Lo'ihi, now known as Kama'ehaukanaloa, is the next seamount expected to rise as a volcano out of the the Pacific from the mantle plume, the hotspot of the Hawaiian Islands. Image from National Geographic

   The former name was introduced in 1955 by Dr. Kenneth O. Emery, following a four-day bathymetric (sea-floor topography) survey in 1954 off the south coast of the Island of Hawai'i. The survey was done at the request of the Office of Naval Research and five seamounts were identified.
    Emery, a professor at the University of Southern California, asked Mary Kawena Pukui and Martha Hohu (both Bishop Museum staff), and Dr. Gordon A. Macdonald (HVO Director) to name the seamounts. They selected names based on a short physical description. For the seamount located about 30 miles (19 km) south of the Kīlauea coastline and rising to 3,189 ft (975 m) below sea level, the name Lōʻihi was assigned, meaning long; indeed, this seamount is longer than its neighbors.
    At the time, Dr. Emery speculated that: "There is a high degree of probability that the seamounts are of volcanic origin, and correspondingly that the differences which exist may be indications of the nature of the early stages of a volcano forming well below sea level. If this conclusion is correct then the two shallowest seamounts (Papa'u and Loihi) must be considered parasitic (in the sense of topography not activity) volcanoes on the flank of Kilauea..."
    In other words, Emery interpreted "Loihi" to be a volcanic cone erupted by Kīlauea. However, the seamount was recognized to be an active submarine volcano, and the youngest volcano in the long line of the Hawaiian-Emperor chain, because of earthquake swarms in the 1970s. Kamaʻehuakanaloa's most recent eruption is thought to have been in 1996, when HVO detected 4,377 earthquakes between mid-July and mid-August. Recent oceanographic surveys have also determined that Papa'u is an uplifted fault block on the margin of the Hilina slump, not a volcano.

    It will be a millennia before Kamaʻehuakanaloa emerges from Moananuiākea (the Pacific Ocean). The volcano does make its presence known with earthquakes that are occasionally felt on Island of Hawai'i, though.
    Most recently, just before Christmas in the early morning of December 24th, 2021, a magnitude 4.9 earthquake under Kamaʻehuakanaloa caused weak to light shaking felt by at least 29 people from Nāʻālehu to as far north as Kailua Kona and Honomū. In the 2 weeks leading up to this earthquake, over 50 smaller earthquakes had been detected by HVO's earthquake-monitoring network.
    Kamaʻehuakanaloa may be out of sight, but it is not out of mind. It is honored in mele and though it remains under the ocean surface, it continues to occasionally remind us of its presence with earthquakes we can feel on land. In thousands of generations, perhaps our descendants will witness Kamaʻehuakanalo, the "reddish child of Kanaloa," finally emerging and forming a new island.

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KAʻŪ RESIDENTS CAN DRIVE HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTE to Kona and Hilo for free disposal. The events are between 7:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 5 at Waiākea High School Parking Lot B in Hilo (entry via Po‘okela Parkway, upper driveway off W. Kāwili Street), and on Saturday, Feb. 12, at West Hawai‘i Civic Center Parking Lot (entry via Ane Keohokalole Highway). New location. 

    The County of Hawai‘i’s Department of Environmental Management holds these regular collection events at no charge to the public, so households can dispose acceptable household hazardous waste in a manner that protects both public health and the environment. Acceptable household hazardous waste includes automotive fluids, used batteries, fluorescent bulbs, and pesticides. 

    For a list of acceptable and unacceptable household hazardous waste, visit https://www.hawaiizerowaste.org/recycle/householdhazardous-waste/.  

    The website includes other information on solid waste diversion and recycling. The two events are
for household-generated and self-hauled waste only. Businesses, government agency, non-profit agency and farm wastes are prohibited by law. No latex paint, no electronic waste, and no tires will be accepted. 

     Social/Physical Distancing Rules for Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Collection Events include remaining in vehicles unless directed by authorized personnel. Prior to arriving at the event, place household waste items in trunk or truck bed. Make sure trunk can be unlocked or opened remotely. Those without have a trunk or truck bed can place in back seat of vehicle. All containers must be disposable and will not be returned. Distancing of six feet and face masks are required.

    With questions, contact Chris ChinChance, Recycling Specialist with the Department of Environmental Management, at (808) 961- 8554, or email recycle3@hawaiicounty.gov.