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Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2015

Ka`u Libraries offer safe ways to celebrate Halloween, with parties on Friday afternoon. Na`alehu Library staff members Jennifer Losalio and Sara Kamibayashi invite the public to participate in a costume contest. See more below.
NA`ALEHU’S WASTEWATER TREATMENT plant is planned for state land east of town, makai of Hwy 11. Tom Callis, of Hawai`i Tribune-Herald, reported that the preferred site selected by the Environmental Management Department borders Kahua `Olohu, the 13-acre Makahiki Grounds being considered for acquisition and preservation by the county.
      Twelve other sites were considered, but Environmental Management Director Bobby Jean Leithead-Todd told Callis that issues with them included being too small, having archaeological features and lava tubes and requiring pumping sewage uphill.
      According to Todd, the department will hold a public meeting before the end of the year and then draft an environmental assessment.
      See hawaiitribune-herald.com.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

Anna-Lisa Okoye gave a class for Ka`u Coffee growers Sunday.
Photo by Julia Neal
KA`U COFFEE FARMERS took a four-hour workshop on financing their businesses and land on Sunday. Anna-Lisa Okoye, a Rural Business Development Specialist, gave the class and encouraged farmers to further educate themselves in the creation of business plans, cash flow projections, tax returns, record keeping and financial statements. She also displayed various financing options available to farmers, including operating and ownership loans. One from the state Department of Agriculture offers loans of up to $800,000 each. A 40-year loan for buying property has a current interest rate of 3.75 percent. A similar federal loan has an interest rate of four percent for buying land. 
     Farmers said they are learning more about financing as they seek land security for their Ka`u Coffee farms that created a new industry after sugar shut down almost 20 years ago. The land where most of them grow coffee at Moa`ula and Pear Tree is being sold to Resource Land Holdings, LLC, of Denver, and the property could eventually be subdivided and sold. The farmers are currently negotiating for licenses from Resource Land Holdings, which is proposing 15-year rental terms, as the growers attempt to find a longer-term, more secure solution. The workshop for the farmers was sponsored by The Kohala Center.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

Image from wikipedia
TWO PEOPLE ON HAWAI`I ISLAND are being tested for dengue fever, chikungunya and zika. Rosemarie Bernardo reported in Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Infected mosquitoes can spread the diseases through their bites. So far this year, 13 cases have been confirmed statewide. There were 14 cases last year.
      “We hope to receive the (test) results sometime next week,” state Department of Health spokeswoman Janice Okubo told Bernardo.
      Characteristic symptoms of dengue are sudden-onset fever, headache (typically located behind the eyes), muscle and joint pains and a rash that blanches when pressed. The alternative name for dengue, breakbone fever, comes from associated muscle and joint pains.
      As there is no commercially available vaccine, prevention is sought by reducing the habitat and number of mosquitoes and limiting exposure to bites.
      DOH recommends bed rest and acetaminophen to treat fever and pain.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

EIGHT OF 22 KA`U YOUTH SWIMMERS earned ribbons at the novice swim team championships held Saturday, Oct. 24 at Kawamoto Swim Stadium in Hilo. The county Parks & Recreation event followed an islandwide meet at Pahala Pool on Oct. 10 with more than 200 swimmers.
      Ka`u swimmers who placed in the Kawamoto championship are:
      In the boys 25-yard races, Diesel Kaleohana took fifth in freestyle with 21.49 seconds. He also took fourth in breaststroke with 29.53 seconds and third in butterfly with 26.56.
      In the girls 25 yard races, Kawena Brown took sixth in breaststroke with 25.06.
      In the boys 50-yard races, Justin Denny took first in freestyle with 27.25, second in butterfly with 16.34 and first in the individual medley with one minute, 18.72 seconds.
      Ryder Brown took third in freestyle with 30.64, first in backstroke with 38.58 and first in breaststroke with 40.15.
      In girls 50-yard races, Olivia Kanahele took second in freestyle with 32.41. Tiare Wong Yuen took third in freestyle with 34.44, fourth in breaststroke at 47.09 and third in butterfly in 18.34.
      In the 100-yard races, Weston Davis took first in freestyle with one minute, 07.30 seconds, third in breaststroke at one minute, 32.47 seconds and first in butterfly with one minute, 35.13 seconds. Zachary Blanco-Louis took fifth in freestyle with one minute and 17.50 seconds, fourth in backstroke with one minute, 45.32 seconds and fourth in butterfly with one minute, 42.07 seconds.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

Is this trick or treater safe? Photo from wikipedia
HAWAI`I COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT shares information to keep children safe to enjoy the festivities. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly four times as many children ages 5-14 are killed while walking on Halloween evening than other time of the year. Here are some tips for staying safe while having fun:
      Trick or Treaters should plan routes and share them with family. If possible, have an adult go along. Carry flashlights to see and be seen. Use reflective tape or stickers on bags or costumes. Cross the street only at corners, using crosswalks when available. Walk on sidewalks. If no sidewalks are available, walk facing traffic as far to the left as possible. Look both ways before crossing the street. Use face paint or makeup instead of masks, which can obstruct vision. Avoid costumes that are so long that they become tripping hazards. Only visit homes that have porch lights on. Accept treats at the door, and never go into a stranger’s house. Be cautious of strangers and animals. Have a grown-up inspect treats before eating.
      Motorists need to be especially careful in residential areas by slowing down and looking for keiki on roadways, medians and curbs. Watch for keiki darting out from between parked cars. Enter and exit driveways and alleys carefully. Don’t drink and drive; make sure to have a reliable, licensed designated driver before starting to drink.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

KA`U LIBRARIES OFFER SAFE WAYS to celebrate Halloween on Friday afternoon.
      Na`alehu Library holds a party from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. with goodies, crafts, activities and a costume contest. Call 939-2442 for more information.
      Pahala Library’s Halloween Bash begins at 2:15 p.m. and continues to closing at 5 p.m. Manager Debbie Wong Yuen invites residents to be creative in a food decorating contest. Entries are due by 3:30 p.m. on Thursday. “No need to go out and buy things; use household items,” she said. The winner will be announced at the party Friday afternoon.
      For the movie matinee on Friday, the Pahala Library features two Halloween movies. There will also be games and a snack-making demonstration. For more information, call 928-2015.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

At the first of many upcoming community forums, Gov. Ige said he supports
the TMT project. Photo from Office of the Governor
GOV. DAVID IGE REAFFIRMED his support of the Thirty Meter Telescope planned to be built at the summit of Mauna Kea. At the first of several community forums to be scheduled, Ige said, “When I became governor on Dec. 1, the courts had already made a decision to approve the TMT project. As governor, I must support that decision.
      “On a personal note, I support the Thirty Meter Telescope as it is an opportunity for Hawai`i to become a leader in astronomy, but the state must do a better job of managing Mauna Kea.”
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

THE PUBLIC IS INVITED to Ka`u Community Development Plan Steering Committee meeting today at 5:30 p.m. at Na`alehu Community Center. The committee will make final CDP recommendations to the county.
      Testimony on agenda items is welcomed.
      See kaucdp.info for more.

AFTER DARK IN THE PARK presents a program about The Last Volcano this evening at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.
`Ulana lauhala is the topic tomorrow at Kilauea Visitor Center. Photo from NPS
      Author John Dvorak, a former staff member of HVO, discusses and signs his book that tells how Thomas Jaggar and his wife Isabel Maydwell solved the mystery of why volcanoes erupt and found something else – enduring love.

PARK RANGERS AND CULTURAL practitioners share the art of pandanus weaving tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Kilauea Visitor Center’s lanai in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Free; park entrance fees apply.    Call 985-6011 for more information.

KA`U HIGH SWIM TRYOUTS AND PRACTICE start early in November under coach Bruce Simmerman. The girls and boys Trojan swim teams will travel to schools around the island into February. Swim tryouts and practice are from 2:15 p.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays at Pahala Pool. This is the first year for coaching for Simmerman, who teaches pre-algebra, `ukulele and art at the school. He swam competitively as a student.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

FOR AFFORDABLE COMPUTER HELP, call John Derry at 936-1872.

NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS for Retail Sales Associate: Full-Time, Competitive Wages, Medical & Dental Plans. Apply at Ka`u Coffee Mill. Call 928-0550 for an appointment.





See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_October2015.pdf.
See kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.swf
and kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.pdf.




Monday, October 26, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Monday, Oct. 26, 2015

A swarm of earthquakes northeast of Pahala has been occurring over the past couple of days. Circles indicate timing of quakes: red, within the last two hours; blue, two days; and yellow, two weeks. Map from USGS/HVO
A SWARM OF SMALL EARTHQUAKES has been occurring over the past couple of days just northeast of Pahala, on the makai side of Hwy 11. Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists said they have seen swarms in this vicinity before. “Deep earthquakes (20-40 km) at this location have not correlated with any change in activity of the volcano,” HVO reported. “Instead, they seem to be part of the conduit system that feeds magma from the mantle hotspot to the volcano’s summit.” 
      See hvo.wr.usgs.gov for more about earthquakes.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

TAKE IN THE HOMELESS, urges a partnership between the Hawai`i Association of Realtors and Gov. David Ige’s office, who are asking landlords to rent to those living on streets and beaches and in abandoned buildings. Social service agencies are joining in by counseling landlords on their fears of becoming entangled with homeless people, many who need help with substance abuse and mental health issues.
Gov. David Ige and his Scott Morishige, his Coordinator on Homelessness,
held a press conference this morning. Photo from Office of the Governor
      “This is an opportunity to alleviate some of the misinformation that’s out there,” Myoung Oh, director of government affairs for the Hawai`i Association of Realtors, told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser in a story published this morning. “For some people, it’s a little hard for them to open their doors. A lot of it is education.” 
      For more information on the Hawai`i Association of Realtors’ Landlord Summit, including how to register, see hawaiirealtors.com or tinyurl.com/nj3q6ws. 
      “There’s no silver bullet for this,” Oh said. “Everyone should be doing their part to end homelessness because we’re a small community. We as an organization are trying to do our part, and everyone should, as well, because we’re a small-knit family, one big `ohana.”
      Another initiative, Heroes Housing Heroes, resulted in 25 homeless vets finding housing on O`ahu.
      Homeless people in Ka`u find shelter on and off at such places as lands around Punalu`u Beach Park and Honu`apu, the empty Na`alehu Theatre, an old parts warehouse left over from the Ka`u Sugar mill in Pahala and wooded lands around Ka`u towns.
      Hawai`i Island will receive a portion of more than $600,000 earmarked for homeless programs on Neighbor Islands. “We realize homelessness is not just on O`ahu; it really is an issue that impacts every community throughout Hawai`i on every island,” Scott Morishige, the governor’s Coordinator on Homelessness, said in another Star-Advertiser story. “We’re seeking to increase the level of funding for HOPE Services, which currently administers the Housing Placement Program on the island, as well as Catholic Charities Hawai`i, which administers the state Homeless Emergency Grant Program. We’re also working with Bridging the Gap, which is a coalition of homeless service providers on the Neighbor Islands, to start to roll out funding for Housing First.”
Bridget Velasco
      Chad Cabral, director of development for HOPE Services Hawai`i, told the Star-Advertiser that his organization will receive $108,000 “to basically build our capacity with the Housing Placement Program to house more homeless families on Hawai`i Island. It’s basically to help families find housing in the private rental market.” 
      See staradvertiser.com.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

PREVENTING DROWNINGS IS THE GOAL of a new effort to educate visitors who are unfamiliar with oceans and waterfalls.
      According to Rosemarie Bernardo, of Honolulu Star-Advertiser, ideas being considered are display posters at airport baggage claim areas and promoting ocean safety in guidebooks.
      Bernardo said drownings are the leading cause of fatal injury among nonresidents in Hawai`i, according to Bridget Velasco, of the state Department of Health’s EMS and Injury Prevention Systems Branch. The branch is responsible for relaying basic safety messages as well as providing resources to help keep everyone safe. Velasco told Bernardo that an advisory committee defined visitor education and safety message refinement as priorities.
      “One drowning is one too many,” Velasco said.
      See staradvertiser.com.
     Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

DEPARTMENT OF HAWAIIAN HOME LANDS is holding statewide meetings seeking beneficiary input on proposed rule changes related to the following topics:
  • Genetic Testing – Proposes DHHL accept DNA tests to establish family ties in order to qualify for the Hawaiian Home Lands program; 
  • Lease Transfer – Proposes a process and requirements for transferring a vacant homestead lot (i.e., a lot with no home or other improvements built upon the land). 
  • Subsistence Lots – Proposes a new option in DHHL’s agricultural program that supports a subsistence rural lifestyle. 
      DHHL is currently re-examining Administrative Rules governing department operations and proposing to remove, add or modify these rules to meet the changing needs and priorities of beneficiaries. The department plans to propose several rule changes throughout the course of the current administration. This first round of proposed rule changes are in direct response to beneficiary feedback the department received over the years.
      The rulemaking process could take up to two years. Meetings are scheduled from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at DHHL West Hawai`i District Office in Waimea on Monday, Nov. 9 and Keaukaha Elementary School Cafetorium on Tuesday, Nov. 10.
      Beneficiaries have until Jan. 11, 2016 to provide mana`o on this first round of proposed changes.
      For more information and to provide feedback via web, see dhhl.hawaii.gov/DHHLRules.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

KA`U HIGH TROJAN GIRLS WILL TRAVEL to Hana, Maui, Kamuela and Hilo for three- and four-day basketball tournaments in December. 
      Sign-ups and tryouts will be held starting on Monday, Nov. 9 at 2:45 p.m. at the Ka`u High gym and continue daily through Friday, Nov. 13.
      The parent meeting will be the following Monday, Nov. 16 at 6 p.m. at the school’s band room. 
      Girls basketball season will start the first week in December with Tuesday games. Additional tournaments will include a three-day session in Kamuela at Hawai`i Preparatory Academy, the first weekend in December, followed by a four-day trip to Hana, Maui during the second weekend in December and a tournament at Hilo High the third week of December.
      Coaches are Cy Lopez, Jennifer Makuakane, April Jara and Bridgett Pasion. 
      Fundraising for the team and tournament travel includes the annual Chinese Pretzel sale, with presale tickets and distribution the last Sunday of November at Pahala Shopping Center. To donate to the team, call Lopez or Makuakane at 345-6895.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

FENG SHUI IS THE TOPIC of a lecture tomorrow at 4 p.m. at Na`alehu Library. Speaker Clear Englebert is the author of Feng Sui For Love & Money.
      For more information, call 939-2442.

John Dvorak discusses his new book tomorrow.
Image from NPS
THE PUBLIC IS INVITED to Ka`u Community Development Plan Steering Committee meeting tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. at Na`alehu Community Center. The committee will make final CDP recommendations to the county.
      The public is invited, and testimony on agenda items is welcomed.
      See kaucdp.info for more.

AFTER DARK IN THE PARK presents a program about The Last Volcano tomorrow at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Thomas Jaggar traveled the world studying volcanic eruptions. In 1912, he started Hawaiian Volcano Observatory at Kilauea. A widowed schoolteacher, Isabel Maydwell, came to Hawai`i from California to restart her life. She and Dr. Jaggar fell in love and lived in a small house at the edge of Kilauea caldera. Together, they solved the mystery of why volcanoes erupt and found something else – enduring love. 
      The Last Volcano is the story of the science and romance of volcanoes and why some people choose to dedicate their lives to confronting nature in its most magnificent form. 
      Join author John Dvorak, a former staff member of HVO, for this program and book signing. 

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

FOR AFFORDABLE COMPUTER HELP, call John Derry at 936-1872.

NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS for Retail Sales Associate: Full-Time, Competitive Wages, Medical & Dental Plans. Apply at Ka`u Coffee Mill. Call 928-0550 for an appointment.









Sunday, October 25, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Sunday, Oct. 25, 2015

Ka`u Community Development Plan Steering Committee meets Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at Na`alehu Community Center. See more below. Photo by Julia Neal
NEW HAWAI`I FARM BUREAU PRESIDENT is Randy Cabral, a retired manager for Royal Hawaiian Orchards, which grows and processes macadamia in Ka`u and beyond. Cabral owns a small ranch and home in Ka`u. Vice president is coffee broker Chris Manfredi, who stepped aside as Hawai`i Farm Bureau president and was founding President of Ka`u Farm Bureau. Manfredi also remains as a liaison for Hawai`i Farm Bureau Federation to the state Legislature.
      Also voting on behalf of the Ka`u Farm Bureau members at the statewide meeting, held last week at Sheraton Kona, was Ka`u Farm Bureau President Brenda Iokepa-Moses.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

IT’S COUNT WEEK AT PAHALA Public & School Library. Library staff and Friends of the Ka`u Library will take statistics of everyone who comes into the library all day long this week, counting materials that were looked at and used, as well as questions asked.
Pahala Public & School Library
      “This is very important to the library,” Manager Debbie Wong Yuen said. “The stats show how busy we are, and are a contributing factor for our staffing needs and budget. Please encourage people to use the library throughout next week.”
      Also this week, the library is looking for judges for its food decorating contest on Thursday at 4 p.m. Volunteers are also needed to help with the Halloween bash on Friday from 2:15 p.m. to 5 p.m.
      Hours are 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday; 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday; and 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

IN ONE WEEK, HAWAI`I IS MOVING enrollments from its Health Connector insurance exchange to healthcare.gov, the federal exchange. 
      According to a story by Kristen Consillio in Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Jeff Kissel, the head of the state exchange, said taxpayers lost $300 million by not using the federal exchange from the start.
      “Hawai`i should never have had to build its own exchange,” Kissel told Consillio. “It was a costly event, and mistakes were made. If this had never happened, Medicaid would have saved hundres of millions, and the Connector would have saved hundreds of millions, and we still would’ve been able to bring the tax benefits … to the state for our population.
      “Hawai`i relied on the judgement of the federal government in selection its contractors, and it proved to be a disaster for both the federal government and (the state).”
      Kissel told Consillio the root of the problem was lack of oversight and planning. “There were serious errors on the part of the people who ran the business” … and “the people who made policy at the federal and state levels, and that cost the taxpayer a lot of money nationwide,” Kissel said.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

DISTRICT FAMILY COURT JUDGE Melvin H. Fujino has been appointed to the Third Circuit Court of Hawai`i Island.
Judge Melvin H. Fujino
Photo from Margaret Wille
      Fujino, 55, has served as a judge with the District Family Court of the Third Circuit since 2008. Previously, he worked as deputy attorney general and was a team leader responsible for the Statewide Wiretap Review Unit and Asset Forfeiture program. Fujino was also a deputy prosecuting attorney and supervisor, as well as a community-oriented prosecutor for the West Hawai`i branch of Hawai`i County’s Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Fujino is a 1981 graduate of the University of Washington and 1985 graduate of the Gonzaga School of Law.
      Gov. David Ige selected Fujino from a list of nominees provided by the Judicial Selection Commission.
      “We were fortunate to have a highly qualified pool of nominees,” Ige said. “We appreciate their time and the effort that this process required. I extend my warmest congratulations to Judge Fujino.”
      The appointment is subject to state Senate confirmation.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

“IT HAPPENED AGAIN. DID YOU NOTICE?” Hawaiian Volcano Observatory researchers ask in the current issue of Volcano Watch. “Last week, a portion of Kilauea Volcano’s south flank slowly slipped seaward. Its movement is part of a recurring phenomenon called a ‘slow earthquake,’ which last occurred on Memorial Day 2012.
      “Beginning in the early morning hours of Oct. 14, 2015, a tiltmeter near Ka`ena Point on Hawai`i Island’s coastline south of Kilauea’s summit began to tilt away from the coast in a direction that is diagnostic of a slow earthquake event. A combination of tiltmeter and GPS networks continued to detect slip for the next two to three days. In total, the south flank slipped about three centimeters (1.2 inches) southeastward.
      “Earthquakes typically occur along faults – places where rocks slip past each other. To generate the seismic waves that travel through the earth and shake our houses, roads and buildings, the slip has to be fast, typically seconds to minutes long, depending on the size of the earthquake.
      “By contrast, slow earthquakes occur over the course of several days, and in Hawai`i, happen along a fault at the boundary between Kilauea Volcano and the old ocean floor. The slip associated with last week’s slow earthquake was so gradual that it did not generate seismic waves. But, had all the slip that took place during this slow earthquake occurred rapidly, it would have resulted in an earthquake of around magnitude six. The slip along the fault did, however, redistribute stresses and triggered earthquakes on adjacent segments of the fault and in the overlying crust.
USGS map shows magnitudes of earthquakes, amount of motion
and area of slippage that occurred six miles below the surface.

      “Slow earthquakes on the south flank of Hawai`i are periodic, typically occurring about every 26 months. The previous one was on May 28, 2012, so scientists at the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory had been expecting another one to occur since July 2015. Interestingly, Hawai`i Island’s slow earthquakes tend to occur in the same part of south flank over and over again, so instruments have been strategically placed to capture them when they happen.
      “The occurrence of ‘typical’ earthquakes in the central part of Kilauea’s south flank is often the most conspicuous indicator that a slow slip earthquake is happening. During the slow earthquake last week, there were over 110 ‘aftershocks.’ These earthquakes began on Oct. 15, after the slow earthquake had begun, and high earthquake rates continued through Oct. 17.
      “Most of these aftershocks were small – less than magnitude three. However, on the evening of Oct. 15, there was a larger, magnitude-3.9 earthquake located northeast of the main cluster of seismicity. The epicenter of this earthquake was in the same region as the 1989 magnitude-6.2 earthquake. This part of Kilauea’s south flank is one of three areas on the volcano that generate magnitude-4 or greater earthquakes.
      “The timing of the magnitude-3.9 earthquake suggests that it may have been triggered by the slow earthquake. This is not particularly common during slow earthquakes that have been observed since 1998, except for one instance of a magnitude-3.4 earthquake triggered during a slow earthquake in late 1998.
      “Another interesting effect of last week’s slow earthquake was the additional seismic activity within Kilauea Volcano’s rift zones. Since the slow earthquake, both the East Rift Zone and the Southwest Rift Zone have experienced an increase in the number of small earthquakes, including a magnitude-three earthquake near Pu`ukou, an area of the Southwest Rift Zone that has had enhanced seismic activity since March 2015. The exact process that might tie the slow earthquake to increased seismic activity in the rift zones is the topic of ongoing research.
      “Despite having no clear impact on our daily lives, understanding more about slow earthquakes may answer questions that do have societal impacts. In particular, we’d like to know what effect slow earthquakes have on the volcanic hazard and if larger, more destructive earthquakes are more likely during a slow earthquake. Finding the answers to these and other questions about the slow and unsteady movement on Kilauea’s south flank will keep researchers busy in the coming years.”
      See hvo.wr.usgs.gov/volcanowatch.
      Read comments, add your own, and like The Ka`u Calendar News Briefs on Facebook.

Clear Englebert
NA`ALEHU LIBRARY PRESENTS a Feng Shui Lecture Tuesday at 4 p.m. Speaker Clear Englebert is the author of Feng Sui For Love & Money. 
      For more information, call 939-2442.

KA`U COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PLAN Steering Committee meets Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at Na`alehu Community Center. The committee is scheduled to make final CDP recommendations to the county during the meeting.
      The public is invited, and testimony on agenda items is welcomed.
      See kaucdp.info for more.

THE LAST VOLCANO IS THE TITLE of a book and Tuesday’s After Dark in the Park program. Author John Dvorak, a former staff member of Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, presents a special program and book signing. Dvorak’s book tells how Thomas Jaggar and his wife Isabel Maydwell solved the mystery of why volcanoes erupt and found something else – enduring love.
      The free program begins at 7 p.m at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Park entrance fees apply.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

FOR AFFORDABLE COMPUTER HELP, call John Derry at 936-1872.

NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS for Retail Sales Associate: Full-Time, Competitive Wages, Medical & Dental Plans. Apply at Ka`u Coffee Mill. Call 928-0550 for an appointment.





See kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.swf
and kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.pdf.
See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_October2015.pdf.