The Kaʻū Calendar News Briefs, Hawaiʻi Island

A guided hike at Kahuku Unit of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park on Sunday explores the area's human history. See more below. NPS Photo by Julia Espaniola

AN ENTOMOLOGY TEAM from the Dengue Branch of the Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has returned to Hawai`i to continue their consultation and surveillance work with Hawai`i Department of Health on mosquitoes. The team will use all available historic and current data to map, trap and identify mosquitoes that may be carrying the dengue virus.

Six more cases of dengue fever have been confirmed since
Department of Health's latest map updated Tuesday.

DOH is seeking additional entomology and vector control support on Hawai`i Island to increase local staffing resources. To date, DOH Vector Control, augmented by county staff, has conducted 281 site surveys and 578 mosquito abatement sprayings since the beginning of the outbreak.
A donation of 3,000 mosquito traps was received from Springstar, Inc. The traps are being used in selected areas of concern, including Miloli`i. The traps are being considered as a potential mosquito abatement alternative for organic farmers.
Yesterday, DOH reported six additional confirmed cases of dengue fever, and the total number of confirmed cases since the beginning of the outbreak stands at 230. These cases include 208 residents and 22 visitors. Three of these cases are potentially infectious or in the stage of their illness in which they can infect mosquitoes.
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HAWAI`I PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION today announced that a public meeting will be held at Ocean View Community Center on Presidents’ Day, Monday, Feb. 15 at 6 p.m. to hear comment on an application by Hawai`i Electric Light Co. for approval to construct a high-voltage overhead transmission line from a proposed substation and across Hwy 11.

HELCO’s application is expected to be very hotly contested by Ocean View residents who oppose the massive solar project planned for housing lots there. The developer, SPI Solar, an international company based in Shanghai, China, and its subsidiary, Calwai`i, based in California, plan to put 250 kilowatt installations on 16 housing lots throughout Ranchos and one in Kula Kai. The developer also has permits to build eight installations on the 500-acre subdivision called Kona South, which is west of Ranchos. Kona South has no roads but a lot of very mature `ohi`a trees.

Mats Fogelvik Photo from Volcano Art Center

Mats Fogelvik, President of Hawai`i Ranchos Road Maintenance Corporation, is one of the project’s critics and is urging neighbors to write emails to the PUC referencing docket number 2015-0229.
“The purpose of the substation is to up-transform the produced electricity from the solar farms to 69kilovolt and feed it into the 69kV transmission line along Hwy11, where it can be absorbed and fed to daytime loads in Kona or Hilo,” Fogelvik said. “Without the substation, the solar farms cannot operate. Without the 69 kV connection to the transmission line, the substation cannot operate.
“In my mind, the 69kV transmission line is the Achilles Heel of the whole project. We need to convince the PUC that this is not wanted or needed by the community. It is being put in just for the solar project. The project needs to be stopped.”
Sandra Shelton, secretary of Hawaiian Ranchos Community Association, has been actively opposing the solar project since the June 18 public meeting was called by HELCO to announce that a substation and overhead high voltage lines would be constructed for the solar farms. She has lead a petition drive that collected over 600 signatures in Ocean View from people opposed to the project.
“Locating a substation at the entrance to Ranchos is insane,” she said. “This is like the front door to the subdivision. There are homes and a restaurant nearby, and a large commercial project is planned for the lot that would look straight down onto this industrial eyesore. All the homes in Ocean View that can see the Kohala entrance to Ranchos near King Kam will have a very large and ugly substation as well as very tall and massive poles to look at.
“We cannot allow the industrialization of Ranchos. We live here. We enjoy our views, and we don’t want them taken away.”

Brian Lampron, a resident of Ranchos, agreed with Shelton. “We all need to send emails to the PUC,” he said. “This is a boondoggle project. The power from this project may not be needed, as there is a surplus of daytime power on the island, which is why the PUC ended the popular Net Energy Metering program. NEM customers with rooftop solar could earn daytime credits for nighttime usage. The grid is full of solar power, which, because it is unstable, can only be used to a limited extent. That extent has been reached.

“This project was permitted back in 2011. In the last four years, the amount of solar power that can be used has changed considerably. The reason why this project can be built but no more NEM permits can be issued is that HELCO can turn off, or ‘curtail’ power coming from the project if there is no need for it on the grid.
“This would be like saying ‘I can light this room with six lamps, but I will install 20 lamps and turn off the 14 I don’t need.’ Should we be ruining a neighborhood like Ranchos just so that an unneeded project can be built? I am a businessman, and I say that if it’s not needed, don’t build it. I can only think that the developer does not understand ‘curtailment’ or thinks it won’t happen. Should Ranchos be sacrificed as a learning lesson for an overseas developer?”
Contents of the docket are available at dms.puc.hawaii.gov/dms. Docket number is 2015-0229.
Public comments for docket matters can be submitted to the commission at puc.comments@hawaii.gov.
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AS A SALUTE OF HONOR AND RESPECT for the 12 U.S. Marines who went missing after their two CH-53E Super Stallion helicopters impacted the water off the coast of O`ahu’s Waimea Bay along the North Shore on the evening of January 14, Gov. David Ige has ordered the flags of the United States and State of Hawai`i be flown at half-staff. For five days, flags will be flown at half-staff at all state offices and agencies, as well as the Hawai`i National Guard, from sunrise today to sunset on Tuesday, Jan. 26th.

“These 12 brave U.S. Marines paid the ultimate price in protecting our freedom of democracy,” Ige said. “We mourn their loss and honor their sacrifice and commitment to serving our great state and nation, as our national and state symbols fly at half-staff in their memory. —Never forgotten.”
Sen. Mazie Hirono said, “My thoughts, prayers and aloha are with the families of the twelve U.S. Marines lost in last week’s tragedy. Each Marine served our country bravely and with distinction. Our military `ohana is a vital part of our island community, closely involved with virtually every aspect of our lifestyle and culture. I join the people of Hawai`i in mourning their loss.”
Sen. Brian Schatz said, “This is a tragic loss of 12 Marines from all over our great country and whose lives were filled with promise. In service to their country, they called Hawai`i home, and so the loss we feel today is like the loss of family. Their loss is also a reminder of the dangers faced by American armed service men and women throughout the world, and in honoring these 12 Marines, we honor all.”
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Support Lorilee Lorenzo's bid for Pana`ewa Stampede
Rodeo Queen at gofundme.com/3jkc4wu4.

TO HELP IN HER EFFORT TO BECOME 2016 Pana`ewa Stampede Rodeo Queen, Lorilee Lorenzo has set up a gofundme account. The winner is the girl who sells the most rodeo tickets, $6 each, to help pay for the rodeo expenses.

“I live out in the country, so I am at a great disadvantage to the city girls who can sell in town every day. I hope this website helps,” Lorenzo said.
Lorenzo plans to donate the tickets she sells on the site to the senior citizens of Ka`u, so that they can attend the rodeo. Any leftover tickets will go to the Boys and Girls Club.
“I am very grateful for your support! I know that the people who receive these tickets will be very grateful too!” Lorenzo said.
The rodeo is on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 13 and 14. Donations are due by Monday, Feb. 1. See gofundme.com/3jkc4wu4.

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A fishing pond is an option at tomorrow's Keiki Fishing
Tournament at Punalu`u. Photo from Fred & Mary Ramsdell

`O KA`U KAKOU’S EIGHTH ANNUAL Keiki Fishing Tournament begins at 8 a.m. tomorrow at Punalu`u Beach Park. Fishing takes place from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., followed by free lunch and shaved ice. Every participant takes home a prize, catch or no catch.

For more information, call Wayne Kawachi at 937-4773 or Guy Enriques at 217-2253.

HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK offers free guided hikes this weekend. Centennial Hike Into the Volcano takes place at the park’s Kilauea summit area tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Park Ranger Dean Gallagher leads this moderately difficult 2.7-mile roundtrip hike to the floor of Kilauea Caldera. Meet at Kilauea Visitor Center. Park entrance fees apply.

Tomorrow at the Kahuku Unit from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., participants learn about the vital role of `ohi`a lehua in native Hawaiian forests, the many forms of the `ohi`a tree and the lehua flower on an easy, one-mile or less walk.

People and Lands of Kahuku is a moderate two-mile, three-hour guided hike Sunday beginning at 9:30 a.m. The trail loops through varied landscapes to explore the area's human history. Emerging native forest, pastures, lava fields and other sites hold clues about ways people have lived and worked on the vast Kahuku lands - from the earliest Hawaiians, through generations of ranching families, to the current staff and volunteers of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. Participants learn about the powerful natural forces at work here and how people have adapted to, shaped and restored this land.
See nps.gov/havo.

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

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and kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.pdf.

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U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard met with Boys & Girls Club of the Big Island members and representatives yesterday. Zavi Brees-Saunders, the club's chief professional officer, is third from left. See more below. Photos from Office of Rep. Gabbard

KA`U’S STATE SEN. JOSH GREEN has introduced legislation that would appropriate $500,000 for additional response capacity against dengue fever on Hawai`i Island to provide traps, vector control and support. SB2465 would also fund a management audit to evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of Department of Health’s response during the outbreak.

Sen. Josh Green, M.D.

“We deserve more answers than we have been given as a community,” Green said. “The reports released to date tell a very incomplete story.”
Green said he also will fight for full restoration of public health positions on Hawai`i Island that went away over the years.
“This work, in addition to getting DOH more concerned about rat-lungworm disease on Big Island, is a top priority,” Green said. “We need to have a success because future outbreaks of equally devastating infection diseases could potentially come to Hawai`i.
Track progress of this and other legislation at capitol.hawaii.gov.
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SINCE ITS PREVIOUS UPDATE on Wednesday, Hawai`i Department of Health yesterday identified three new cases of dengue fever. Currently, as many as three of the confirmed cases to date are potentially infectious to mosquitoes. All others are no longer infectious.
As of yesterday, a total of 977 reported potential cases have been excluded based on test results and/or not meeting case criteria.

Hawai`i Civil defense reminds residents that to be successful in controlling and ending this outbreak, everyone’s help is needed to Fight The Bite. Prevent mosquito bites by wearing light-colored clothing that minimizes exposed skin, use mosquito repellent, and avoid activities in areas of high mosquito concentration during the early morning and late afternoon periods when mosquito activity is greatest. Those who suspect they may have dengue should contact their health care providers and remain indoors to prevent the possibility of being bitten and infecting mosquitoes.
Help reduce potential mosquito breeding areas around homes and businesses by:

removing or eliminating standing water that provides sources for mosquito breeding such as buckets or puddles;
fixing leaky faucets and outdoor hoses that are dripping water;
treating bromeliads and other plants that hold water with a larvacide or chlorine bleach solution;
cleaning gutters to allow water to drain freely;
repairing screens and windows to help keep mosquitoes out; and
disposing of old tires at no charge at county transfer stations islandwide.

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Dengue fever was the topic of Rep. Tulsi Gabbard's meeting
with county officials yesterday.

U.S. REP. TULSI GABBARD met with Hawai`i Island residents, business owners, kupuna, county officials and the Boys & Girls Club of the Big Island yesterday.

Gabbard met with Mayor Billy Kenoi and Civil Defense Administrator Darryl Oliveira to discuss the dengue fever situation, what actions are currently being taken and what more must be done with short-term and long-term mosquito abatement efforts to stop the spread of the disease.

Boys & Girls Club members took Gabbard on a tour of their Hilo Clubhouse, which includes a brand new certified kitchen that will provide meals to hungry keiki members. The congresswoman also met with the club’s staff and board members to hear about programs offered, federal community development block grants and how they are serving the needs of children on Hawai`i Island at all of their clubs, including Pahala.

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OFFICE OF HAWAIIAN AFFAIRS addresses its concern over stewardship of Mauna Kea in bills submitted to the state Legislature, which reconvened this week. The bills seek to ensure transparency, consistency and accountability in the disposition of Mauna Kea lands leased to the University of Hawai`i.

“As one of our state’s most sacred sites, Mauna Kea should be managed in a way that respects its value and significance, and in a manner that instills public confidence,” OHA said. “Over the years, observatory subleases presented the university with numerous opportunities to charge sufficient rent to care for Mauna Kea. However, even the most recently approved sublease for the $1.3 billion Thirty Meter Telescope – the only sublease to charge more than a nominal $1 rent – would provide just a portion of the funds needed for management activities. Accordingly, the university uses an unknown amount of taxpayer funds, research dollars and grant funds to supplement operations and stewardship of Mauna Kea.
“While not taking a position for or against future subleases, this bill would require a ‘fair rate of return’ for any subleases, observatory and otherwise, taking into account the costs of management and mitigation actions, through an open public process established through administrative rules.”
Full content of companion bills SB2127 and HB1658 is available at capitol.hawaii.gov.
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Keli`i Akina

THE U.S. SUPREME COURT LAST WEEK denied a motion for civil contempt filed by Grassroot Institute of Hawai`i when Na`i Aupuni chose to seat all Native Hawaiian convention delegates in their disputed election. The case is currently before the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
“The Supreme Court has only denied a temporary remedy related to our case,” said Keli`i Akina, President of the Grassroot Institute and one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit. “We remain confident that when the full case is argued before the Ninth Circuit Court or Supreme Court, it will prevail on its merits. In the end, we expect the U.S. Constitution to be upheld for the benefit of Native Hawaiians and all people of Hawai`i.”
For background documents, see new.grassrootinstitute.org/2015/10/akina-v-hawaii-the-documents.
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COLLEGE STUDENTS JOINED U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz as he addressed the increasing cost of higher education yesterday.
“The cost of college is spiraling out of control, and it’s really one of the biggest issues that confront families today,” Schatz said. According to Schatz, the cost of college is growing faster than the cost of all consumer goods and twice as fast as health care costs. College debt has surpassed credit card debt and is second only to mortgage debt across the country. Over a third of borrowers are delinquent on their loans by 90 days or more, Schatz said.

Sen. Brian Schatz supports reducing the cost of higher education.
Image from Office of Sen. Schatz

“We have decided as a country that higher education is a national goal, but we’re leaving students in the red by the time that they graduate,” Schatz said. “We need to give students a path to graduate debt-free. This is a key middle-class issue, and it doesn’t just affect the students. It affects their parents, and it affects their grandparents. And it affects some of us on both ends – those of us who are planning for our children’s education and still paying off our own education.”
Schatz said the federal government spends more than $140 billion in grants and financial aid on higher education, “but we’re not doing enough to hold colleges and universities accountable” to making college more affordable.
“And so we’re here today as part of a campaign. … This is a movement, a long-term effort on behalf of students, to get us on the right path and hold colleges accountable for the cost of college. We need to reduce the student debt burden.”
Schatz said he wants the federal government to boost Pell Grants and provide two years of free community college as part of the path to debt-free higher education.
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Best of Show went to Wai`ohinu resident Marcus
Castaing's Cruisin' in Style.

TWO KA`U RESIDENTS RECEIVED awards at the 30th Hawai`i Wood Guild annual show. Marcus Castaing, a resident of Wai`ohinu who is the guild president, won Best of Show for his chair Cruisin’ in Style. Mats Fogelvik, a resident of Ocean View and vice president, won Honorary Mention in Joinery for Demi Lune table. He collaborated with Henry Pomfret, an ironworker, who made the legs.
The show continues through Friday, Feb. 26 at Isaacs Art Center in Waimea, open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

IN KA`U HIGH SPORTS, girls basketball teams finished regular-season play at Kamehameha on Thursday. Both Ka`u teams fell to Kamehameha by 20 points, with JV’s score 15-35 and Varsity’s 34-54.
Yesterday, Trojan boys played St. Joseph. Junior Varsity racked up an impressive 52 points and kept St. Joseph’s team to 17.

Ka`u Varsity was not able to withstand St. Joseph’s push and ended the game 43-64. The boys are at Wai`akea today for games beginning at 12 p.m.
Hawai`i Prep’s soccer team travels to Ka`u today for a match beginning at 3:30 p.m. instead of 3 p.m., as originally scheduled.
Ka`u’s wrestlers and swimmers are on the road today. Coach Greg Rush took the wrestling team to Hilo, and Coach Bruce Simmerman traveled to Kamehameha with his swim team.

HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK offers a free guided hike tomorrow. People and Lands of Kahuku is a moderate two-mile, three-hour hike beginning at 9:30 a.m. The trail loops through varied landscapes to explore the area's human history. Participants learn about the powerful natural forces at work here and how people have adapted to, shaped and restored this land.
See nps.gov/havo.

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

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_January2016.pdf.

Keiki and their families lined the Ka`u Coast at Punalu`u yesterday for `O Ka`u Kakou's eighth annual Keiki Fishing Tournament.
Photo by Peter Anderson

RESULTS OF YESTERDAY’S KEIKI Fishing Tournament are in. Ka`u keiki and their families lined the coast at Punalu`u Beach Park for `O Ka`u Kakou’s eighth annual tournament.

Miss Ka`u Coffee Maria Miranda presented award and prizes
to Keenan Toriano, Rylan Equsa and Daystan Resurreccion,
as well as other winners. Photo from Lee McIntosh

Loea Kaupu won for Most Fish Overall. Zachary Blano-Louis took second place, and Joe Buyuan placed third.
Largest Po`opa`a was caught by Chelsea Velez. Noa Cambe caught the second largest, and X’avier Alani caught the third largest.
In the Kupipi category, Keenana Toriano placed first, Rylan Equsa second and Daystan Resurreccion third.
Lexi Manila-Louis caught the largest Hinale`a, Jyzeiah Garcia hooked the second largest, and Rylan Peralta caught the third largest.
First place in the Largest Aholehole category went to Harlem Reyes Espejo. Jance Ke took second, and Gabriel Sesson Paaluhi-Young, third.

Ocean View resident Vernon Harvey posted his aerial footage
of the Keiki Fishing Tournament on YouTube.

After fishing, participants enjoyed free lunch and shaved ice.

Aerial footage taken by Vernon Harvey, of Ocean View, can be viewed at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Xx6CVCPu9Q.

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EAST HAWAI`I REGIONAL BOARD of Hawai`i Health Systems Corporation has appointed Marcella Stroh to its 12-member board. The Regional Board is responsible for governing Hilo Medical Center, Hale Ho`ola Hamakua, Ka`u Hospital and the region’s 10 general and specialty clinics.

Marcella Stroh and Wayne Kanemoto Photo from HHSC

“Our community is indeed fortunate to have the services of Marcella, a talented and experienced leader,” said Kurt Corbin, East Hawai`i Regional Board Chair. “She joins a Board comprised of dedicated physicians, business executives, educators and professionals who are committed to the ideals of providing exceptional health care regardless of ability to pay.”
“These are very exciting and important times in the healthcare industry in our community, therefore, it is an honor and privilege for me to be nominated to the East Hawai`i Regional Board,” Stroh said. “I look forward to sharing my expertise and long history of collaboration in the business/financial world for the benefit of our community’s healthcare that is very much needed in these crucial times.”

Waiting for a nibble. Photo by Peter Anderson

Stroh is the Senior Vice President and Commercial Banking Senior Manager for Hawai`i Island at Central Pacific Bank. She is actively involved in the American Heart Association, the Hawai`i County Economic Opportunity Council, the County of Hawai`i’s Salary Commission, the Hilo Medical Center Foundation, the Hawai`i Island Chamber of Commerce and the Japanese Community Association. She earned her Associate’s Degree in Accounting and Secretarial Science from Hawai`i Community College. She also attended ABA School of Bank Management and Marketing in Boulder, Colorado and AIB School of Executive Management in Madison, Wisconsin. She was born and raised on Hawai`i Island where she raised her two daughters, Kimberly and Kasey. She enjoys spending time with her grandsons, Austin and Asher, and doing outdoor activities.

Chelsea Velez, Noa Cambe and X'avier Alani won in the
Largest Po`opa`a category. Photo from Lee McIntosh

After a three-year term on the East Hawai`i Regional Board, Wayne Kanemoto has been appointed by Gov. David Ige to HHSC’s Corporate Board to represent the interests of the East Hawai`i Region. He is currently with Kanalani Enterprise, LLC. Previously, Kanemoto served for over 30 years in the United States Army and Army Reserve. His 33-year career in education began as a teacher in Biology Sciences on O`ahu and concluded as principal on Hawai`i Island for 18 years at Laupahoehoe High and Elementary School and the Hilo Community School for Adults. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree from Iowa State University in Zoology, a Master’s Degree in Education from the University of Hawai`i in Curriculum, Administration and was a Colonel, U.S. Army in Infantry & Civil Affairs. He has been a member of Hawai`i County Workforce Investment Board, Hawai`i Family Literacy Consortium, Hawai`i Community School Consortium, Hawai`i Government Employees Association (Unit 6) and Summer Youth Academy.
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Largest Aholehole category winners were Harlem Reyes Espejo,
Jance Ke and Gabriel Sesson Paaluhi-Young.
Photo from Lee McIntosh

A BILL TO FUND RESEARCH and mitigation efforts relating to rapid `ohi`a death passed its first reading in the state House of Representatives last week. According to HB 1597, “the `ohi`a makes up about fifty percent of the state's native forest and is a keystone species in native watershed areas.”

Hawai`i Department of Agriculture will submit a report detailing the nature of rapid `ohi`a death, including its cause, vectors, transmission and prospects for preventing the disease; status of developing and implementing plans and strategies to eliminate, control or prevent the disease in the state; and necessary funds and appropriate legislation to eliminate, control or prevent it in the state.

A success story at yesterday's Keiki Fishing Tournament.
Photo by Peter Anderson

“We’re continuing to do new things, like fungicide testing, U.S. DOA researcher Lisa Keith told Colin M. Stewart, of Hawai`i Tribune Herald. “We’ve got six new potential chemicals we’re looking at, and we understand more about the genetics and biology now. But we’re just scratching the surface. (The appropriation) will allow us to do real detailed studies. I think we’ll make more progress in a lot of areas, producing more knowledge and information to lead to better management and control.”
University of Hawai`i Extension Agent Forester J.B. Friday told Stewart, “Our task now is to keep the momentum going. … We have funds and are in the process of hiring scientists to look at the disease itself, the molecular biology of the disease, insects that may carry the disease, and technicians and outreach staff. Much of the funding we have is only for the year 2016, though, so we really appreciate the legislators introducing a bill to fund ongoing efforts to understand and manage this disease that affects our forests and all of us.”

Loea Kaupu, Zachary Blanco-Louis and Joe Buyuan placed
first, second and third in Most Overall Fish.
Photo from Lee McIntosh

See hawaiitribune-herald.com.
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THIRTY METER TELESCOPE OFFICIALS are waiting for the state to tell them how to proceed with plans for the $1.4 billion project planned for the summit of Mauna Kea, Lorin Eleni Gill reported in Pacific Business News. In December, the Hawai`i Supreme Court invalidated TMT’s conservation use permit, saying the state Board of Land & Natural Resources did not hold a contested case hearing prior to its authorization.
“We spent eight years now getting the permit, and on Dec. 2 it was invalidated,” TMT International Observatory Executive Director Ed Stone told Gill. “We went through the process, did everything we were asked to do, and it turned out that that was evidently not the right process, so now we’re waiting on what the process needs to be.”

Lexi Manila-Louis, Jyzeiah Garcia and Rylan Peralta caught
the three largest hinale`a. Photo from Lee McIntosh

Stone said the Land Board has to tell them what they need to do. “It’s their process that had a problem for the court, so the court will instruct them, and they’ll decide what they need to do this time that they didn’t last time. That’s what we need to know before we know we have a way forward,” Stone said.
“I think all of the partners are concerned because we don’t have a plan right now and we don’t know what it will take to do this job. Only if we have a plan we’ll feel we’re on the right track.”
See bizjournals.com/pacific.
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SCHOOLS, PUBLIC AGENCIES, AND PRIVATE nonprofit organizations may apply to be U.S. Department of Agriculture Summer Food Service Program sponsors.

`O Ka`u Kakou volunteers organized the eighth annual Keiki
Fishing Tournament at Punalu`u. Photo by Peter Anderson

Children in low-income communities are eligible to receive free or reduced-price meals during the school year through the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs. However, the programs end when school lets out for the summer. The SFSP helps fill the hunger gap.
During the summer months, SFSP provides nutritious meals that help children to learn, play, and grow.
Sponsoring organizations receive reimbursements for serving healthy meals and snacks at approved sites to children and teenagers (18 years and younger). Sponsors are encouraged to provide educational or recreational activities.
For more information about SFSP, contact Jennifer Dang, of Hawai`i Child Nutrition Programs, at 587-3600.
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Mauna Loa's 1881 eruption is visible in this drawing
by Joseph Nawahi. Image from USGS/HVO

THE LAVA FLOW THAT CAME TO HILO is the topic at After Dark in the Park Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.
Within the last 160 years, five eruptions sent lava flows to within 10 miles of Hilo Bay. The 1880-1881 Mauna Loa eruption came the closest, with a flow that posed an immediate threat to Hilo and its bay. During the eruption, Princess Regent Lili`uokalani and Princess Ruth Ke`elikolani led efforts to save Hilo town. As residents offered both Christian prayers and appeals to Pele, preparations were also made to dig ditches, construct rock barriers and blast dynamite in attempts to divert advancing lava streams. After more than nine months, the lava flow stopped, but less than a mile from the bayfront.
USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientist Jim Kauahikaua and HVO volunteer Ben Gaddis present the story of this Mauna Loa eruption using maps, art and photographs of the lava flow that came to Hilo.

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

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_January2016.pdf.

As part of Volcano Awareness Month in Ka`u, researchers discuss How Communities Protect Themselves from Vog Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center. See more below. Photos from USGS/HVO

KA`U RESIDENTS CAN SUBMIT COMMENTS on a Draft Environmental Assessment for a proposed forest stewardship and management plan. The Black Rhinoceros Foundation seeks to turn a 190-acre parcel at the southeast corner of Kama`oa and South Point Roads into a native forest of a variety of species. According to the document, the nonprofit’s goal is to establish a thriving mixed species forest there, maintaining a sustainable yield of valuable forest products, while preserving cultural sites as well as the health and function of Pu`u`eo Ahupua`a and the South Point Watershed. Twenty percent of total plantings would be introduced hardwood timber trees that would “provide wildlife habitat and continued productivity for the project.” Trees would be selectively harvested and regenerated to support the foundations goals and to continue management of the property as a working forest.

A 190-acre parcel in Ka`u could become a native
forest. Map from Draft EA

The land is currently covered in a mixture of introduced noxious and invasive weeds that would be controlled and replaced with more desirable and productive vegetation throughout the project. The primary species to be established are Hawaiian sandalwood, iliahi and koaia (Acacia koaia) in addition to a variety of other native, Polynesian and non-native, non-invasive species. The site would also serve as a seed bank for these valuable Hawaiian endemics, as well as serve as a demonstration site for a viable and productive investment strategy for formerly forested agricultural lands.

Two sites that contain burials were found during the archaeological inventory survey of the parcel. One is a small lava tube in the west-central portion of the parcel that contains a Historic Period burial. Another is a lava tube lin the northwestern portion of the parcel that contains two sets of presumably Precontact Period human skeletal remains along with some habitation debris. Four additional archaeological sites were recorded on the parcel during the inventory survey: historic boundary walls enclosing the entire study parcel, two collapsed lava tube depressions with modified edges and the remains of a large platform interpreted as a heiau. With the exception of the boundary walls, all of these sites are slated for preservation.
The Black Rhinoceros Foundation, based in New Mexico, seeks funds by a cost-share grant through Hawai`i’s Forest Stewardship Program.
The public can offer comments through Feb. 22. Send comments to DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife, 1151 Punchbowl Street, Room 325, Honolulu, HI 96813. The draft EA is available at http://oeqc.doh.hawaii.gov/default.aspx. Click on EA_and_EIS_Online_Library, Hawai`i and 2010s.
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Sen. Josh Green listed his legislative priorities.
Photo from Sen. Green

AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 2016 Hawai`i Legislature, Ka`u’s Sen. Josh Green shared his top five legislative priorities.

“The Well Being of the People Comes First. Everyone gets a livable wage of at least $16/hour. We end the homeless crisis by funding Housing First and strategically building homeless shelters. We pass a tax on luxury developments to pay for rental housing initiatives and to build affordable homes.
“Healthcare for All. We establish a true healthcare safety net in Hawai`i, greatly improve access to mental healthcare and drug and alcohol treatment, and strengthen the state hospital system.
“Protect our Environment. We ensure pristine air quality in Hawai`i, address the pesticide and GMO concerns many in Hawai`i share through total transparency, guarantee clean water, and fight for 100 percent renewable energy for Hawai`i.
“Support Public Education. We improve teacher wages to compete with mainland pay, dramatically decrease class sizes, and make community college free for all who choose it.
“Real Economic Growth. We encourage job creation in emerging fields such as clean energy, healthcare and technology to complement our critical tourism and agriculture base.
“I will also be spearheading initiatives to lower the legal limit for a DUI from .08 to .06 and to ensure that helmets will be required for all moped riders under the age of 25.”
Green’s asked constituents to share their thoughts at facebook.com/senatorjoshgreen, sengreen@capitol.gov or 808-586-9385.
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

HAWAIIAN VOLCANO OBSERVATORY’S stop on its geologic tour of the Hawaiian Islands in the current issue of Volcano Watch is Maui, as well as the islands of Lanaʻi, Molokaʻi, and Kahoʻolawe, all of which form Maui County.
“To imagine the landscape of Maui County as it would have appeared about one million years ago, think of the Island of Hawaiʻi today, with several large, coalesced volcanoes that form a single large island,” the article states. “Such was the heyday of ‘Maui Nui,’ when at least seven volcanoes built an island that was about 50 percent bigger than the Island of Hawaiʻi is today.

“The oldest of Maui Nui’s volcanoes, Penguin Bank, is now submerged off the west coast of Molokaʻi. From there, successively younger volcanoes are West Molokaʻi and East Molokaʻi. When these three volcanoes began to grow on the seafloor is poorly known, but they probably range from slightly over two million years old (Penguin Bank) to slightly less than two million years old (East Molokaʻi).
“The sequence of volcanoes then progressed with Lanaʻi, West Maui, Kahoʻolawe, and finally, Haleakalā on East Maui. The formation of these four volcanoes probably occurred between 1.5 and two million years ago.

“Why so many volcanoes in such a small area? Studies of the entire chain of Hawaiian volcanoes and seamounts suggest that magma supply to the surface began increasing a few million years ago. More magma means more eruptions, which might explain why the Hawaiian hot spot went from forming individual island volcanoes (Niʻihau and Kauaʻi), to an island with two volcanoes (Oʻahu), to islands made up of several volcanoes (Maui Nui and the Island of Hawaiʻi).

The islands of Maui County were once a land mass 50 percent
larger than Hawai`i Island. Map from USGS/HVO

“Despite their close proximity, the volcanoes of Maui Nui have quite different eruptive histories. For example, Lanaʻi was short-lived, going extinct after its vigorous shield stage, with no eruptions since about 1.35 million years ago. West Molokaʻi and Kahoʻolawe were also short-lived, but they experienced minor postshield volcanism before going extinct about one million years ago. East Molokaʻi and West Maui persisted longer and were the sites of rejuvenated eruptions just 300,000 years ago (the most recent such eruption on Molokaʻi formed Kalaupapa Peninsula).
“Haleakalā, the longest-lived of the Maui Nui volcanoes, is currently waning from a long postshield sequence of volcanism. Eruptions there occur about as frequently as they do on Hualālai volcano on the Island of Hawaiʻi. The most recent eruption on Haleakalā took place about 400 years ago, well within the time that Polynesians settled on the Hawaiian Islands. Future eruptions at Haleakalā are likely, which is why the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory maintains a monitoring network there.
“Because all of the Maui Nui volcanoes are beyond their vigorous shield-building stages, erosion has dominated for the past one million years or so. Water and landslides have helped create dramatic valleys, including the summit ‘crater’ of Haleakalā.
“The most spectacular of the Maui Nui landslides occurred from East Molokaʻi, where the massive Wailau slide sliced off the volcano’s summit, creating spectacular sea cliffs on the island’s north side. This landslide deposited rocky debris over 160 kilometers (100 miles) across the ocean floor.
“The islands of Maui Nui have also subsided over time – a normal consequence of the volcanoes’ weight on the sea floor in addition to their motion away from the buoyant hot spot. It was this subsidence, plus rising sea levels, that flooded the land between Maui Nui’s volcanoes, creating the separate islands we see today, probably within the last few hundred thousand years. With continued subsidence at present rates, Haleakalā (East Maui) itself could become isolated from West Maui by a seaway within another 10,000 to 20,000 years.”
See hvo.wr.usgs.gov.
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FAFSA FILING WORKSHOP is tomorrow from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at St. Jude’s Episcopal Church in Ocean View. Church members help with filing Free Applications for Federal Student Aid that are required for access to federal and state financial aid for college.
Applicants should bring with them student and parent Social Security numbers, email addresses and adjusted gross incomes for 2014 and 2015.
See stjudeshawaii.org or email cindycutts00@yahoo.com for more information.

THE LAVA FLOW THAT CAME TO HILO is the topic at After Dark in the Park tomorrow at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientist Jim Kauahikaua and HVO volunteer Ben Gaddis present the story of the 1880 - 81 Mauna Loa eruption using maps, art and photographs.

KUMU HULA PELE KAIO presents Hei: Traditional Hawaiian String Figures Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Kilauea Visitor Center’s lanai in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Free; park entrance fees apply.

HOW COMMUNITIES PROTECT themselves from vog is the topic of a Volcano Awareness Month program Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center. Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientist Tamar Elias provides an update on Kilauea’s gas emissions, and Dr. Claire Horwell shares results of her 2015 study.

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_January2016.pdf.

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

The late Sen. Gil Kahele emceed at Gov. Neil Abercrombie's 2010 inauguration event at Pahala Plantation House.
Photo by Julia Neal

SEN. GIL KAHELE, a son of Miloli`i and Ka`u’s state senator in 2011 and 2012, has died. He had been hospitalized and missed last week’s opening of the 2016 state Legislature. During a hearing this morning, Senate President Ron Kouchi informed legislators, who paused for a moment of silence.

Sen. Gil Kahele speaking with Ka`u residents about the future
of Pahala Public & School Library. Photo by Julia Neal

Kahele was born in Miloli`i, where his father and grandfather were fishermen. He enjoyed taking people on hikes along the coastal trail to his family’s house site and canoe landing. He was a driving force in the establishment of Pa`a Pono Miloli`i, a nonprofit dedicated to keeping the village’s fishing practices and cultural traditions alive for future generations.
Kahele was instrumental in preservation of wildlands and the South Kona Coast. One of his major legislative achievements in his first year was establishment of the South Kona Wilderness Area, an area roughly 6,000 acres from Honomalino to Kalanamauna dedicated to nature and conservation for perpetuity.
A longtime operative in the Democratic Party, Kahele helped to organize Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s inaugural events around the islands to be in rural areas. On the Big Island, they were held at Hawaiian Homes Community Hall in Kamuela and at Pahala Plantation House. They were also held on Lana`i and Moloka`i.
Kahele was a staunch supporter of Pahala Public & School Library when it was threatened with closure. He also worked for clean water and housing for veterans and others.

Following his graduation from Hilo High School in 1960, Kahele served in the U.S. Marine Corp. and graduated from Laney College in Oakland, California. He retired from Hawai`i State Department of Defense after 33 years as the Director of Public Works at Pohakuloa Training Area.

Sen. Kahele loved walking the villages
of the South Kona Coast.
Photo by Julia Neal

On Jan. 11, 2011, Gov. Abercrombie appointed Kahele as senator for the Second District, which encompassed Ka`u, Puna and Hilo. In his first race for public office, he was elected in 2012 to represent Hilo, now known as the First Senatorial District as a result of reapportionment.
During the current state Legislature, Kahele was to serve as Chair of the Senate Tourism and International Affairs Committee and Vice Chair of Higher Education and the Arts Committee. He was also to serve on Judiciary and Labor & Education Committees.

“It is with much sadness that I learned of Sen. Kahele’s passing,” Gov. David Ige said. “He was a dedicated public servant who spent the last few years working for the good of his beloved community at the Hawai`i State Legislature. He was a respected and influential leader both in the Legislature and in his hometown community of Hilo. My deepest condolences to his `ohana, friends and supporters during this difficult time.”

“I am deeply saddened to learn today of the passing of my dear friend, Sen. Gilbert Kahele,” Lt. Gov. Shan Tsutsui said. “Gil was a warm and caring man with the highest principles and values, who had the unique ability to always make you feel welcomed and at ease. I was honored to have served as his colleague in the Senate and to have continued our friendship thereafter. I will miss his kindness, positive outlook, and ability to make me laugh.
“I send my thoughts and prayers to Gil’s `ohana and friends. He was a committed and loving husband, father and grandfather, who spoke often of his loved ones with great joy and pride. The people of Hawai`i were privileged that a man of his experience and dedication devoted his life to public service. His smile and infectious laugh will continue to live on in our hearts and minds forever.”
Ka`u’s state Sen. Russell Ruderman said, “I am deeply saddened by the passing of an honored colleague and fellow Big Island Sen. Gilbert Kahele. My thoughts and condolences go out to his family and loved ones.”
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

KA`U’S STATE SEN. JOSH GREEN’S bill aiming to lower the legal limit for blood alcohol content while driving from .08 to .06 has been scheduled for a hearing on Thursday at 2:45 p.m. with the Committee on Transportation and Energy. “We feel strongly that this bill can help save people's lives and make Hawai`i a safer place to live,” Green said.

“By setting a standard like this at .06, people will get it more clearly in their minds that that’s what Hawai`i believes,” Green told Lei Kaholokula, of KITV News. “Let people realize that Hawai`i puts teenagers and the lives of our loved ones and families first over worrying about the court backlog” that the measure may create.

Ka`u residents can offer testimony on SB2053 at capitol.hawaii.gov. To be heard Thursday, testimony must be submitted by tomorrow at 2:45 p.m.
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Gov. David Ige gave his State of the Union address yesterday.
Photo from Office of the Governor

GOV. DAVID IGE GAVE his second State of the State address before the Legislature yesterday.

Ige talked about doing things the right way to make things happen. “It begins with being truthful,” Ige said. “We, in government, are obligated to be truthful, even when the truth is not easy or popular. When we live without truth, our actions fail to pass the test of time. Moreover, we tend to repeat our mistakes because we have not learned from them.”
Ige gave the SuperFerry and Thirty Meter Telescope as examples where the state failed to follow the law. Regarding the SuperFerry, Ige said “the state should have followed the law and done the right thing in the first place.” In its recent ruling (regarding TMT), the state Supreme Court … said “the state didn’t do the right things in the approval process. It told us we needed to do a better job of listening to people and giving them a real opportunity to be heard,” Ige said.
“The unrelenting search for truth, knowledge and understanding is an essential part of our human makeup. It helps us become who we are.
“So does our obligation to be true to our past and cultural heritage.

U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz attended Gov. Ige's
State of the Union address.
Photo from Sen. Schatz

“That’s why it’s so unfortunate that our past and our future have been pitted against each other on the slopes of Mauna Kea. As governor, I am committed to realigning our values and our actions. They are what define us as a community and allow us to move forward – proud of our past and facing our future with strength and confidence.”

Ige reaffirmed his commitment to TMT and pledged that “this time, we will listen carefully to all, reflect seriously on what we have heard and, whatever we do in the end, we will do it the right way.”
Ige said he wants his administration to govern with compassion. He said he wants to do as much as possible to help homeless families throughout the state. “That’s why we increased funding for the Housing First effort and organized a Landlord Summit to encourage acceptance of more low-income and homeless tenants from building owners,” he said.
Ige said lack of affordable housing is the major reason why homelessness has become so widespread. He said he wants to work with the private sector to develop a comprehensive approach to reduce regulatory barriers, strengthen financial tools, streamline procedures and re-orient policies toward increasing housing production.
“Our highest single obligation is to take care of our children,” Ige said. He said he wants to air-condition classrooms throughout the state.
He said he is working with the Department of Energy, other state departments, utilities and clean energy companies to cool 1,000 public school classrooms by the end of this year and thousands more each year through the end of 2018. “We are going to get this job done,” he said.
In agriculture, Ige urged the Legislature to move more aggressively to take on threats to Hawai`i’s homegrown resources with the creation of the Hawai`i Invasive Species Authority.
“The transcendent call from our island state to the surrounding world is that when we demean others we betray ourselves. There is a finer, better way. Pledge to it; make it real every day and lead the way,” Ige concluded.

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KA`U HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS and college students can receive help with filing Free Applications for Federal Student Aid that are required for access to federal and state financial aid for college. The workshop takes place today from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at St. Jude’s Episcopal Church in Ocean View.
See stjudeshawaii.org or email cindycutts00@yahoo.com for more information.

Kumu Hula Pele Kaio

USGS HAWAIIAN VOLCANO OBSERVATORY scientist Jim Kauahikaua and HVO volunteer Ben Gaddis present the story of the 1880 - 81 Mauna Loa eruption using maps, art and photographs today at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.

KUMU HULA PELE KAIO presents Hei: Traditional Hawaiian String Figures tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Kilauea Visitor Center’s lanai in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Free; park entrance fees apply.

HOW COMMUNITIES PROTECT themselves from vog is the topic of a Volcano Awareness Month program tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center.

VOLCANO RESIDENT RUSSELL ATKINSON discusses Burning Man Thursday at 7 p.m. at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village.
Call 967-8222 for more information.

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

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_January2016.pdf.

Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whales National Marine Sanctuary's plans to expand in size and scope will not go forward, NOAA announced. Map from NOAA

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS HUMPBACK WHALE National Marine Sanctuary will not expand. National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries last March proposed adding 235 miles of new state and federal waters including other marine species to its preservation work.
Hawai`i Department of Land and Natural Resources Chair Suzanne Case sent a letter to John Armor, acting director of NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries detailing the state’s concerns.

Suzanne Case Photo by John DeMello

“As the trustee of Hawai`i’s natural resources, cultural resources and submerged lands, the state of Hawai`i supports an ecosystem-based management approach, but cannot endorse federal jurisdiction or enforcement of Hawaiian waters at this scale,” Case said.
“The Hawai`i Dept. of Land and Natural Resources consistently works to implement an integrated, ecosystem-based approach to management,” Case said. “We believe strongly that this can only be achieved through partnerships in which each entity builds upon and leverages its unique strengths. The Sanctuary has done this extraordinarily well with humpback whales for over 20 years, and we had hoped that this expertise could be extended to other marine mammals.”

Case said future endeavors to protect Hawai`i’s marine natural and cultural resources should be concentrated on improvement and expansion of existing state management capabilities, “rather than increased federal regulation within state waters. New regulations should not be offered as a surrogate when the real issue is management capacity. New regulations that merely duplicate existing regulations in state-controlled waters would unduly increase regulatory burdens on Hawai`i’s community, including governmental and nongovernmental entities and users, without providing any discernible advantages.”
“Any management action must be supported by the state,” Armor said in a statement as reported by Nathan Eagle, of Civil Beat. “We look forward to continuing our partnership and working together with the state of Hawai`i and local communities.”
Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary was established by Congress in 1992. It is co-managed by NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries and the state of Hawai`i Department of Land and Natural Resources.
The first of three humpback whale counts through March takes place Saturday from 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Registration at hawaiihumpbackwhale.noaa.gov.

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

BRENDA IOKEPA MOSES has been designated as a representative to participate in the Assembly of States and Territories at the 2016 National Association of Conservation Districts’ Annual Meeting to be held at the Grand Sierra Resort & Casino in Reno, Nevada. Iokepa Moses is chair of the Ka`u Soil & Water Conservation District and president of Hawai`i’s statewide Association of Conservation Districts.

The convention runs from Jan. 30 to Feb. 3.

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Rep. Tulsi Gabbard joined Sen. Gil Kahele
at the King Kamehameha in the U.S.
Capitol. Photo from Rep. Gabbard

HAWAI`I’S U.S. CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION shared their thoughts about state Sen. Gil Kahele following his death yesterday. After a series of heart attacks, Kahele died at the age of 73.

“Gil Kahele was one of the kindest, most decent, most caring public servants that I have ever known,” Sen. Brian Schatz said. “His heart for the people of his community made him an effective leader, community organizer and senator. He was so kind to me and to everyone whom he touched. This is a sad day, and he will be missed.”

Sen. Mazie Hirono said, “Gil Kahele served Hawai`i and our country with distinction for more than 50 years, first in the U.S. Marine Corps, then as a community advocate and in elected office. I will remember Gil for his kindness and tireless work on behalf of the people of Hawai`i Island and our state. Gil’s steadfast advocacy on behalf of individuals and families ensured that the resources were available to address community needs for Tropical Storm Iselle and the Puna lava flow. My thoughts and prayers are with Gil’s wife Linda and the entire Kahele `ohana.”
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard said Kahele “has always been known as a strong advocate for the people of Hawai`i Island, serving as their voice at the Hawai`i State Capitol, especially through times of challenge and hardship. I saw him recently in Washington, DC, where as always, he was ready with a smile, a hug, warm aloha and a picture to post on his Facebook page. My heart is with the Kahele `ohana, and all of Hawai`i Island. Gil, you are missed.”
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

The Pauahi Foundation is offering scholarships for Science
Camps of America returning to Pahala this summer.
Image from Science Camps of America

THE PAUAHI FOUNDATION IS OFFERING scholarships for Science Camps of America, which will be based at Pahala Plantation Cottages again this summer. Through funds from the Thirty Meter Telescope International Observatory, the Pauahi Foundation is offering this opportunity to 12 Hawai`i Island resident students; six for the Land & Sea session and six for the Air & Space session. Tuition cost for each 10-day experience is $2,395.

Science Camps of America’s sessions of fun and science are filled with field trips, field exercises, lab exercises and hands-on STEM experience.
Students must be residents of Hawai`i Island, 13 to 17 years of age and in good physical condition with ability to hike five miles.
The Pauahi Foundation’s policy is to give preference to applicants of Hawaiian ancestry to the extent permitted by law. The foundation utilizes the services of Kamehameha Schools Ho`oulu Hawaiian Data Center to verify Hawaiian ancestry of those applicants who wish to be considered under the Foundation’s preference policy. All questions regarding Hawaiian ancestry registration and verification should be directed to the Data Center. Call 800-842-4682, see www.ksbe.edu/datacenter, or email registry@ksbe.edu. This is a separate process and should not be confused with the scholarship application process.
See pauahi.org, or mail scholarships@pauahi.org for scholarship information.
See sciencecampsamerica.com for more about the sessions.
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Hawai`i County has extended its free tire collection.
Image from Hawai`i County

HAWAI`I COUNTY’S TIRE COLLECTION program has been extended through February. The program helps the community reduce mosquito breeding sites by recycling old tires.

Households may bring in passenger vehicle, motorcycle or ATV tires with no rims to any of the Solid Waste Division’s 22 Recycling & Transfer Stations during normal operating hours. Customers must locate Solid Waste Facility Attendants on duty (wearing fluorescent safety vests) and advise them that they have acceptable tires for recycling. Attendants will instruct residents where to properly place the tires. Tires dropped off before or after normal operating hours will be considered illegal dumping.
There is a 10 (acceptable) tire limit per day per vehicle so that we can fairly serve the public and ensure that one customer doesn't overload the site and unnecessarily prevent other customers from participating in the temporary collection.
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FOLLOWING A 0-9 LOSS TO HPA AT HOME Saturday, Ka`u High's soccer team hosts Kea`au today at 2 p.m.

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

TUTU AND ME IS SELLING Punalu`u Cinnamon bread as a fundraiser for Partners in Development Foundation. Tickets are available now through Feb. 22 or until they run out.
The loaves, which are available only through fundraisers, are $7 each and it will be delivered fresh on Friday, March 4, available for pick up either at Pahala Community Center from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. or in front of Na`alehu Ace Hardware from 1 p.m. to 3 pm.
Call 929-8571 to order.
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

HOW COMMUNITIES PROTECT themselves from vog is the topic of a Volcano Awareness Month program today at 6:30 p.m. at Ocean View Community Center.

Burning Man is the topic at Thursday Nights at the Center.
Image from Volcano Art Center

VOLCANO RESIDENT RUSSELL ATKINSON discusses Burning Man tomorrow at 7 p.m. at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village.

Every year during the week before Labor Day, Burning Man takes place in northern Nevada in the Black Rock Desert. Burning Man takes the form of a temporary city where 70,000 people comprise an experimental community with an economy based on a combination of self-reliance and generosity rather than cash or barter.
Atkinson’s presentation includes a brief history of Burning Man and his volunteer project there and finishes with a picture tour of some artwork from Burning Man 2015.
The event is free; a $5 donation is greatly appreciated.
Call 967-8222 for more information.

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

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_January2016.

The first Ocean Sanctuary Count of 2016 takes place Saturday. See more below.
Photo from Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary

HAWAI`I COUNTY PLANNING DIRECTOR Duane Kanuha is reviewing the Ka`u Community Development Plan. Project Manager Ron Whitmore said he expects the process to be complete in March.

Hawai`i County Planning Director
Duane Kanuha

Near the end of last year, the Steering Committee made some final revisions to the CDP based on community feedback. It then recommended the CDP for adoption by the county. The project website at kaucdp.info includes minutes and meeting materials from that final set of Steering Committee meetings as well as the revised CDP being considered for adoption.
Following Planning Department review, the Windward Planning Commission will hold public hearings and make recommendations. Then, County Council will hold more public hearings and act on the CDP.
After the mayor signs the document, an Action Committee will be appointed to guide CDP implementation.
Supporting documents are also available on the website. Strategy Rationale explains each of the CDP strategies. Land Use Policy Guide is re-organized as a quick-reference guide for land-use planners. Guidance to Agencies is a quick-reference guide to CDP strategies that require cooperation with county, state and federal agencies as well as private organizations. Community-Based, Collaborative Action Guide provides detailed implementation steps for CDP strategies that require community-led initiative.

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Hawai`i astronaut Ellison Onizuka died 30 years ago today.

TODAY IS THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY of the Challenger disaster, which took the life of Hawai`i Island astronaut Ellison Onizuka. His wife is Lorna Leiko Yoshida, originally from Na`alehu, where her father Susumu worked for Hutchinson Sugar Co. Her mother Anna grew up in Na`alehu and later moved to Houston where she lives with Lorna, who has worked for NASA and as a liaison with Japan’s space agency. El and Lorna had two daughters, Janelle Onizuka-Gillilan and Darien Lei Shizue Onizuka-Morgan.
Onizuka graduated from Konawaena High School in 1964. He received a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering in June 1969, and a master's degree in that field in December of the same year, from the University of Colorado at Boulder. He participated in Air Force ROTC during his time there.
This morning, the state Legislature held a session in Capitol Auditorium honoring Ellison Onizuka, and Gov. David Ige proclaimed Ellison Onizuka Day in Hawai`i.

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

DAILY FANTASY SPORTS CONTESTS, such as those run by FanDuel and DraftKings, constitute illegal gambling under existing state laws, Hawai`i Attorney General Doug Chin said in a formal advisory opinion issued yesterday.

“Gambling generally occurs under Hawai`i law when a person stakes or risks something of value upon a game of chance or upon any future contingent event not under the person’s control,” Chin said. “The technology may have changed, but the vice has not.”

Hawai`i Attorney General Doug Chin

Nearly sixty million Americans participate in fantasy sports, with the vast majority playing in a league with friends or colleagues that might be considered “social gambling,” which is legal in Hawai`i. In contrast, daily fantasy sports contests typically involve competitions between hundreds or thousands of people, are played daily, involve wagers of up to $1,000 and allow each individual multiple entries leading to top prizes of up to $1 million.

“Hawai`i is generally recognized to have some of the strictest anti-gambling laws in the country,” Chin said.
By statute, the Attorney General provides opinions upon questions of law submitted by the governor, the state Legislature or its members, or a state agency head. The Department of the Attorney General is weighing next steps, including civil or criminal enforcement, consistent with its opinion.

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

SEN. MAZIE HIRONO WELCOMED Clare Connors, nominee for the U.S. District Court Judgeship for the District of Hawai`i, to the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday. Hirono affirmed Connors’ vast experience and called for the Committee to approve her confirmation quickly.

“Clare is a first-rate intellect and is described by her peers as an attorney of great integrity who works extremely hard and treats everyone with respect,” Hirono said. “It is because of Clare’s respected standing that the Hawai`i Judicial Selection Commission recommended her out of a record number of interested applicants. I expect that this committee will agree as well. I look forward to seeing her nomination be confirmed.”

Connors was nominated in September 2015 by President Obama to fill the vacant U.S. District Court judge position created when Chief Judge Susan Oki Mollway retired from active service. The Senate Judiciary Committee hearing is the first step in the Senate’s confirmation process.

Clare Connors presents a lei to Sen. Mazie Hirono.
Photo from Sen. Hirono

Connors is a trial attorney who began her legal career in 2001 with the Tax Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. In 2002, she served as a clerk for the Honorable Judge David Ezra, in his capacity as a federal district court judge. She returned to Hawai`i to serve as an Assistant United States Attorney. She continues to practice law as an associate at Davis Levin Livingston in Hawai`i.
A graduate of Punahou School, Connors has a Bachelor’s of Arts degree from Yale College and a Juris Doctor degree from Harvard Law School. She has served on the faculty of the William S. Richardson School of Law as a Lecturer in Law for the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Clinic. In 2014, she was appointed to be a Lawyer Representative for the District of Hawai`i to the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference and previously served as a Lawyer Delegate to the Hawaii District Conference.

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U.S. SEN. BRIAN SCHATZ and 20 other senators are urging the Environmental Protection Agency to expand its regulation of methane emissions. As a part of the president’s Climate Action Plan, the EPA has begun to address industrial sources of methane, but not all sources of the gas are currently included in the final rule.

In a letter to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, the senators wrote, “Your agency has been clear that in order to achieve its methane goals, additional action will be necessary. This is backed by studies that have shown that almost 90 percent of projected emissions in 2018 will come from oil production and existing natural gas production. In order to achieve our international commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 26-28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025, we simply must address existing sources of methane emissions.”

Mike Tamayo and Kalei Namohala accept
winnings from OKK's June Domondon.

Methane’s effect on climate change is up to 34 times greater than that of CO2, Schatz said. To address these emissions and reduce the climate footprint of these industries, the president committed to cut methane emissions by 40-45 percent from 2012 levels by 2025 through both voluntary measures and agency rulemakings.

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IN KA`U HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS, Trojans teams hosted Kea`au yesterday. Boys basketball Junior Varsity lost 28-48, and Varsity lost 36-66.
Mike Tamayo earned $500 from `O Ka`u Kakou for Ka`u Athletics by making a Half-Court Shot. He received a $20 gift card for his efforts.
Trojan soccer player Kun Monkeya made two goals, and Trevor Taylor made one, but Kea`au brought the final score to 3-7.
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VOLCANO RESIDENT RUSSELL ATKINSON discusses Burning Man this evening at 7 p.m. at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village. Atkinson has been a "burner" since 1999.

Charlene Asato offers a workshop
Saturday. Photo from VAC

THE FIRST OF THREE HUMPBACK WHALE counts through March takes place Saturday from 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Hawai`i Island south shore sites include Ka`ena Point in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, Punalu`u and South Point.

Registration is required at hawaiihumpbackwhale.noaa.gov.

EXPLORING FLAG BOOKS is the topic of a workshop Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village. Charlene Asato presents the fun and captivating nature of this form of expression. The flagbook is based on an accordion book where papers are glued to sides of the accordion. Register at volcanoartcenter.org or 967-8222.

JAZZ IN THE FOREST 2016 SERIES begins Saturday at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village. Vocalist Jeannine Guillory’s background in jazz, reggae, pop and rhythm & blues lends a strong, versatile sound and energy. Tickets are $20 for VAC members and $30 for non-members for the 4:30 p.m. matinee; $25 for members and $35 for non-members for the 7:30 p.m. show. Call 967-8222, or see volcanoartcenter.org.

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

See kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.swf
and kaucalendar.com/Directory2105.pdf.

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_January2016.pdf.

Rapid `Ohi`a Death has come to Ka`u, spreading faster than expected. Map from Hawai`i DLNR

RAPID `OHI`A DEATH HAS INVADED Ka`u, Hawai`i Department of Land & Natural Resources confirmed today. The fungal infestation of `ohi`a trees is much greater than earlier thought, as shown by recent aerial surveys of 810,000 acres of Hawai`i Island forests. Crews from a collaboration of state, county and federal agencies took the survey from Jan. 11 through Jan. 15. Satellite imagery of `ohi`a forests in 2014 resulted in an estimate of 15,000 acres infected by this newly identified disease. The latest survey, pending ground verification, estimates the infection has now spread to some 34,000 acres of the Big Island’s `ohi`a forest.

Symptoms of Rapid `Ohi`a Death include rapid browning
of affected tree crowns. Photo from UH-CTAHR

“It’s sad but not unexpected that we have a confirmed case of Rapid `Ohi`a Death in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park,” Park Superintendent Cindy Orlando said. “We are very concerned about the impacts to our cherished `ohi`a that thrives throughout the park, and we will continue to implement the stringent measures developed by our interagency partners to prevent the spread of this devastating disease. We will also continue to sample trees throughout the park.”

Dr. Flint Hughes, with USDA Forest Service, said, “Unfortunately, Rapid `Ohi`a Death is spreading much quicker than we had hoped. The aerial surveyors noted `ohi`a trees with no leaves or brown leaves, likely impacted by the disease, as well as `ohi`a trees which have been dead for a longer time and those that have been affected by either drought or vog. It’s important that we differentiate the causes of tree deaths and continue to carefully and closely monitor the spread of Rapid `Ohi`a Death to aid in reducing its spread on Hawai`i Island and around the state.”
`Ohi`a forests cover approximately 865,000 acres of land across the state and are considered the primary species providing habitat for countless plants, animals and invertebrates. These forests protect watersheds that provide significant agriculture and drinking water across the state.
Research into treatments for the particular fungus that causes Rapid `Ohi`a Death continues at the USDA Agricultural Research Service lab in Hilo. Investigation into how it spreads is also being conducted with potential culprits being insects, underground via roots, on small wood or dust particles, on clothing and shoes, and possibly on animals. Ultimately, scientists hope that by identifying what is spreading the fungus, they will be able to mitigate its devastating impacts.
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Sen. Gil Kahele Photo by Julia Neal

A CELEBRATION OF LIFE for the late Sen. Gil Kahele has been set for Monday, Feb. 8 at Hilo Civic Auditorium, Democratic Party of Hawai`i announced. After a series of heart attacks, Kahele, who represented Ka`u in 2011 and 2012, died on Tuesday at the age of 73.

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HAWAI`I COUNTY MANAGING DIRECTOR Wally Lau is running for mayor. Lau resigned from his position yesterday.

Lau has helped manage daily operations of Hawai`i County administration for the past seven years, as deputy managing director and managing director.

“I did not want any perception of a conflict of interest, or that 100 percent of my energies are not being invested in my job,” Lau said. “By resigning, I am able to focus on my campaign by meeting with people and sharing with them my values and my vision.”

Lau said, “I listen and respond. “I always seek for what is fair and pono. When presented with challenging decisions, I always ask: ‘Will it be in the best interest of the public? Is it good for the community?’” Lau said that principle will guide the county under his administration if elected, as he leads the island with aloha and a spirit of cooperation and collaboration with the community.

Wally Lau

Lau said his vision is to meet the needs of the people, support and sustain a healthy economy, care for the environment and create a safer and better island community, where government is responsible, accountable and open.
Lau said he would continue the current administration’s efforts of being accessible and responsive to the community. He said he will uphold a balanced administration that represents East and West Hawai`i with a “how can” attitude and treating people with aloha.
He said he is prepared to address issues of public safety and disaster preparedness, homelessness, affordable housing, the need to improve our business climate, ensure efficiency of the county permitting process, improving maintenance of county facilities and properties, improving solid waste operations, exploring renewable energy projects that would provide lower rates for consumers without environmental tradeoffs, and diversified agriculture, all while preserving and protecting our environment.
For additional information, see wallylau.com.
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Sen. Russell Ruderman

GE TAX COULD GO UP in Hawai`i County. Last year, the state Legislature passed and Gov. Ige signed a bill permitting counties to raise the tax by 0.5 percent to fund transportation projects. Counties that want to institute the tax must pass it by July 1, and it would go into effect in January 2018.

Ka`u’s Sen. Russell Ruderman told Nancy Cook Lauer, of West Hawai`i Today, that he supports the tax, “but I have concerns that it could go all wrong.”
“It’s an important tool; it’s an additional tool to pay for important infrastructure,” Cook Lauer reported Mayor Billy Kenoi saying when the state law passed. “It’s something we’ll take a look at. It’s not something we’re asking the council to do at this time.”
A public meeting would be required before the county institutes the tax.
See westhawaiitoday.com.

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MISS KA`U COFFEE PAGEANT APPLICATIONS are available through Saturday, April 2.

Appications are available to enter Miss Ka`u Coffee Pageant.

Miss Ka`u Coffee candidates must be between the ages of 16 and 24 as of the day of the pageant. It will be held at 6 p.m. at Ka`u Coffee Mill on Saturday, May 14. Pageant Chair is Trinidad Marques. Candidates must be residents of Ka`u, even if attending school or working outside the district. Junior Miss Ka`u Coffee candidates must be 11-15 years of age on day of pageant. Miss Peaberry must be 6-10.
For Miss Ka`u Coffee, categories to be judged include talent, career plan and dress, swim suit with pareo, evening gown, and interview on the subject of Ka`u Coffee and its contribution to the community.
Candidates of all ages and their supporters will sell $10 pageant admission tickets (for those 12 and older) to support the event and to raise funds for each candidate's expenses through commissions. Keiki admission tickets for those 5-11 are $5. Toddlers sitting with parents will be admitted at no costs.

Ka`u's dengue risk level has been lowered. Map from DOH

Also supporting the event will be Friends of Ka`u Coffee donation tickets for $1 each with drawings for prizes at the pageant. For more information call Trini Marques at 936-0015.
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KA`U’S RISK FOR DENGUE FEVER has been lowered. On Wednesday, Hawai`i Department of Health issued an updated map showing most of Ka`u in the clear, with only Ocean View rated with “some risk.” In November, areas from Na`alehu to South Point were listed as “high risk,” downgraded to “moderate risk” later that month and then became “some risk” in December.
Of 241 confirmed cases as of Wednesday, 217 are Hawai`i Island residents, and 24 are visitors. Onset of illness occurred as late as Jan. 21.
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JAZZ IN THE FOREST 2016 SERIES begins tomorrow at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village. Vocalist Jeannine Guillory’s background in jazz, reggae, pop and rhythm & blues lends a strong, versatile sound and energy.

Jeannine Guillory

Guillory is currently a popular mainstream vocalist with Pacific Fusion and Island Express throughout Kailua-Kona and along the Kohala Coast. She also appears with Volcano Choy, Jr. at selected venues around the island and was featured as one of the Divas of Jazz at Volcano Art Center. Tickets are $20 for VAC members and $30 for non-members for the 4:30 p.m. matinee; $25 for members and $35 for non-members for the 7:30 p.m. show. Call 967-8222, or see volcanoartcenter.org.

PALM TRAIL HIKE tomorrow from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. is a moderately difficult, 2.6-mile loop trail providing one of the best panoramic views Kahuku has to offer. Highlights include relics of the ranching era, sections of remnant native forest and volcanic features from the 1868 eruptive fissures.
Enter the Kahuku unit of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park on the mauka side of Hwy 11 near mile marker 70.5, and meet near the parking area. Sturdy footwear, water, rain gear, sun protection and a snack are recommended.
See nps.gov/havo.

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_January2016.pdf.

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

Ka`u residents can hike to the top of Pu`u o Lokuana tomorrow. See more below. NPS Photo by Jessica Ferracane

MICRONESIANS IN HAWAI`I were hospitalized at significantly younger ages and were often sicker than comparison populations, according to a report in American Journal of Public Health.
Hospitalized Micronesians were significantly younger at admission than were racial/ethnic groups across all patient refined-diagnosis related group categories. The severity of illness for Micronesians was significantly higher than was that for all comparison racial/ethnic groups for cardiac and infectious diseases, higher than was that of Caucasians and Japanese for cancer and endocrine hospitalizations, and higher than was that of Native Hawaiians for substance abuse hospitalizations.
Researchers expect their results to be useful to researchers, state governments, hospitals, health care providers and health systems.

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U.S. REP. TULSI GABBARD CALLED for a state of emergency regarding Hawai`i Island’s dengue fever outbreak. She wants Gov. David Ige to deploy state resources, including the National Guard, to assist with mosquito abatement, public information, clearing and providing completely free testing for those with suspected symptoms of this incurable disease.

U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard discussed dengue fever
with Hawai`i County officials last week.

“The dengue fever outbreak on the Big Island continues to worsen,” Gabbard said. “We cannot afford to wait any longer for the aggressive action necessary to combat the spread of this serious disease. An emergency proclamation from the governor is long overdue. There have already been 242 confirmed cases of dengue fever on Hawai`i Island, creating a public health emergency affecting our residents and visitors, and Hawaii Island’s economy. They deserve our state’s full attention and resources to do what it takes to put an end to this outbreak and prevent it from becoming endemic and spreading to other parts of the island and state.”
Gabbard is calling for completely free and accessible testing for those who suspect they have dengue fever symptoms. While the cost of the test may be free, residents and visitors are still charged for visits to a physician, nurse or clinic in order for their blood to be drawn. Gabbard said this could easily be solved by ensuring there are free access points islandwide and by deploying state or National Guard medical personnel as a mobile testing unit that can travel to both populated and remote locations across the island, draw blood and get samples to the lab for expedited results.
Gabbard also wants resources allocated to the state Department of Health for development and execution of a comprehensive public information and public engagement campaign with quality review measures. DOH’s current ‘Fight the Bite’ campaign efforts “fall far short of providing residents and visitors with the information they need,” she said.
Other action items Gabbard listed include:

Providing a full-time entomologist on Hawai`i Island dedicated to eradication, reduction and prevention of further spread of the dengue virus.
Allocating resources to hire vector control personnel, purchase more sprayers and other necessary equipment and supplies.
Providing free supply and distribution of Ovitraps throughout the community to empower local residents to help prevent the spread of the Aedes aegypti mosquito. According to Gabbard, World Health Organization report studies have shown that population densities can be reduced below disease-transmission thresholds with sufficiently large numbers of frequently serviced traps.
Appointing a dengue czar who can act as the coordinator of efforts with all parties within the state, county, federal, private sector and community to ensure the objectives are being met.

Ka`u’s state Sen. Russell Ruderman said he applauds and supports U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard’s “efforts to bring the immediacy of this situation to the forefront.”
“With the widespread outbreak of dengue fever and other serious health issues looming, such as rat lungworm disease, it is imperative that the state of Hawai`i and its related agencies are mobilized in a timely, and proactive manner to safeguard the health, safety and welfare of our people,” Ruderman said.
“It is my hope that with the call coming from all levels of government, such action will be taken directly and decisively by our state officials to address this serious health issue.”
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Grammy Museum honors Dennis Kamakahi and other
Slack Key artists. Photo by Julia Neal

LEADING UP TO THE 58TH Grammy Awards on Feb. 15, the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles will launch its new exhibit on Feb. 10 called Ki Ho`alu: Honoring the Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Tradition. Several musicians who have spent years teaching and performing in Ka`u are noted with displays of their famous attire, including the late Dennis Kamakahi’s black hat, shirt and pants and Ledward Ka`apana’s red boots. A Cyril Pahinui guitar will also be featured. The show opens with a Mele Mei in L.A. It closes April 30 and will travel with Hawai`i as one of its stops for the Mele Mei here.

The Grammy Museum calls slack key “one of the world’s greatest acoustic guitar traditions.”
“With a history that dates back to the 1800s, the unique sound of slack key comes from the resonance of the tunings and techniques that mimic the yodels and falsettos rooted in ancient chants that are common in Hawaiian singing. Through artifacts and historical instruments that trace the history of this Hawaiian music tradition, the Museum’s tribute to the slack key guitar serves as the official kickoff of the Mele Mei 2016 celebration in Hawai`i.”
Hawai`i Tourism Authority and Hawai`i Academy of Recording Artists partnered in producing the exhibit.

See more at grammymuseum.org.
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KA`U HIGH TROJAN’S CELEBRATED homecoming in style yesterday, with the boys basketball team winning 74-34. Evan Manoha and Jacob Flores each scored 14 points. Joven Padrigo added 13; Janslae Badua, 11; and Richard Souza, 10.

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PU`U O LOKUANA, A MODERATELY difficult 0.4-mile hike to the top of the grassy cinder cone, takes place tomorrow at Kahuku Unit of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Participants learn about the formation and various uses of this hill over time and enjoy a breathtaking view of lower Ka`u.
Enter Kahuku on the mauka side of Hwy 11 near mile marker 70.5, and meet near the parking area at 9:30 a.m. Sturdy footwear, water, rain gear, sun protection, and a snack are recommended.

VOLCANO ART CENTER PRESENTS its 12th annual fundraiser gala, Love the Arts, two weeks from today on Saturday, Feb. 13 from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at its Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village. This year, the theme is m’ARTi Gras.

Love the Arts is two weeks from today. Image from VAC

Each year, the event’s silent and live Auctions grow in size and reputation because of the generosity of people in the community. The Love the Arts gala invites guests to add to their art collection, enjoy gourmet catered food and wines, and partake in auctions that include art, experiences, hotel stays, restaurants, local products and gift certificates to local businesses. Support of this event allows VAC to fund classes, exhibits and workshops, and to offer creative arts experiences in Volcano’s uniquely nurturing and inspiring environment. Participants enjoy a fabulous night of New Orleans-inspired cuisine, fine wines and chocolate truffles, as well as silent and live auctions.
From the out-of-the-ordinary to the extraordinary, the silent and live auctions offer glittering arrays of fine art, jewelry and wonderful gift certificates for restaurants, hotels, adventure tours and more. Participants are able to bid on pieces of art by Meg Barnaby, Liz Miller, Gregg Smith and many others.
Volcano Art Center’s master chef will cater a tantalizing menu consisting of a wide array of New Orleans’ delicacies such as Jambalaya, shrimp and grits, succulent beef basted with praline butter, Antoine’s classic Caesar salad and the ever popular, mouth-watering truffles.
Tickets are $55 for VAC members and $65 for non-members, with tickets available at the door for $65. Purchase at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village, Volcano Art Center Gallery in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, Basically Books and Banyan Gallery in Hilo, and volcanoartcenter.org.

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

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_January2016.pdf.

Volcano cavers gather in Ocean View next week for the 17th International Symposium on Vulcanspeleology.
NPS Photo from Peter and Ann Bosted

NEARLY 80 VULCANSPELEOLOGISTS from 13 countries will gather in Ocean View next week for the 17th International Symposium on Vulcanspeleology. It will be 25 years since the first symposium in the series was held in Hawai`i, at that time in Hilo. Since then, symposia have been held in other volcanic areas like Italy, Japan, the Canary Islands, Kenya, Iceland, the Azores, Mexico, Korea, Australia and Jordan. Two years ago, it was held in the Galapagos in Ecuador. At that meeting, attended by about 70 vulcanspeleologists, it was decided to hold the next one in Ocean View.
Hawai`i is a mecca for vulcanspeleologists – it has an active volcano and some of the longest lava tubes in the world. Dr. Don Swanson, a geologist from Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, will be leading the group on a specialized tour of remarkable volcanic features in the park.
Attendees will stay at various vacation rentals in Ocean View and gather at Ocean View Community Center for talks. Field trips will be all over the island – including Kazumura Cave, the longest and deepest known lava tube, which has about 41 miles of passage and a depth of 3,614 feet.
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Team Kahele and other friends can help organize the late
Sen. Gil Kahele's celebration of life.
Photo from Kai Kahele

SEN. GIL KAHELE’S SON KAI is calling for help in organizing a gathering for his late father. The senator passed away last Tuesday after coronary complications at Queens Hospital.

Kai Kahele said his father was very specific about what he wanted the event to be. “No mortuary. No somber experience. He wanted a Celebration of Life of food, fellowship, friends, music, lots of parking and an event to bring everyone together.”

Gil Kaheleʻs Celebration of Life is set for Monday, Feb. 8 at Hilo Civic Auditorium from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Visitation will be from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m., and the official program will be from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Food and entertainment will continue until 8 p.m.
“I am humbly asking for help to pull this off in a very short period of time,” Kai Kahele said. “One last collective effort of the Team Kahele machine that supported my Dad and propelled him to solid victories in 2012 and 2014 here in Hilo.”

A planning meeting is set for 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 3 at ILWU Hall, 100 West Lanikaula Street. “I am asking for as many volunteers as we can to help execute this event and send our senator off with the celebration he requested.
Donations requested include decorations, tables, chairs, food, flowers, balloons, fish, kalua pig, `opihi, poi, etc.
Contact Kai Kahele at 783-4069 or kahelek@gmail.com.
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Sen. Brian Schatz

THE U.S. SENATE LAST WEEK VOTED 55-37 to include an amendment offered by Sen. Brian Schatz to the Energy Policy Modernization Act that will authorize increased funding for energy science and technology research. The amendment will boost funding for the Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy, an agency within the Department of Energy tasked with funding energy technology projects that help the United States compete, prosper and remain a world leader.

“Innovation in advanced energy technologies can be a significant part of the solution to any number of challenges – climate change, increasing the reliability of our grid, lowering electricity rates, hardening our energy infrastructure against cyber attacks and many others,” Schatz said. “ARPA-E is helping fund projects at the cutting edge of all of these challenges and more.”
Senator Schatz’s amendment will increase the authorization for ARPA-E above what is in the Energy Policy Modernization Act.
Since 2009, ARPA-E has funded over 400 potentially transformational energy technology projects. Many of these projects have already demonstrated early indicators of technical success. This early funding has spurred millions of dollars in follow-on private-sector funding to a number of ARPA-E projects. In addition, many ARPA-E awardees have formed start-up or spin-off companies or partnered with other parts of the government and industry to advance their technologies.
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AS VOLCANO AWARENESS MONTH comes to an end, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists return to Hawai`i Island to conclude their geologic tour of the state in Volcano Watch.
“As you likely already know, the Island of Hawai`i is made up of five volcanoes,” the article states. “From oldest to youngest, they are Kohala, Hualalai, Mauna Kea, Mauna Loa, and Kilauea.
“Less well known is a sixth volcano – Mahukona – located just off the island’s northwest coastline. This submarine volcano is the oldest of the volcanoes that form the mass of Hawai`i. Mahukona last erupted about 300,000 years ago, but its geology is not as well-studied as its taller neighbors because it is not easily accessible.

“Kohala began erupting just over one million years ago. The southeast rift zone of this volcano gives it substantial length, extending beneath Mauna Kea and continuing as the offshore Hilo Ridge.

“Kohala is capped by postshield lava as young as about 120,000 years. While its postshield volcanism is probably over, rejuvenated eruptions might occur in the future – perhaps even millions of years from now, as has occurred on the islands of O`ahu and Kaua`i. In the meantime, Kohala will continue to erode, from both rain and catastrophic collapse, causing the volcano to become more rugged as time passes.

Hawai`i Island's geology is the topic of Volcano Watch.
Map from USGS/HVO

“Hualalai and Mauna Kea, the next oldest volcanoes, share many characteristics. Both formed less than one million years ago and are now in the postshield stage. Their surfaces are dotted with cinder cones – the remnants of mildly explosive postshield eruptions. Mauna Kea is slightly younger, with its most recent eruption around 4,500 years ago, but Hualalai erupts more frequently. Although Mauna Kea will probably erupt again in the future, Hualalai is of more concern, because it erupted just 215 years ago (in 1801) and looms above numerous towns along the island’s Kona coast. Both volcanoes are in the waning stages of their lives, and their ages are beginning to show in the valleys that are carved into their flanks – especially along the Hamakua coast on Mauna Kea.
“In contrast, Mauna Loa and Kilauea are in the primes of their lives.
“Mauna Loa is the largest active volcano on Earth. Its most recent eruption was in March 1984, but the volcano’s almost-32-year-long slumber is deceptive, as Mauna Loa’s long-term history reveals that it typically erupts every five to six years. Mauna Loa will certainly erupt again, and the odds are that many of us will live to see it. Even now, the volcano is inflating as magma accumulates beneath it.
“What Kilauea lacks in size (compared to Mauna Loa), it makes up for with persistence of eruptive activity. The volcano has erupted more often than not for the past several hundred years and has produced a nearly steady stream of lava since 1983.
“Geologic investigations of Kilauea’s past reveal that the volcano alternates between periods dominated by explosive activity and periods dominated by effusive eruptions (lava flows). In some ways, Kilauea might be analogous to a volatile teenager – prone to occasional fits of temper and overall unsettled behavior, all while growing rapidly. This maturation process takes time, and Kilauea’s shield-building stage likely has hundreds of thousands of years to go before it ends.
“Although not yet part of the island, another submarine volcano – Lo`ihi – bears mentioning. If Kilauea is a teenager, Lo`ihi is a mere toddler. The volcano is currently 30 kilometers (20 miles) off the south coast of the Island of Hawai`i and about 1,000 meters (3,300 feet) below sea level. Seaward growth of Kilauea and Mauna Loa, coupled with the growth of Lo`ihi as the volcano matures, may eventually connect the volcanoes above sea level.
“We hope you’ve enjoyed our geological tour of the Hawaiian Islands over the past four weeks and that you were able to attend one or more of the Volcano Awareness Month talks offered by the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory in January. Although the month is ending, volcano awareness can (and should) continue all year long. We invite you to check out HVO’s website (hvo.wr.usgs.gov) throughout 2016 for updates and more information on Hawai`i’s active volcanoes.”
See hvo.wr.usgs.gov/volcanowatch.
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Dick Hershberger as Thomas Jaggar.
Photo from NPS

KA`U RESIDENT DICK HERSHBERGER guides A Walk into the Past this and every other Tuesday. Hershberger portrays Hawaiian Volcano Observatory founder Thomas Jaggar in programs at 10 a.m., 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. Participants meet at Kilauea Visitor Center and Whitney Vault in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.

Free; park entrance fees apply.

HAWAI`I COUNTY COUNCIL HOLDS meetings this week.
Committees meet Tuesday. Finance Committee meets at 9 a.m.; Governmental Relations & Economic Development, 9:30 a.m.; Environmental Management, 10 a.m.; Public Works and Parks & Recreation, 10:15 a.m.; Planning, 10:30 a.m.; and Public Safety & Mass Transit, 1:30 p.m.
The full council meets Wednesday at 9 a.m.
All meetings take place at Council Chambers in Hilo.
Ka`u residents can participate via videoconferencing at Na`alehu State Office Building.

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

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_January2016.pdf.

Ka`ena Point on Crater Rim Drive in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park is one site of the annual Sanctuary Ocean Count of humpback whales. HIHWNMS photo by Thomas C. Stein

PROJECTS IN KA`U are on the agenda of Hawai`i County Windward Planning Commission’s meeting this week.
The commission once again considers mining operations in Ocean View. Arrow of Oregon/Hawai`i, LLC wants to add 8.009 acres for a total of 13.012 acres of land to its cinder mining operation. The properties are northwest of Mahimahi Drive, between Lurline Lane and Liliana Lane.
David and Laura Rodrigues are applying for a Special Permit to allow a cinder and rock
quarry operation on 5.003 acres of land on the northeast and southeast corners of Kailua
Boulevard and Lurline Lane.

Duane Kanuha

Both properties are with the State Land Use Agricultural District.
Commissioners visited the sites Friday, along with staff and several residents, Nancy Cook Lauer reported in West Hawai`i Today. At a public hearing prior to the site visit, most speakers supported the operations, but concerns expressed included dust and noise from the operations.
Robert Crook said, “We need the cinder pits.”
Ralph Roland said, “Everybody needs cinder. What’s going to happen once it done? … We just want to know the whole story.”
HOVE Road Maintenance Corp. is involved in a contested case hearing about the mining. The road maintenance corporation has not been able to agree on fees assessed on mining activities to maintain the subdivision’s private roads.
Recommendations by a panel of Planning Commission members included creating setbacks and buffers, controlling dust and limiting operations’ days and times.
The commission anticipates convening an executive meeting regarding the items to consult with the commission’s attorney on questions and issues pertaining to the commission’s powers, duties, privileges, immunities and liabilities. A two-thirds vote is necessary to hold an executive meeting.
Planning Director Duane Kanuha told Cook Lauer the site visit was helpful to all the commissioners.
In a third agenda item, Rick and Justin Porter are applying for a Special Permit to convert a portion of an existing single family dwelling into an approximately 500-square-foot certified kitchen to accommodate the manufacture and distribution of salsa. The 20,000-square-foot property is situated within the State Land Use Agricultural District and located along the east side of Amepela Road, approximately 110 feet south of its intersection with Lewa Lani Street in Mark Twain Estates.
See westhawaiitoday.com.
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DEALING WITH HAWAI`I ISLAND’S dengue fever outbreak is one of Ka`u state Rep. Richard Creagan’s priorities for the 2016 state Legislature.
“We need to enhance our ability to stop the current dengue epidemic and use this event as informatively and constructively as possible in shaping our future response to dengue and other mosquito-borne illnesses,” Creagan said.

State Rep. Richard Creagan

Creagan wants the Legislature to convene a task force to study what happened and what should happen going forward. “One of the decisions we will ask from such a task force is whether Aedes aegypti eradication should be explored,” Creagan said. “We have eradicated Aedes aegypti, the principal vector for dengue, on every other island, and I believe it is time we do it on Hawai`i Island.”
Creagan thinks the state should also consider providing free screening for dengue to individuals who feel they may have been infected, even if asymptomatic. “Knowing that should help protect them but also let the Health Department and the Legislature know what the true scope of the epidemic is,” he said.
“It is quite clear that we are likely to face other outbreak emergencies, and three viruses we should be planning for are chikungunya, Zika and West Nile viruses,” Creagan said. “Zika is emergently on the table because of the huge epidemic of babies born with undeveloped brains and microcephaly. There was one baby born in O`ahu to a mother who had been in Brazil, and this baby had microcephaly. The story of that one case made the New York Times and also mentioned Hawai`i’s dengue epidemic. We need to move our response to the next level, and I am hopeful that an emergency declaration is imminent.”
Creagan suggested that the state provide an outbreak emergency fund from which money could be provided to Department of Health, county governments and Civil Defense, the community and others, “without the need for micromanaging the appropriations. The devil is in the details on that, however,” he said.
Creagan said he also may introduce a bill to fund enhanced use of mosquito traps that appear to be working. He may also seek funds for a study to determine how effective they are and could be.
“Alternate solutions such as the mosquito infecting bacteria Wolbachia should be explored with our Australia friends, as that is where it has been most studied,” Creagan said. “The fact that Paul Effler, our former Hawai`i communicable disease head, is in Australia and that his wife Allison Imrie is a dengue virologist and their familiarity with our island means they could be sources for advice on this.”
Creagan wants the Legislature to closely watch tests of GMO lethal-gene mosquitoes in Key West, “to see if the risk/benefit and the cost/benefit makes that approach worthwhile” here, he said.
“We cannot neglect other healthcare emergencies such as rat lungworm disease, which is currently killing and disabling the people of the Big Island, particularly in Puna. We hope to support Dr. Susan Jarvi at the pharmacy school in Hilo in her research on rat lungworm, and Sen. Ruderman is preparing a bill that we will join in on.”
See more in tomorrow’s Ka`u Calendar News Briefs.
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Ocean Sanctuary Count includes 22 sites on Hawai`i Island.
Map from HIHWNMS

MORE THAN 552 VOLUNTEERS gathered on the shores of Hawai`i Island, O`ahu and Kaua`i during the first event of the 2016 Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary Ocean Count on Saturday. One adult and one calf were seen at Punalu`u. At Ka`ena Point in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, volunteers counted 15 humpbacks. Four were calves. Sites at Ka Lae and Miloli`i were not used in the January count.
The count is conducted three times each year during peak whale season and is a shore-based census that provides snapshot data on humpback whales. Participants tally whale sightings and document the animals’ surface behavior during the survey.
Volunteers collected data from 51 sites statewide. A total of 258 whales were seen during the 8:30 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. time period, the most of any time period throughout the day’s count.
Preliminary data by site location is available at sanctuaryoceancount.org/resources/.
Two more counts are scheduled for Feb. 27 and March 26. Interested volunteers may register at sanctuaryoceancount.org or 808-725-5912. Required registration closes one week prior to each event date.
The sanctuary, administered by a partnership of NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries and Hawai`i Department of Land & Natural Resources, protects humpback whales and their habitat in Hawaiian waters, where they migrate each winter to mate, calve and nurse their young.
See hawaiihumpbackwhale.noaa.gov.
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KA`U RESIDENTS CAN PARTICIPATE in Hawai`i County Council meetings this week via videoconferencing at Na`alehu State Office Building.
Committees meet tomorrow. Finance Committee meets at 9 a.m.; Governmental Relations & Economic Development, 9:30 a.m.; Environmental Management, 10 a.m.; Public Works and Parks & Recreation, 10:15 a.m.; Planning, 10:30 a.m.; and Public Safety & Mass Transit, 1:30 p.m. The full council meets Wednesday at 9 a.m.
All meetings take place at Council Chambers in Hilo.

KA`U RESIDENT DICK HERSHBERGER portrays Hawaiian Volcano Observatory founder Thomas Jaggar tomorrow and every other Tuesday at 10 a.m., 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. Participants meet at Kilauea Visitor Center and take a short walk to Whitney Vault near Volcano House in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.
Free; park entrance fees apply.

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_February2015.pdf.

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

Ka`u residents can sign up this week for Hawai`i Wildlife Fund's first 2016 Ka`u Coast Cleanup set for Sunday, Feb. 7. Photo from HWF

KA`U’S `IMAKAKOLOA HEIAU, dedicated to hula, is under the guardianship of The Edith Kanaka`ole Foundation. The foundation, which describes `Imakakoloa as the only known hula heiau on this island, will host an informational meeting on Saturday, March 19 at 12 p.m. at Pahala Community Center to discuss ways the community can get involved.
According to Olson Trust land manager John Cross, John Replogle, of The Nature Conservancy, asked about the location of the heiau years ago after Olson purchased the property and as ranchers planned to use more land around it for cattle. The presence of the heiau was familiar to Cross through the archaeological survey Heiau of the Island of Hawai`i by John F.G. Stokes, published by Bishop Museum in 1991 and now out of print.

`Imakakoloa Heiau Image from John Stokes

In his book, Stokes described the heiau as “a series of enclosures with walls sometimes broadened into platforms. The ground declines to the southeast, but the earth floors of the enclosure have been approximately leveled as though by cutting and filling. The large enclosure on the southeast is said to have been for the chiefs and kahuna, the stone pavement shown being the kuahu. Outside and adjoining the wall of this enclosure on the west is a platform one foot high. To the north of the latter is another platform 4.5 feet high, an extension of the walls. This last is said to have been the hale o Papa. The second largest enclosure is said to have been for the hale hula. There was no information regarding the smallest enclosure.”
Pele Hanoa, long involved in historic, cultural and land preservation efforts in Ka`u, also informed Olson Trust about the general location of the heiau, and several crews tried unsuccessfully to find it. It was cattleman Al Galimba who bumped into a heiau rock wall as he was clearing land for pastures and paddocks. He contacted Cross, and they identified the heiau, buried deep in a tangle of Christmasberry, cat’s claw and a large monkeypod tree makai of Ka`alaiki Road between Pahala and Na`alehu. Galimba withdrew cattle from the area and helped clear brush away from the heiau, followed by an Olson Trust team using small equipment to clear and protect it, fencing off about 1.5 acres around the site.
Olson Trust established an agreement with the Edith Kanaka`ole Foundation to steward the heiau.
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One of 26 lots proposed for a commercial solar project.
Photo by Sandra Sheldon

A BILL RESTRICTING SOLAR ENERGY facilities in residential housing areas of agricultural districts will be heard Thursday. Hawai`i House Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection meets at 8 a.m.

Rep. Richard Creagan introduced the bill, and it passed first reading last Wednesday. It would limit solar production to 25 kilowatts per facility. Creagan’s bill is in response to a proposal to build commercial solar facilities containing 30,000 panels on 26 lots in the Ocean View Ranchos neighborhood.
Testimony must be received by tomorrow at 8 a.m. to be included in the hearing. Testify on HB2636 at capitol.hawaii.gov.

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LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES FOR KA`U’S STATE Rep. Richard Creagan include allowing cesspools in appropriate areas and capital improvement projects at schools. Creagan said he considers proposed Health Department rule changes that would ban cesspools to be “eco-zealotry, or EZ. They are proposing EZ solutions to complex problems,” he said. “It is clear to me that they do not understand the science of how and why cesspools have for the most part been a very successful and cost-effective waste management tool for a very rural environment on the Big Island and on Maui, where there is no opportunity for sewers, and there is a compelling need for low-cost housing solutions.”

Rep. Richard Creagan will ask Gov. Ige
not to sign proposed cesspool rules.

He said he agrees with DOH’s proposal to convert cesspools in critical zones near shorelines, as long as the department defines those zones in a scientifically supportable way.

Creagan also questions DOH’s claim that the federal Environmental Protection Agency mandated conversions. “The EPA does not have jurisdiction over individual waste management systems, so the claim that the EPA was mandating these conversions was a lie,” he said. “According to Rep. Angus McKelvey, they admitted to him that this statement was not true, and they have not repeated it to me.”
Creagan said he will ask Gov. David Ige not to sign the rules and to spend at least a year or two evaluating appropriate waste management strategies for the Hawai`i Island and Maui. “With our current homeless crisis, the need for affordable housing is paramount, and with a septic system costing 10 times what a cesspool would, we need to evaluate the cost-benefit and risk-benefit balance in areas away from the coast and at higher elevations,” he said.
Creagan’s capitol improvement requests include facility needs at schools. He supports funding at Na`alehu School for pathway covers, considering the project to be a health and safety issue.

“There are a number of other schools that have projects that I will list for support,” he said.

A feasibility study for the proposed West Hawai`i University Hospital is also on Creagan’s agenda. The facility would be a teaching hospital with training for primary care including pediatricians, internists, family practice and psychiatry. The study would flesh out the concept and define some parameters in terms of location, cost, mission and funding.

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KA`U BUSINESSES CAN SIGN UP FOR Hawai`i Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism’s new Hawai`i State Trade and Export Promotion – Export Readiness Program, which will provide training programs to prepare Hawai`i companies to begin or expand their export market development. The program is a component of DBEDT’s HiSTEP program funded in part through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.

DBEDT Director Luis P. Salaveria

Export University is an introductory program open to all types of businesses considering exporting. Participants receive 16 hours of instruction over the course of several days. At the conclusion of the program, companies will have a go-to-market strategy and export plan. A program fee of $99 is due by the first session.

ExporTech is designed for companies that have some experience with exporting, but not as part of a proactive export market development plan. ExporTech is organized by the Federal Manufacturing Extension Partnership and focuses mostly, but not exclusively, on businesses involved in manufacturing. Participants meet for one day each month over a three-month period with assignments in between the one-day sessions. Program fee is payable by the first session is $295.

“The department continues to grow the foundation for exporting in Hawai`i,” DBEDT Director Luis P. Salaveria said. “These new programs enable Hawai`i companies to seek new markets to increase manufacturing and sales, which will result in the creation of more jobs.”
Success metrics for the HiSTEP program include, but are not limited to expanded exports and revenue from exports of Hawai`i produced goods and services, a larger overall number and a larger percentage of Hawai`i-based companies that are active in global markets, and penetration of new markets for Hawai`i-produced goods and services.
Application deadline is Monday, Feb.15. Interested parties may apply online at invest.hawaii.gov/exporting/histep/.

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Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park will
monitor and control fountain grass
in the area of the Great Crack.
Photo from NASA

HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK announced the following flight plans for this month:

Feb, 4, between 7:30 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., for faya tree surveys between 4,000- and 6,500-ft. elevation;
Feb. 8 and 9 for fountain grass monitoring and control from Ka`aha to the Great Crack, between sea level and 3,000-ft. elevation;
Feb. 9, between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m., to haul out fencing material and equipment from Kahuku-Kapāpala boundary between 7,000- and 9,000-ft. elevation;
Feb. 16 and 17, between 8 a.m. and 12 p.m., for mullein surveys on Mauna Loa between 6,000- and 8,500-ft. elevation;
Feb. 17, between 12 p.m. and 1 p.m., short haul recertification flight training at Escape Road near the Mauna Ulu parking lot; and
February 18, 19 and 29, between 7 a.m. and noon, to shuttle crew, camp supplies, fencing material and equipment to Mauna Loa at about 9,000-ft. elevation.

Dates and times are subject to change based on aircraft availability and weather.
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.
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KA`U COFFEE GROWERS COOPERATIVE meets today at 6 p.m. at Pahala Community Center.

HAWAI`I COUNTY COUNCIL MEETS tomorrow at 9 a.m. at Council Chambers in Hilo. Ka`u residents can participate via videoconferencing at Na`alehu State Office Building. The meeting is also streamed live at hawaiicounty.gov. Click on Council Meetings.

HAWAI`I WILDLIFE FUND HOLDS its first Ka`u Coast Cleanup of 2016 this Sunday at Kalaemano. Volunteers meet at Wai`ohinu Park at 7:45 a.m. Register at kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com.

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_February2016.pdf.

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

Four new species of algae have been discovered in Hawaiian waters. See more below. Photo from NOAA

AN EMERGENCY DECLARATION regarding Hawai`i County’s dengue fever outbreak could happen soon, Civil Defense Chief Darryl Oliveira said. He said the county is about to run out of resources, and the declaration would help the county “stay ahead of the response.”

Hawai`i County Civil Defense Chief Darryl Oliveira said
the county is close to issuing an emergency
declaration regarding dengue fever.

“At the local level, at the county level, the mayor and I have been discussing this for some time,” Oliveira said during an update by him, Mayor Billy Kenoi, Gov. David Ige and others. “Yes, we’re very close, at least on the county level, the proclamation and the request for an emergency declaration. As was pointed out, it’s not because we don’t have control of the situation or at a shortage of any resources currently. We’d like to stay ahead of the response.”

Emergency declaration decisions are “truly made by the professionals,” Ige said.
Oliveira said all of the state’s insecticide sprayers, Vector Control workers and entomologists who work to monitor and respond to mosquitoes have been deployed to Hawai`i Island.
Kenoi said the county has so far spent $200,000 on equipment, supplies and repellent to distribute to those in need.
Ige said, “We are making progress.” He pointed to the lower numbers of confirmed cases as the outbreak continues. “The appropriate actions have been taken,” he said.
Hawai`i Department of Health yesterday reported two new cases of dengue fever, bringing the total so far to 246. As many as three of the cases are potentially infectious to mosquitoes, which spread the disease.
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Ka`u residents can provide testimony on a bill
regarding rat lungworm disease.

KA`U STATE SEN. RUSSELL RUDERMAN’S SB2516 relating to rat lungworm disease is scheduled to be heard pending re-referral on Friday. Ruderman asks constituents to submit testimony as soon as possible in support of the measure. To be included in the 2:45 p.m. meeting, testimony must be received by 2:45 p.m. tomorrow.

“Rat lungworm disease is a very serious, debilitating disease that is fully preventable with education and further research,” Ruderman said. “RLW has occurred on three major islands and has not gotten the serious attention it deserves.”
The bill would appropriate funds to University of Hawai`i at Hilo, the Department of Health and the Department of Land & Natural resources for programs, studies and activities related to the disease.
See capitol.hawaii.gov for more on this bill and others and to provide testimony.
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FOUR NEW SPECIES OF DEEP-WATER algae from Hawai`i have been discovered. Scientists working with NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries collected the new species of limu between 200-400 feet, depths not typically known for marine algae.
Heather Spalding, Ph.D., postdoctoral researcher at University of Hawai`i’s Department of Botany and lead author of the study, said, “I was astounded at the abundance and size of these algae, which resembled something you would see in a shallow-water lagoon, not at 400 feet.”
Spalding has been collaborating with NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries for several years studying samples collected by NOAA divers working in Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument. She and her colleagues conducted DNA analyses that showed that the species are very different than those found in Hawai`i’s shallow waters, even though they are very similar in appearance.

Heather Spaulding processes limu samples. Photo from NOAA

“If you picked up one of these algae on the beach, you couldn’t tell if it was from a nearby rock or washed up from the deep, the species look that similar,” Spalding said.
Limu are very important in Hawaiian culture, used in foods, ceremonies and as adornments in traditional hula. The newly discovered species are similar in appearance to limu palahalaha, or sea lettuce. Scientists consulted with the Native Hawaiian community to develop meaningful names for the new species to honor the great importance they have in Hawaiian culture. One species was named Ulva iliohaha, which refers to the foraging behavior of `ilioholoikauaua, the endangered Hawaiian monk seal, one of the best-known residents of Papahanaumokuakea.
The species were sampled during surveys between 2013 and 2015 in the monument by NOAA divers using advanced SCUBA diving technologies, and during past NOAA expeditions from 2006 to 2014 throughout the Main Hawaiian Islands using submersibles operated by the Hawai`i Undersea Research Laboratory. Scientists anticipate that many additional new species of algae will be described in the coming years from samples collected by NOAA divers on future expeditions to the monument.
“These findings redefine our understanding of algal distributions in Hawai`i and hint at the great number of other new species that are likely to be discovered in the future from these amazing deep-water reefs,” said Daniel Wagner, Papahanaumokuakea research specialist with NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries.
The study describing the new species of limu was published in the latest issue of the Journal of Phycology. The article, titled New Ulvaceae(Ulvophyceae, Chlorophyta) from mesophotic ecosystems across the Hawaiian Archipelago, is featured as the journal’s cover story and can be accessed in its entirety at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jpy.12375/full.
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American Telemedicine Association
CEO Jonathan Linkous

SEN. BRIAN SCHATZ LED SEVERAL colleagues in introducing the Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective Care Technologies or Health Act, bipartisan legislation that would expand telehealth services through Medicare, improve care outcomes, make it easier for patients to connect with their health care providers and help cut costs for patients and providers.
“Telehealth is the future of health care. It saves money and improves health outcomes,” Schatz said. “Our bipartisan bill puts us on a path to transform health care delivery, making it less costly and more convenient for patients and providers.”
“We salute the leadership and dedication Sen. Brian Schatz has shown in expanding the use of telemedicine in Medicare to increase quality healthcare options and availability at more affordable rates,” said Jonathan Linkous, CEO of American Telemedicine Association. “It’s a clear win-win for the American people and helps to bridge the 21st century technology gap between policy and better healthcare options.”
Telehealth is the provision of health care services via telecommunications technologies, such as live video interactions and asynchronous medical data transfers, like store-and-forward technologies. Remote patient monitoring refers to personal medical data transmitted securely from an individual in one location via electronic communications technologies to a provider in a different location for the purposes of medical care.
According to studies, telehealth and remote patient monitoring have both been shown to improve care and patient satisfaction while reducing hospitalizations. The CONNECT for Health Act is a bipartisan approach to increase the use of telehealth and remote patient monitoring through Medicare.
Specifically, the legislation would create a program to help providers meet the goals of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act and the Merit-based Incentive Payment System through the use of telehealth and remote patient monitoring, expand the use of RPM for certain patients with chronic conditions, increase telehealth and RPM services in community health centers and rural health clinics and make telehealth and RPM basic benefits in Medicare Advantage.
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Ka`u High's soccer team hosted Pahoa yesterday.
Photo by Dave Berry

KA`U HIGH TROJAN TEAMS hosted Pahoa yesterday.
Ka`u’s soccer team lost 0-2.
Junior Varsity boys basketball team scored more points than Pahoa in each of the first three quarters and ended up winning 48-29. Andre Carvalho was Ka`u’s high scorer with 12 points. Zachary Kai and Madito Tamayo each made 11 points.
Varsity fell 34-61, with Janslae Badua leading the team with nine points.
The basketball teams travel to Kona today for their final games of the regular season beginning at 6 p.m.
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STEWARDSHIP AT THE SUMMIT continues this month. Participants help out the park and the `aina by cutting invasive Himalayan ginger on park trails. Loppers and gloves are provided. Participants are encouraged to wear long-sleeved shirts, long pants and closed-toe shoes.
The hike is around a one-mile, moderate roundtrip into Kilauea caldera down Halem`auma`u Trail, leaving from Kilauea Visitor Center. The hike involves walking over rough uneven terrain on a dirt and rock path, with up to a 400-foot elevation change.
The event takes place from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. this Friday and on Feb. 13, Feb. 20 and Feb. 24.

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

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_February2016.pdf.

Ka`u is clear of dengue fever risk, and Miloli`i's level has been lowered. Map from DOH

LABELING OF COFFEE BLENDS is the subject of a bill introduced by Ka`u’s state Sen. Russell Ruderman. SB2519 would require coffee blend labels to disclose regional origins and percent by weight in blended coffees. It would prohibit using geographic origins of coffee in labeling or advertising when roasted or instant coffee contains less than 51 percent coffee by weight from that geographic origin.

Sen. Russell Ruderman

“Virtually every other geographic region in the world protects its brand in a way that we do not in Hawai`i,” Ruderman said. “This bill supports local agriculture.”
Hawai`i County Council, home to most of Hawai`i’s coffee growers, unanimously passed a resolution asking the state for such a change.
“If it’s only 10 percent, it’s not Hawai`i coffee,” Ruderman told Ivy Ashe, of Hawai`i Tribune-Herald. “It’s deceptive labeling.”
Ruderman’s bill also calls for percentages of all geographic regions that blends contain to be listed in descending order.
“It’s simply requiring honest labeling, like every other product you see,” Ruderman told Ashe. “The ingredients are listed in order. Coffee doesn’t follow that rule.”
“We need to fix the fact that we don’t protect our brand,” he said. “You don’t see Idaho potatoes that aren’t from Idaho … we are an outlier.”
See hawaiitribune-herald.com.
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KA`U’S STATE SEN. RUSSELL RUDERMAN shared other priorities for the 2016 legislative session.
As a step to improve Hawai`i’s low voter participation, Ruderman wants all who get driver’s licenses to be registered to vote if qualified. Ruderman’s SB2259 would require that, beginning on Jan. 1, 2017, any person who is eligible to vote and applies for a new or renewed motor vehicle driver's license, provisional license, instruction permit, limited purpose driver's license, limited purpose provisional driver's license, limited purpose instruction permit or identification card be automatically registered to vote if that person is not already registered to vote; provided that upon receipt of notification from the respective county clerk, the applicant shall have 21 calendar days to opt-out of automatic voter registration.

Sen. Russell Ruderman wants the state
to pass a Motor Voter Act.

“This ‘Motor Voter’ law has been successful in other states,” Ruderman said. “The more people involved, the better our government will work for us.”
Ruderman introduced what he called the Homo Sapiens Bill. “This bill clarifies that under state law, the rights given to a ‘person’ are given only to people, not corporations,” he said.
SB2261 would amend the definition of “person” or words importing persons, to mean an individual human being of any age, sex or nationality, provided that the term does not include huis, partnerships, corporations, firms, associations, societies, communities, assemblies or any other form of business or legal entity.
Ruderman’s SB2268 would prohibit application of neonicotinoid insecticides without a permit after June 30, 2017 to protect honeybees and other pollinating animals.
“Neonicotinoid pesticides have been found to be a major cause of dangerous bee dieoff,” Ruderman said. “Many states and countries have made this change recently, since bees are crucial to our agriculture and environment.”
SB2271 would appropriate funds to the Department of Agriculture for research and mitigation efforts relating to the rapid `ohi`a death disease in the state. It would also require the department to submit a report to the Legislature. “Rapid `Ohi`a Death is a fast developing threat to our entire native forest system,” Ruderman said. “We must urgently slow its growth and find a solution. This bill funds research and preemption efforts.”
Little fire ants are targets of Ruderman’s SB2518, which would appropriate funds to the Hawai`i Ant Lab for personnel and equipment to support mitigation of LFA. “Fire ants are an intolerable pest that has spread thoughout much of the Big Island and threatens the other islands,” Ruderman said.

Sen. Josh Green

Ka`u residents can track progress of these and other bills at capitol.hawaii.gov.

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KA`U IS NO LONGER AT RISK for dengue fever, according to a map updated yesterday by Hawai`i Department of Health. Miloli`i’s status has also been lowered to “some risk.”
DOH has identified two new cases of dengue fever on Hawai`i Island. Currently, as many as three of the confirmed cases to date are potentially infectious to mosquitoes. All others are no longer infectious.
Since the beginning of DOH’s current investigation on Hawai`i Island, thirteen imported dengue fever cases have been confirmed (seven on O`ahu, three on Maui, two on Hawai`i, one visitor), and one imported chikungunya case (on Hawai`i) has been confirmed.
“The dengue experience underscores the absolute need to be ready for any kind of mosquito-borne virus,” Ka`u’s state Sen. Josh Green said. “We need to fully restore all the positions for vector control and entomology for the Big Island and other neighbor islands. The largest threat to Hawai`i’s security is infectious disease. It’s not international terrorism or fluctuations in tourism; it is infectious disease because that could fundamentally affect our economy and all our people.”
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James M. Thomas

HAWAI`I ISLAND POLICE HAVE CHARGED an Ocean View man with arson and other offenses in connection with a house fire Tuesday afternoon in Ocean View.

At 7:30 a.m. today, 38-year-old James M. Thomas of Ocean View was charged with first-degree arson, first-degree terroristic threatening and four counts of second-degree reckless endangering. His bail was set at $64,000. He is being held at the Kona police cellblock pending his initial court appearance scheduled for tomorrow.
At 5:50 p.m. Tuesday, Ka`u District officers were assigned to a fire on the 92-8200 block of Bamboo Lane. When they arrived, firefighters were at the scene, and the house Thomas occupied with his family was determined to be a total loss.
Investigation determined that Thomas intentionally started the fire while two women and two teenage boys were inside. No one was injured. The damages were estimated at $145,000.
Thomas was arrested at the scene and taken to the Kona cellblock while detectives from the Area II Criminal Investigations Section continued the investigation.
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A FUNDRAISER FOR KA`U HOSPITAL is set for later this month. `O Ka`u Kakou presents a spaghetti dinner along with silent auction, bake sale and craft sale on Saturday, Feb. 27 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Na`alehu Community Center.

To donate to the silent auction, call Ursula D’Angelo at 896-2624.
To buy $10 dinner tickets, call Nadine Ebert at 938-5124.

HAWAI`I ISLAND POLICE REMIND motorists about the dangers of speeding in a school zone.
During morning and afternoon hours, children and school crossing guards have encountered numerous near misses while crossing in crosswalks fronting elementary schools islandwide.
School crossing guards are present at most elementary schools to assist with the safe crossing of children and are trained to temporarily hold traffic until all children have completely crossed the roadway.
Speeding in a school zone is a traffic violation with a fine of $307, and failure to yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk incurs a $150 fine.
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PARTICIPANTS LEARN ABOUT THE VITAL role of `ohi`a lehua in native Hawaiian forests, its many forms and flower on a free, easy one-mile walk Saturday at 9:30 a.m. at the Kahuku Unit of
Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. See nps.gov/havo.

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_February2016.pdf.

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

Many events lead up to the Ka`u Coffee Festival Ho`olaule`a on Saturday, May 21. Photo from Ka`u Coffee Festival

WHILE HE WAS IN THE HOSPITAL, the late Sen. Gil Kahele signed a bill he introduced that would protect more land in South Kona. Senate Bill 3071 calls for the state to purchase land makai of Hwy 11 at Kapua Bay, where Kahele was born. One of Kahele’s early legislative achievements was creating the South Kona Wilderness Area, which this acquisition would expand by more than 6,000 acres.

“The Kapua bill meant so much to my dad,” Kai Kahele told Kristen Johnson, of Hawai`i Tribune-Herald. “It goes back to the 1980s when he was a community organizer, and Kapua is a very special place for our family.”

“Essentially what it does is it allows (the land) to be protected … in its current state for 40-some years. That’s why it was so special for him. It’s not for him. Kapua is for Hawai`i – the people of Hawai`i.”

The late Sen. Gil Kahele introduced a bill to protect makai lands
at Kapua in South Kona. Photo by Kai Kahele

Hawai`i Department of Land & Natural Resources supports Kahele’s measure. “The Kapua makai area contains significant historical, archaeological and cultural resources, including a holua slide, ancient coastal trail, village sites and superb biological resources including native dryland forest and associated common and rare native Hawaiian plants,” DLNR Chief Suzanne Case testified. “The site is remote and not easily accessed and contains extensive uninterrupted coastal and lowland open space. The coastal waters are pristine and in excellent condition.”
If placed under the DLNR’s jurisdiction, Case requested funding of $1,600,000 to address immediate management needs and approximately $500,000 annually for the next ten years “to manage the area effectively and deal with threats to the treasured cultural, archaeological and biological resources of the area.”
Case said threats to the area include goats, fountain grass, potential for unexploded ordnance near Manuka and “inappropriate human use due to a lack of management.”
Ka`u’s state Sens. Russell Ruderman and Josh Green were two of several co-introducers of the bill. The Ways & Means Committee recommended passage.
See hawaiitribuneherald.com.
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KA`U COFFEE FESTIVAL ORGANIZERS have announced dates for the 10 days of events.
Ka`u residents and visitors are invited to celebrate with Ka`u Coffee growers at the kick-off Pa`ina at Pahala Plantation House on Friday, May 13 from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

Masako Sakata donated her recipe
contest winnings to the Miss Ka`u
Coffee Scholarship Fund.

Get your recipes together for the Ka`u Coffee Recipe Contest on Saturday, May 14 at 2 p.m. The event at Ka`u Coffee Mill includes live entertainment, tours and free coffee and recipe tastings. Email lisa@kaucoffeemill.com or call 928-0550.
At 6:30 p.m. that day, Miss Ka`u Coffee, Miss Peaberry and Junior Miss Ka`u Coffee contestants vie to 2016 titles at Ka`u Coffee Mill. Contact Trinidad Marques at 936-0015 or aliihhhcoffee@yahoo.com to enter. Donate to the pageant scholarship fund with Julia Neal at 928-6471 or mahalo@aloha.net.
The first Ka`u Coffee Festival Lobsterpalooza is set for Sunday, May 15. Check the festival website for emerging details, including menu, ticket pricing and purchase information. Sponsors are welcome. Contact Chris Manfredi at 929-9550 or cmanfredi@kaufarmandranch.com.
Two opportunities to explore the Ka`u Forest & Water System are scheduled from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday, May 18 and Thursday, May 19. $40 per person includes lunch. Contact Lisa Wright at lisa@kaucoffeemill.com or 928-0550.
Reserve a ranch lunch at Coffee & Cattle Day. Aikane Plantation owners Phil and Merle Becker invite participants to their ranch on Friday, May 20 at 10 a.m. The descendents of J.C. Searle, the first coffee grower in Ka`u, explain how coffee is integrated into cattle ranching and other agriculture. $25 per person includes buffet lunch. Call 808-927-2252 or email aikaneplantation@hawaii.rr.com.
Later that day, stargaze from the top of Makanau from 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. John Cross, of Olson Trust, will speak on the land’s history and significance. $35 includes refreshments and shuttle rides. Email lisa@kaucoffeemill.com or call 928-0550.
These events lead up to the ho`olaule`a on Saturday, May 21, with a full day of entertainment, displays, Ka`u Coffee tasting, farm tours, the Ka`u Coffee Experience and food at Pahala Community Center from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Meet the farmers and Miss Ka`u Coffee and her court.
Ka`u Coffee College closes the festival on Sunday, May 22 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Participants learn about the growing business of Ka`u Coffee.
Festival sponsors include County of Hawai`i, Hawai`i Tourism Authority and Buy Local; It Matters.
See kaucoffeefest.com.
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HAWAI`I ISLAND POLICE inform motorists that they will increase enforcement by conducting DUI checkpoints over the Super Bowl weekend. The effort is part of a national and statewide campaign called Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.

These are the likely penalties for an arrest and conviction of operating a vehicle under the influence of an intoxicant:

$500 minimum bail for release from jail;
$200 plus $92.56 per month for installation of interlock system;
Loss of driver’s license;
Possible cancellation of insurance policy or a premium increase of up to $100 per month;
Alcohol assessment classes;
Community service;
Towing fees to recover vehicle;
Court fines; and
Possible jail time.

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Sen. Mazie Hirono

THE U.S. SENATE UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to include a provision authored by Sen. Mazie Hirono that removes offensive terms such as “Oriental” from federal law. The amendment was added to S. 2012, the Energy Policy and Modernization Act, which is currently being debated by the Senate. Legislation removing derogatory terms was also passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in December.

“Clearly the use of derogatory terms to refer to different ethnicities and races doesn’t have any place in federal law,” Hirono said. “It’s long past time that this language was updated to reflect the diversity of our country, and I thank my colleagues for unanimously supporting language that is inclusive of all Americans.”
The legislation removes all references to derogatory terms that refer to racial groups, such as “Oriental” in federal law, and replaces them with terms like “Asian Americans.” The House legislation is included in the North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act. The Senate measure would be approved with the passage of the bipartisan Energy Policy and Modernization Act.

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The 2016 festival celebrates Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park's
centennial. Image from Big Island Chocolate Festival

HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK’S Centennial receives a chocolate salute at the fifth annual Big Island Chocolate Festival on Friday and Saturday, May 13 and May 14 at Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel. Culinary booths will be judged on how they best depict the event theme, Lavalicious, that could include Kilauea and Mauna Loa volcanoes, Hawaiian culture and the park’s native plants and animals.

“We are happy to commemorate the centennial of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park at the Big Island Chocolate Festival,” says KCA President Farsheed Bonakdar. “We look forward to the new booth decorating contest and how our theme will inspire participants.”

See bigislandchocolatefestival.com.

HOLY ROSARY CHURCH IN PAHALA holds a rummage sale tomorrow from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Learn about `ohi`a lehua tomorrow.
Photo from NPS

KAHUKU UNIT OF HAWAI`I Volcanoes National Park offers free programs this weekend.

Participants learn about the vital role of `ohi`a lehua in native Hawaiian forests, its many forms and flower on a free, easy one-mile walk tomorrow at 9:30 a.m.
People & Lands of Kahuku on Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. is a guided, 2.5-mile, moderately difficult hike over rugged terrain focusing on the area’s human history.

KILAUEA MILITARY CAMP’S LAVA LOUNGE in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park holds a Super Bowl Party on Sunday beginning at 11 a.m.
Kick-off is at 1:30 p.m., with quarterly prizes. Call 967-8365 after 4 p.m. Open to authorized patrons and sponsored guests; call 967-8371.

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

See kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.swf
and kaucalendar.com/Directory2016.pdf.

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_February2016.pdf.

Mining operations in Ocean View can move ahead with their plans. Photo by Richard Taylor

MINING OPERATIONS IN OCEAN VIEW can move forward with their plans, Hawai`i County Windward Planning Commission decided Thursday. Arrow of Oregon/Hawai`i, LLC wants to add 8.009 acres for a total of 13.012 acres of land to its cinder mining operation. The properties are northwest of Mahimahi Drive, between Lurline Lane and Liliana Lane.
David and Laura Rodrigues applied for a Special Permit to allow a cinder and rock
quarry operation on 5.003 acres on the northeast and southeast corners of Kailua
Boulevard and Lurline Lane.
Both properties are with the State Land Use Agricultural District.
Recommendations by a panel of Planning Commission members included creating setbacks and buffers, controlling dust and limiting operations’ days and times.
Before making its decision, the commission convened an executive meeting to consult with its attorney on questions and issues pertaining to the commission’s powers, duties, privileges, immunities and liabilities.
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Eucalyptus trees contain high volumes of oil, making them
fire-prone. Photo by Julia Neal

COULD REPLACING EUCALYPTUS with koa be a new forest management practice for the state and other land stewards? The state Department of Land & Natural Resources has decided to replant koa on 3,000 acres in Koke`e on Kaua`i, where high-oil eucalyptus trees from Australia burned to the ground in 2012, the fire threatening native forests. In Ka`u, Kamehameha Schools has planted koa adjacent to burned eucalyptus farms above Pahala.

DLNR and its partners aim to plant 20,000 seedlings to cover the ground where eucalyptus burned, the local Kaua`i newspaper, The Garden Island reported on Thursday.
“It’s great to have the chance to come back and heal the land,” Michelle Clark, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist, told The Garden Island.
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Richard Ha applied for a medical
marijuana dispensary license.

HAWAI`I MEDICAL MARIJUANA DISPENSARY License applicants are now available online. The state Department of Health yesterday posted the list of applicants. A total of 66 applications were received during the application period of Jan. 12, 8 a.m., to Jan. 29, 4:30 p.m. The names of all individual applicants and applying entities as well as the county applied for are posted online at health.hawaii.gov/medicalmarijuana under the Dispensary Updates section.

“The department has posted the names of applicants in accordance with Chapter 11-850, Hawaii Administrative Rules,” said Keith Ridley, chief of the DOH Office of Health Care Assurance. “All other information on dispensary applications is confidential as we move into the evaluation and selection process.” The medical marijuana dispensary law allows DOH to award a total of eight licenses initially, with two in Hawai`i County.

One of the applicants is Hamakau Springs Country Farm owner Richard Ha, known in Ka`u for his work on Hawai`i Island Electric Cooperative, which members see as an alternative to Hawai`i Electric Light Co.

Each dispensary licensee will be allowed to operate up to two production centers and two retail dispensing locations. DOH expects to select and announce licensees by April 15. A dispensary licensed may begin dispensing medical marijuana not sooner than July 15, with DOH approval.
For more information, see health.hawaii.gov/medicalmarijuana/.
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Flags will fly at half staff Monday to honor the late
Sen. Gil Kahele. Photo by Julia Neal

AS A MARK OF RESPECT for the late Sen. Gil Kahele, who represented Ka`u in 2011 and 2012, Gov. David Ige has ordered the flags to be flown at half-staff at all state offices and agencies, as well as the Hawai`i National Guard, from sunrise to sunset on Monday, Feb. 8. Flag orders are issued to coincide with the day of the memorial service, which takes place at 5 p.m. at Hilo Civic Auditorium. Visitation begins at 4 p.m.

“Sen. Kahele was a dedicated public servant who spent the last few years working for the good of his beloved community at the Hawai`i State Legislature,” Ige said. “He was a respected and influential leader both in the Legislature and in his hometown community of Hilo. On behalf of the people of Hawai`i, I extend our heartfelt condolences to the Kahele `ohana.”
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A LONG-LOST GULCH IN HILO is the topic of Hawaiian Volcano Observatory’s current issue of Volcano Watch.
“In 1881, Joseph Nawahi, a well-known Hilo lawyer, painter and politician, wrote letters about the Mauna Loa flow to Hawaiian language newspapers,” according to the article. “As the flow neared Hilo in June 1881, he described the lava descending into the Kaumana stream and forecast that it would arrive on the Kalanakamaa gulch adjacent to Kukuau Street in Hilo.
“The Kalanakamaa place name appears several times in 1881, mostly in Hawaiian-language newspaper accounts of the Mauna Loa eruption. By the end of July, the lava flow was reported to be in Kalanakamaa gulch before it stalled in early August 1881.

“The next time this place name is mentioned in detail is in testimony recorded by the Boundary Commission in 1900. The exact location of the boundary between the ahupuaaa of Waiakea and Kukuau was being disputed, and lawyers for both sides needed to clearly define each point in its description.

“A typical example of a kama`aina description of the boundary went like this: “… thence to Kumu, on the banks of the Waialama (Waiolama) river thence to Kalanakama (Kalanakamaa) where the Government road to the volcano runs through the land thence to Huia … .”
“One of the main questions the lawyers asked each witness was for the definition of Kalanakamaa. Was it a rock, a tree, a pile of rocks, a gulch?

Mauna Loa lava flow cascaded into and ultimately filled a stream
bed near Hilo in July 1881. NPS Photos by Menzies Dickson
from USGS/HVO

“The name literally means “remove sandals or shoes,” but many witnesses identified Kalanakamaa as a specific breadfruit tree at the intersection of a big gulch and the road to Volcano. Apparently, Hawaiians travelling from Puna to Hilo on this road wore ti-leaf sandals over the rough lava of Waiakea but took them off and hung them in the breadfruit tree before going on to the soft ashy soil of Hilo.
“It became apparent during our research that the Kalanakamaa name also applied to the adjacent gulch, which carried water when it rained, sometimes overflowing its banks. A bridge was built over the gulch prior to 1881, but it had washed away. All witnesses who described seeing water in the gulch said that it went dry after the ‘flow of ’81.’
“An unnamed gulch in the area described by kama`aina is shown on a map from the 1870s (available from Hawai`i State Land Survey archives). In a 1954 aerial photo, a gulch in this same area is visible about 100 yards north of and parallel to Hualalai Street, from Kilauea Avenue to the Police Department on Kapi`olani Street. We interpret these features to be the Kalanakamaa gulch. Dry since 1881 and largely filled in by subsequent construction, the gulch no longer exists.
“From our research, it’s clear that the 1880-1881 Mauna Loa lava flow significantly changed the way streams drained into Hilo Bay. Lava flowed down stream channels, filling some and diverting water into others, such as `Alenaio to the north of Kalanakamaa and Waiakea to the south.
“This has happened repeatedly in the Hilo area. For example, there’s evidence of filling and diversion by lava flows along the Wailuku River, where the Boiling Pots area shows the remains of two such lava fillings in the past 10,000 years.
“It’s not surprising if you’ve never heard of Kalanakamaa gulch. On a volcanic island such as ours, rivers and streams are temporary features that often change or vanish as lava flows alter the landscape.”
See hvo.wr.usgs.gov/volcanowatch.
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Kahuku's human history is the topic of a hike tomorrow.
NPS Photo by Julia Espaniola

HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK presents People & Lands of Kahuku tomorrow from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The guided, 2.5-mile, moderately difficult hike over rugged terrain focuses on Kahuku’s human history.

KILAUEA MILITARY CAMP’S LAVA LOUNGE in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park celebrates Super Bowl tomorrow beginning at 11 a.m. Kick-off is at 1:30 p.m., with quarterly prizes. Call 967-8365 after 4 p.m. KMC is open to authorized patrons and sponsored guests; call 967-8371.

ST. JUDE’S CHURCH IN OCEAN VIEW celebrates Mardi Gras this Friday, Jan.12. Dinner is served at 6 p.m. Call 939-7000 for more information.

VALENTINE’S WEEKEND HUKILAU is coming up this Friday through Sunday at Whittington Beach Park. Handijam presents the blanket and toy drive featuring Buddy Cage, of New Riders of the Purple Sage. Suggested donation is $15; veterans are free.

Call 917-561-4800 for more information.

LOVE THE ARTS: m’ART’i Gras is a week from today on Saturday, Feb. 13 from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village. VAC’s 12th annual fundraiser gala invites guests to add to their art collection, enjoy gourmet, catered food and wines and partake in silent and live auctions. Tickets, $55 for VAC members and $65 for nonmembers, are available at volcanoartcenter.org or 967-8222.

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_February2016.pdf.

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

`Ohi`a lehua seeds are being banked in the face of threats to Hawai`i's native forests from rapid `ohi`a death.
Photo from The Nature Conservancy by Rob Schallenberger

THE THREAT TO `OHI`A TREES is so intense that their seeds have been taken from Hawai`i Island to O`ahu to be placed in a seed bank of endangered plants, deep in Manoa Valley.

With rapid `ohi`a death continuing to ravage forests on Hawai`i Island, researchers are banking seeds from resistant strains of `ohi`a that could used for reforestation.

Seeds of many `ohia lehua varieties are collected.
NPS Photo by Michael Szoenyi

“What’s at stake is basically our native forest in Hawai`i,” J.B. Friday, a forester with UH-Manoa’s College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, told Honolulu Star-Advertiser. “`Ohi`a comprises about half the forest area in Hawai`i. All the other forest trees such as koa, mamane, naio, kiawe, eucalyptus, and koa haole together comprise the other half. More importantly, the native `ohi`a forests protect our most important watersheds, especially at the higher elevations where we have more rainfall. No one knows the effects if we have large-scale mortality of `ohi`a, but it can’t be good.”

“Seed banking is a really efficient and effective way to store a lot of genetic diversity of a plant,” Marian Chau, manager of the Seed Conservation Laboratory at Lyon Arboretum, told the Star-Advertiser. “That’s why we want to use this method to do our part to help to conserve `ohi`a during this crisis. Hopefully, if we preserve that genetic variation, and we preserve enough of it, then the plants that we plant out in the future will have more adaptability to these types of threats.”
To finance collection of seeds, the program has set up a crowdfunding campaign at gofundme.com/ohialove.
See staradvertiser.com.
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KA`U RESIDENT BRENDA IOKEPA MOSES represented Hawai`i as the state’s Agricultural Conservation District President at the National Association of Conservation Districts’ 2016 annual meeting in Reno, Nevada. The conference at Grand Sierra Hotel and Casino featured speakers, an ag expo, a live auction and a board meeting to vote on new ag policy. Over 750 people from 47 states attended.

Brenda Iokepa Moses, wearing lei, represented Hawai`i at the National
Association of Conservation Districts' annual meeting.

A symposium at the conference focused on NACD’s Soil Health Champions Network and other soil health activities. A panel of soil health voices, including conservation district leaders, shared their soil health experiences from around the country.
“I was proud to represent the state and was welcomed and commended by the executive board for participating on the Education and Stewardship Committee,” Iokepa Moses said. “Hawai`i representatives have not been able to attend these annual meetings consistently due to budgetary restraints in the past. I have suggested bringing the conference to Hawai`i in 2018 and hope to spearhead that conference to bring some business to the islands and allow the other states to see firsthand our ag programs and challenges.”
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Sen. Russell Ruderman

KA`U STATE SEN. RUSSELL RUDERMAN’S bill relating to rat lungworm disease has been adopted and passed without amendments by the Senate Committees on Water, Land & Agriculture and Consumer Protection & Health and moves on to the Committee on Ways and Means.

“Mahalo to the committees and Chairs Rosalyn Baker and Mike Gabbard,” Ruderman said. “This terrible disease has occurred on Maui and O`ahu as well as the Big Island, causing deaths and paralysis. Like an STD, it is preventable, but only through increased education and research.”
SB2516 would appropriate funds to the University of Hawai`i at Hilo, the state Department of Health and the Department of Land & Natural Resources for programs, studies and activities related to the prevention and eradication of rat lungworm. It calls for implementing a statewide collaborative effort to monitor invasive hosts for rat lungworm infection, conducting laboratory testing of a wide range of commercially available produce washes as well as other potential solutions, conducting laboratory testing of commercially available filters and ultraviolet systems to determine effectiveness in catchment, optimizing existing tests or developing new blood-based tests for rat lungworm diagnostics, developing an integrated pest management plan for best practices for control of rat lungworm hosts and providing that information to the public, developing a rural health educational outreach program for rainwater catchment users, providing educational outreach to farmers’ groups and farmers providing food for schools to implement integrated pest maintenance for control of carriers of rat lungworm disease, providing educational outreach to kindergarten through twelfth-grade school personnel involved in food procurement and preparation and school garden projects, developing rat lungworm curriculum and an integrated pest management plan for control of invasive hosts in all Hawai`i school garden projects, and providing educational outreach materials for the general public and Hawai`i health care providers.
Track progress on this and other bills at capitol.hawaii.gov.
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Sen. Brian Schatz

U.S. SEN. BRIAN SCHATZ JOINED 45 Democratic colleagues in sending a letter to President Obama urging a coordinated interagency response plan to address the spread of the Zika virus both at home and abroad.

“As the dengue outbreak continues to impact communities on Hawai`i Island, we need more aggressive action to contain it and to stop the threat of Zika, another mosquito-borne virus that is devastating dozens of countries around the world,” Schatz said. “By increasing funding for critical government research and response programs, we can make real progress toward mitigating the impact of the Zika virus abroad and preventing its spread to Hawai`i and the United States.”
The letter calls for the President to take a number of new actions, including taking the Zika virus into consideration as the Administration coordinates and allocates resources in the Consolidated Appropriations Act for FY16 and moves forward with the President’s upcoming FY17 budget request, or subsequent amendments. Additionally, Senate Democrats urge President Obama to develop a coordinated interagency response plan to address the Zika virus both at home and abroad; identify key gaps in international and country-level response; ensure that federal agencies work with state and local partners to develop a cohesive national strategy for the monitoring, identification and reporting; develop educational materials to inform travelers regarding the risk of Zika virus exposure; ramp up research efforts to better understand the link between Zika, microcephaly, Guillain-Barré Syndrome and other public health impacts and accelerate diagnostic and vaccine development; and encourage federal agencies to coordinate, collaborate or share information with international counterparts.
Zika is transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which also carry dengue fever. For most people, symptoms of Zika are mild, but when pregnant women become infected, the effects can be devastating. Zika has been linked to microcephaly in developing fetuses, which can lead to below-average head size, developmental difficulties and brain damage.
The number of dengue fever cases on Hawai`i Island currently stands at 250, with three cases potentially infectious to mosquitoes.
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Ann Hassler Photo by Piper Seldon

RECYCLE HAWAI`I BRINGS its popular composting workshop to Ka`u this Saturday. Master composter-educator Ann Hassler presents the workshop from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Earth Matters Farm on South Point and Kama`oa Roads. Register at hiartrecycle@gmail.com or 985-8725.

KA`U RESIDENTS 60 YEARS of age or older can apply for senior ID cards tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at St. Jude’s Church in Ocean View.
Call 928-3100 for more information.

KA`U PHOTOGRAPHERS PETER AND ANN BOSTED present a program at After Dark in the Park on Tuesday. The longtime photographers have been permitted to survey and photograph lava tubes that give volcanoes their shield-like shape by acting like pipes to transport lava from its source to the ocean.

Where lava tubes go, new land is formed. What do they look like? How are they formed? What can we learn from them?

Peter and Ann Bosted, of Ocean View, offer a 3D tour
of lava caves at After Dark in the Park Tuesday.
NPS Photo from Peter and Ann Bosted

The Bosteds share their stunning 3D photos of these mysterious volcanic caves. Thanks to 3D, you will feel that you are there. You’ll learn about their beauty, ecological and cultural importance. Hear how they are documented, protected and conserved. After seeing this show, you may never feel the same about lava tubes.
The program at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park begins at 7 p.m.
See nps.gov/havo.

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_February2016.pdf.

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

An exhibit of works by members of Volcano Village Artists Hui opens this weekend. See more below. Image from VAC

ELECTRIC UTILITY TRANSFORMATION is the topic of a bill under consideration at the state Legislature. HB2571 would require the state’s investor-owned electric utilities to phase out the acquisition, ownership and use of new and existing generation resources.

“The nature of the electric utility business is evolving rapidly in light of technical, market and public policy changes that are occurring globally, nationally and in Hawai`i,” the bill states. “In particular, alternative energy technologies have advanced significantly in recent years, leading to an explosion of new markets, jobs and local energy sources. Despite these advances, Hawai`i’s electricity customers continue to endure the highest electricity prices in the country, and the high cost of this essential service imposes substantial burdens upon Hawai`i’s households and businesses.”

Hawai`i Island Rep. Nicole Lowen is
vice chair of House Committee on
Energy & Environmental Protection.

According to the bill, “even in a period of significant energy transformation, Hawai`i’s vertically integrated and monopolistic investor-owned electric utilities have not transitioned, and do not appear to be transitioning, to a sustainable business model capable of addressing the ongoing energy transformation. Investor-owned electric utilities must transform over time from their current role as owner and operator of a fleet of generation units to that of ‘electric utility of the future,’ which plays the critical role of system planner and operator of energy grids that are supplied with high levels of renewable and sustainable energy from distributed energy resources and independent power producers.”
The bill places a high priority on transforming Hawai`i’s investor-owned electric utilities grids into modern, advanced electrical networks that can integrate greater quantities of customer-sited distributed energy resources, such as rooftop solar.
After Dec. 31, 2020, investor-owned electric utilities would not be permitted to own or operate any generation resources in Hawai`i or acquire electricity from any of their affiliated interests for distribution to their customers.
The bill is scheduled for a hearing tomorrow before the House Committee on Energy and Environmental Protection.
Track progress of this and other bills at capitol.hawaii.gov.
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HAWAI`I’S U.S. SENATORS RECEIVED grades of A from the National Education Association’s Legislative Report Card for the 114th Congress’s first session in 2015. The report card took into account the senators’ stands on issues including the Elementary & Secondary Education Act, college affordability, human and civil rights and education funding.

“I’m proud to have earned an A on NEA’s Annual Legislative Report Card,” Sen. Brian Schatz said. “If we want the best for the next generation, then we need to give them the best education possible. Let’s fund our schools and put our students first.”
Read about the NEA’s report card at nea.org.

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U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has served two tours of duty
in the Middle East. Photo from Office of Rep. Gabbard

U.S. REP. TULSI GABBARD CO-INTRODUCED the Chris Kotch VA Education Access Act to close a loophole in the Post 9-11 GI Bill that has prevented some injured reservists from getting the full benefits they have earned. The bill is named after Army Reservist Christopher Kotch, who was seriously injured by an IED while serving on active duty in Iraq. He was sent to Walter Reed Hospital but was not officially discharged until he reported back to his Reserve unit. While Kotch was medically retired as a result of his combat injuries – which should have made him eligible for the full benefit – his discharge paperwork says he simply finished his active duty obligation. Because of that wording, which says Kotch was temporarily transferred from active duty service back to the Reserves before being discharged, the Department of Veterans Affairs said Kotch wasn’t eligible for the full benefit and instead would only receive a reduced portion.

“Too often, our service members have to fight through bureaucratic red tape to get the benefits they have rightfully earned and deserve,” Gabbard said. “This bill would ease the financial burden for wounded warriors, like Army Reservist Chris Kotch, who were discharged due to a service-connected disability, and have taken on student loans and other personal debt for education rather than receiving the full VA education benefit they earned.”
The Chris Kotch VA Education Access Act would change the language of the Post 9-11 GI Bill to ensure that anyone medically separated or medically retired from the Armed Forces would be eligible for the full benefit. The legislation would be retroactive to the enactment of the Post 9-11 GI Bill in 2009.
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Ocean View residents Peter and Ann Bosted
Photo from LaSalle 3D

AFTER DARK IN THE PARK tomorrow features Ka`u photographers Peter and Ann Bosted. The photographers, who have been permitted to survey and photograph lava tubes, share their 3D photos of these mysterious volcanic caves and discuss their beauty, ecological and cultural importance and how they are documented, protected and conserved.

The program at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park begins at 7 p.m.
See nps.gov/havo.

KONANE: A TRADITIONAL GAME of Strategy is the topic Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Kilauea Visitor Center’s lanai in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Participants test their strategic skills against friends and make their own konane cloth boards to play this popular game on at home. Free; park entrance fees apply.

VOLCANO VILLAGE ARTISTS HUI presents Sightlines, a curated collection of members’ works, at Volcano Art Center Gallery in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park beginning Saturday, Feb. 13. The exhibit continues through March 20, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.

Volcano Village Artists Hui presents Sightlines at Volcano
Art Center Gallery.

This multi-media exhibition features works by Lisa Louise Adams, Margaret Barnaby, Pam Barton, Mary Goodrich, Emily Herb, Zeke Israel, Elizabeth Miller, Ira Ono, Eric Wold and Michael and Misato Mortara. The artists included in the exhibit have lived, worked and interacted with the unique elements and energy of the Volcano rain forest area over an extended period of time. The exhibit seeks to provide residents and visitors an opportunity to view how the dynamic environment has captured their interest and inspired their imaginations. The surrounding environment within their particular “line of sight” is expressed through the art form they’ve worked years to perfect.

Volcano Village Artists Hui is possibly best known for its annual studio tour in November. The event over Thanksgiving weekend draws quite a crowd as the artists open their studios and welcome the public to see their latest works.
Volcano Village Artists Hui is a group of working artists in Volcano who have skills in many art media. Reflected in their work are the elements of Hawai`i such as lava, birds, animals, tropical plants and the culture of Hawai`i as it blends with each artist’s origins. All of the Hui artists have the distinction of having works included in fine art collections and have won major awards in their chosen media. Over the 25 years the Hui has been in existence, each artist’s work has evolved with new ideas, materials and methods. There is always an awareness of living on Hawai`i Island that suffuses the entire line of works; regardless of artist or medium. Within the group of artists, there is a feeling of achievement as they reach for the goal of fulfilling personal ambitions as well as enriching the community with their creative efforts.

In addition to the works of art on display, an abundance of educational offerings are scheduled with participating artists including lectures and demonstrations. All educational offerings will be held at VAC Gallery in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. These events are free of charge; park entrance fees apply.

Tickets are available for Saturday's fundraiser.
Image from VAC

For more information, see volcanoartcenter.org or call VAC Gallery at 967-7565.

TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE FOR Love the Arts: m’ART’i Gras taking place Saturday, Feb. 13, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village. VAC’s 12th annual fundraiser gala invites guests to add to their art collection, enjoy gourmet catered food and wines and partake in silent and live auctions that include art experiences, hotel stays, restaurants, local products and gift certificates to local businesses. $55 for VAC members; $65 for nonmembers.
See volcanoartcenter.org or call 967-8222.

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

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_February2016.pdf.

Members of Kea`au High School's Peace for the Roots team traveled to Ka`u last weekend, staying at Pahala Plantation Cottages and volunteering at Hawai`i Wildlife Fund's first 2016 Ka`u Coast Cleanup. HWF Photo by K. Matthews

HAWAI`I COUNTY MAYOR BILLY KENOI yesterday declared a state of emergency as the number of confirmed cases of dengue fever on the island surpassed 250. In October 2015, the state Department of Health reported the first two confirmed cases.

“A state of emergency for Hawai`i County is authorized in order to prevent the continued spread of this outbreak and to eliminate the dengue fever virus from Hawai`i Island,” Kenoi said in the declaration, which helps county officials undertake mosquito control measures and engage in public education and outreach efforts.

Mayor Billy Kenoi

While Gov. David Ige said he supports the county’s decision to issue a state of emergency and is working to add additional resources to the effort, he declined to follow Kenoi’s proclamation with one at the state level. He also said he will issue a state of emergency if necessary. He said the state will issue an emergency proclamation if and when conditions meet the following criteria:

The dengue outbreak requires additional resources beyond current levels;
The dengue outbreak has spread to other islands;
The outbreak has expanded to include zika and other vector-borne diseases;
It is necessary to waive certain laws and regulations;
The state determines it will need federal assistance.

Ige said the state is working to release the state Health Department’s five percent budget restriction of $250,000 to fund eight vector control positions, one entomologist and one communications position.
The state previously released another five percent ($250,000) restriction so the department could fund costs incurred while responding to the onset of the dengue outbreak.

“The decision to issue an emergency proclamation is one made by professionals,” Ige said at a news conference days before Kenoi’s action. At that time, Hawai`i County Civil Defense Chief Darryl Oliveira said the county was close to declaring an emergency, citing a depletion of funds.

“The state supports the county’s effort to break the cycle of dengue fever infection and transmission on Hawai`i Island,” Ige said. “Our number one priority is the health and safety of Hawai`i’s residents and visitors. We will continue to work with county officials on a daily basis.”

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FIREWORKS WERE HEARD around Ka`u last night. It was a New Year celebration, the Chinese New Year, which began yesterday. It is the Year of the Red Fire Monkey, known for quickness and smarts.

According to Chinese Five Elements Horoscopes, Monkey contains Metal and Water. Metal is connected to gold, and Water is connected to wisdom and danger. Therefore, we will deal with more financial events in the Year of the Monkey. Monkey is a smart, naughty, wily and vigilant animal. To have good return for monetary investments, we need to outsmart the Monkey. Metal is also connected to the Wind. That implies the status of events will be changing very quickly. Think twice before you leap when making changes to finance, career, and business and personal relationships.

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HAWAI`I FARMERS UNION UNITED asks Ka`u residents to testify on bills scheduled for hearings tomorrow.

SB2989 would exempt non-hazardous foods at farmers markets from inspection or permitting and calls for permits for potentially hazardous food sales.

SB3098 calls for creation of a state-level land acquisition fund for ag land.
SB3031 appropriates funds to repair old irrigation systems.
SB 2967 and HB2581 would appropriate funds for community food forests.
SB2959 and HB1999 create an incentive to grow feed in Hawai`i.
To be included in the hearing, testimony must be received by 3:30 p.m. today. Read the bills and provide testimony at capitol.hawaii.gov.
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Hawai`i Wildlife Fund staff and volunteers continue to scour
the Ka`u Coast this year. HWF Photo by Megan Lamson

THIRTY-SEVEN people helped Hawai`i Wildlife Fund during its first 2016 Ka`u Coast Cleanup on Super Bowl Sunday. Participants included Peace for the Roots team at Kea`au High School, whose members stayed at Pahala Plantation Cottages during their trip to Ka`u, and Hawai`i Community College’s Service Learning Projects.

Volunteers removed nearly 870 pounds of debris, including about 450 pounds of derelict fishing nets. They also removed one tire from Japan and moved one propane tank above the high tide level so it wouldn’t refloat and endanger wildlife. HWF has now removed over 204 tons of debris from the shores around the Hawaiian archipelago.
HWF hosts its next event on Hawai`i Island on Saturday, March 5, a kayak cleanup at Ka`awaloa/Captain Cook Monument with Kona Boys and Hawai`i State Parks.
Sign up at kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com or 769-7629.
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FEBRUARY IS PEAK HUMPBACK whale season in Hawai`i, and boaters are reminded to keep a safe distance from these annual visitors. Vessel-whale collisions can result in death or injury to whales and boaters.

Whales are now here in large numbers, so it is important for everyone to be extra vigilant for their own safety and for the protection of the whales. Two confirmed whale-vessel contacts have been reported in Hawai`i this season. Ocean users may provide information on distressed animals to aid in monitoring and conservation efforts.

Boaters are reminded to post a lookout at all times throughout the year and maintain a safe speed. Whale calves are especially vulnerable to vessel strikes because they are difficult to see as they rest just under the surface and surface more frequently.

Approaching and viewing from the side is an acceptable
boating maneuver. Image from HIHWNMS

Humpback whale season in Hawai`i generally runs from November through May, although whales may be encountered in limited numbers during other months.
Mariners are asked to report any collisions with whales, or injured or entangled whales, to NOAA by calling the 24-hour hotline at 1-888-256-9840.
The following guidelines are suggested to help reduce vessel-whale collisions:

Keep a Sharp Lookout – Look for whales and other hazards;
Watch Your Speed – Research shows that speeds of 10 knots or less to reduce frequency and injuries of collisions;
Stay at the Helm – Always keep your hands on the wheel and the throttle;
Keep your Distance – Once you’ve sighted a whale, stay at least 100 yards away as required by law.
Humpback whales are an endangered species protected by the Endangered Species Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, Hawai`i State Law and the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. It is illegal to approach a humpback whale closer than 100 yards by sea and 1,000 feet by air.

The sanctuary, which is co-managed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, was designated to protect humpback whales and their habitat in Hawai`i.
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PETER AND ANN BOSTED, of Ocean View Ranchos, are featured speakers at After Dark in the Park today at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. The photographers share their 3D photos of mysterious lava tubes and discuss their beauty, ecological and cultural importance and how they are documented, protected and conserved.

Participants learn to play konane tomorrow.
Photo from NPS

See nps.gov/havo.

PARTICIPANTS TEST THEIR STRATEGIC skills against friends and make their own konane cloth boards to play this popular game at home tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Kilauea Visitor Center’s lanai in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.

Free; park entrance fees apply.

THE THEME OF VOLCANO ART CENTER’S 12th annual fundraiser is Love the Arts: m’ART’i Gras. The gala takes place this Saturday from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village. Tickets are $55 for VAC members; $65 for nonmembers.
See volcanoartcenter.org or call 967-8222.

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

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_February2016.pdf.

President Obama's 2017 budget provides funds for Ala Kahakai Historic Trail land acquisition. See more below. Photo by Julia Neal

BILLS OF INTEREST TO RURAL KA`U residents receive hearings at the state Legislature this week.

SB2350 would restrict any subdivision of parcels of agricultural land 100 acres or greater in size. It would require owners to make and implement farm plans prior to construction of any homes on the resulting legal lots of record.

A bill at the state Legislature calls for study of Korean Natural
Farming methods to control invasive species such as
the coffee berry borer.

“Hawai`i State Constitution makes the conservation and protection of Hawai`i’s agricultural lands a priority,” the bills states. “It charges the state to ‘promote diversified agriculture, increase agricultural self-sufficiency and assure the availability of agriculturally suitable lands.’ This priority is reflected in the state plan as well, which declares self-sufficiency, social and economic mobility, and community well-being as the values guiding the state plan. Securing agricultural lands and promoting agriculture are essential to meet these goals. …
“Agricultural lands must be protected from such subdivision in order to prevent the fractionalization of agricultural parcels and promote the conservation of large agricultural tracts.”
SB2746 and HB2718 support Korean Natural Farming practices. The bills call for establishment within the Department of Agriculture of a Korean Natural Farming pilot program to explore the feasibility of using the techniques to combat various agricultural pests in Hawai`i, including the little fire ant, coffee berry borer, macadamia felted coccid, macadamia fungus, `ohi`a wilt, banana bungee, coqui frogs and fire weed. Korean natural farming is a technique that involves collecting and culturing indigenous microorganisms and reintroducing them into an agroecosystem.
SB2659 calls for Hawai`i Department of Agriculture to issue hemp grow permits. It would establish an industrial hemp pilot program to allow cultivation of industrial hemp and distribution of its seed in Hawai`i through limited activities by the Board of Agriculture for purposes of agricultural or academic research. It appropriates funds for Department of Agriculture staff to assist in registration of industrial hemp licensees.
Testimony can be submitted on these and other bills at capitol.hawaii.gov.
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George Szigeti

HAWAI`I TOURISM AUTHORITY is informing travelers about the state of emergency declared by Hawai`i County Mayor Billy Kenoi on Feb. 8 regarding the dengue fever outbreak.

“Travelers should not be alarmed by the County of Hawai`i’s state of emergency declaration for Hawai`i Island or allow this decision to alter their travel plans to any of the Hawaiian Islands,” HTA President and CEO George Szigeti said. “This declaration is a good strategic move by the County of Hawai`i, as it will provide government officials with additional funding and resources to eliminate dengue fever from Hawai`i Island.

“As of today, 252 people on Hawai`i Island have become ill by dengue fever over the past five months, of which 24 have been visitors. The rate of confirmed cases has been declining since January and, currently, only one case is considered infectious. Moreover, most of the dengue fever cases on Hawai`i Island have been confined to the rural southwestern region. No locally acquired cases of dengue fever have been found on any other island of Hawai`i.
“It’s important to note that no health organization has advised against traveling to the Hawaiian Islands at any time since the outbreak of dengue fever began on Hawai`i Island. Travelers should also take note that Hawai`i Gov. David Ige has chosen not to issue a statewide emergency proclamation since none of the conditions for doing so have been realized.”
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U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono

U.S. SEN. MAZIE HIRONO PRAISED President Obama’s inclusion of a number of Hawai`i priorities in his Fiscal Year 2017 budget, released yesterday.

“The economic and social progress that our country has made since President Obama took office in 2009 is a testament to the Administration’s work and the resilience of the American people,” Hirono said. “The President’s final budget continues to fund priorities that support middle class families and small businesses, and charts a path forward to face challenges that lie ahead,” Hirono said. “The budget demonstrates that Hawai`i continues to play a key role in keeping our country safe, supporting research and development, and protecting our environment and natural resources. I look forward to working with my colleagues and the Administration to see these programs fully funded.”
For education, the budget includes $33.97 million for Native Hawaiian Education Act programs; $350 million for Preschool Development Grants; $28.8 million for Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions in Higher Education; $8.3 million to fund the Asian-American and Native American-Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions program; $30 million for Compact Impact funding, which Hawai`i used in 2015 to provide educational and educational-related services for Compact of Free Association migrants; $800 million for Title III English Language Acquisition Formula Grants, which states use to fund English Language Learners programs; protecting and strengthening the Pell Grant program, consistent with Hirono’s proposals to allow students to use Pell Grants on a year-round basis and index Pell Grant awards to inflation in the future to help families keep up with rising college costs.
Obama budgeted more than $32 million for Hawai`i’s Island Forests at Risk landscape proposal, including $12 million for Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. An additional $5 million is provided for Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail land acquisition under the National Trails Systems Collaborative Landscape.
Support in the fight against Rapid `Ohi`a Death includes studies by U.S. Geological Survey to predict areas that may be at risk of further invasion. USGS will also develop genetic assays to quantify fungal infection in wood, soil, potential insect vectors and other relevant environmental samples and to rapidly confirm presence of the fungus in the field.
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U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz

U.S. SEN. BRIAN SCHATZ, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, commended the Obama Administration’s proposal of $1.8 billion to fight the Zika virus.

“I’m pleased that the administration is aggressively responding to the Zika outbreaks and is working to protect Americans from this devastating virus,” Schatz said. “We should quickly approve these funds, which will give our communities, states, and health professionals at home and around the world the resources needed to address Zika.”
The president’s proposal will go toward expanding mosquito control, speeding up research and testing of vaccines and new diagnostics, and funding education and outreach to health care providers and women who are or may become pregnant, among other activities.
Last week, Schatz joined 45 Senate Democrats and sent a letter to President Obama urging a coordinated interagency response plan to address the spread of the Zika virus both at home and abroad. The letter called for the president to take a number of new actions, including taking the Zika virus into consideration in his Fiscal Year 2017 budget request.
Zika, a mosquito-borne virus, has been spreading throughout the Americas and has been linked with neurological ailments which can cause paralysis and devastating birth defects. The Centers for Disease Control have issued its highest alert level for Zika, while the World Health Organization has declared it a global health emergency.
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Tutu & Me teaching assistants Janessa Jara and Tiana Pascubillo
and lead teacher Tori Kaeo are raising funds
for the program this month.

TUTU & ME TRAVELING PRESCHOOL is raising funds by selling Punalu`u Cinnamon Bread. Tickets are on sale now through Monday, Feb. 22 for $7 per loaf, and quantities are limited. Delivery date is Friday, March 4 in front of Na`alehu Ace Hardware from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

To purchase tickets, call 929-8571 or stop by Na`alehu Community Center on Mondays and Wednesdays or Pahala Community Center on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.
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IMUA KA`U COMMUNITY Outreach Team presents the Train the Trainer Series with Hannah Preston Pita, the CEO of Big Island Substance Abuse Council, starting in February and continuing through August. The first workshop will be Friday, Feb. 12 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Na`alehu Community Center and will focus on the subject of mental health. Donations will be accepted for class attendance, and coffee and snacks provided.

To register, email Pamella.Deniz@bisac.com with IMUA KA`U in the subject line. For questions, call Elizabeth Murph at 961-7051.

VALENTINE’S WEEKEND HUKILAU begins Friday and continues through Sunday at Whittington Beach Park. Handijam presents this blanket and toy drive featuring Buddy Cage, of New Riders of the Purple Sage. $15 suggested donation; veterans free.

Call 917-561-4800.

VOLCANO ART CENTER’S 12th annual fundraiser is takes place Saturday from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village. Tickets are $55 for VAC members; $65 for nonmembers.

See volcanoartcenter.org or call 967-8222.

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