entrance fees apply. For more call 985-7373, email admin@fhvnp.org, or visit fhvnp.org.

MUCK-SUCKING IS ON THE AGENDA at an anchialine pool restoration workday on Monday, Sept. 10, when volunteers help remove sediment from the pool. Sign up with Megan Lamson at 769-7629 or kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com.

BEGINNING MACHINE QUILTING CLASSES are offered at Pahala Quilting on Tuesdays, Sept. 11, 18 and 25. For more call, Donna at 238-0505.

KA`U’S KULEANA LANDOWNERS are invited to learn how the Office of Hawaiian Affairs can help them apply for property tax exemption at a meeting Tuesday, Sept. 11, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Pahala Community Center.
      Handed down through Hawaiian families for generations, kuleana lands are usually small parcels surrounded by larger tracts of property and sometimes are landlocked. Call 808-594-1967 for more information.

HAWAI`I WILDLIFE FUND hosts a beach clean up at Kamilo a week from today, Saturday, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. All volunteers will meet at Wai`ohinu Park on Hwy 11 near mile marker 65 at 7:45 a.m. and are asked to bring sturdy shoes, bag lunch, sun and wind protection, plenty of drinks and four-wheel-drive vehicles if possible. HWF will supply cleanup materials. Those interested can contact Megan Lamson at 769-7629 or kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM.

ALSO SEE KAUCALENDAR.COM.