The Kaʻū Calendar News Briefs, Hawaiʻi Island

A Volcano Awareness Month program at Ocean View Community Center Wednesday covers activity at Kilauea's summit, Mauna Loa and Kilauea's East Rift Zone. Photos from Hawaiian Volcano Observatory

HAWAI`I STATE LEGISLATURE’S Public Access Room has announced important dates for this year’s legislative session.
Opening Day is Jan. 21. Hawai`i’s constitution mandates that the regular legislative session starts at 10 a.m. on the third Wednesday of January.
Last day to introduce all non-administration bill packages is Jan. 23, with bills bundled together by common interest groups and accepted and labeled as a package by the clerks.

Gov. David Ige presents his first
State-of-the-State address to the
Legislature on Jan. 26.
Photo from Gov's Office

State-of-the-State address takes place Jan. 26, when Gov. David Ige presents his first annual address to the assembled joint Legislature. The address presents an opportunity for the  governor to report on affairs of state and to put forth recommendations and initiatives. Many visitors come to the Capitol to hear the governor’s speech and witness the proceedings from the gallery, accessible on the ground floor/atrium level.
Jan. 26 is also the last day to introduce administration bill package. This is known as the Governor’s Package. Bills are prepared by executive branch agencies for consideration by the Legislature and are introduced on behalf of the executive branch by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
State-of-the-Judiciary address takes place Jan. 28. The Chief Justice’s address to the assembled joint Legislature presents an opportunity to report on the judicial branch of government and to put forth recommendations and initiatives.
Last day to introduce bills is Jan. 29. A bill is introduced when it has been filed with the House or Senate Clerk, who gives it a number with an HB or SB  prefix and then puts it on the calendar for First Reading by the chamber. After First Reading, it is given its committee referrals, which specify which committees must hear and pass the measure for it to succeed. Only legislators may introduce bills. At introduction, each bill is given a “Bill Status” webpage that can be accessed via the Legislature’s website at www.capitol.hawaii.gov and used to track all the measure’s activity.
Jan. 30 is the last day for organizations to submit grant and subsidy requests. Grant, also known as Grant-in-Aid, refers to an award of appropriated state funds by the Legislature to a specified recipient to support activities that benefit the community. Subsidy refers to a similar award to a recipient to reduce costs incurred in providing a service to members of the public.
See more about the 2015 Legislature’s calendar in future Ka`u News Briefs.
For additional information, contact the Public Access Room at 808/587-0478  or par@capitol.hawaii.gov. 
PAR's website is lrbhawaii.org/par.

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Pahoa Transfer Station could reopen with lava having stalled just at its border.
Photo by Dave Berry

WITH LAVA STALLED AFTER ENTERING Pahoa Transfer Station, Hawai`i County is making plans to reopen it. Almost a month ago, Hawai`i County opened the facility for public viewing of lava that flowed through its fence and down the slope onto some asphalt. First visitors were schoolchildren in Puna who have been displaced due to the threat of lava crossing Hwy 130 and disrupting access to schools.

The county is also coming up with plans for alternative viewing sites.
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HAMAKUA SPRINGS COUNTY FARMS owner Richard Ha explains efforts of the Big Island Energy Utility Cooperative steering committee on his blog at hahaha.hamakuasprings.com.
“You know the Wayne Gretzky quote about skating to where the puck is going to be, not where it is? It refers, of course, to planning ahead," Ha writes.
“My Pop’s story about climbing the bamboo pole taught me a lesson about planning ahead, too. He told me about fishing for aholehole with some friends at Maku`u. They stuck a bamboo pole into the rock and hung a kerosene pole on it when, suddenly, they saw white water coming straight for them. It was going to cover the rocky point where they were fishing.
“‘What you going do?’ my Pop asked me when he told me this story. I had no idea. He told me he climbed up the bamboo pole, hand over hand, lifted up his legs and let the water go under him. Then he dropped back down and used the pole to fish his friends out of the water.
Before the white water arrived, he already knew what he would do. He had a plan.
“NextEra is proposing to purchase the Hawai`i Electric Company grid, and this is a good time to compare alternatives. HECO has been having a tough time making necessary changes. NextEra looks like they can make the changes, but they’re not from here.

Richard Ha

“We have seen how the Kaua`i Island Utility Cooperative has done over the last 12 years. Each meter has one vote. KIUC has nearly $100 million in retained earnings that would have gone off island, but has stayed in the state instead. And they are flexible and can make changes in a timely manner. …
“The Big Island Energy Utility Cooperative steering committee we’ve created – to look into forming a Big Island Energy Co-op here on the Big Island – is our way of skating to where the puck is going to be, or climbing the bamboo pole. We are planning ahead.
“We are doing all the legwork and research and information gathering now so that if there is an opportunity, we will be in position. If we don’t do this, we won’t be in the game.
The goals and benefits of a Big Island Energy Cooperative are:

Local, democratic control over one of the most important infrastructures and public goods on the island. This would provide more benefits to island residents, with any profits staying at home.
Community over off-island, corporate shareholder priorities, as the cooperative would work for sustainable development of the island’s communities through policies approved and accepted by its members.
Lower electric costs through greater efforts to develop island-based energy sources, improve energy efficiency and an accelerated adoption of smart grid technologies.
Greater overall energy independence and sustainability through a comprehensive and integrated approach to all energy-consuming sectors on the island.
Development of island-produced fuels to provide an energy source for both electricity generation and transportation.

“If not here, where? If not now, when? If not all of us, who?"

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VOLCANO AWARENESS MONTH CONTINUES with tomorrow’s after Dark in the Park program, Kilauea Volcano’s Dual Personality: A Historical Perspective. The free program begins at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium.

KA`U RESIDENT AND MASTER LEI MAKER Kilohana Domingo offers a lei hulu feather work demonstration Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center lanai in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.

AS PART OF VOLCANO AWARENESS MONTH, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologist Frank Trusdell presents a program Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center. Trusdell reports on the current status of Mauna Loa, offers updates on Kilauea’s summit eruption and presents an overview of Kilauea’s East Rift Zone eruption, including an in-depth account of the lava flow that has advanced toward Pahoa over the past few months.
Call 967-8844 for more information.

KA`U NATURAL FARMING WORKSHOP is coming up Saturday, Jan 17 and 24 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Earth Matters Farm at South Point and Kama`oa Roads. Topics include learning how to make and apply indigenous microorganisms to your farm and garden; learning how to develop inputs, including fertilizers, soil amenities and pest control with ingredients found in Ka`u area; developing healthy soil and its importance; and soil testing, including how to interpretation results and remedies.

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

Ka`u residents can meet prospective candidates for CEO of Hawai`i Health Systems Corp. today through Thursday at Ka`u Hospital, one of the facilities it operates.

HERMINA MORITA, CHAIR of Hawai`i Public Utilities Commission, has resigned.

Morita is known in Ka`u for the PUC’s decision to twice turn down proposed contracts between Hawai`i Electric Light Co. and `Aina Koa Pono, which planned to build a $400 million microwave refinery and clear trees, brush and plants between Pahala and Na`alehu to feed the biofuel plant and truck the fuel to a Kona electric plant. Mayor Billy Kenoi and County of Hawai`i also opposed the contract based on its projected increase in the price of electricity.

Hermina Morita

The PUC said it made its decisions to reject the 20-year, fixed-price contracts largely on the basis of the AKP contracts likely resulting in more expensive electric rates. The PUC called the price at which the AKP-produced biofuel would have been sold to the electric company “excessive, not cost-effective,” and “unreasonable and inconsistent with the public interest.” The commission wrote: “In effect, from a real world, bill-paying perspective, the HECO Companies seek the Commission’s approval to consistently charge affected ratepayers a premium for HELCO’s purchase and use of AKP-produced biofuel under the terms of the twenty-year contract. Such a result is unreasonable and not in the public interest.”
While the commission wrote that its decision was largely based on the high cost of the biofuel, it noted commissioners’ other major concerns with the contract, such as the likelihood that using the biofuel to keep the electric company’s existing power plants operating “will displace or curtail existing cheaper renewable alternatives.”
The PUC also called the proposed biofuel pricing “a mystery to all but a select few,” as it remained confidential to all but the electric company, `Aina Koa Pono, the PUC and the Consumer Advocate. The PUC stated in its decision that the price would have been an estimated eight-figure amount (at least 10 million dollars) in 2015, the first year in which the sixteen million gallons of biofuel could have been produced. “Over the course of the twenty-year contract period, the total estimated cost impact of using AKP-produced biodiesel instead of petroleum fuel will be a nine-figure amount,” (a minimum of 100 million dollars), the PUC wrote.
According to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, “Morita has been in the crosshairs for decisions affecting `Aina Koa Pono. … AKP has some highly placed supporters that made this a particularly sticky decision to make, politically. For example, the biofuel company was represented by William Kaneko, Abercrombie’s campaign manager.”
Morita’s term had ended June 30, 2014, but Gov. Neil Abercrombie kept her on a holdover basis. “We are at a very critical juncture in developing our clean energy future, and the Public Utilities Commission needs stability to continue to address many of the important regulatory issues before it,” Abercrombie said at that time.
Abercrombie’s decision followed reports that he would perhaps replace Morita after she and fellow commissioners Michael Champley and Lorraine Akiba rejected the two proposed contracts between AKP and HELCO.
Morita and her husband also were accused of having illegal vacation rentals on conservation property. In response to those allegations, Abercrombie said, “At the present time, Chair Morita has business before the Board of Land and Natural Resources which must be addressed. She will continue to serve in the position while these issues are being resolved.”

Led by Hermina Morita, the PUC twice rejected contracts between AKP and HELCO.

During a meeting in Pahala with Sen. Russell Ruderman, several attendees urged the senator to garner support for keeping Morita as PUC Chair. Ruderman said he supported her reappointment and that she shouldn’t be punished for turning down AKP. Among those who asked Ruderman to support Morita was local police commissioner Bobby Gomes, who earlier testified against AKP at various community meetings.

A graduate of Kamehameha Schools, Morita is known for her environmental work at Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge, Kaua`i Children’s Discovery Museum, Hanalei Community Association and Environment Hawai`i. She was a Kaua`i planning commissioner and a member of the state House of Representatives. As Public Utilities chief, she was involved with the state’s renewable energy initiative and involved in many decisions on which energies are appropriate for Hawai`i.

“For almost two decades, Mina has been the acknowledged leader in the state’s efforts to reduce dependency on imported oil and to develop local, renewable, and clean energy resources,” Gov. David Ige said when he learned Morita would not seek reappointment.

HEI CEO Connie Lau

“Mina has been the driving force, both at the Legislature, where she made her mark as the House Energy Committee chair, and at the PUC, behind the policies that have positione Hawai`i as a national leader in clean energy. She has dedicated her life to creating a better environment and more sustainable communities. I thank Mina for her work. She embodies the values that make Hawai`i a special place.”

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NEXTERA ENERGY’S AGREEMENT TO PURCHASE Hawaiian Electric Industries includes about $17.2 million for HEI executives, according to a report in Pacific Business News.

If the $4.3 billion acquisition of HEI’s subsidiary, Hawaiian Electric Co., is approved, President and CEO Connie Lau would receive $10.7 million, including $6.8 million in cash and $3 million in equity.
James Ajello, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, would receive $3.7 million, including $2.1 million in cash and about $1.2 million in equity.
Chet Richardson, Executive Vice President and general counsel, would get $2.8 million, including $1.6 million in cash and $820,000 in equity.
The purchase is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year following several required regulatory approvals and HEI shareholder approval.
See bizjournals.com/pacific.

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Former HHSC CEO Howard Ainsley

KA`U RESIDENTS ARE INVITED TO MEET candidates for Chief Executive Officer of East Hawai`i Region of Hawai`i Health Systems Corp., which includes Ka’u Hospital, Hilo Medical Center and Hale Ho`ola Hamakua in Honoka`a. HHSC is recruiting a new Regional CEO to replace Howard Ainsley, who left last summer. The Board of Directors has narrowed the search to three candidates: Ron Morasko, currently employed in Colorado: Verna Stroman Meacham, currently employed in Maryland; and Daniel Brinkman, who has served as interim CEO since Ainsley’s departure.

The candidates are on island this week and will be visiting Ka’u Hospital today, tomorrow and Thursday. They will meet the public in the employee dining room between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. Morasko is here today, Meacham, tomorrow and Brinkman, Thursday.

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HAWAI`I ISLAND POLICE HAVE IDENTIFIED the man who died New Year’s Eve in a structure fire in the Hawaiian Ocean View Estates subdivision.
He was identified as 67-year-old Dale Gorrell, of Hawaiian Ocean View Estates.
The cause of death is undetermined pending toxicology results. Police do not suspect foul play.

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KILAUEA VOLCANO’S DUAL PERSONALITY: A Historical Perspective is the topic at After Dark in the Park today. The free program begins at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium.

Lei hulu master artist Kilohana Domingo creates a feather lei.
Photo from NPS

KA`U RESIDENT AND MASTER LEI MAKER Kilohana Domingo offers a lei hulu feather work demonstration tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center lanai in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.

AS PART OF VOLCANO AWARENESS MONTH, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologist Frank Trusdell presents a program tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center. Trusdell reports on the current status of Mauna Loa, offers updates on Kilauea’s summit eruption and presents an overview of Kilauea’s East Rift Zone eruption, including an in-depth account of the lava flow that has advanced toward Pahoa over the past few months.

Call 967-8844 for more information.

KA`U NATURAL FARMING WORKSHOP is coming up Saturday, Jan 17 and 24 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Earth Matters Farm at South Point and Kama`oa Roads. Participants learn about creating soil health & nutritional food.
$100 for both days includes garden lunch. Register at 939-7510.

JR. VOLCANO CHOY & FRIENDS will host a fundraising outdoor jazz performance from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 31 at Pāhala Plantation House on the corner of Maile and Pikake Streets. Funds are being raised to restore instruments at Ka‘ū High School for a music program for Pāhala Middle School students. Suggested donation is $15.

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

The current status of Kilauea and Mauna Loa, shown here erupting in March 1984, are topics at a Volcano Awareness Month program this evening at Ocean View Community Center. Photo from USGS/HVO by J.D. Griggs

MAUNA LOA, WHICH FORMERLY HAD MUCH of the macadamia orchards tied up in leasing for Ka`u-produced nuts, is being purchased from The Hershey Co., of Pennsylvania, by Honolulu-based Hawaiian Host, according to Pacific Business News.

Both companies will continue operating as two distinct, separate brands, according to the PBN story. The company said no immediate staff changes were planned.

“This acquisition will create a great opportunity for both companies, our employees and the community,” Keith Sakamoto, president and CEO of Hawaiian Host, said in a statement. “It brings Mauna Loa back under Hawai`i ownership, joins together two strong, local brands and lays the foundation for continued success.”

Mauna Loa planted its first macadamia nut trees in Kea`au in 1946. It is one of the largest macadamia nut processors in the world, with seasonal capacity to process approximately 40 million pounds of nuts a year.
The company was acquired by Hershey in 2004.
See bizjournals.com/pacific.

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FOLLOWING MINA MORITA’S RESIGNATION from the state Public Utilities Commission, Pacific Business News is considering possible replacements. PBN’s list includes state Sen. Mike Gabbard, chairman of the Senate Committee on Energy and Environment; Doug Codiga, a Honolulu energy attorney; Mark Glick, administrator for the state Energy Office; Ted Liu, former director of the state Department of Economic Development and Tourism; Robbie Alm, former executive vice president for Hawaiian Electric Co.; Doug McLeod, former energy commissioner for Maui County; and Jeff Mikulina, executive director of Honolulu-based renewable energy nonprofit Blue Planet Foundation.
“The decisions that the PUC will make in the next couple of years will set the framework for utility operations long into the future,” Mikulina told PBN reporter Duane Shiwogama. “That individual needs to be an akamai, independent thinker who understands the role of policy in a rapidly changing technology and business landscape.”

Mikulina also said Gov. David Ige could appoint one of the two current members, either Michael Champley or Lorraine Akiba, as chair, or someome from the outside.
“They’ve had the experience from serving for a few years,” Mikulina said. “The governor could then just appoint a third commissioner.”
See bizjournals.com/pacific.
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Kamana Beamer Photo from The Kohala Center

KAMANAMAIKALANI BEAMER, PH.D. is The Kohala Center’s next president and chief executive officer. Beamer succeeds Matthews Hamabata, Ph.D., who is retiring after serving as the organization’s president and CEO since its founding in 2000.

Beamer, a geographer, historian, author, public servant and resident of Waimea, assumes leadership of the center on March 1 on a part-time basis and on a full-time basis on July 1. Hamabata will continue to serve as a consultant to Beamer and The Kohala Center, overseeing select projects including development of The Center’s future campus on Kohala Mountain.
“I feel that the values and goals of The Kohala Center are closely aligned with my own ethics and aspirations,” Beamer said. “I was born and raised in rural Hawai`i. I know that there is much that our lifestyle and aloha can provide to others. There is a pressing need to provide sustainable economic alternatives for these communities, for Hawai`i and for the world. The Kohala Center has built amazing programs, fostered powerful relationships and had the courage to remain independent while becoming a leader in strengthening the rural, agricultural and knowledge economies of Hawai`i.”
Beamer’s affiliation with The Kohala Center dates back to his selection as a postdoctoral fellow in the center’s inaugural cohort of the Mellon-Hawai`i Doctoral and Postdoctoral Fellowship Program in 2008–2009 and presently serves as a mentor to one of the program’s current postdoctoral fellows. The program holds annual gatherings of fellows and their mentors at Pahala Plantation House. He comes to The Kohala Center from his current position as a member of the faculty at the Hui `Aina Momona Program at the University of Hawai`i at Manoa, with a joint appointment in the Richardson School of Law and the Hawai`inuiakea School of Hawaiian Knowledge.
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U.S. SEN. BRIAN SCHATZ HAS CO-INTRODUCED legislation to provide a 3.8 percent pay raise to federal workers in calendar year 2016. Federal employees have lost over a billion dollars in salary and benefits due to sequestration and a three-year pay freeze from January 2011 to December 2013.   
“Hawai`i’s federal employees are some of the hardest working public servants in the country,” Schatz said. “In recent years, our federal workers have endured pay freezes, furloughs and a government shutdown. Our bill recognizes the service of working families and gives them a well-deserved raise.”

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Offerings to Pele are placed on new lava in Pahoa. Photo from Wendy M. Fontaine

WHAT I LEARNED FROM A TOWN Threatened by Lava is the title of an entry on facebook by Wendy M. Fontaine. Fontaine is a writer, editor and mother in Los Angeles who visited Pahoa in December. A former newspaper reporter, her work has appeared in many newspapers, as well as Brain, Child Magazine, Grace Magazinefor Women, Role/Reboot and Utne Reader.

“Along with dozens of other visitors and residents, we walked to the end of Apa`a Drive to view the cooled lava from the town’s transfer station,” Fontaine wrote. “My daughter and I posed for photos and gazed at the coins, fruits and flowers left on the rock as makana, or gifts, for Pele, the mythical Hawaiian goddess of volcanoes. We left the only thing we had in our pockets: a piece of spearmint chewing gum… .
“Here’s what the media hasn’t told you: Pahoa is a portrait of resilience. When lava advanced toward the highway, the town built a 10-mile bypass road. When it moved toward schools, Pahoa relocated students to neighboring communities. Utility poles are in the path of the flow. So what did Pahoa do? Lift them up onto rock platforms, of course.
“We were in town only 10 days, but that was long enough to see that this village is not easily broken. The next time I visit Hawai`i, Pahoa might not be where I left it. It could be empty, or it could be covered in hard black rock. It hardly matters, really, because Pahoa is not just a place.
“Pahoa is the decision to live not in resistance to nature, but in flux with it. It is making sure your neighbor, or even your neighbor’s dog, is all right. It is having a back-up plan, an extra loaf of bread and a gas can ready to go. It is the awareness that our world is constantly changing, whether we want it to or not.
“I came home with the usual souvenirs: mugs and magnets, key chains and T-shirts. But the best thing I brought back from the Big Island was a reminder to live like a local, to remember that when disaster strikes, which it will inevitably do, there will always be at least one way around it.”
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Astronomer Lew Cook, who writes an astronomy column for The Ka`u Calendar,
photographed Comet Lovejoy on Jan. 11 using a telescope in New Mexico.
The colored dots result from taking three red, three green and three blue
exposures and tracking the comet on the exposures.

ASTRONOMER LEW COOK, WHO WRITES a monthly column for The Ka`u Calendar, offers updates on Stars Over Ka`u for this month.

“Comet Q2 Lovejoy is in the sky, visible with binoculars. I’ve plotted the approximate position for every Saturday night on our chart. It starts the month out in Lepus (the rabbit) and travels northwestward through Taurus, ending the month west of Perseus. The dates are shown in small numbers below the comet symbol.
“Ever see the planet Mercury?” Cook asks. “For the next few days, look west just after sunset. The bright white ‘star’ that is first to pop into view after sunset in the western sky is Venus. Look just to the right of Venus, and soon to appear will be Mercury, quite a bit dimmer. Mars continues to lurk in the southwestern sky and on the Jan. 23 will be approached by the crescent moon, above and to the right.”

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USGS HAWAIIAN VOLCANO OBSERVATORY geologist Frank Trusdell presents a program today at 6:30 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center. Trusdell reports on the current status of Mauna Loa, offers updates on Kilauea’s summit eruption and presents an overview of Kilauea’s East Rift Zone eruption, including an in-depth account of the lava flow that has advanced toward Pahoa over the past few months.
Call 967-8844 for more information.

STEWARDSHIP AT THE SUMMIT CONTINUES tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Volunteers meet at Kilauea Visitor Center to help remove invasive Himalayan ginger from park trails. Free; park entrance fees apply.

KA`U NATURAL FARMING WORKSHOP is coming up Saturday, Jan 17 and 24 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Earth Matters Farm at South Point and Kama`oa Roads. Participants learn about creating soil health & nutritional food.
$100 for both days includes garden lunch. Register at 939-7510.

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

Through its Living Hawaiian Culture Program, Hawai`i Tourism Authority is supporting restoration of the Malolo canoe by Pa`a Pono Miloli`i. Photo from Pa` Pono Miloli`i

PA`A PONO MILOLI`I’S MALOLO PROJECT is being supported through Hawai`i Tourism Authority’s Kukulu Ola: Living Hawaiian Culture Program, part of its Product Enrichment Program for 2015. LHCP projects make up 33 of a total of 156 programs supported in 2015 through it and two other HTA PEP programs. In line with the HTA’s Strategic Plan to support Hawai`i’s community programs and events, the goal of PEP is to support community-based programs that enhance visitor experiences, as well as create opportunities for economic development, natural resources management and perpetuation of Hawaiian culture.

Uncle Bill Rosehill Photo from Pa`a Pono Miloli`i

HTA will support restoration of the Malolo canoe to ready it for racing competitions and to pass knowledge of canoe building to the future generation of Miloli`i and South Kona residents. The yearlong restoration project is under the direction of Uncle Bill Rosehill.

The Malolo will be extended from its current 36 feet to 45 feet, and its hull will be altered so as to be able to compete with koa canoes today. The Malolo will be the Miloli`i Canoe Club’s koa canoe for the 2017 Moku O Hawai`i racing season.
“Hawai`i is a destination like no other in the world, and our Product Enrichment Program highlights different ways in which our community comes together to make our home a better place for both residents and visitors to enjoy,” said Ronald Williams, HTA Chief Executive Officer. “These programs not only highlight the unique experiences found across the state, but also support the perpetuation of our host culture and the sustainability of our vast natural resources.”

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HAWAIIAN ISLANDS HUMPBACK WHALE National Marine Sanctuary is looking for volunteers for the 2015 Sanctuary Ocean Count. Now in its 20th year, this project uses volunteers to count whales and record their behaviors from over 60 shore sites on the islands of O`ahu, Kaua`i and Hawai`i. The project allows the public to learn more about humpback whale population, distribution and behavioral trends while being involved in a volunteer monitoring effort. Sanctuary Ocean Counts will be held on Jan. 31, Feb. 28 and March 28 at selected sites from 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

Humpback whales are back in Hawaiian waters. Photo from fish-journals.com

Interested volunteers may register online at http://sanctuaryoceancount.org. Additional information is available on the sanctuary’s website at http://hawaiihumpbackwhale.noaa.gov, or volunteers may call 808-725-5917. Volunteers are required to register prior to participating. Registration will close one week prior to the event date.
No advance training is required for general volunteers.
The Sanctuary Ocean Count has helped generate widespread enthusiasm for humpback whales and Hawai`i’s marine environment over the years, with more than 2,000 volunteer participants annually. It is one of several projects coordinated by the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary that encourages government and citizens to work together in protecting humpback whales.

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THE HILL, WHICH COVERS NEWS OF CAPITOL HILL in Washington, DC, recently reported on Hawai`i’s congressional delegation winning back influence on defense and national security following the retirement of Sen. Daniel Akaka and the death of Sen. Daniel Inouye.
“Now the state’s four-member, all-Democratic delegation is seeking to restore the Aloha State’s lost clout,” the article states.

Hawai`i's U.S. Congressional delegation.
Image from wikipedia

It lists appointments of Hawai`i’s congressional delegates. Sen. Brian Schatz is on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Sen. Mazie Hirono is the ranking member on the Senate Armed Service Committee’s Seapower subpanel, and Reps. Tulsi Gabbard and Mark Takai serve on the Armed Services Committee.
“While the foursome has a long way to go before matching the outsized influence of Inouye, Akaka and former Rep. Neil Abercrombie, they are on a mission to ensure that Hawai`i has sway in the national security debate,” the article states.
“It is very helpful to have people on the authorizing side and the appropriating side,” Schatz told The Hill. “We don’t want to overstate it, but we do feel like we’re in a good position.”

Hirono said, “While we will face difficult decisions in the coming weeks and months, I look forward to engaging in important debates on issues that are critical to Hawai`i and our nation.”

Gabbard said, “The rapport is there. At the beginning, middle and end of the day, Hawai`i is a small state, and making sure that each of us individually and collectively advocates for Hawai`i and the unique, both challenges and opportunities, that exist there, is something that is our focus.”
Takai said, “I think it’s very strategic to have all of our members focused on what matters most to the state of Hawai`i, and one of the things that matter is, definitely, defense.”

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A 16-YEAR-OLD PAHALA GIRL DIED in a single-vehicle crash last night in Pahala. She was identified as Leiani Camba-Penera.
Responding to a 9:21 p.m. call, police determined that a 1994 Toyota pickup truck operated by an 18-year-old Na`alehu man was traveling south on Hwy 11 near Kapapala, seven-tenths of a mile south of the 41-mile marker, when the driver reportedly fell asleep, ran off the right shoulder and struck a utility pole.
Camba-Penera, who was not wearing a seat belt, was ejected from the vehicle. She was taken to Hilo Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead at 4:10 a.m. this morning. An autopsy has been ordered to determine the exact cause of death.
The driver was taken to Hilo Medical Center for treatment of his injuries.
Police believe that speed and drugs may have contributed to this traffic fatality. They have initiated a negligent homicide investigation.
Police ask anyone who witnessed the crash to call Officer Kimo Keliipaakaua at 326-4646, ext. 299. Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at 961-8300.
This is the first traffic fatality this year compared with two at this time last year.

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OK Farms co-owner Troy Keolanui supports promotion of macadamia-nut markets
in foreign markets. Photo by Andrew Hara

HAWAI`I ISLAND MACADAMIA NUT INDUSTRY LEADERS are in support of U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard's call for the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agriculture Services to provide greater visibility to Hawai`i macadamia nuts on its export list to foreign markets.   Last month, Gabbard visited India at the personal invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During her stay, some of the visits included those with business leaders to discuss a bolstered Hawai`i-India trade relationship focused on the growing food retail market in India.

“India is the world’s 10th largest economy measured in terms of gross domestic product,” Gabbard wrote in a letter to FAS. “Given India’s growing population and expanding middle class, Hawai`i, as one of the world’s largest producers of macadamia nuts, has an opportunity to establish a niche market for a U.S.-grown savory nut.”  

Hawai`i farmers in the macadamia nut industry generated more than $36 million in revenue in 2013. Growth in this industry would expand business and employment opportunities in rural Hawai`i communities.
Troy Keolanui, John Cross and Richard Schnitzler applauded Gabbard’s efforts to encourage FAS to prioritize macadamia nut exports.   “Promoting Hawaiian macadamia nuts to foreign markets is a big boost to our industry, and we are grateful to Congresswoman Gabbard for again taking the lead to represent the farmers of Hawai`i,” said Troy Keolanui, co-owner with Ed Olson of Hilo-based OK Farms.   
John Cross, President of Hawai`i Macadamia Nut Association, said, “We thoroughly support Congresswoman Gabbard’s effort to expand Hawai`i-grown macadamia nuts to India and Southeast Asia. We look forward to making contact with representatives from India and other Asian countries to build future business relationships.”   

Richard Schnitzler, President of Hamakua Mac Nut Company, said, “Hawai`i’s macadamia nut industry continues to be a growing industry, and we support Congresswoman Gabbard’s idea of opening new markets, including in India.”

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Learn about natural farming at Ka`u's Earth Matters Farm.

KA`U NATURAL FARMING WORKSHOP is coming up the next two Saturdays, Jan 17 and 24, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Earth Matters Farm at South Point and Kama`oa Roads. Participants learn about creating soil health & nutritional food.
$100 for both days includes garden lunch.

Zach Mermel teaches mushroom cultivation Saturday. Photo from VAC

MUSHROOM CULTIVATION IS THE TOPIC Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Volcano art Center’s Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village.
Zach Mermel teaches basics of fungal biology and how fungal mycelium colonizes different materials, particularly wooden logs and straw. Attendees gain hands-on experience inoculating their own mushroom kits as well as logs they can take home at the end of the day.
Mermel encourages farmers, gardener, and homeowners seeking to incorporate the growing of gourmet and medicinal mushrooms into their lives and livelihoods to attend.
Course fees are $40 for VAC members and $50 for non-members plus a $25 supply fee. Participants bring a bag lunch.
Call 967-8222 to register.

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

Ka`u Natural Farming Workshop begins tomorrow and continues the next Saturday at Earth Matters Farm.

TWO MOTIONS HAVE BEEN FILED with Hawai`i Public Utilities Commission regarding NextEra Energy’s purchase of Hawaiian Electric Co.
One motion made by a broad coalition of seven groups and two individuals asks the Commission “for a deferral of merger proceedings until the Public Utilities Commission defines Hawai`i’s energy needs and fashions a merger policy that defines the public interest.”

Life of the Land Director Henry Curtis

The entities are Life of the Land, a 45-year-old statewide community action group; Big Island Community Coalition, a coalition composed of land owners and businesses on Hawai`i Island focused on making Big Island electricity rates the lowest in the state by emphasizing the use of local resources; Puna Pono Alliance, a community group supporting environmentally safe, culturally sensitive, economically viable, and sustainable energy alternatives for Hawai`i County; Friends of Lana`i, a group formed to give voice to the many residents who strongly oppose the building of an industrial wind power plant for O`ahu on Lana`i; Community Alliance on Prisons, a diverse coalition of community groups, churches, scholars, businesses and concerned community members working to improve the quality of justice in Hawai`i; Ka Lei Maile Ali`i Hawaiian Civic Club, which is dedicated to educating the community about Hawaiian history and has written a number of energy and land use resolutions which have been adopted by the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs; I Aloha Moloka`i, a community group which opposes windmill farms on Moloka`i, opposes an undersea cable to either Moloka`i or Lana`i and is committed to seeking out viable renewable energy projects for the island of Moloka`i; Lynn Hamilton, a resident of Pahala; and Richard Mayer, a University of Hawai`i Maui College Economics/Geography Professor Emeritus.
The other document was a petition filed by the five-member Clean Energy Groups: Blue Planet Foundation, Hawai`i PV Coalition, Hawai`i Solar Energy Association, Sierra Club represented by its counsel Earthjustice and The Alliance For Solar Choice represented by its counsel Keyes, Fox & Wiedman LLP.
Their filing is an Application for Commission Action, Petition for Declaratory Order, and/or a petition for Rulemaking to fulfill the requirements of the Commission’s Orders and Inclinations on the future of Hawai`i’s electric utilities and define the public interest in Hawai`i as a prerequisite to considering any proposed acquisition of the HECO companies.”
According to Life of the Land Director Henry Curtis, the PUC “now has on its plate two large issues: continuing to develop the utility plan of the future and the proposed merger.” The Commission could decide to do either one first or both simultaneously.
“The plan should come before which entity will implement the plan,” Curtis said. “In addition, the Commission needs to update its guidance policy on mergers.”

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Kathryn Matayoshi

PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS HAVE BEEN GIVEN a letter to take home to their parents as a reminder of the upcoming spring assessments for English language arts and math.

The new assessments, known as Smarter Balanced, are aligned to the Hawai`i Common Core standards implemented statewide at the start of the school year.
The letter from Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi also included sample exercises explaining how students are being asked deeper questions that require critical thinking.
“New expectations for student learning mean we need new ways to measure how our students are performing,” Matayoshi said. “These new tests measure not only what students know, but also how well they can apply their knowledge in real-world situations.”
Smarter Balanced assessments will be administered beginning in March to students in grades three through eight and high school juniors to measure their reading, math, writing, listening, research and thinking skills. Hawai`i is a governing member of a multi-state consortium that has worked with teachers, parents and higher education faculty to develop the Smarter Balanced assessments.
More than three million students across the consortium participated in the field test last year to ensure questions are valid, reliable and fair for all students.
“While this is a step forward in our plans to raise student achievement, we expect the change to the new test will result in lower scores as compared to previous years,” said Matayoshi. “However, because it is a new test aligned to new standards, we will not be comparing the results to that of the old test. Results from this year are a new starting point for students.”
The results also benefit teachers. The Smarter Balanced Assessment System offers information during the year to give teachers and parents a better picture of where students are thriving and where they need help.
A number of schools held Smarter Balanced parent nights with activities during the fall. The parent letter includes additional assessment examples and tips for helping with homework.
See  www.HawaiiPublicSchools.org.

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Sen. Mazie Hirono

U.S. SEN. MAZIE K. HIRONO HAS CO-INTRODUCED the Filipino Veterans Promise Act, a bipartisan bill that would help all Filipino World War II veterans receive benefits that they earned for their service to the United States. These veterans fought alongside Americans but were denied veterans’ benefits because they weren’t included on rosters that the United States later used to establish service.

“We have heard the stories of how numerous Filipino soldiers were afraid to record their names during World War II for fear the enemy would obtain roster lists and retaliate against them,” Hirono said. “This bill will provide Filipino World War II veterans a process to prove that they indeed served and are eligible for the benefits they’ve been promised. We must now work to ensure every surviving veteran who served shoulder-to-shoulder with American forces receives this well-earned benefit.”
After World War II, the U.S. Army created the Approved Revised Reconstructed Guerilla Roster of 1948, also known as the Missouri List, based on individuals who came forward after the war to receive health care. This list has been used by the military to verify those who served alongside U.S. troops in the Philippines. It is possible that some Filipinos who fought were not added to this list and could be improperly denied benefits.   The Filipino Veterans Promise Amendment would direct the Department of Defense, in consultation with the Department of Veterans Affairs, to establish a process for determining whether certain individuals meet the necessary service requirements to receive veterans’ benefits and subsequently be verified as a Veteran by the United States Army.

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Rep. Tulsi Gabbard

U.S. REP. TULSI GABBARD IS ACCEPTING submissions from Hawai`i high school artists for the 2015 Congressional Art Competition, hosted by the U.S. House of Representatives.

“Every year, I’m impressed by the talent and creativity of Hawai`i’s young artists,” said Gabbard, who has hosted the Kaha Ki`i Art Competition for Hawai`i’s Second Congressional District since 2013. “The nationwide competition is a great platform for our students to showcase the beauty of the islands and our communities from their unique perspective, and the winning pieces will be on display for one year at the U.S. Capitol and in my Washington and Hawai`i offices for visitors to enjoy. I’m grateful to the fine arts educators who inspire our young artists every day and also encourage them to participate in activities like the Congressional Art Competition.”
Submissions are due by Feb. 13. Semi-finalists will be announced Feb. 17, and Gabbard will announce the winning pieces at an awards ceremony on March 28 at the Hawai`i State Capitol.
Interested applicants can find complete details regarding the competition at www.gabbard.house.gov or by calling 808-541-1986.

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KA`U NATURAL FARMING WORKSHOP is scheduled for the next two Saturdays, Jan 17 and 24, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Earth Matters Farm at South Point and Kama`oa Roads. Participants learn about creating soil health & nutritional food.
$100 for both days includes garden lunch.
Register at 939-7510.

A MUSHROOM CULTIVATION WORKSHOP takes place tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Volcano art Center’s Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village. Fees are $40 for VAC members and $50 for non-members plus a $25 supply fee. Participants bring a bag lunch.
Call 967-8222 to register.

Halau I Ka Leo Ola O Na Mamo Photo from Volcano Art Center

VOLCANO ART CENTER’S 2015 Hula Kahiko series begins on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. with a performance by Na kumu hula Pelehonuamea Harman and Kekoa Harman with Halau I ka Leo Ola o Na Mamo.
The students of Halau I Ka Leo Ola O Na Mamo come from the Hawaiian language Immersion pre-school Punana Leo o Hilo, Hawaiian language immersion K-12 school Ke Kula `o Nawahiokalani`opu`u and Ka Haka `Ula `o Ke`elikolani College of Hawaiian Language at UH-Hilo. For the past five years, their mission has been to perpetuate the Hawaiian language and culture through mele and hula. All classes are conducted in Hawaiian.
This presentation is free and open to the public and will be presented authentically in an outdoor setting, rain or shine without electronic amplification at the hula platform near Volcano Art Center Gallery in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Audience members are encouraged to bring sun/rain gear and sitting mats.
Park entrance fees apply.

PARTICIPANTS DISCOVER THE HAWAIIAN goddesses, sisters Pele and Hi`iaka, and the natural phenomena they represent Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Kahuku Unit of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Epic stories are depicted in the natural landscape on this easy 1.7-mile walk on the main road in Kahuku. Free

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

Kilauea is the hottest volcano on Earth, according to recently announced research. Photo by Peter Anderson

RANDY IWASE IS THE NEW CHAIR of Hawai`i Public Utilities Commission. Gov. David Ige appointed him after accepting Chair Hermina Morita’s resignation earlier this week.

Randy Iwase

According to Ige’s office, Iwase’s expertise in this arena stems from his years as the Supervising Deputy Attorney General, whose division provided legal counsel to the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs and the Public Utilities Commission. He is also a former state legislator and former Honolulu city council member. Recently, he was Chair of the Hawai`i State Tax Review Commission.
“Randy Iwase’s extensive experience makes him the right person to lead the Public Utilities Commission during this time of transition and transformation,” Ige said. “He has tackled tough issues in the past and has a strong record of commitment to the public. I know he will hold the regulated industries accountable to the people of Hawai`i.”
Iwase earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida and his J.D. from the University of San Francisco School of Law.
“I thank Gov. Ige for this opportunity to help resolve some of the most urgent issues of our time,” said Randy Iwase. “The state’s long-term success depends on the affordable and environmentally appropriate generation and distribution of energy. I’m eager to get to work.”
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Doug Chin

GOV. DAVID IGE ALSO NAMED DOUG CHIN, local attorney and former managing director for the City and County of Honolulu, as Attorney General. Chin served 12 years at the Honolulu Prosecuting Attorney’s office. He is leaving his current post as managing partner at Carlsmith Ball to take the position.

“Doug Chin is a man of integrity who has the skills and experience to perform his duties as the state’s attorney general at the highest level,” Ige said. “He is able to defend the state in court, facilitate and negotiate agreements, manage a large department and communicate well. It’s rare to find someone who can do all those things.”
Chin earned a bachelor’s degree in English from Stanford University and added a law degree from the William S. Richardson School of Law, University of Hawai`i.
“It’s an honor for me to join the administration and serve as the attorney general. This is an opportunity to solve problems, and I welcome it.”
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KILAUEA VOLCANO RANKS HOTTEST on Earth in terms of total energy, according to a study of 95 volcanoes in the period of 2000-2014. Robert Wright, of Hawai`i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, came to this conclusion based on data acquired by NASA’s Aqua and Terra satellites.
Kilauea, which has been erupting for more than 30 years, spilled lava continuously throughout the study period. It made national headlines in Nov. 2014 when the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency issued a disaster declaration for the area impacted by its recent lava flow.
See http://earthsky.org.

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Ka`u's state Sen. Russell Ruderman
is Chair of the Ag Committee.

WHILE KONA FARM BUREAU HAS STAYED out of the GMO issue, Ka`u Farm Bureau’s former president Chris Manfredi spoke and testified against GMO regulations and has taken that stance while lobbying the state Legislature for Hawai`i Farm Bureau and now as new statewide Hawai`i Farm Bureau President.

According to a story in West Hawai`i Today, Hawai`i Farm Bureau asked Rep. Richard Onishi, who represents East Ka`u, Volcano and Puna into Hilo, to sponsor a bill to “amend the state’s ‘right to farm’ law by stating local governments shall not enact laws restricting the ‘right of farmers and ranchers’ to use agriculture technology and other practices not prohibited by federal or state law.” Onishi is Vice Chair of the House Agriculture Committee.
Senate Ag Committee Chair Russell Ruderman, who represents West Ka`u and Puna, told reporter Nancy Cook Lauer that “no progress will be made on the GMO issue per se” during the legislative session that opens Wednesday. While Ruderman supports GMO regulation and labeling, House Ag Chair Clift Tsuji last year was named a co-legislator of the year for his support of agriculture bioscience by the Biotechnology Industry Organization.
“The overall issue of agriculture is something we agree on,” Ruderman said. “We’ll focus on the 80 percent of issues in the middle that are common goals.” Those issues include biosecurity, food safety, drought mediation and invasive species.
See westhawaiitoday.com.
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HAWAI`I HEALTH SYSTEMS CORP., which operates Ka`u Hospital and 12 other facilities statewide, has asked the state Legislature for $267 million over the next two fiscal years, reports Pacific Business News.
HHSC CEO Dr. Linda Rosen said the increase for FY 2016 includes $80 million for collective bargaining costs, $35 million for fringe benefits and $30 for revenue loss due to new coding standards.
HHSC is seeking $48 million in emergency appropriations for the current fiscal year to cover unfunded collective bargaining pay raises for the past two fiscal years. It was originally appropriated $82 million.
See bizjournals.com/pacific.

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Sen. Josh Green

KA`U’S STATE SEN. JOSH GREEN, M.D., Chair of the Senate Committee on Health, has scheduled an Informational Briefing on the health risks of pesticide exposure, particularly to children and other sensitive populations in Hawai`i. The briefing will be held in Room 414 of the State Capitol on Tuesday, Jan. 20 at 10 a.m.

“Exposure to pesticides has been linked to diseases from autism to cancer,” Green said, “and may be especially harmful to children and pregnant women, so it is very important for us to understand the risks of pesticide exposure to Hawai`i’s most sensitive populations if we are going to make the right decisions to protect them.”
The Senate Health Committee will hear evidence presented by experts on public health, epidemiology and toxic exposure, including Michael J. DiBartolomeis, Chief of Occupational Lead Poisoning Prevention Program & California Safe Cosmetics Program for California Department of Public Health; Janie Shelton, researcher and epidemiologist at UC-Davis’ Department of Public Health; and Paul Towers, Organizing and Media Director for Pesticide Action Network North America.
“Hawai`i’s children should be able to play outside without having their health put at risk,” Green said, “and we can provide them a safe and healthy environment to grow up in if we make the right choices now.”

Green is an emergency room doctor with 15 years of experience caring for families on Big Island, including at Ka`u Hospital.
For more information, contact Green at 808-937-0991 or sengreen@capitol.hawaii.gov.
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PARTICIPANTS DISCOVER THE HAWAIIAN goddesses, sisters Pele and Hi`iaka, and the natural phenomena they represent tomorrow from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Kahuku Unit of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Epic stories are depicted in the natural landscape on this easy 1.7-mile walk on the main road in Kahuku. Free.

`O KA`U KAKOU’S SEVENTH ANNUAL Keiki Fishing Tournament & Canned Food Drive is a week from today on Saturday, Jan. 24 at Punalu`u Beach Park. Ages one to 14 check in between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. for fishing from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. OKK provides poles, bait and free lunch. Registration is available at local schools and businesses.
Call 217-2253 or 937-4773 for more information.

COMING UP TWO WEEKS FROM TODAY on Saturday, Jan. 31 is a jazz concert to support an afterschool music program at Ka`u Middle School. The school has a band room full of instruments that have not been used for years due to budget cuts. Through a grant to Volcano Art Center from the Hawai`i State Foundation on Culture & the Arts, Volcano Choy will begin teaching afterschool music classes this winter and spring.
The jazz concert at Pahala Plantation House will help raise funds to restore the brass and woodwind instruments, to buy sheet music and cover other costs of the program.

The outdoor concert will be from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., with food and drinks available for purchase. Suggested donation is $15. Donations may also be made directly to VAC. Call 967-8222.

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

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory founder Thomas Jaggar first used instruments housed in the Whitney Laboratory of Seismology to track an earthquake sequence leading to Mauna Loa's summit eruption in November 1914. Photo from USGS/HVO

SEN. MAZIE HIRONO IS OPPOSING AN AMENDMENT proposed by Sen. John McCain, of Arizona, that would dismantle the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, commonly known as the Jones Act.

The Jones Act is named after its sponsor,
Washington Sen. Wesley Livsey Jones
Photo from wikipedia

The Jones Act requires maritime vessels engaged in shipping goods between U.S. ports to be built in the United States, at least 75 percent owned by U.S. citizens and operated by U.S. citizens.

According to Hirono, the amendment has three strikes against it. “First, shipbuilding is a major job creating industry,” Hirono said on the floor of the Senate. “According to the Maritime Administration, there were 107,000 people directly employed by roughly 300 shipyards across 26 states in 2013. Additionally, shipyards indirectly employed nearly 400,000 people across the country.
“Sen. McCain’s amendment would specifically knock out the Jones Act provision that requires U.S. flagged ships be built in the United States, jeopardizing good-paying, middle-class jobs. To me, that’s reason enough to oppose this amendment.
“Secondly, this is not the time to create the instability this amendment would directly cause. After struggling through tough times, America’s shipbuilding industry is coming back. Both this Congress and the administration have long stressed need for creating and keeping manufacturing jobs here at home in the United States. According to the Navy League, there are 15 tanker ships being built here in the U.S. right now and slated to join our U.S. flag fleet.
“The third and final strike is the fact that the amendment would undermine our national and homeland security.
“The Jones Act’s requirements — along with the American shipbuilding and maritime industries they underpin — provide American-built ships and crews for use by the Department of Defense in times of need. It is easy to see why the Navy and Coast Guard strongly oppose repeal of the Jones Act. The Defense Department has concluded: ‘We believe that the ability of the nation to build and maintain a U.S.-flag fleet is in the national interest, and we also believe it is in the interest of the DOD for U.S. shipbuilders to maintain a construction capability for commercial vessels.’”

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Sen. Brian Schatz voted against construction of Keystone
XL pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico.
Map from U.S. State Department

SEN. BRIAN SCHATZ VOTED AGAINST advancing a bill to authorize construction of Keystone XL, a pipeline that would transport dirty tar sands oil from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast. Prior to the vote, Schatz spoke out on the Senate floor to oppose authorization of the pipeline which he said would undermine efforts to combat climate change and endanger health of American families.  

“For me, and for many Americans, a vote against this bill is a vote to preserve and protect the air we breathe and the water we drink,” Schatz said. “It’s a vote to ensure that we continue to reduce carbon pollution and fight climate change. It is a vote to leave our children a healthy world.”
While President Obama has vowed to veto any legislation authorizing construction of Keystone XL, the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate advanced the bill, voting 63-32.

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AS PART OF VOLCANO AWARENESS MONTH, January Volcano Watch articles are addressing how USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory responds to threatening lava flows. This week, scientists focus on use of satellite data to track lava flow activity.

“Although satellites were in orbit and transmitting images of Earth’s surface in 1990 when the Kalapana community was inundated by lava, their data were not used to map lava flows. Without the Internet, satellite imagery could be distributed only by copying the data onto tapes that then had to be mailed. This process could take weeks, so the images were typically not used to help monitor a rapidly evolving crisis. In addition, computers in 1990 were not fast enough and did not have enough memory to work with large satellite datasets. Loading and viewing an individual image could take hours!

“Instead of satellite imagery, HVO relied upon high-altitude aerial photos for occasional broad views of the Kalapana lava flow field in 1990. Some of these photos were taken by HVO scientists who aimed cameras through holes cut in the bottom of Hilo-based airplanes, while others were taken by a private Honolulu-based company that specialized in aerial photography. The photographs then had to be developed, printed, and delivered to HVO — a process that required a few days. The information was therefore largely outdated by the time HVO received it, but the aerial photos formed an important base for ground-based mapping (the topic of next week’s article).
“With today’s Internet, we can now obtain timely satellite data about the June 27th lava flow within hours of image acquisition. Modern computers can also process massive amounts of data rapidly, enabling scientists to fully exploit the multitude of satellites that are now orbiting and imaging Earth.

Satellite imagery is one of many tools scientists use to track Kilauea's
volcanic activity. Map from USGS/HVO

“Thermal images, which show the temperature of Earth’s surface, are perhaps the most obvious type of satellite data used to monitor lava flows. Thermal data allow HVO scientists to identify hot areas that correspond to breakouts of lava on the flow field. These data can be used to determine the lava eruption rate — a key monitoring parameter — by assuming that the temperature of the lava flow field is related to the amount of lava on the surface.

Visual data — essentially photographs from space — are also available from satellites. Many of these data have exceptionally high resolution and are capable of discerning objects less than a yard in size, which helps HVO scientists make detailed maps of the lava flow and document changes over time.
“Thermal and visual satellite data, however, both suffer from a major weakness: clouds. As most Hawai`i residents know, Puna is frequently covered by clouds, which obscure the view from space. Fortunately, there is one form of satellite imagery that can see through cloud cover —radar!

“Whereas visual and thermal satellite images are essentially photographs that rely upon light or temperature generated by, or reflected from, Earth’s surface, radar provides its own energy. Radar satellites transmit a pulse of energy to the surface and then measure the strength of the reflected energy, much like a flash camera. These radar signals can ‘see’ through clouds, and lava flows are easily distinguished from the surrounding forest based on their strong reflection. Unfortunately, it is difficult to distinguish active from inactive lava flows in radar images.

“HVO, therefore, uses an array of complementary satellite tools to monitor the June 27th lava flow — thermal, visual and radar. Because satellite data are easily shared via the Internet, the images can be viewed from anywhere. In fact, USGS scientists across the country, from Virginia to Alaska, assist HVO by examining satellite data of the Puna lava flow field and sharing their results and interpretations with HVO scientists.

“Some of these data, especially those provided by NASA, are accessible via public websites, so anyone with access to the Internet can examine satellite images of lower Puna.”

See Volcano Watch and daily volcano activity updates at hvo.wr.usgs.gov.

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Ka`u High soccer players move the ball toward the goal.
Photo from Taylor's Treasures Photography

KA`U BOYS BASKETBALL JUNIOR VARSITY TEAM won its game against Pahoa last night. The game went into overtime, with a final score of 35-32. Varsity lost 37-77. Both teams lost to Hawai`i Prep Wednesday, with a Varsity final score of 46-64 and 16-36 for Junior Varsity.
Also yesterday, HPA TKO’d Ka`u boys soccer team 9-0. Earlier in the week, Raycin Salmo-Grace scored one goal against Christian Liberty’s eight.
Friday at Kea`au, Ka`u both girls basketball teams fell, with a JV score of 8-28. The Varsity team tied Kea`au’s second-half scoring but could not rally enough to make up for the first half. Final score was 46-64.
On Wednesday at Honoka`a, the girls teams also lost. Final scores were 10-44 for Junior Varsity and 19-63 for Varsity.

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WATCHING MAUNA LOA SHAKE is the topic at After Dark in The Park Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes’ National Park. An earthquake sequence leading to Mauna Loa’s summit eruption in November 1914 was the first to be tracked by newly installed seismographs at Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. Though primitive by today’s standards, this was an early success for monitoring and research efforts on Hawaiian volcanoes. U. S. Geological Survey geophysicist Paul Okubo talks about the relationship between earthquakes and eruptions on Mauna Loa, including an update on the volcano’s current status and how HVO’s seismic network has evolved over the past century.

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

Ranger-led hikes are available today as Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park waives entry fees in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Photo from NPS

WITH HAWAI`I STATE LEGISLATURE opening Wednesday, the Ka`u News Briefs will provide profiles of each of the four local legislators.
Russell Ruderman was elected to the state Senate in 2012, representing all of the district of Puna and Pahala.

Sen. Russell Ruderman

Ruderman graduated from Overbrook High School, Philadelphia, PA in 1971 and received a BS in Biology from Penn State in 1975. In 1998, he founded Island Naturals, a group of retail grocery markets. Island Naturals is supports local farmers and value-added producers and has been a constant champion of environmental issues like eliminating plastic bag pollution. For his work, Ruderman was named Small Businessperson of the Year for Hawai`i County by the Small Business Administration in 2007 and also received Hawai`i County’s first Keeping it Green award the same year for his many innovations at Island Naturals.
Ruderman has served on Hawai`i County’s Agriculture Advisory Committee, Solid Waste Advisory Committee, Environmental Management Commission and UH-Hilo’s Performing Arts Center Advisory Committee. He was spokesperson for Big Island Rainforest Action Group and an intervenor before the state Public Utilities Commission in its first renewable energy Integrated Resource Management docket in 1991. He has served as president of the Wa`awa`a Community Association and a member of Think Local, Buy Local.
Items on Ruderman’s 2015 legislative agenda include marijuana, homeowners’ insurance and recovery efforts for Puna residents. According to an Associated Press story by Cathy Bussewitz in Hawai`i Tribune-Herald, Ruderman plans to introduce a bill that would decriminalize marijuana.
Another bill would keep insurers from canceling policies on homes that could be in the path of lava that is currently threatening areas near Pahoa.
“You don’t cancel insurance when it’s needed, but some companies are trying to do that in advance of the lava threat,” Ruderman said. “I think that’s grossly unfair.”
See hawaiitribune-herald.com.

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Some Hawai`i coral reefs may recover from bleaching.
Photo from NOAA

HAWAI`I’S CORAL REEFS COULD POSSIBLY RECOVER from bleaching due to global warming, according to research recently published in the journal Nature. Unlike other reefs worldwide that were unable to recover from a mass bleaching event in 1998, Hawai`i’s reefs are in deeper water and more complex in structure. These factors make recovery more likely, according to Nicholas Graham, of Australia’s James Cook University, who studied 21 affected sites and correctly predicted 98 percent of the time whether or not a reef would recover.

The research may help authorities decide which reefs to manage while working to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
Graham told Adam Vaughan, of The Guardian, “If emissions continue as they are, the longer-term future is likely to still be bleak, even for those recovering at the moment (from bleaching), because the projections are coral bleaching will become more and more frequent. In a way it’s (the study’s findings) buying us time to keep as many reefs in good shape as we can, while we tackle some of these global, bigger issues.”

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Fifty years ago, marchers in Alabama, led by Martin Luther King, Jr.,
wore lei to symbolize their peaceful intentions.

HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK waives entry fees today to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
King visited the newly formed Hawai`i State Legislature on Sept. 17, 1959, where he spoke on Hawai`i’s accomplishments and the nation’s status in race relations at the time.
“I come to you with a great deal of appreciation and great feeling of appreciation, I should say, for what has been accomplished in this beautiful setting and in this beautiful state of our Union,” King said. “As I think of the struggle that we are engaged in the South land, we look to you for inspiration and as a noble example, where you have already accomplished in the area of racial harmony and racial justice, what we are struggling to accomplish in other sections of the country, and you can never know what it means to those of us caught for the moment in the tragic and often dark midnight of man’s inhumanity to man, to come to a place where we see the glowing daybreak of freedom and dignity and racial justice.

“We have come a long, long way. We have a long, long way to go. I close, if you will permit me, by quoting the words of an old Negro slave preacher. He didn’t quite have his grammar right, but he uttered some words in the form of a prayer with great symbolic profundity and these are the words he said: ‘Lord, we ain’t what we want to be; we ain’t what we ought to be; we ain’t what we gonna be, but thank God, we ain’t what we was.’ Thank you.”
Weather forecast at the park today is mostly sunny with a high near 73. Scattered showers are expected this afternoon; chance of precipitation is 30 percent. New precipitation amounting to less than a tenth of an inch is possible. North winds of eight to 11 mph become east this morning.
Visitors can choose from many self-guided hikes or join a ranger-led hike. Check selections and times at Kilauea Visitor Center.
In the park, the vent within Halema`um`u Crater is easily viewed from the overlook at the Jaggar Museum. The Pu`u `O`o vent 10 miles east of the summit, on the remote east rift zone of Kilauea, is not accessible to the public.

Whitney Vault contains Thomas Jaggar's century-old
seismographic equipment. Photo by Ron Johnson

Fumes and glow from the lava lake within the vent at the summit of Kilauea may be seen from the Jaggar Museum overlook and other vantage points along Crater Rim Drive.
During the day a robust plume of volcanic gas is a constant and dramatic reminder of the molten rock churning in a lava lake within the crater. After sunset, Halema`uma`u continues to thrill visitors and park staff with a vivid glow that illuminates the clouds and plume, weather permitting.
Park rangers are on duty at the Jaggar Museum to assist visitors drawn to the site, which has been erupting within the crater since March 2008.
For more information, see nps.gov/havo.

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EARTHQUAKES AND VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS are discussed during two programs tomorrow in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.
Ka`u resident Dick Hershberger brings Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientist Thomas Jagger to life during A Walk into the Past. Participants meet at Kilauea Visitor Center at 10 a.m., 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. and head to the Whitney Vault, where Jaggar installed seismographic instruments in 1913.
An earthquake sequence leading to Mauna Loa’s summit eruption in November 1914 was the first to be tracked by the equipment. Though primitive by today’s standards, this was an early success for monitoring and research efforts on Hawaiian volcanoes.
U.S. Geological Survey Geophysicist Paul Okubo talks about the relationship between earthquakes and eruptions on Mauna Loa at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium. He also provides updates on the volcano’s current status and how HVO’s seismic network has evolved over the past century.
This After Dark in the Park program is part of Volcano Awareness Month.
Free; park entrance fees apply.

Haunani's Aloha Expressions return to Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park Wednesday.
Photo from NPS

HAUNANI’S ALOHA EXPRESSIONS present a hula performance Wednesday from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. This popular, award-winning hula halau is comprised of an all-Hawaiian volunteer group of kane and wahine kupuna from 70 to over 90 years old, singing and dancing hapa-haole mele and hula. They share the aloha spirit with malihini (visitors) on visiting cruise ships and at Hilo International Airport. The kupuna also entertain patients at many of Hilo’s senior kokua (caring) organizations and have performed at the park’s annual cultural festival on several occasions.

Free; park entrance fees apply.

KAHUKU `OHANA DAY IS SATURDAY from 10 am. to 2 p.m. at Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park’s Kahuku Unit. Children of all ages are invited to join rangers and experience the medicinal values, cultural stories, and uses of Hawaiian plants with Momi Subiono as she shares her knowledge of la`au lapa`au, traditional Hawaiian medicine.
Participants bring water, sunscreen, hat and long pants. The free program is ponsored by Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, Hawai`i Pacific Parks Association and Queen Lili`uokalani Children’s Center.
Call 985-6019 to register.

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

Registration is still available for `O Ka`u Kakou's seventh annual Keiki Fishing Tournament coming up Saturday at Punalu`u Beach Park. Photo from Fred & Mary Ramsdell

KA`U’S STATE REP. RICHARD CREAGAN, of Na`alehu, has announced his priorities for this year’s legislative session that starts tomorrow. Creagan is a member of House committees on Health, Consumer Protection & Commerce, Housing, Human Services and Judiciary.

Capital improvement projects Creagan supports include a second potable water well for Ocean View, Kona Judiciary Building, a new hospital for Kona and the next phase of Hawai`i Community College’s Palamanui Campus.
Creagan, who is a doctor, wants to expand indications for medical marijuana use to include anxiety, insomnia and post-traumatic-stress disorder. He also wants to pass a law allowing dispensaries of marijuana and provide more explicit permission of cooperatives and collectives for medical marijuana. Creagan also supports decriminalization of non-medical marijuana use.

Rep. Richard Creagan

Creagan also wants to require hospitals to provide instruction and basic medical training to caregivers.
Creagan also supports legislation to enact Hawai`i County’s resolution regarding truth-in-labeling of coffee blends. Hawai`i County Council in October unanimously passed the resolution calling for state legislation to require a minimum of 51 percent Hawai`i-grown coffee in any coffee package labeled as a blend. Ka`u’s County Council member Brenda Ford introduced the resolution that also asks the state Legislature to pass a law requiring that labels on packages of Hawai`i coffee blended with foreign coffee include prominent identification stating the country or region of origin of the non-Hawai`i portion, along with percentages.

Creagan also has ideas for what he calls rural revitalization. He wants to expand opportunities for housing on rural and agricultural land. Examples he listed are elderly, vacation rental, farm-stay and workforce housing. He also wants to reduce restrictions on farm-based businesses including overnight campgrounds, hostels, bed and breakfasts, farm-stay units and cottage industries.
Increased funding for monitoring and eradication of invasive species and tax credits for solar panels and battery backup for solar systems are also on Creagan’s agenda.
He also wants to create a task force to decide on proper use of cesspools, septic systems and composting toilet systems. Durig a candidate forum for the election, Creagan said, “We need to really examine the science. I don’t think the geology of the island mandates septic in the upper elevations. Along the shoreline, of course.” Creagan said that if new rules are adopted requirement replacement of cesspools with septic systems, he would support tax credits for composting toilets.
Former Gov. Neil Abercrombie appointed Creagan as District V representative last January following the resignation of Rep. Denny Coffman. Creagan then won election in November.

See capitol.hawaii.gov for information about the 2015 state Legislature.

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A large breakout emits a river of lava upslope of Hwy 130 in Puna.
Image from Big Island Video News

WHILE LAVA ABOUT ONE-HALF MILE from Hwy 130 in Puna is moving sluggishly, it’s a different story upslope. Mick Kalber, of Tropical Visions Video, said a breakout 1.5 to two miles from the highway yesterday was “the largest, fastest moving flow we’ve seen in about a month or more, burning the brush to the north.”

Video of the flow shot aboard Paradise Helicopters is posted at bigislandvideonews.com.
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GOV. DAVID IGE HAS CONCERNS about the amount of money Hawaiian Electric Industries executives would receive if Florida-based NextEra Energy’s $4.3 billion purchase of Hawaiian Electric Co. goes through, according to a story in Pacific Business News.
“The parties are paying a significant premium to executives of HEI,” Ige told PBN. “So where is this significant premium paid to ratepayers? I hope the PUC and Consumer Advocate (take that into account).”
Reporter Duane Shimogawa said that according to a recent NextEra Energy filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, HEI executives would receive a total of about $17 million after approvals are received to finalize the transaction.

See bizjournals.com/pacific.

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Richard Ha is grateful to former PUC Chair Mina Morita for blocking `Aina Koa Pono's
proposal to create biofuel in Ka`u. Image from AKP

MINA MORITA, WHO HAS RESIGNED from her position as chair of Hawai`i’s Public Utilities Commission, is a “true consumer advocate,” wrote Hamakua Country Farms owner and Big Island Community Coalition Steering Committee member Richard Ha on his blog at hahaha.hamakusprings.com. Ha and BICC, which advocates for reduction of the island’s dependence on foreign oil, were critical of `Aina Koa Pono’s proposed 20-year contract with Hawai`i Electric Light Co. that would have refined biofuel at a facility off Wood Valley Road from feedstock grown between Na`alehu and Pahala.

“We should be thanking her (Morita) for blocking the `Aina Koa Pono project, not criticizing her over it.”
“After noting ‘many in the energy industry had applauded (then-Governor Neil) Abercrombie’s appointment of Morita, who is known as a strong advocate and expert on clean energy,’ Pacific Business News wrote: ‘But some questioned her leadership in a PUC decision denying’ the AKP biofuel supply contract.
“I just can’t let that slide. Who’s that questioning her leadership? Who thought `Aina Koa Pono was a good decision for Big Island ratepayers? Certainly not anybody here on the Big Island.
“If `Aina Koa Pono had been approved by the PUC, we Big Island ratepayers would have been saddled with subsidizing AKP to the tune of $175/barrel of oil by 2015 — this year. Today, oil costs less than $50/barrel. We would have been subsidizing the difference through our bills. We would have been screaming every month when we saw our electric bills… .
“It’s because of her `Aina Koa Pono didn’t succeed and this didn’t happen.

Paul Okubo Photo from USGS

“We in the Big Island Community Coalition applaud her leadership. We do not question her leadership in the slightest, and we regret that she is resigning… .
“It is solely because of Mina Morita’s leadership that the `Aina Koa Pono project didn’t go through, and that is a good thing. That’s true leadership.”

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U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY GEOPHYSICIST Paul Okubo talks about the relationship between earthquakes and eruptions on Mauna Loa today at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium. He also provides updates on the volcano’s current status and how HVO’s seismic network has evolved over the past century.
This After Dark in the Park program is part of Volcano Awareness Month.
Free; park entrance fees apply.

KUPUNA OF HAUNANI’S ALOHA EXPRESSIONS present a hula performance at 6:30 p.m. tomorrow at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.

Free; park entrance fees apply.

KA`U NATURAL FARMING WORKSHOP has changed dates to Saturday, Jan. 24 and 31 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Earth Matters Farm at South Point and Kama`oa Roads.

Topics include learning how to make and apply indigenous microorganisms to your farm and garden; learning how to develop inputs, including fertilizers, soil amenities and pest control with ingredients found in Ka`u area; developing healthy soil and its importance; and soil testing, including how to interpretation results and remedies.

Instructors are Richard Perea, certified Korean Natural Farming Instructor and founder of Ka`u Natural Farming; Bill Shock, D.V.M. Research biologist specializing in bio-energetics and its application for the farm and garden; and Greg Smith, owner of Earth Matters Farm.
$100 for both days includes garden lunch. Register at 939-7510 or gailandgreg@mac.com.

KEIKI CAN STILL REGISTER at local schools and businesses for `O Ka`u Kakou’s seventh annual Fishing Tournament & Canned Food Drive coming up Saturday at Punalu`u Beach Park. Ages one to 14 check in between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. for fishing from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. OKK provides poles, bait and free lunch. Registration is available.
Call 217-2253 or 937-4773 for more information.

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

Hawai`i's 28th state Legislature opens today, with Sen. Josh Green, Sen. Russell Ruderman, Rep. Richard Creagan and Rep. Richard Onishi returning to work for constituents in Ka`u.

HAWAI`I’S 28th STATE LEGISLATURE OPENS TODAY. Events will be streamed live online at www.olelo.org.

Call to order takes place at 10 a.m., followed by the invocation and singing of the National Anthem and Hawai`i Pono`i. Elections include Temporary Clerk, Senate President, Vice President and Officers. Entertainment is scheduled throughout the meeting.

Information about the state Legislature, including a schedule of rebroadcasts of opening day, is available at capitol.hawaii.gov.

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A new HECO program may make room for more rooftop solar systems.
Photo by Julia Neal

HAWAIIAN ELECTRIC COMPANIES ARE PROPOSING a new program to increase rooftop solar in a way that they contend is safe, sustainable and fair for all customers.

In conjunction with this Transitional Distributed Generation program, the utilities expect to more than double the threshold for neighborhood circuits to accept solar systems. This would eliminate in most of those cases the need for a longer and costly interconnection study.
Under the proposal, existing Net Energy Metering program customers and those with pending applications would remain under the existing NEM program. Any program changes from this proposal would apply only to new customers.
The initiative is part of HECO’s clean energy transformation to lower electric bills by 20 percent, increase the use of renewable energy to more than 65 percent, triple the amount of distributed solar by 2030 and offer customers expanded products and services.
Currently, NEM customers send energy into the grid and draw power when their systems do not provide enough for their needs. According to HECO, many NEM customers are able to lower their bills to the point that they do not help pay for the cost of operating and maintaining the electric grid, and, as a result, those costs are increasingly being shifted from those who have solar to those who don’t.
Under the current NEM program, customers receive credit on their electric bills at the full retail rate for electricity they produce. This credit includes the cost of producing electricity plus operation and maintenance of the electric grid and all other costs to provide electric service.
HECO said the new program would credit customers at a rate that better reflects the cost of the electricity produced by their rooftop solar systems.
If this transitional program is approved, HECO expects to be able to modify interconnection policies, more than doubling the solar threshold for neighborhood circuits from 120 percent of daytime minimum load to 250 percent of DML. In many cases, this will eliminate the need for longer and costly interconnection studies.
Hawaiian Electric is asking the PUC to approve the new program within 60 days. Under the utilities' proposal, the Transitional Distributed Generation program would remain in effect while the PUC works on a permanent replacement program, to be developed through a collaborative process involving stakeholders from across the community, including the solar industry.
As of December 2014, about nine percent of Hawai`i Electric Light Co. customers had rooftop solar. This compares to a national average of 0.5 percent as of December 2013, according to the Solar Electric Power Association.
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Sen. Brian Schatz

U.S. SEN BRIAN SCHATZ offered a favorable reaction to President Obama’s State of the Union address. “Tonight we heard the President lay out his vision for the year ahead to ensure that our economy continues its recovery and that our economic policies and priorities strengthen and expand the middle class,” Schatz said. “This is particularly important in Hawai`i, where the high cost of living makes it tougher for hard-working middle class families to share in the American dream.

“For too long, the wealthiest Americans and big corporations have used unfair loopholes to avoid paying their fair share of taxes. Tonight, the President proposed a simpler, fairer tax code that closes those loopholes and uses those savings to support tax credits for working parents. These smart investments will help middle class families succeed and bolster our economy.
“The President’s proposal to expand access to higher education and make community college free for every responsible student is an important step forward. We all know that a college education is the best way for people to move up the economic ladder.
“I am also glad that the President focused on home ownership and the need to make mortgages more affordable. Helping families attain the dream of home ownership is even more important in Hawai`i, where the high prices stress family budgets.
“I hope as we begin the New Year my Republican colleagues in Congress will welcome the President’s proposals to strengthen the middle class and will work with Democrats to make the American dream a reality for all Americans.”
See comments from other members of Hawai`i’s U.S. congressional delegation in future Ka`u News Briefs.
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VOLCANO ART CENTER IS PLEASED to be working with Jr. Volcano Choy to create an after school music program at Ka`u Middle School. Choy now lives in Volcano following a professional performing and recording career on the mainland.
Due to budget cuts, the school has a band room full of instruments that are part of a full band program that have not been used for years. Now, through a grant to Volcano Art Center from the Hawai`i State Foundation on Culture & the Arts, Volcano Choy, will begin teaching after school music classes this winter and spring. All those involved with the after school program are excited to bring band music back to Ka`u.
To help raise the needed funds, a benefit jazz concert will be held on Saturday, Jan. 31 at Pahala Plantation House to help raise funds for the restoration of brass and woodwind instruments, to buy sheet music and cover other costs of this music program.
The outdoor concert will be from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., with food and drinks available for purchase. Suggested donation is $15, which will go to benefit the Ka`u Middle School band program. Attendees are asked to bring their own lawn chairs.

Donations to support this music program may also be made directly to Volcano Art Center.
For more information regarding the concert or afterschool program, contact VAC at 967-8222 or www.volcanoartcenter.org.
For information about the Pahala Plantation House & Cottages, call 928-9811.
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HAWAI`I COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT is sending trained technicians to perform free car seat inspections to Pahala tomorrow. Beginning at 9 a.m., the inspections will be performed at Pahala Community Center.
Families with young children are invited to take advantage of this free service and to drop in and play at Tutu and Me while they are there.
Each inspection takes about 20 minutes to complete. Technicians will stay as long as there are car seats to inspect.
Hawai`i County Fire Department has over 60 child passenger safety technicians islandwide that provide information and safe installation of child restraints. There are also many others in the community that are active in child passenger safety as well.

A member of the Hokule`a crew recounts her experiences Friday.
Photo from `Imiloa

`IMILOA ASTRONOMY CENTER INVITES Ka`u residents to the wayfinding talk Voices from the Wa`a Friday at 7 p.m. The program features Keala Kahuanui, a watch captain, cook and assistant quartermaster aboard Hokule`a as she recounts her experiences of what it took to keep a crew happy and healthy for two months at sea, even amidst a raging storm. `Imiloa’s wayfinding programs are made possible through the title sponsorship from Matson.

The program is $10 for non-members and $8 for members (member level discounts apply). Tickets may be pre-purchased at `Imiloa front desk or by phone using Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or JCB, by calling 969-9703 during regular business hours. Tickets are non-refundable.

KEIKI CAN STILL REGISTER at local schools and businesses for `O Ka`u Kakou’s seventh annual Fishing Tournament & Canned Food Drive coming up Saturday at Punalu`u Beach Park. Ages one to 14 check in between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. for fishing from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. OKK provides poles, bait and free lunch. Registration is available.
Call 217-2253 or 937-4773 for more information.

$100 for both days includes garden lunch.
Register at 939-7510.

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

Ka`u WWII 442nd Division veterans Iwao Yonemitsu, at left, and Tokuichi Nakano, here with former Hawai`i Gov. Neil Abercrombie, became Chevaliers of the French Legion of Honor yesterday. Photo by Geneveve Fyvie

CHEVALIER OF THE LEGION OF HONOR is the title bestowed on Ka`u residents Tokuichi Nakano and Iwao Yonemitsu by the French Republic during a ceremony yesterday at West Hawai`i Veterans Cemetery. French Consul General Pauline Carmona said her country owes the Nisei soldiers of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team a debt of eternal gratitude for the role they played in liberating France from Nazi occupation.

Iwao Yonemitsu and Tokuichi Nakano at a Veterans Day
ceremony at Kilauea Military Camp. Photo by Julia Neal

“The people of France have not forgotten,” she said during her address. “Their children and grandchildren have not forgotten. They will never forget.”
Retired Army Col. Debra Lewis, of Hilo, said soldiers in the 442nd and 100th Battalion overcame a 314 percent casualty rate and were the most decorated for their size and the duration of time they fought.
“This devotion to duty and to each other have inspired generations long after the last weapon was fired,” Lewis said. “They understood that anger against our country for unfair treatment (of Japanese Americans) was a luxury they could not afford. These brave men decided failure was not an option.”
Also receiving the Legion of Honor were Kazuma Taguchi of Hilo, Hidetaka Sato of Honaunau and Mitsuo Tachibana of Hilo. Sato and Tachibana received awards posthumously.
Nakano told Bret Yager, of Hawai`i Tribune-Herald, about a firefight on the outskirts of a town in Italy that that led to German forces’ retreat.
“I put up my small tent outside and was cleaning my rifle,” he said. “The Army newspaper came. I looked at the paper, and there it was: the Germans are gone. It’s all over. That was the happiest day of my life.”
Yonemitsu told Yager, “One of the first things we learned when you change position: Dig your foxhole so you have somewhere to go when the shells come. I don’t know how many holes I dug. Some days, I dug two.”
Yonemitsu said that although he doesn’t know half of the 442nd casualties, “the people I trained with who were killed will remain forever young.”

Nakano and Yonemitsu have volunteered for the last dozen years to assemble monthly issues of The Ka`u Calendar.
See hawaiitribune-herald.com.

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Recycle Hawai`i sponsors
compostiing workshops.

RECYCLE HAWAI`I HAS LOST ITS CONTRACT with the county to offer free public educational services about recycling. On its website at recyclehawaii.org, the nonprofit says its mission “is to promote resource awareness and recycling enterprises in Hawai`i. To achieve this, we educate the community about sound resource management and recycling opportunities for a more environmentally sustainable future.”

Among the programs it sponsors are composting classes, annual Treecycling to recycle holiday trees and Art of Recycling exhibits where students exhibit artworks made of recycled materials.
Recycle Hawai`i opposes county proposals to build a waste-to-energy plant that would incinerate trash to generate electricity. “We said ‘No’ in 2008! Let’s stand up together (again) to let them know we want mo’ bettah ways!” the organization states on its website.
“The education we’re doing is diametrically opposed to the mass burn of resources to be recycled,” Recycle Hawai`i Director Paul Buklarewicz told West Hawai`i Today reporter Nancy Cook Lauer.
According to the story, the nonprofit had a $100,000 annual contract for more than 10 years for education and outreach. Mayor Billy Kenoi told Cook Lauer the money will be used for direct recycling programs. He said Recycle Hawai`i still has other current county contracts, including a $258,000 contract to operate seven reuse centers at county transfer stations and a $58,000 contract to collect and dispose of used motor oil.
“We believe our dollars are best spent on actual recycling,” Kenoi said.
See westhawaiitoday.com.

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COMMUNITY POLICING OFFICERS ARE WORKING with Hawai`i County Planning Department to protect the public from illegal rave parties, which have been reported in Ka`u in the past. As a result of this partnership, the Planning Department issued a $5,000 fine to a property owner in connection with a rave party in Hawaiian Acres last year.
The two-day event held Oct. 31 through Nov. 1 was advertised on social media outlets. Community Policing Officers were made aware of the event and warned the property owner that he did not have the proper permit to conduct such an event on his property.
The party was held despite police warnings, and enforcement action was taken near the property on the night of the event to ensure public safety. Police conducted a follow-up investigation with the assistance of the Planning Department that resulted in the fine.
Police are reminding property owners that conducting unpermitted non-agricultural commercial events on agricultural property is prohibited. The Hawai`i Police Department will continue to work with members of the public, property owners and the Planning Department to ensure compliance and enhance public safety.

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U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard
is a veteran.

U.S. REP. TULSI GABBARD SUPPORTED with much of what President Obama said in his State of the Union address this week but has reservations about his stance on fighting terrorism. “Rather than focus on words tonight, we should focus on what is ahead for our nation,” Gabbard said.

“Growing our economy, and truly building a strong middle class, must drive our legislative agenda. I agree with the President's focus on building the 21st century infrastructure that our businesses and communities need – more modern airports, stronger bridges and the fastest Internet. This is something that Democrats and Republicans can agree on.
“America also needs true Wall Street reform, which begins with reinstating Glass-Steagall. The financial stability of our nation depends on serious efforts to prevent Wall Street from making risky investments at taxpayer expense. The focus must always be on the needs of Main Street; we must prevent big banks from gambling with the well–being of our nation.
“Finally, national security is top of mind for people across the country. The President was right to come to Congress tonight and ask for authorization to use military force against ISIS; my concern however is that the Administration still has not accurately identified our enemy, nor have they clearly articulated what the strategy will be to defeat this enemy.”

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Sen. Mazie Hirono

TODAY IS THE 42ND ANNIVERSARY of the landmark Roe v. Wade decision that disallowed many state and federal restrictions on abortions.

To recognized the date, Sen. Mazie Hirono said, “As a college student at the University of Hawai`i, I wrote my first political letter to Hawai`i’s Congressional delegation asking for their position on a woman’s right to choose. At the time, abortion was illegal in nearly every state, and Hawai`i was considering, and eventually passed, one of the nation’s first laws to partially legalize it.
“It’s been a hard fight, but we’ve come a long way since I was in college to expand and protect women’s health care rights. Today, because of the Affordable Care Act, women have access to critical preventative health care services like contraception and mammograms and are not penalized by insurance companies simply for being a woman. However, the battle over women’s health care continues. In recent years, many states have passed laws restricting a women’s fundamental right to choose.

Car seats are inspected today.
Photo from wikipedia

“We must stand vigilant against these attacks on women’s health. Today on the 42nd anniversary of the monumental Roe v. Wade decision, I challenge Congress to reject the extremists and stand on the side of women and middle class families. Instead of endlessly fighting to repeal Roe v. Wade, blocking access to common forms of birth control and opposing paid family leave, Congress should be focused on making it easier for women to succeed in our 21st century economy. We should make education more affordable, ensure men and women get paid the same wage for the same work and make it easier for women to balance work and family.”

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CAR SEAT INSPECTIONS ARE AVAILABLE from Hawai`i County Fire Department trained technicians at Pahala Community Center today. Families with young children are invited to take advantage of this free service and drop in and play at Tutu and Me while they are there.

Each inspection takes about 20 minutes to complete. Technicians will stay as long as there are car seats to inspect.

KEIKI CAN STILL REGISTER at local schools and businesses for `O Ka`u Kakou’s seventh annual Fishing Tournament & Canned Food Drive coming up Saturday at Punalu`u Beach Park. Ages one to 14 check in between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. for fishing from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. OKK provides poles, bait and free lunch. Registration is available.
Call 217-2253 or 937-4773 for more information.

KA`U NATURAL FARMING WORKSHOP is set for the next two Saturdays, Jan 24 and 31, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Earth Matters Farm at South Point and Kama`oa Roads. Participants learn about creating soil health & nutritional food.

$100 for both days includes garden lunch.
Register at 939-7510.

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

Ka`u residents can learn about natural farming at Earth Matters Farm workshops tomorrow and next Saturday.

HAWAI`I COUNTY COUNCIL MEETINGS are now live online, beginning with today’s meeting at West Hawai`i Civic Center in Kona. County Council committee meetings will also be live-streamed, giving Ka`u residents unprecedented access to county government.

Ka`u residents can now watch Hawai`i County
Council meetings with member Maile Medeiros
David live online.

According to a story in Hawai`i Tribune-Herald, the county has contracted with live-streaming and captioning provider Granicus for $25,420 for the first year and $7,000 less for subsequent years. Closed-captioning is an additional $145 per hour.
The meetings will also be archived for later access online.
“We’re excited to have it start,” County Clerk Stewart Maeda told reporter Nancy Cook Lauer.
Julia Neal, Editor of The Ka`u Calendar newspaper, said, “This will give our news team and the whole Ka`u community a better ability to cover County Council meetings and Ka`u issues even though they take place more than an hour’s drive from most places in Ka`u. We look forward to increasing our reporting.”

Videoconferencing continues at Ocean View Community Center, where Ka`u residents can provide testimony during meetings.
To view meetings, see hawaiicounty.gov and click on the Council Meetings link at left.
To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

SEN. MAZIE K. HIRONO COMMENDED President Obama’s State of the Union address in which he discussed efforts to strengthen the U.S. middle class and provide higher education.
“The President made it clear he is on the side of the middle class, and I’m proud to stand with him on the side of working families,” Hirono said. “I will support the President’s efforts that strengthen our economy and grow the middle class… .
“The President’s forward thinking initiative to fund two years of community college will be a game changer for families I’ve met in Hawai`i and across the country. We must make investing in our keiki and our future a top priority — from expanding Pre-K to making college more affordable… .
“I also stand with the President against any efforts to dismantle critical Wall Street reforms and environmental protections. In our island state, we are particularly aware of how important it is to protect our land, water and other natural resources in the face of our changing climate.

U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono

“Tonight the President laid out how we must invest in our middle class families, which means investing in our infrastructure. In Hawai`i, investing in our roads, ports, public transit systems and airports will not only be good for commerce but also create jobs and strengthen communities.”
“I look forward to working with the Administration and engaging in many spirited debates with my colleagues to achieve an agenda that works for Hawaii and is on the right side of American middle class and working families, homeowners, and students.”
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THE ALLIANCE FOR SOLAR CHOICE and other clean energy advocates are pointing out what TASC calls the hypocrisy of Hawaiian Electric Companies plan to change Hawai`i’s net energy metering program, which allows customers full credit for each kilowatt hour of energy they produce for the grid, and to expand the amount of solar that will be allowed on each circuit. Under its proposed new interconnection plan, HECO pays roughly half the retail rate for exported kilowatt hours, according to TASC.
“The solar parties applaud the finding that there are no technical or engineering impediments to doubling the amount of rooftop solar,” said Robert Harris, spokesperson for TASC. “The industry worked long and hard to address any and all technical concerns raised by HEI. We have consistently maintained that more rooftop solar could be installed safely, and we are happy HEI is proposing to serve more of its customers with a renewable and clean option of providing power.  
“We think it’s sheer hypocrisy that HEI would finally agree to allow more rooftop solar but in the same breath propose eliminating net energy metering,” Harris said. “This is a play out of the national utility playbook to stop rooftop solar – allege costs and try to make HEI’s expensive fossil fleet more competitive with solar. Net energy metering is a popular program found in 44 states and is the bedrock of solar adoption across the United States.
“TASC advocated for comprehensive rate reform that reflects the new world HEI finds themselves in, where rooftop solar is vastly cheaper than utility power from fossil fuels… .

“As observed by Hawai`i’s Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism, HECO’s plan to abandon net energy metering and to charge each customer at least $55 is intended to ‘enhance the Companies’ bottom line, serve to disincentives customers from investing (in) Distributed Generation systems or lead to policies that unduly restrict DG integration options.’ Moreover, to the extent HEI now maintains this is a priority issue, HEI hasn’t taken the logical step of trying to change rates in a rate case over the past several years.
“In June 2014, HECO stated ‘it is foregoing a rate increase request in recognition that its customers are already in a challenging high electricity bill environment.’ In December 2014, Maui Electric Company filed its rate-case application and did not propose any revisions to its current tariffs or rate schedules.  
“If this issue is so urgent, why isn’t HEI asking for rate adjustments in their standard rate cases?” asked Harris. “Rate case proceedings are the obvious forum for a rate design discussion. The law specifically prevents single-issue ratemaking the way HECO now proposes.
“  In hindsight, perhaps HEI’s lack of attention to this issue in commission proceedings is the result of the utility leadership’s focus on finalizing terms to sell itself to a mainland company. Now that NextEra, which owns one of the most hostile utilities to rooftop solar in the country, has agreed to purchase HEI, the utility is re-engaging on rate reforms that would significantly increase its customers’ costs to go solar.”
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HAWAI`I WILDLIFE FUND WISHES KA`U residents the very best in 2015, “and we hope to see you soon,” said Ka`u Coast Cleanup coordinator Megan Lamson.

Starting today, HWF has a round of community cleanup events in the coming months that Ka`u residents an participate in as volunteers.
Today, HWF collaborates with Sustainable Coastlines Hawai`i (O`ahu) and Kona Brewing Company to clean up around the hoists at South Point. Cleanup takes place from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., and free lunch from KBC after that. More information is available at https://www.facebook.com/events/367218540119436/.
On Sat. Feb. 7, HWF will host a Ka`u Community Coastal Cleanup event at Pa`ula/Lepana on the Kalaemano property. Volunteers are asked to RSVP to kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com. 4WD vehicles are needed, and space is limited in HWF vehicles. This cleanup is made possible with logistic support by Kuahiwi Ranch. Meet at Wai`ohinu Park at 7:45 a.m. for carpool/caravan to cleanup site.
On Sun. March 15, HWF teams up with Kona Boys and Hawai`i State Parks for it second annual kayak and cleanup event at Ka`awaloa (Captain Cook Monument) in South Kona. Space is very limited, so please RSVP early. Volunteers must be over 16 and be able to swim, paddle a kayak and haul debris over 25 pounds.
On Saturday March 28, HWF host another Ka`u Community Coastal Cleanup event at Kamilo Point along the Wai`ohinu coastal strand.

Volunteers for all events are asked to RSVP to kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com.
These cleanups are made possibly by grant funding from NOAA’s Marine Debris Program and in-kind support from community groups and businesses.
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IN SPORTS, KA`U HIGH BOYS VARSITY BASKETBALL team scored a win in Hilo on Tuesday, 49-40. JV lost, 27-57. The teams host Kohala today at 6 p.m.
On Wednesday, girls varsity basketball lost to Konawaena 27-81. JV did not play. The senior game is tomorrow at 6 p.m., hosting Hawai`i Preparatory Academy.
Kamehameha-Hawai`i shut out Ka`u boys soccer team Tuesday, 0-9. The team travels to Kohala tomorrow for a match at 3 p.m.
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`O KA`U KAKOU’S SEVENTH ANNUAL Fishing Tournament & Canned Food Drive takes place tomorrow at Punalu`u Beach Park. Ages one to 14 check in between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. for fishing from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. OKK provides poles, bait and free lunch. Registration is available.
Call 217-2253 or 937-4773 for more information.

KA`U NATURAL FARMING WORKSHOP begins tomorrow and continues next Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Earth Matters Farm at South Point and Kama`oa Roads. Participants learn about creating soil health & nutritional food.
$100 for both days includes garden lunch.
Register at 939-7510.

Whale season is in full swing off Punalu`u.
Photo by Susan Field

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS HUMPBACK WHALE National Marine Sanctuary is looking for volunteers for the 2015 Sanctuary Ocean Count. Now in its 20th year, this project uses volunteers to count whales and record their behaviors from over 60 shore sites on the islands of O`ahu, Kaua`i and Hawai`i. The project allows the public to learn more about humpback whale population, distribution and behavioral trends while being involved in a volunteer monitoring effort. Sanctuary Ocean Counts will be held on Saturdays, Jan. 31, Feb. 28 and March 28 at selected sites from 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

Interested volunteers may register online a http://sanctuaryoceancount.org.

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

Punalu`u tidepools and the keiki swimming hole are surrounded by keiki fishing with their families. The tiny fish are put back in the water after measuring them for the competition. Photo by Julia Neal

PLANS FOR A WASTE-TO-ENERGY PLANT in Hawai`i County have been scrapped, reports Nancy Cook Lauer in Hawai`i Tribune-Herald. Mayor Billy Kenoi told her his decision is based on the dramatic decrease in oil prices, which would make it less feasible for Hawaiian Electric Light Co. to purchase energy produced by the county.

County Council member Maile Medeiros David and `O Ka`u Kakou
volunteer at Tutu & Me's preschool education tent
at the Keiki Fishing Tournament. Photo by Julia Neal

Last year, the cost the utility would have paid for power from an outside source was about 20 cents per kilowatt-hour, according to the story, three cents more that a calculated cost-effective rate. The amount has dropped as low as eight to 10 cents, Kenoi said.
The mayor said he will work on diverting more waste from landfills, focusing on organic and green waste. He will also work to get a state permit to increase capacity at Hilo landfill and lengthen its life by eight to 10 years.
Kohala’s County Council member Margaret Wille said, “We had an educated public, and no way were we going to be steamrolled into a 25-year contract. This is exactly the thing we’ve been trying to say. Conditions change, and we need to be flexible and not locked in. Now we need to move into the conversation, the right conversation.” Wille said the county needs to pick up the pace on its landfill diversion programs, such as recyling and composting.
The county’s diversion rate has increased from 29 percent when Kenoi took office in 2008 to 37 percent this year, Kenoi said.
“Any difficult decision is going to create a lot of conversation and discussion, and that’s healthy,” Kenoi said. “We were trying to take a liability and make it an asset. We engaged in the process in good faith, but unforeseen factors came into play.”

See hawaiitribune-herald.com.

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Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park's Jaggar Museum, above, and Kilauea Visitor
Center announce new operating hours. NPS photo by Ed Shiinoki

EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY, JAGGAR MUSEUM in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and Kilauea Visitor Center is also open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Hawai`i Pacific Parks Association bookstores within both visitor facilities have the same hours.

The new hours address periods of peak visitation and enable the park to keep both centers open seven days a week. The park itself will remain open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Visitors who arrive before operational hours at Jaggar Museum and Kilauea Visitor Center are encouraged to enjoy the view of Kilauea Volcano’s summit eruption from the outdoor observation deck adjacent to Jaggar Museum or at other vantage points along Crater Rim Trail. Popular places like `Akanikolea (Steam Vents), Nahuku (Thurston Lava Tube) and Kilauea Iki Trail are often best enjoyed before 9 a.m. when the park is not as busy.
Free, ranger-guided programs originate at both Jaggar Museum and the Kilauea Visitor Center. At Jaggar Museum, visitors can enjoy daily “Life on the Edge” ranger talks at 2 p.m., 3:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. to learn about the current eruption from Halema`uma`u Crater and Kilauea Volcano’s eruptive nature. At Kilauea Visitor Center, “Explore the Summit” walks are offered at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., and the daily “How it All Started” geology talk is presented daily at 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. All other activities for the day are posted after the visitor centers open.
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Punalu`u Black Sand Beach with a string of keiki and families in `O Ka`u Kakou's fishing tournament. Photo by Julia Neal

ELIZABETH FIEN IS NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR  for Friends of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Fien will be responsible for implementation and oversight of all aspects of the nonprofit group’s operation, including conservation, stewardship, development, external relations, governance and general management. She will also lead the organization as it prepares to celebrate Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park’s 100th anniversary in 2016.

Elizabeth Fien

Fien is the first to hold the Executive Director position for Friends. FHVNP was previously managed by an all-volunteer board of directors. She has been with the organization since 2012 and previously served as its Education & Development Coordinator and Director of Development.
Since her tenure with FHVNP, Fien has doubled the organization’s income, obtained over $140,000 in grants and formed a partnership with Volcano House providing educational tours of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. She also established significant financial support from the Geist Foundation and several other foundations for the park’s Youth Ranger Internship program.
Fien brings to FHVNP a 20-year track record of successful leadership, management and fundraising. She spent the early part of her career in legal health care management with Rocky Mountain Health Care Corporation in Denver. After moving to Hawai`i in 1995, she worked as a nonprofit consultant raising funds for Bridge House, Friends of Waimanalo Library and Waimanalo Health Center, where she served as Board President from 2007-2009.
“I am humbled and honored to help lead and collaborate on the important work that lies ahead for the Friends – an organization that has made such a difference to all of us who love Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park and this part of Hawai`i,” Fien said. “With ambitious goals to engage more youth in the park, balance the visitor experience and use with resource protection, and strengthen community involvement and support, the Friends of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park is an exciting place to be as we approach the park’s centennial.”
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The Red Cross teaches keiki about disaster preparedness
at the Keiki Fishing Tournament today.
Photo by Julia Neal

GOVERNOR DAVID IGE HAS ANNOUNCED nominations of Carleton Ching to serve as Chair of Hawai`i’s Department of Land and Natural Resources and Kekoa Kaluhiwa as First Deputy.

Ching has devoted much of his career to creating communities for Hawai`i’s residents. He spent a decade with Hawai`i Housing Authority, where he specialized in building affordable homes and facilitated a resolution to the contentious conflict between Waiahole-Waikane Community Association and the state. Following this he worked for Westloch, Inc., Castle & Cooke Kunia, Molokai Ranch and SSFM International. Currently he is Vice President, Community and Government Relations, for Castle & Cooke Hawai`i, where he supports the organization’s real estate, agricultural and renewable energy initiatives. He is an active volunteer with a number of business, housing, health and education nonprofit organizations.
“Stewardship of Hawai`i’s unique resources is one of the most critical tasks of state government, and Carleton Ching has the heart, knowledge and skills to lead the Department of Land and Natural Resources,” Ige said. “No one understands better the complex issues this Department handles and how to balance the needs of our environment and our residents.”

Ching graduated from Kaimuki High School and earned a Business Administration degree at Boise State University, where he was an imposing left tackle for the Broncos.

Kekoa Kaluhiwa

“It’s humbling to be asked to protect Hawai`i’s natural, cultural and historic resources,” said Ching. “I am committed to upholding the mission and purpose of the DLNR. My inspiration comes from my keiki and my mo`opuna. I want to leave Hawai`i a better place for them and for future generations.”
Kaluhiwa began his career as a fellow at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and then as a graduate intern in the Land Assets Division of Kamehameha Schools. Following this he worked in U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka’s Honolulu office, and he then served for two years as Director of External Affairs for First Wind Energy. He is currently a principal at Kuano`o Communications, where he helps clients understand the unique cultural and environmental challenges of doing business in Hawai`i.
“Kekoa Kaluhiwa learned about leadership from his kupuna,” said Ige. “He has the education and skill set to carry out his kuleana in an ever changing world. I know he will make a difference.”
Kaluhiwa is a graduate of Kamehameha Schools and earned a B.A. in political science from the University of Washington. He holds a master’s degree in Public Administration with an emphasis in Environmental Planning and Management Theory from the University of Hawai`i.

From an early age, natural resource management has been my passion,” said Kaluhiwa. “So it is a privilege for me to serve in this capacity. I have great confidence in the DLNR staff, and I look forward to supporting the kuleana we all share in caring for Hawai`i’s precious environment and host culture.”

“As in all my departments, no one person can manage it alone,” said Ige. “I’m confident this leadership team will work with DLNR’s committed employees as stewards of the public trust so future generations will be proud to call Hawai`i home.”
Both appointments are subject to approval by the Senate. Interim Chairperson Carty Chang and Interim First Deputy Dan Quinn will remain in their respective positions until new leaders are confirmed by the Senate.
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`O KA`U KAKOU HELD ITS sevenenth annual Keiki Fishing Tournament at Punalu`u Beach Park today. More photos and results are coming up in future Ka`u News Briefs.

Keoki Kahumoku and friends play for the annual `O Ka`u Kakou
Keiki Fishing Tournament. Photo by Julia Neal

ONE WEEK FROM TODAY on Saturday, Jan. 31 is a jazz concert to support an afterschool music program at Ka`u Middle School. The school has a band room full of instruments that have not been used for years due to budget cuts. Through a grant to Volcano Art Center from the Hawai`i State Foundation on Culture & the Arts, Volcano Choy will begin teaching afterschool music classes this winter and spring.

The jazz concert at Pahala Plantation House will help raise funds to restore the brass and woodwind instruments, to buy sheet music and cover other costs of the program.
The outdoor concert will be from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., with food and drinks available for purchase. Suggested donation is $15. Donations may also be made directly to VAC. Call 967-8222.

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

The annual Keiki Fishing Tournament, sponsored by O Ka`u Kakou yesterday at Punalu`u Beach, saw Ryder Cabreros take
first in the aholehole division. Brayden Bello took second and Kawai Smith took third. Photo by Lee McIntosh

VOLCANO AWARENESS MONTH WRAPS UP THIS WEEK at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park with a scientist talk on Tuesday, Jan. 27 at 7 p.m. Entitled Pahoehoe Lava: the Ebb and Flow of Molten Rock, the presentation will feature University of Hawai`i geologists Ken Hon and Cheryl Gensecki.

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory's recent Volcano Watch article discusses how HVO scientists track lava activity from the air and ground, particularly in light of the flow that began June 27 of 2014 and continues to descend into Puna from Kilauea Volcano. The scientists write:

USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologist Matt Patrick uses a

handheld GPS receiver to map the boundary of an active lobe of the

June 27th lava flow near Pāhoa. Photo from USGS

Volcanology is fundamentally an observational science. To better understand how volcanoes work, scientists must examine volcanic eruptions and their deposits. Field observations are, therefore, at the core of HVO's response to lava flow activity on the Island of Hawaiʻi.
In that regard, little has changed since lava flows inundated Kalapana in 1990. As flows advanced toward, and ultimately through, that community, HVO geologists were on the ground, making detailed maps that were used to alert Civil Defense officials and local residents of the potential lava-flow hazards. While the basic nature of geologic observations has not changed, the tools we use today are much different than those used 25 years ago.
In 1990, HVO geologists mapped lava flows by hand, on the ground and from the air, using recent aerial photos of the area for orientation. Lava flow outlines were sketched onto an acetate sheet overlain on the aerial photo. As lava covered more and more of the community, it became increasingly difficult to determine precise flow locations due to the lack of identifiable landmarks. In some cases, downed power lines were the only indication of where roads had been! Back in the office, the flow outlines from the aerial photos were transferred to a paper topographic map for copying and distribution.

Today, lava flows are mapped using space-based methods. As described in last week's Volcano Watch, timely satellite data can be used to track flow progress, especially when crews are not able to get to the field. When scientists are able to observe the flow directly, either on the ground or by helicopter, they map the flow boundaries using the Global Positioning System (GPS).

Kupipi fishing drew keiki to Punalu`u yesterday with Kanoa Dacalio
taking first, Kircia Derasin second and Chesney-Jo Hao third.
Photo by Lee McIntosh

Although GPS was available in 1990, the instrumentation for recording positions was bulky and expensive, and data were not especially accurate because the U.S. military intentionally degraded the signal. This scrambling, called "selective availability," was turned off in 2000, allowing GPS users around the world access to the same accuracy as the military, down to a few meters (yards). Technological developments also improved the quality of GPS receivers, resulting in the compact handheld units that are so common today and easily used in the field.

Using handheld GPS units, HVO geologists can now quickly map flows via helicopter or by walking around flow margins. Upon returning to HVO, they download the GPS data and plot the flow margins on a map using Geographic Information System (GIS) software. Other map layers, like roads and towns, are added to the plots to produce the maps published on HVO's website (http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/maps). These maps form the basis for much of HVO's monitoring of the June 27th lava flow.
In addition to GPS data, geologists track flow activity using both regular and thermal cameras, capturing images from the ground and from the air (both types of images are posted on HVO's website, http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/multimedia/index.php, after crews return from the field). HVO scientists recently developed the ability to create a mosaic of thermal images (for example, http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/maps/uploads/image-225.jpg), which provide high-resolution views of active lava breakouts over the entire flow field.
Over the past 25 years, technological advances have enabled more accurate and timely tracking of lava flows from the ground, air, and space, as well as rapid distribution of that information via the Internet. Although the fundamental observations made by HVO geologists remain much the same, the manner in which data are collected has greatly improved.
For more, visit http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov, email askHVO@usgs.gov, or call 808-967-8844.

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Joe Buyuan caught the
second most fish.
Photo by Lee McIntosh

Toby Kekoa-Burgess caught the
largest fish at the tournament.
Photo by Lee McIntosh

Ikaika Derasin caught the
most fish at Punalu`u.
Photo by Lee McIntosh

Kircia Derasin and Akela Kuahiwinui tied for third in catching the most
fish at the Keiki Tournament. Photo by Lee McIntosh

SPONSORING ORGANIZATION O KA`U KAKOU has announced winners in the Keiki Fishing Tournament. It is the largest shoreline event in Ka`u each year and took place yesterday at Punalu`u Beach, withhundreds of keiki and family members participating. State Department of Land & Natural Resources staff members were on hand to teach about the rules that protect ocean resources. Families learned about Disaster Preparedness from the Red Cross and about early education offered locally by the Tutu & Me program. All of the fish caught were returned to the ocean after measuring.
Keki took home prizes. Winners in the Kupipi category were Kanoa Dacalio, first, Kiricia Derasin second and Chesney-Jo Hao third. For hinalea, Asia Sesson took first, Cruze Alani second and Kaleopono Paliko Lefew third.
Ikaika Derasin caught the most fish. Second-most fish went to Joe Buyuan and tying for third-most fish were Kersia Derasin and Akela Kuahiwinui. Toby Kekoa Burgess caught the largest fish.
Ka`u's newly elected County Council member Maile Medeiros David attended the event. Keioki Kahumoku and friends provided music. To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

In the hinalea category, Asia Sesson took first, Cruze Alani second.
Kaleopono Paliko Lefew third. Photo by Lee McIntosh

A CELEBRATION OF NEW MUSIC EDUCATION FOR THE KA`U PUBLIC SCHOOLS is this coming Saturday, Jan. 31, as local musicians join jazz musician and music teacher Jr. Volcano Choy. Choy will be on trumpet, Brian McCree on acoustic bass, Bruce David on drums and Betsy Curtis will share her jazz vocals.
The concert takes place from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Pahala Plantation House.
Volcano Art Center recently received a grant from the Hawai`i Community Foundation to restore band instruments that have remained idle in the Ka`u High School Band Room for years. Jr. Volcano Choy has begun a series of after-school classes for Middle School students at the Pahala campus. The concert will introduce him to the community as he joins local musicians Keoki Kahumoku and friends. Admission is free but donations encouraged to help fund the program at the school.
To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

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

Ka`u High School girls varsity basketball team celebrated Senior Night Saturday, the final home game for those graduating this year, with a win over HPA. Photo from Kaweni Ibarra

HAWAI`I ISLAND’S COMMUNITIES are addressing a 41 percent shortage of doctors.
University of Hawai`i John A. Burns School of Medicine’s Area Health Education Center Kelly Withey told reporter Colin Stewart, of Hawai`i Tribune Herald. Withey said Big Island communities “are coming together to make changes such as starting an interprofessional residency training program in Hilo, holding activities such as Teen Health Camps for students to learn about health careers, holding activities to support local physicians sponsored by Hawai`i Island Healthcare Alliance and the mayor, and doctors are working together to help other doctors set up practices. Things such as these, as well as loan repayment and showing aloha to all members of the health care team, are essential to making sure everyone on the Big Island gets the care they need.”
According to the story, in 2014 the island needed 554 doctors but only had 327. Shortages included 30 primary care providers, along with orthopedic surgeons, neurologists and endocrinologists. Other specialty areas that had shortages were colorectal surgery, neonatal-perinatal, pediatric rheumatology, pediatric cardiology, pediatric gastroenterology, pediatric neurology, plastic surgery, neurological surgery, infectious disease, allergy and immunology.
Dr. Richard Lee-Ching, President of East Hawai`i Independent Physicians Association, told Stewart what he thinks is causing the shortages. “There’s a couple things that stop them. It costs more to live here, and by and large, we get paid less over here… . The doctors who are coming here are coming out with a fair amount of debt, so when they do come out, they’re not setting up private practice because they would have to deal with more of the bureaucratic nonsense.”
Other barriers include paperwork and documentation requirements for reimbursement by Medicare and Medicaid, along with other requirements.
See hawaiitribune-herald.com.

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Life of the Land is one of several organizations opposing Gov. Ige's
nomination of Carlton Ching as had of DLNR.

GOV. DAVID IGE’S NOMINATION of Carlton Ching to head the Department of Land & Natural Resources is receiving criticism from many sources. Ching is Vice President, Community and Government Relations, for Castle & Cooke Hawai`i, where he supports the organization’s real estate, agricultural and renewable energy initiatives.

Henry Curtis, Director of Life of the Land, said Ching is a developer on his blog at ililanimedia.blogspot.com. Curtis said Ching in 2005 asked legislators to reduce or abolish the Land Use Commission.
Curtis also said that in 2008 Castle & Cooke wrote a bill pushed by Rep. Calvin Say that “would have killed all public participation, all utility reviews, all interagency approvals, all county reviews, and given one person, the Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism director, power to approve renewable energy projects before the Final Environmental Impact Statement has been written.

“Ching currently serves as a Vice President of the Land Use Research Foundation of Hawai`i which describes itself as ‘the only Hawai`i-based organization devoted exclusively to promoting the interests of the development community.’”

Civil Beat reported that Ching is a registered lobbyist for Castle & Cooke.

Sierra Club of Hawai`i is one of several
organizations that oppose the nomination.

A commenter on Civil Beat said LURF is “the main lobbying group for developers seeking to weaken Hawai`i’s zoning and planning laws. He is also on the board of the Building Industry Association. With Ching’s nomination, the developers have hit the trifecta! A longtime key advocate for their interests now put in charge of Hawai`i’s public natural resources.
“Those of us who were concerned when (former Gov. Neil) Abercrombie’s Public Land Development Corporation looked like it was intended to turn state government into an enabler of development interest should appreciate Ching’s nomination removes a layer of complexity. Under Ching, the developers would be directly in charge.”

Former state Senate Majority Leader and former Kaua`i County Council member Gary Hooser wrote, “I supported and voted for Gov. Ige. This appointment leaves me both flabbergasted and extremely disappointed. My only hope is he will reconsider and withdraw the appointment very quickly.”
Over twenty environmental groups are asking the governor to withdraw the nomination.   In a joint statement, the groups said Ching “has no demonstrated expertise in managing the cultural and natural resources that fall under the department’s purview, including but not limited to endangered species, iwi, ceded land, water resources, forests, beaches, coral reefs, fishing and hunting resources, historic sites and state parks.   It is still early in Gov. Ige’s term, and we urge him to make the proper course corrections for the benefit of our natural environment and the people of Hawai`i nei. We look forward to working with him and his administration to make Hawai`i a better place for all the people of these islands, our children, and generations to come.  
Among the groups are Conservation Council for Hawai`i, Defend O`ahu Coalition, Earthjustice, Friends of Lana`i, Hawai`i Alliance for Progressive Action, Hawai`i Wildlife Fund, Hawai`i’s Thousand Friends, Hui Ho`omalu I Ka `Aina, `Ilio`ulaokalani Coalition, KAHEA: The Hawaiian-Environmental Alliance, Kanehili Hui, Kupa`a No Lana`i, Life of the Land, LOST FISH Coalition, MANA (Movement for Aloha No Ka `Aina), Maui Tomorrow, O`ahu Chapter of Aha Moku Council, Progressive Democrats of Hawai`i, Puna Pono Alliance, Sierra Club, Surfrider Foundation, The Outdoor Circle, Wailua-Kapa`a Neighborhood Association and West Maui Preservation Association.  
Department of Land & Natural Resources Director serves as chair of the Board of Land & Natural Resources, chair of the Commission on Water Resource Management and as the state’s Historic Preservation Officer, in addition to overseeing many programs.

  Marti Townsend, Executive Director of The Outdoor Circle, urged the governor to withdraw Ching’s nomination to head up DLNR citing Ching’s “lack of experience in protecting natural resources, which is the agency’s primary responsibility.”

Anthony Aalto, Sierra Club spokesperson, pointed out that Ching “lobbied for developer Castle and Cooke, served as a director on the Building Industry Association of Hawai`i and as vice-president of the Land Use Research Foundation, which according to its website “is devoted exclusively to promoting the interests of the development community.”

According to the joint statement, both organizations “have consistently lobbied to weaken laws that protect the state’s cultural and natural resources.”

See civilbeat.com.

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Senior Night honored members of Ka`u High girls basketball who graduate this year.
Photo from Kaweni Ibarra

KA`U HIGH’S VARSITY GIRLS BASKETBALL TEAM celebrated Senior Night Saturday. For seniors on the team, this was the last chance to play a game on Ka`u’s home court.

Ka`u played against HPA and made the best out of their last home game. Within the first minute, scores were tied, but Ka`u quickly changed that. The Trojans kept the lead for the entire game and held their ground for a final score of 56-31.
Seniors Kerrilynn Domondon, Denisha Navarro and Bridget Pasion showcased the power of the team on both offense and defense.
The team’s next game is Saturday at Kamehameha-Hawai`i.

The Ka`u Calendar journalism intern Kaweni Ibarra contributed to this Ka`u sports update.

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FLIGHT OPERATIONS OCCUR AT KAHUKU UNIT of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park today, tomorrow and Friday between 6:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. to transport fencing material, camp supplies and crew near the Kahuku Unit/Ka`u Forest Reserve Boundary.

Management of the park requires the use of aircraft to monitor and research volcanic activity, conduct search-and-rescue missions and law enforcement operations, support management of natural and cultural resources and to maintain backcountry facilities.

Dates and times are subject to change based on aircraft availability and weather.
The park issued a statement that it regrets any noise impact to residents and park visitors.

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PAHOEHOE LAVA: THE EBB AND FLOW OF MOLTEN ROCK is the topic at After Dark in the Park tomorrow at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Lava erupted from the Pu`u `O`o vent on Kilauea Volcano’s East Rift Zone has been advancing in fits and starts toward the community of Pahoa since June 2014. After the flow stalled just 170 yards from Pahoa Village Road in early November, a new breakout of lava began moving toward Pahoa Marketplace. University of Hawai`i at Hilo geologists Ken Hon and Cheryl Gansecki have spent decades studying and filming the behavior of pahoehoe lava and will use time-lapse and recent videos to explain how and why these flows advance, stall and inflate.

This free program is part of Volcano Awareness Month.
Park entrance fees apply.

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

In his first State of the State address yesterday, Gov. David Ige acknowledged the important role public hospitals,
like Ka`u Hospital, play in an island state. Photo by Julia Neal

CHALLENGES FACED BY KA`U and other rural communities of Hawai`i were part of Gov. David Ige’s State of the State address yesterday.
Building a strong support network for agriculture is one of Gov. David Ige’s priorities, he said. “We need to support agriculture and help our local farmers dramatically increase the amount of food we grow locally,” he said. “Hawai`i grows about 10 to 15 percent of the total foods residents consume. If we are to become a sustainable society, we must increase those numbers.”
Ige cited the cost of importing foods as more than $3 billion leaving the state annually. “If we replace just 10 percent of imports with locally grown food, it would generate $188 million in total sales, $94 million for farmers, $47 million in wages, $6 million in new taxes and 2,300 jobs,” he said.

Gov. David Ige during his first
State of the State address.
Image from Olelo

To promote ag, Ige wants to preserve farm lands, develop agricultural parks, combat invasive species and “reassess areas that determine whether a local farmer can survive.
“We will be meeting with farmers from each island to hear what they need to make Hawai`i more self-sufficient.” He said Department of Agriculture Director Scott Enright will spearhead that effort.
Ige said that as a start to promoting more ag, the state is adding $5 million to the agriculture loan program and expanding use of the fund to include biosecurity and food safety needs.
Ige acknowledged the important role public hospitals like Ka`u Hospital play in an island state. “Unlike other states, good healthcare is not easily distributed throughout the islands,” he said. “Our families and doctors cannot simply drive to another hospital if one is busy or does not have the services they need. … That’s especially true on our neighbor islands where they’re often the only provider of acute care.”
Ige sees potential in public-private partnerships for hospitals which are faced with financial deficits, “but only if they are shaped in the right way. But no matter our direction, changing how we operate our hospitals to meet changing needs will be key to any long-term solution.”
Energy self-sufficiency is another of Ige’s priorities. “Importing fossil fuel remains one of our greatest weaknesses, and we simply must move to reduce our dependence on it,” he said. “We have the locally generated resources that can allow us to be self-sufficient.
“In addition, we will be restructuring and staffing the Public Utilities Commission to give it the expertise and resources needed to deal with its due diligence. I will also be assigning a special counsel to protect the public’s interest for the short and long term.”
Ige said he plans to empower schools by giving those closest to children authority and resources to take action. “As Governor, I will appoint members to the Board of Education who embrace school empowerment of our principals and teachers as the key to ensure student success,” he said. “I challenge the leaders of public education to stop issuing mandates from the state office and to focus on empowering schools and delivering resources to the school level."
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Mayor Billy Kenoi addressed legislators
at the state Capitol yesterday.
Image from Olelo

MAYOR BILLY KENOI THANKED STATE LEGISLATORS yesterday for their support and contributions to Hawai`i County. “If we make it a good place to live, then it will continue to be a wonderful place to visit,” Kenoi said. Kenoi acknowledged the state’s support of University of Hawai`i – Hilo, the county’s largest employer. Funding of almost $100 million for construction of several buildings, including the College of Pharmacy, came through the Legislature.

He also thanked the state for help with recent natural disasters, including hurricanes and tsunami threats, and the current, ongoing lava flow near Pahoa in Puna.
Requests Kenoi made focused on Puna. He asked legislators to pass legislation requiring insurance companies to renew homeowners policies. “It doesn’t seem right that somebody who pays their policy for a long period of time is all of a sudden told, ‘Oh, sorry, we’re not renewing your policy anymore.’”
Kenoi also asked for continued support of improvements of state Hwy 130 in Puna and increases in reliability of Civil Defense sirens.
Kenoi also asked that legislators support Kona Airport’s redesignation as an international entry point to boost economic development for the entire island.

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U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard

U.S. REP. TULSI GABBARD IS JOINING other congressional leaders and members of the startup community in convening the new Diversifying Technology Caucus. This bipartisan, bicameral caucus will work to increase representation of women, minorities and veterans in the tech sector, and the ability of these groups to access good jobs that this industry creates.
Right now only one in 14 technical employees in Silicon Valley is African-American or Hispanic. Women currently represent fewer than 13 percent of employed engineers and hold fewer than 25 percent of STEM jobs. And just three percent of all startups are founded by women.
Congress will call attention to these challenges, highlighting existing best practices, driving a public conversation and designing initiatives that support and promote diversity. The Diversifying Tech Caucus will be a partnership between policy makers, industry and academia to organize, advocate and create awareness about underrepresented groups and develop strategies for improving access and engagement. Industry and academic leaders will also work together to undertake research that legislators can use to elevate the issue and help develop solutions.
“So many of our returning veterans have skills that would make them a real asset to tech companies, and others who have the entrepreneurial spirit to launch ventures of their own,” Gabbard said. “But so far veterans remain underrepresented in the tech community, along with women and minorities. Working with Engine, I'm proud to serve as co-chair of this caucus as we bring people together to find innovative solutions to the many challenges we face.”

Ka`u High boys soccer team's final home game
of the season and Senior Night is Friday, Jan. 30.
Photo by Taylor's Treasures Photography

The Diversifying Tech Caucus will hold initial meetings to set a formal agenda, which will include goals such as proposing creative solutions to address obstacles to diversity in the tech industry; bringing together researchers and academics to conduct in-depth research on diversity issues; forming targeted working groups on specific Diversifying Tech issues such as #WomenStartups, #ClosingtheGap, #DiversityinTech, and #STEMEducation; holding briefings, roundtables, media events and training and networking sessions around the country to bring together policymakers and tech community representatives; and forming a Hill Staff Advisory Council of tech-friendly staffers representing a broad spectrum of Congressional offices.
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SENIOR NIGHT FOR KA`U HIGH BOYS SOCCER team is Friday, Jan. 30 at 3 p.m., hosting Parker. The game was originally scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 31.

SPECIAL OLYMPICS EAST HAWAI`I is sending Ka`u to competitions around the island and the state. Special Olympic athletes are selling $9 tickets for teri beef plates through Feb. 14. Call athlete Cindy Hickman at 670-6879 or organizer Lori Nakashima at 938-5144.

UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI`I – HILO GEOLOGISTS Ken Hon and Cheryl Gansecki discuss Pahoehoe Lava: the Ebb and Flow of Molten Rock at After Dark in the Park today at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.
The two have spent decades studying and filming behavior of pahoehoe lava and will use time-lapse and recent videos to explain how and why these flows advance, stall and inflate.
This free program is part of Volcano Awareness Month.
Park entrance fees apply.

Students are eager to work with Jr. Volcano Choy at a new music program
for Ka`u Middle School. Photo by Julia Neal

ALL THAT JAZZ IN PAHALA is the title of an article in Hawai`i Tribune-Herald about this Saturday’s jazz concert featuring Jr. Volcano Choy at Pahala Plantation House to support a new music program at Ka`u Middle School.

The event is sponsored by Volcano Art Center, which has received a grant from Hawai`i State Foundation on Culture & the Arts to bring back band music education to keiki of Ka`u. The afterschool program for beginning brass band will be instructed by Choy, the highly experienced performing artist and educator who lives in Volcano, following a professional performing and recording career on the mainland.
A Hawai`i native, Choy noted that Ka`u High school’s music building is filled with all the instruments that are part of a full band program. Due to lack of a program, scores of instruments are rusting and non-functional. A statement from Volcano Art Center says, “These instruments need to come alive again. They are trumpets, trombones and more which all need TLC.”
Those attending are urged to bring a garden chair and the $15 suggested donation.
For more information and overnight accommodations, call Pahala Plantation Cottages at 928-9811.

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

West Hawai`i Coastal areas, including the Ka`u Coast and Ka`ohe Bay, north of Miloli`i, are seeing larger populations of fish harvested for the aquarium trade. Photo by Julia Neal

KA`U COFFEE BUYERS, who said they spent more than $940,000 with local farmers this season, told the Ka`u Coffee Growers Cooperative last night that they will need more coffee in the future as they expand their marketing. Arturo Romero, of Houston, TX, and Francisco Lobos, of 0cean View, said they want to work with the cooperative so that farmers receive top prices. Francisco said the hui has been paying the farmers $12 a pound for parchment and $1.75 a pound for cherry.

Francisco Lobos, at left, and Arturo Romero with Ka`u Coffee
Growers Cooperative President Gloria Camba.
Photo by Julia Neal

“The name is out there how good Ka`u is,” said Romero. He encouraged Ka`u farmers to allow his marketing to use the cooperative’s name. “Doing business with cooperatives is received well by companies,” he said. He promised fair pricing and noted that it took years to establish fair pricing for farmers in El Salvador, his native country.
Romero said he wants to help Ka`u farmers with fighting the coffee berry borer, a fertilizer program, providing labor for picking season and establishing a coffee receiving place. He said a decaffeinated Ka`u Coffee will be developed along with acquisition of various packaging machinery for K-cups, filter packs and aluminum packs.
“By next harvest, we will be able to pay more for the coffee,” he said. He contended that there are moral principals behind his business practices. “If we do good, these benefits are not only for the corporation. They are for everyone to win. The key is to be win-win, to serve you good to make long lasting relationships,” Romero told Ka`u Coffee farmers.
While pure Ka`u Coffee will be sold, he said the lead product will be a Ka`u Hawai`i blend to achieve the broadest market. He said the company name is Bio Eco Hawai`i, Inc., and it does import Latin American coffee to blend with Ka`u. He said his group is working on a blend that would be more than 10 percent Ka`u Coffee to bring a higher price.

Ka`u Coffee Growers Cooperative President Gloria Camba said the cooperative will consider the proposals from Romero and Lobos. She said the farmers have been selling to Lobos for years.
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Yellow tang populations are increasing along Ka`u and other
West Hawai`i coastlines. Photo from wikipedia

WEST HAWAI`I REGIONAL FISHERY Management Area, which stretches from South Point to Upolo Point in Kohala, is experiencing higher populations of fish commonly harvested for aquarium trade. Fifteen years after creation of fish replenishment areas, the number of yellow tangs has increased 64.5 percent in the areas where aquarium collecting is not allowed and 58 percent in waters from 30 to 60 feet deep along West Hawai`i’s coast, according to Bret Yager, of Hawai`i Tribune-Herald. Hawai`i Division of Aquatic resources biologist Bill Walsh estimates 3.6 million tang now live along the coast.
The population of kole tang, the second most popular aquarium fish, has also increased 49 percent since 1999, when conservation measures were put in place. The number is now estimated at 6.5 million.
The data is based on 16 years of surveys and monitoring by West Hawai`i Aquarium Project and related efforts.
“The FRAs work,” Susan Kellam, founder of the reef protection group Friends of Pebble Beach, told Yager. “Thirty-five percent of the coastline is now protected. I think the spillover effect from them is clear science as well. If you go to O`ahu or Maui to snorkel, those fish are gone.”
The story says that, according to Walsh, total catch in West Hawai`i's aquarium fishery has grown 22 percent.
Tina Owens, one of three chairpersons of West Hawai`i Fishery Council, told Yager the increases prove that regulatory efforts are working. “This shows we’re on the right track,” she said. “It validates everything we’ve been working on.”

See westhawaiitoday.com.
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Chris Kanazawa

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE is soliciting applications for Fiscal Year 2015 Community Connect Program grants. The grants provide funds to establish essential broadband services in rural communities where it is currently unavailable. “The Community Connect program serves rural communities where broadband service is least likely to be available, but where it can make a tremendous difference in the quality of life for citizens of the state of Hawai`i and the Territory of American Samoa,” USDA Rural Development state Director Chris Kanazawa said. “This grant can assist rural residents tap into the enormous potential of the Internet.”

Applicants eligible to apply include state, county, city or township, Native American tribal governments, nonprofits, for-profits and small businesses.
The minimum amount of grants awarded will be $100,000; the maximum is $3,000,000. The deadline for applications to be submitted is Feb. 17, 2015. Last year, USDA announced new rules to better target Community Connect grants to areas where they are needed the most.
Grant funds can be used to construct, acquire or lease facilities to deploy broadband to community facilities such as schools and public safety locations, as well as residences and businesses in the community.
“The Community Connect grant can be made available to bring the benefits of broadband, including new educational, business and public health and safety opportunities, to residents living in some of the remote parts of Hawai`i and American Samoa,” said Thao Khamoui, Area Director.
More information on the Community Connect grant is available at http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/utp_commconnect.html.

Randy Iwase

HEARING ALL POINTS OF VIEW IS A PRIORITY for Randy Iwase, who Gov. David Ige recently nominated as chair of Hawai`i’s Public Utilities Commission. “We will be quite open to allowing a variety of people and points of views to come in and intervene, whatever that may be,” Iwase told Duane Shimogawa, of Pacific Business News. He also said that the PUC will make decisions after public comments are received and all the questions are answered.
Iwase said NextEra’s $4.3 billion acquisition of HECO has to be in the best interest of “not just the parties and the people of the state, but also by the policy set by the Legislature.
“We are going to do our best to get there,” Iwase said. “I’m sure there will be a few who will disagree, but we will do our best.”
Iwase said the PUC’s strategy in the NextEra-HECO case is to give parties “opportunities to intervene and present different perspectives, as well as raise questions about the case.”
In addition to NextEra Energy’s the NextEra-HECO case Iwase said other top cases for the PUC are liquefied natural gas and organizing the state agency, which currently has a staff of 40 people, with 10 vacancies and another 15 funded positions. “The staff I've met are very dedicated, very smart and very committed,” Iwase told Shimogawa. “Not just to the state, but to the energy goals.”
See bizjournals.com/pacific.

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KA`U HIGH BOYS BASKETBALL TEAMS fell to Kona yesterday on their home court. Junior varsity score was 32 – 63, with Jacob Flores scoring the most points, 12.

Varsity players Damon Hertz scored 11 points, and Brian Gascon scored 10 of Ka`u’s 43 points. Kona came up with 77 points.
The teams play again tomorrow, hosting Kea`au.
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AN AFTERSCHOOL MUSIC PROGRAM at Ka`u Middle School is the goal of Volcano Art Center and Volcano Choy. The school has a band room full of instruments that have not been used for years due to budget cuts. Through a grant to VAC from Hawai`i State Foundation on Culture & the Arts, Volcano Choy will begin teaching afterschool music classes this winter and spring. A jazz concert will be held on Saturday at Pahala Plantation House to help raise funds for restoration of the brass and woodwind instruments, to buy sheet music and cover other costs of this music program. The outdoor concert will be from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., with food and drinks available for purchase. Suggested donation is $15. Attendees are asked to bring their own lawn chairs.
Donations to support this music program may also be made directly to VAC. Call 967-8222.

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

This year's first Sanctuary Ocean Count of humpback whales along the Ka`u Coast takes place Saturday. Photo from fish-journal.com

HAWAIIAN ELECTRIC CO. AND NEXTERA ENERGY submit their acquisition application to Hawai`i’s Public Utilities Commission today. The $4.3 billion deal between Hawai`i’s largest utility and the Florida giant is expected to close later this year.

Executives from the companies met with lawmakers during a legislative hearing at the state Capitol yesterday. Duane Shimogawa, of Pacific Business News, said NextEra’s Eric Gleason told them the company’s strengths are helping HECO integrate renewable sources “better, faster and cheaper. … We have solutions applicable to Hawai`i and to Florida, and we support HECO’s goals.”
“Everything we have will be revealed in the PUC process,” Gleason said. “In terms of long-term detailed business plans, that’s the plan HECO filed (with the PUC) in August.”
According to Shimogawa, HECO’s Alan Oshima said NextEra’s benefits to Hawai`i include access to capital, utilization of new technologies and a proven track record in energy, which could accelerate HECO’s clean energy transformation.

See bizjournals.com/pacific.
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Kalu Oyama, second from left, continues this year as FoodCorps Hawai`i
service member at Na`alehu School. Photo by Nalani Parlin

KALU OYAMA CONTINUES AS FOODCORPS HAWAI`I service member at Na`alehu School for its second year.

Food Corps Hawai`i program is committed to building garden-based nutritional education programs and expanding connections between hands-on learning and core curriculum to help students adopt healthier lifestyles, improve academic performance and obtain real-life learning experiences about sustainability and eco-literacy. The Kohala Center serves as the host site for the state of Hawaii’s FoodCorps program.
Service members expand hands-on nutrition education programs, build and tend school gardens and help bring high quality, locally produced foods into schools.
According to FoodCorps, when these three pillars of its approach are implemented together, there are changes in children’s attitudes toward consumption of healthy food.
Applications for the 2015-2016 cohort of Hawai`i FoodCorps service members are available through March 30 on the FoodCorps website, foodcorps.org.
See kohalacenter.org.
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SHIPPING CONTAINER HUTS: The Associated Press reports that “on the Big Island, housing officials are considering building micro-units made from shipping containers. They’re planning to get seven shipping containers that are each 40 feet long and divide each into four units, said housing administrator Stephen Arnett. “Those units would be set aside for people with mental health or other problems,” he said.

Hawai`i housing administrator Stephen Arnett said shipping containers will be
used as housing units. Photo from dcengines.com

The report was carried in an AP story on a housing briefing at the state Legislature yesterday.
Department of Hawaiian Homelands Director Jobie Masagatani told legislators the department broke ground on more than 450 lots statewide in the past two years, according to AP reporter Caty Bussewitz. It has a wait list of about 26,000 people. “The biggest concern for me is our kupuna who are on our waiting list,” Masagatani said.
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SEN. MAZIE HIRONO TODAY INTRODUCED the Providing Resources Early for Kids Act, legislation to expand access to high-quality early learning programs for children from birth to age five. The PRE-K Act helps more kids arrive at kindergarten ready to succeed by establishing a federal-state partnerships that incentivizes states to both improve the quality of state preschool programs and expand to serve more children in need.
“The investments we make in our youngest keiki are paid back in full by enhancing our nation’s competitiveness in our global economy,” Hirono said. “Hawai`i educators have told me that many kids start kindergarten already behind. Our children deserve the best chance to succeed and our educators need all the tools we can give them to put students on track to being lifelong learners. That’s why, beginning when I was Hawai`i’s Lieutenant Governor 20 years ago, I have been committed to quality early learning to help kids start kindergarten ready to succeed. Where you live should not determine what chance you get in life, and this bill will ensure states like Hawaii can create effective, quality state preschool programs. This bill focuses on quality because it is what makes the biggest difference in educational outcomes. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the House and Senate and moving this bill forward.”
Sen. Brian Schatz co-sponsored the bill. “Every child deserves the best education possible. But in Hawai`i and across the country, too many children are unprepared for school simply because states don’t have the resources to invest in early education programs,” he said. “Our legislation would help states like Hawai‘i establish new, high-quality early education programs that give children a better shot at success in school and in life.”
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Tickets are available for next month's fundraiser for Ka`u Lions Pop Warner
Football Association. Photo by Nalani Parlin

KA`U LIONS POP WARNER FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION holds a spaghetti dinner fundraiser on Friday, Feb. 20 at Na`alehu Community Center. Tickets are $7. Funds will help pay for the many fees, insurance and expenses associated with Pop Warner programs.

Newly elected Board members of Ka`u Lions Pop Warner Football Association are excited to start the season this year. Nominations and elections were held at the association’s season ending banquet held in December. Elected members are President Kai Manini; Vice President and Web Master Shellen Hashimoto, Secretary Nona Makuakane, Treasurer and Medical Director Tammy Kaawa, Fundraising Chair Betty-Ann Beck, Football Commissioner Devin “Bully” Breithaupt, Roster Software Contact and Scholastics Commissioner Helena Carvalho, Travel and Media Coordinator Jolie Kekoa Burgos, Equipment and Uniform Manager Kolina Paaluhi, Parent Coordinator Mona Santana, Concessions Coordinator Kuulei Ka-ne, Field Commissioner Buck Kala and Awards Banquet Coordinator Sasha Kaupu.
Board members met in January and want to start registrations early before school lets out for the summer to get a head start on the season. They are also seeking assistance from volunteers to be coaches. All coaches are required to attend a mandatory workshop in the summer in order to be on the field during the season.
Secretary Nona Makuakane noted that Big Island Pop Warner Football Conference might be making a change in team divisions for the upcoming season. Instead of a Midget Division, which targets ages 12-14 (105-170 lbs) and students 15 years old (between 105-140 lbs), the conference will have Jr. Midgets, ages 10-12 (90-140 lbs) and age 13 (90-120 lbs). They may also add an Unlimited Division for ages 11 to 14 weighing 105 lbs and above.
“All board members agree that the main focus of the association is for the kids of Ka`u,” Makuakane said, “but we also need the support of the community.” Anyone wanting to purchase spaghetti dinner tickets or make a donation can call Fundraising Chair Betty Ann Beck at 315-5702. To assist by volunteering as a coach, call Football Commissioner Bully Breithaupt at 339-1097 or call Association President Kai Manini at 640-8409. Contact any board member with questions or if interested to provide any other kinds of assistance.
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Whales are counted Saturday at Punalu`u and other area shorelines.
Photo from Susan Field

VOLUNTEERS CAN STILL SIGN UP for Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary’s 2015 Sanctuary Ocean Count. The first of three counts is set for this Saturday from 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

Volunteers count whales and record their behaviors from over 60 shore sites on the islands of O`ahu, Kaua`i and Hawai`i. Local sites include Ka`ena Point in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, Punalu`u Black Sand Beach Park, Ka Lae Park and Miloli`i Lookout.
The project allows the public to learn more about humpback whale population, distribution and behavioral trends while being involved in a volunteer monitoring effort.
More Sanctuary Ocean Counts will be held on Saturdays, Feb. 28 and March 28 at selected sites.
Interested volunteers may register online at http://sanctuaryoceancount.org.

VOLUNTEERS MEET AT KILAUEA VISITOR CENTER to help remove invasive Himalayan ginger from Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park trails Saturday at 9 a.m. Stewardship at the Summit is an ongoing program. Free; park entrance fees apply.

AFTERNOON JAZZ AT PAHALA PLANTATION HOUSE is Saturday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. The outdoor concert is a fundraiser for the Brass Band Afterschool Project at Ka`u Middle School supported by Volcano Art Center. Musicians include Jr. Volcano Choy on trumpet, Brian McCree on acoustic bass, Bruce David on drums and vocalist Betsy Curtis. Keoki Kahumoku and the Ka`u youth `ukulele players will also perform.

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

Hawai`i Wildlife Fund held its first Ka`u Coast Cleanup of 2015 last Friday with 161 participants. Photo from HWF

CUSTOMERS COULD SAVE NEARLY $60 MILLION if the acquisition of Hawaiian Electric Co. by NextEra Energy is approved, according to the companies’ joint application filed with the Public Utilities Commission yesterday. The $4.3 billion deal between Hawai`i’s largest utility and the Florida company is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year.

The companies expect benefits from improved financial standing, strong vendor relationships and economies of scale, and technical expertise.
The applicants also say they will not request an increase in general base rates for at least four years following transaction close. They affirm commitments to continue operating under current name and retain headquarters in Honolulu. “Hawaiian Electric will continue to be locally managed, with no involuntary workforce reductions for at least two years post close,” the application states. The companies also expect to maintain HECO’s overall current level of corporate giving.
“Hawaiian Electric stands at the forefront in addressing a vast array of complex issues associated with Hawai`i’s clean energy transformation,” the application states. “By combining with NextEra Energy, Hawaiian Electric will gain a leading-edge partner, with deep operational, technical and managerial expertise, financial capacity and a proven clean energy track record. The proposed combination is expected to provide Hawaiian Electric with the added capacity, resources and access to expertise to strengthen and accelerate Hawai`i’s transition to a more affordable, equitable and inclusive clean energy future, while delivering substantial customer benefits, including lower costs and improved reliability over time.”

HECO would retain its name if the NextEra purchase goes through.

“The filing of this application begins an important review process that we believe will ultimately result in a more affordable clean energy future for Hawai`i,” said Eric Gleason, president of NextEra Energy Hawai`i, LLC. “We share Hawaiian Electric’s vision of increasing renewable energy, modernizing its grid, reducing Hawai`i’s dependence on imported oil, integrating more rooftop solar energy and, importantly, lowering customer bills, and we believe our combination will help to accelerate Hawai`i’s clean energy transformation. … As we move forward, our focus will be on applying our expertise and resources, alongside Hawaiian Electric’s, to bring significant benefits, savings and value to Hawaiian Electric customers and to create the clean energy future we all want for Hawai`i.”

Alan Oshima, HECO’s president and chief executive officer, said “As the filing outlines, joining with NextEra Energy provides Hawaiian Electric with the unique opportunity to strengthen and accelerate our clean energy transformation.”

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LIFE OF THE LAND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Henry Curtis filed a motion to participate in the Public Utilities Commission’s examination of NextEra Energy’s acquisition of Hawaiian Electric Co.
“The HECO-NextEra deal is more than just changing the ownership of the HECO Companies,” Curtis said. “It is also about the Game Plan and the speed of transition to some future. The issues include ratepayer bills, reliability, smart grids, interisland cables and liquefied natural gas.
“Life of the Land intervened in the proceeding to protect our people, our environment and our cultural resources.”

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Prof. Donald Thomas
Photo from UH

UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI`I RESEARCHERS have discovered a large fresh water supply on the Big Island. In March 2013, researchers from the UH-Manoa and UH-Hilo began drilling at 6,400 feet above sea level between Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea in the saddle region of the Big Island.

UH-Manoa professor Donald Thomas is leading the effort, called the Humu`ula Saddle Hydrologic Study Project. What they discovered seven months later may radically change conventional wisdom regarding the state’s most valuable resource: fresh water.
“The conventional model that we worked with for years and years is that we have a relatively thin basal fresh water lens, is what we call it,” said Thomas, the director of the Center for the Study of Active Volcanoes. “A layer of fresh water saturated rock that rises very slowly as we move inland.”
According to that conventional model developed decades ago, the research team should have had to drill for 5,900 feet to 500 feet above sea level before reaching the Big Island’s fresh water supply.
“We found something just completely different,” Thomas said. “The stable water table in the saddle is not 500 feet above sea level. It’s more like 4,500 feet above sea level. So we are almost 10 times higher than we could have expected when we started out on the project.”
Geologists have long thought that only a small fraction of rainwater is stored in the islands because the geological makeup of Hawai`i is volcanic and porous.

Pohakuloa Training Area currently trucks water to the site. Photo from UH

“With our findings here, it looks as though the islands really act as huge containers,” Thomas said. “What we really need to do is go back and look again, using modern geophysical methods, to really define the ground water systems within all of the islands,” said Thomas.
The next step for the Humu`ula Saddle Hydrologic Study Project is a second drill site six miles from the first to measure the extent of the groundwater discovered. If that test well proves successful, it will also provide strong support for high-level water beneath a large tract of Department of Hawaiian Home Lands property on the eastern side of the Humu`ula Saddle where their lessees have long needed a reliable source of water for ranching operations.
The United States Army is funding the project in hopes of finding water for its Pohakuloa Training Area, where the first drill site is located. Currently, the Army spends $1.5 million each year trucking fresh water to the training camp for use by troops and support staff.

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VOLUNTEERS COLLECTED MORE THAN 1,700 pounds of marine debris from the Ka`u Coast last Friday, Jan. 23. Debris collected by 161 participants included 125 pounds of derelict fishing nets and line and 1,263 cigarette butts.
Hawai`i Wildlife Fund, Kona Brewing Co. and Sustainable Coastlines Hawai`i sponsored the event.
The next Ka`u Coast Cleanup is Feb. 7. Volunteers can sign up with Hawai`i Wildlife Fund coordinator Megan Lamson at kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com or 769-7629.

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BOYS & GIRLS CLUB FAMILY NIGHT with dinner is once a month at Pahala Community Center, where 45 children attend the afterschool program. During last night’s session, islandwide Chief Professional Officer Zavi Brees-Saunders said Boys & Girls Club aims to help children do well in school, continue with education, give to the community and live healthy lifestyles. Exercise and nutrition are part of the program.
Brees-Saunders thanked Pāhala Club Director Dolly Kailiawa for her ability to be creative and skillful in managing and mentoring children.
Brees-Saunders noted that it costs $4,000 per year per child to operate the club. Parents pay $10 a year. She said the staff and board of directors are applying for grants and need donations. Punalu‘u Bake Shop recently donated $500. Local businesses and other community members who want to donate can call Ka‘ū board of directors member Julia Neal at 928-9811 or Saunders at 961-5536.
Funding can be available from various agencies, Brees-Saunders said. From one source of funding, when a club is 60 percent native Hawaiian, a club can receive extra funds. Serving low-income families can also draw funding, she explained, but families have to help with documentation.
To sign up a child, call Kailiawa at 756-5285.

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KA`U HIGH’S BOY BASKETBALL TEAMS hosted Kea`au yesterday. Both teams lost to the visitors. Scores were 37-46 for junior varsity and 46-63 for varsity. Ka`u’s high scorers were Kaliikupapalani Aipia-Dolan with 15 points and Brian Gascon with 14.

Next week, the teams travel to Kamehameha on Wednesday.

AFTERNOON JAZZ AT PAHALA PLANTATION HOUSE tomorrow from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. is a fundraiser for the Brass Band Afterschool Project at Ka`u Middle School supported by Volcano Art Center. Musicians include Jr. Volcano Choy on trumpet, Brian McCree on acoustic bass, Bruce David on drums and vocalist Betsy Curtis. Keoki Kahumoku and the Ka`u youth `ukulele players will also perform.

Suggested donation is $15.

THE FIRST OF THREE SANCTUARY OCEAN COUNTS of humpback whales takes place tomorrow from 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Local sites include Ka`ena Point in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, Punalu`u Black Sand Beach Park, Ka Lae Park and Miloli`i Lookout.
Interested volunteers may register online at http://sanctuaryoceancount.org.

DURING STEWARDSHIP AT THE SUMMIT tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., volunteers help remove invasive Himalayan ginger from Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park trails. Free; park entrance fees apply.

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

Last night was Senior Night for Ka`u High boys soccer team, seniors' final opportunity to play on their home field. Photo by Dave Berry

A COMMUNITY-BASED ERADICATION EFFORT for Little Fire Ants in Na`alehu will be held on Thursday, Feb. 19 at 5:30 p.m. at Na`alehu Community Center. The formal presentation will be followed by a question and answer session.
The Hawai`i Ant Lab reminds residents that “Little Fire Ants are ubiquitous and well-established on the windward side of the Big Island of Hawai‘i.” Scattered populations live along the west coast from Kailua-Kona to Captain Cook, and a small, isolated outbreak has been detected in Na`alehu. “This approximately 6.4 acre infestation is an ideal candidate for spot-eradication because the community is small and geographically separate from other infested areas. The infested area includes several private homes, a portion of Na`alehu Park, the 76 Gas Station, commercial properties and the Ka`u Family Health Center,” the statement said.

Little Fire Ants, recently detected in Na`alehu, are considered one of the world's
worst invasive species. Photo from Hawai`i Department of Agriculture

The county Department of Parks & Recreation is treating Na`alehu Community Park. “In order to get rid of this invasive ant species, the community needs to treat on their private properties also,” warned the Fire Ant Lab. The Hawai‘i Ant Lab, Big Island Invasive Species Committee and The Nature Conservancy are teaming up to train the Na`alehu community on treatment methods. The project team will work in collaboration with the community to engage the community, garner broad support and cooperation; develop a community action plan that includes treatment, monitoring and ongoing quarantine procedures; develop and deliver training, supplies and provide technical input; and monitor outcomes, report and promote as a demonstration to other communities.
“In order for the community-based eradication to be a success, it is vital that everyone in the community participate in treatment efforts. If you are not within the treatment area, we still encourage your participation at the Public Informational Meeting and vigilance for new introductions of Little Fire Ants,” the Ant Lab statement recommended.
For more information, contact Hawai`i Ant Lab, 16 East Lanikaula Street, Hilo, HI 96720. Call 315-5656 or email heather.forester@littlefireants.com.
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Jim Alberts, of HECO

HAWAIIAN ELECTRIC COMPANIES, INCLUDING Hawai`i Electric Light Company, are launching Integrated Interconnection Queues, an online tool allowing customers and developers to see the status and progress of planned renewable generation projects, including customer-sited rooftop solar as well as mid-sized and utility-scale wind and solar projects.

The IIQ for each company will show an application’s status relative to other projects proposed on the neighborhood circuit and on the islandwide electrical system. The list includes projects at every stage of the interconnection process, including applications approved for interconnection but not yet installed by the customer.
“Hawai`i is experiencing unprecedented growth in rooftop solar and utility-scale solar, wind and other renewable generation,” said Jim Alberts, Hawaiian Electric senior vice president of customer service. “We know we need an improved interconnection process – we owe it to our customers. The goal for this Integrated Interconnection Queues is to provide fair and equitable treatment for all non-utility energy providers, including homeowners and developers.”
Previously, an applicant or developer had no way to know where a project stood in line. The IIQ includes Net Energy Metering, Feed-in Tariff, Standard Interconnection Agreement, Schedule Q and Purchase Power Agreements that seek to interconnect on the distribution (also called “neighborhood circuit”) level.
Information will be updated monthly. A project’s position in the queue will change as applicants progress through the review process and others move in and out of the IIQ.
Complete instructions, including FAQs, are available at www.hawaiielectriclight.com/IIQ.
Earlier this month, HECO proposed to the Hawai`i Public Utilities Commission a plan to increase distributed generation, primarily residential rooftop solar, in a way it contended is safe, sustainable and fair for all customers. The proposal is part of the utility’s plan to triple the amount of distributed solar power and increase renewable energy to more than 65 percent by 2030.

At the end of Oct. 2014, Hawaiian Electric announced a plan to clear the backlog of residential rooftop solar projects awaiting approval as of that date, provided those projects meet certain technical standards. The plan is to process 90 percent of those projects by April 2015 and the remainder, which may require additional circuit upgrades, by December 2015.

For more information, visit www.hawaiianelectric.com/nem.
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Sen. Brian Schatz

U.S. SEN. BRIAN SCHATZ HAS BEEN NAMED to serve on five key Senate Appropriations Subcommittees: Defense; Military Construction and Veterans Affairs; Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education; Transportation, Housing and Urban Development; and Legislative Branch.

“I am grateful to Chairman Cochran and Vice Chairwoman Mikulski for the opportunity to help shape the Department of Defense’s priorities, especially as it relates to the Asia-Pacific region,” Schatz said. “These are challenging times, and we operate in a difficult budget environment, but this puts me in a position to help Hawai`i move forward.”  
On the Subcommittee on Defense, Schatz will have an opportunity to ensure that DoD is aligning its limited resources appropriately to support national defense needs, including protecting critical military capabilities in Hawai`i. In addition, the subcommittee presents an opportunity to help DoD identify opportunities to accomplish its objectives by working with partners and allies; and supporting DoD’s investments in nontraditional defense programs – such as alternative energy, climate resilience and infectious diseases research – that will pay dividends to national defense in the future.  
As a member of the Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, Schatz has an opportunity to demonstrate that development of training ranges and other essential military facilities can be done in balance with local cultural and environmental needs, all while ensuring obligations to support veterans who have made sacrifices to the nation.  
Hawai`i’s representation on the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee is valuable in sustaining past gains and continuing to address the significant education and health disparities faced by the Native Hawaiian community, given the geographical, cultural and financial barriers that prevent Native Hawaiians from accessing existing health services. It will also help represent the needs of rural and low-income communities as well as underserved populations living in island communities and isolated parts of the country.
Hawai`i depends on federal transportation funding to build and maintain the infrastructure it needs to grow the economy and connect its communities. With the Department of Transportation’s help, Hawai`i will complete the state’s first light rail project, invest in needed highway improvements, provide access to goods with port improvements and make communities more walkable.

Today is Afternoon Jazz at Pahala Plantation House.

Agencies and offices that provide for safety and functionality for those who work within and visit the United States Capitol Complex are funded in the Legislative Branch Appropriations bill. Offices such as the United States Capitol Police and Senate Sergeant at Arms oversee and execute safety functions, while agencies like the Library of Congress, Government Accountability Office and Congressional Budget Office facilitate the work of the legislative branch and provide public access to the documents elected officials use every day to help inform decisions in their official capacity.
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MUSICIANS COME TO PAHALA TODAY for Afternoon Jazz at Pahala Plantation House today from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. The fundraiser for the Brass Band Afterschool Project at Ka`u Middle School is supported by Volcano Art Center. Musicians include Jr. Volcano Choy on trumpet, Brian McCree on acoustic bass, Bruce David on drums and vocalist Betsy Curtis. Keoki Kahumoku and the Ka`u youth `ukulele players will also perform.
Suggested donation is $15.

KA`U HIGH’S BOYS SOCCER TEAM CELEBRATED Senior Night yesterday, hosting Parker. The close match ended with a score of Ka`u 3, Parker 4.
David Pillette scores two goals, and Thanachit Khofaklang  scored one for the Trojans. 

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

Ka`u News Briefs Monday, Jan. 12, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Thursday, Jan. 15, 2015

Ka`u New Briefs Friday, Jan. 16, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Saturday, Jan. 17, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Sunday, Jan. 18, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Monday, Jan. 19, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Thursday, Jan. 22, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Friday, Jan. 23, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Saturday, Jan. 24, 2015

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

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

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

Ka`u News Briefs Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Thursday, Jan. 29, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Friday, Jan. 30, 2015

Ka`u News Briefs Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015