Ka‘ū News Briefs, Thursday, June 16, 2022

People have gathered at the rim of Kilauea Volcano for more than a century, including here
in 1910. See Volcano Watch below to learn about a forgotten collapse of the crater. NPS photo

OPPORTUNITY & URGENCY ARE TAGGED TO THE TROPICAL AgTECH CONFERENCE JUNE 22 AND 23 at University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo. The event is entitled, The International Conference for Innovative Solutions in Sustainable Tropical Agriculture.

Sponsors are the Ulupono Initiative, NEC, Kamehameha Schools, Meadow Gold, USDA, Department of Agriculture, U.H. Cooperative Extension and County of Hawaiʻi.

Kaʻū rancher Michelle Galimba will
be one of the speakers at the Tropical
AgTech Conference in Hilo June 22 and 23.

Among the speakers is Michelle Galimba who is described in the program as "a cattle rancher in Kaʻū on Hawaiʻi Island where she runs Kuahiwi Ranch with her brother, Guy. Their family ranch provides locally grown beef to supermarkets, farmer’s markets, and restaurants on Oʻahu and Hawaiʻi Island. Having grown up in agriculture in Hawaiʻi, she has seen first hand the stresses and constraints which make farming and ranching particularly challenging in Hawaiʻi. She is interested in the key role that agriculture, particularly small farms, has to play in addressing the big challenges of our time: economic inequity, political dis-enfranchisement, biodiversity loss, and climate change. Michelle has served on the State of Hawaiʻi’s Board of Agriculture as well as on the boards of numerous agricultural organizations and conservation non-profits."
See all of the conference cast of international speakers from private companies, educational institutions, government and non-profits at www.tropagtech.com/speakers. They include such people as David Slaughter, a professor of biological and agricultural engineering, and director of the Smart Farm Initiative at University of California, Davis, and Arama Kukutai, CEO of Plenty.

The conference website states that the "inaugural Tropical AgTech Conference brings together key global leaders in agricultural technology, to spur innovation and create solutions to the urgent food system problems in the tropics." It says it provides the opportunity to "develop creative, technology-based solutions that increase productivity and efficiency for smallholder farms in the tropics. Innovations must be climate-smart, farmer-friendly to implement and economically viable at small scale production."

Regarding urgency, the organizers note that the "highest concentrations of hunger already exist in the tropics and climate change is making it increasingly challenging to produce food in the tropics. Currently approximately 40% of the global population live in the tropics with expectations to reach 50% by 2040. ...Climate change is already having a negative impact on existing crops, and it is expected to get worse.

"Driven primarily by climate change, the tropics are expanding. Developing solutions that allow for agriculture production near population centers in the tropics is vital and potentially very profitable."

The organizers say they want to support tech solutions for increased productivity of small farms. Currently, "AgTech is focused on large-scale production when 80% of food consumed globally comes from small-scale farms (~5 acres)."

The conference organizers contend that "Hawaiʻi can play a critical role in providing solutions around the world. Hawaiʻi is an ideal place for incubating Tropical AgTech ideas and solutions given our climate, the research and development already taking place here, and our island’s unique resources. Hawaiʻi can be a leader for stimulating agricultural technologies in the tropics and providing solutions to increase food production to help feed the 3.7 billion people living in the tropics."

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see www.facebook.com/kaucalendar/. See latest print edition at www.kaucalendar.com. See upcoming events at https://kaunewsbriefs.blogspot.com/2022/04/upcoming-events-for-kau-and-volcano.html.

JANEAL MCCULLOGH WHO FREQUENTS KA'Ū AND SOUTH KONA is wanted by police. Hawaiʻi Island police are asking for the public’s assistance with locating the 44-year-old in connection with several financial criminal investigations. McCullough is described as 5 feet 3 inches tall, 135 pounds, with brown

hair and brown eyes. Police would also like to let the public know that harboring or concealing a wanted person could results in criminal charges being filed against the person who harbors or conceals the wanted person.
Anyone with information on McCullough’s whereabouts is encouraged to contact Detective Donovan Kohara at (808) 326-4646 Ext. 267, or via email at donovan.kohara@hawaiicounty.gov. They may also contact the police department’s non-emergency number at (808) 935-3311.

A FORGOTTEN COLLAPSE OF HALEMA'UMA'U CRATER IN JUNE 1916 is the subject of this week's Volcano Watch, written by scientists and affiliates of USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. The passage of time has a way of isolating notable events of the past; present-day historians can easily lose track of individual events in the "fog" of history. Volcanology is no exception, especially when reflecting on the complex eruptive histories of Kīlauea and Mauna Loa, two of the world's most active volcanoes.

Last month, a "Volcano Watch" article highlighted a lesser-known Mauna Loa eruption that ended May 31, 1916. Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) staff had to make a quick turnaround a week later when Kīlauea Volcano's Halemaʻumaʻu crater began to subside. A series of collapse events took place from June 5–7, 1916, and observers described it as one of the most spectacular occurrences they had ever witnessed at Kīlauea.

A decade before these events, a continuous lava lake re-appeared within Halemaʻumaʻu for the first time since a collapse in 1894. Relatively steady lake activity continued—through the 1916 Mauna Loa eruption—until June 5, 1916. That morning, HVO staff were surprised to find the lava lake 40 feet (12 meters) lower than it had been measured the day before, when its surface was 300 feet (91 meters) below the crater rim.

View of the walls of Halemaʻumaʻu during the crater collapse of June 5, 1916, looking northeast from the south side of the crater. The lava lake is visible at the lower left, and the outer crater walls are at the top. The crater rim is just out of frame to the top. Within the crater is a bench of lake overflows that marks earlier high-lava levels before the lake began draining; this surface of this bench sat nearly 300 feet (91 m) below the crater rim. A substantial section of the bench has recently collapsed (with a dashed white line marking its former trace), littering talus debris around the edge of the lava lake and exposing the outer crater wall that was previously buried. USGS image

That, however, was only the preamble. From 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on June 5, the lava level dropped another 200 feet (61 meters)! The receding lava formed an inner pit within Halemaʻumaʻu, surrounded by a bench of earlier lake overflows plastered against the outer crater walls. As draining continued, sections of this bench began to "topple" into the still-molten-but-dropping lake.

These collapses sent billowing clouds of earth-colored dust into the air. Sometimes, the crater walls retained a thin veneer of bench material—which alternatively consisted of dark, solidified lava rock and incandescent, partially-molten lava that had not fully cooled under the earlier flow crust.

Fortunately, the collapses did not seriously affect the integrity of the outer crater walls, allowing HVO staff to observe the entire spectacle. As described in HVO's weekly bulletin at that time: "Falls from the south inner cliffs became frequent and spectacular, as the bench matter, made of recent overflows, was red hot within, and broke or crumbled like masses of hard cheese. Sometimes this material flowed in a sugary fashion. The great blocks formed an incandescent talus slope below, which spread into a crumbling south promontory.

"These collapses eventually consumed the entirely of the bench on all sides of the lava lake. When these great masses of rock toppled into the molten lake, the lava sloshed back and forth in waves that lapped up the margins by several tens of feet (several meters) vertically. This resulted in constantly changing circulation patterns within the lava lake."

The lava level had dropped another 130 feet (40 m) by midday on June 6. However, the rate and severity of the collapses dramatically slowed, and the last substantial dust cloud from a collapse was observed around 11 a.m. on June 7. Lava began refilling the crater in the days that followed, eventually erasing most of the evidence of the 1916 collapse.

Visitors were coming to see Kīlauea Volcano during the 1916 collapse of
Halemaʻumaʻu and staying at Volcano House, shown in 1916, the year
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park was established. NPS photo

What caused the Halemaʻumaʻu lava lake to drain so quickly in early June 1916? Geophysical monitoring in recent decades has shown that significant summit depressurization is typically associated with intrusion or eruption elsewhere on the volcano, such as along the rift zones. The 2018 summit collapse and lower East Rift Zone eruption stands as an example of this process.

Though HVO did not have an extensive geophysical monitoring network in 1916, a seismometer near the summit of Kīlauea recorded an increased number of distant earthquakes during the collapse. Basic analysis suggested that they may have occurred along one of the rift zones—perhaps indicating magma transport from the summit lava lake, similar to the sequence of earthquakes that accompanied the major 1924 collapse of Halemaʻumaʻu.

With an ongoing summit eruption and lava lake, do we expect Kīlauea to experience a similar crater collapse anytime soon? The simple answer is no. Unlike during the 1916 collapse, the current lava lake is fed by a vent at its side rather than its base. Lacking an effective "drain," summit depressurization cannot evacuate lava from the crater so easily. The result of the current summit eruption has been to partially fill Halemaʻumaʻu crater, creating crust that is continuously uplifting and expanding to build a new crater floor.

Volcano Activity Updates: Kīlauea volcano is erupting. Its USGS Volcano Alert level is at WATCH (https://www.usgs.gov/natural-hazards/volcano-hazards/about-alert-levels). Kīlauea updates are issued daily.

Over the past week, lava has continued to erupt from the western vent within Halemaʻumaʻu crater. All lava is confined within Halemaʻumaʻu crater in Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. Sulfur dioxide emission rates remain elevated and were last measured at approximately 1,350 tonnes per day (t/d) on June 10. Seismicity is elevated but stable, with few earthquakes and ongoing volcanic tremor. Summit tiltmeters recorded one deflation-inflation event over the past week. For more information on the current eruption of Kīlauea, see https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/recent-eruption.

Mauna Loa is not erupting and remains at Volcano Alert Level ADVISORY. This alert level does not mean that an eruption is imminent or that progression to an eruption from the current level of unrest is certain. Mauna Loa updates are issued weekly.

This past week, about 26 small-magnitude earthquakes were recorded below the summit and upper elevation flanks of Mauna Loa—the majority of these occurred at shallow depths less than 15 kilometers (9 miles) below sea level. Global Positioning System (GPS) measurements show low rates of ground deformation over the past week. Gas concentrations and fumarole temperatures at both the summit and at Sulphur Cone on the Southwest Rift Zone have remained stable over the past week. Webcams show no changes to the landscape. For more information on current monitoring of Mauna Loa, see: https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/mauna-loa/monitoring.

Three earthquakes were reported felt in the Hawaiian Islands during the past week: a M2.5 earthquake 1 km (0 mi) SE of Paʻauilo at 25 km (16 mi) depth on June 15 at 9:36 p.m. HST, a M3.3 earthquake 4 km (2 mi) SSW of Pāhala at 35 km (22 mi) depth on June 15 at 9:36 a.m. HST, and a M3.5 earthquake 2 km (1 mi) SW of Pāhala at 32 km (20 mi) depth on June 9 at 10:26 p.m. HST.

HVO continues to closely monitor Kīlauea's ongoing eruption and Mauna Loa for any signs of increased activity.

Visit HVO's website for past Volcano Watch articles, Kīlauea and Mauna Loa updates, volcano photos, maps, recent earthquake info, and more. Email questions to askHVO@usgs.gov.

VOLCANO VILLAGE FOURTH OF JULY PARADE welcomes walking and riding groups and individuals. It is sponsored by Volcano Community Association in Volcano Village from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Monday, July 4 parade starts at the Post Office at 9 a.m. and ends at Cooper Center on Wright Rd., followed by Cooper Center’s Independence Day celebration packed with live entertainment, craft and food vendors, keiki games and a large silent auction from 9 a.m.to 11:30 a.m. Parking maps can be found at www.thecoopercenter.org. (No parking at Cooper Center except handicap permitted vehicles with prior reservation.)

SPONSOR A BUCKLE, VOTE FOR RODEO QUEEN ahead of the Saturday, July 9 Rodeo sponsored by Kaʻū Roping & Riding Association and ʻO Kaʻū Kākou. Event to be held on the rodeo grounds behind Nāʻālehu Park. Call 808-854-7917.

BECOME A VENDOR AT THE 3RD ANNUAL EXPERIENCE VOLCANO FESTIVAL on Saturday, July 30th and Sunday, July 31st from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Last year, over 2,500 visitors attended and over 40 events were featured during the EVH festival. All vendor spaces are $50 for both days of the festival. Sign up as a vendor or a sponsor at experiencevolcano.com. If you have questions, contact experiencevolcano@gmail.com.

SIGN UP FOR KAʻŪ COFFEE TRAIL RUNS with a change of date from July 3 to Sept. 17. Registration deadline for the annual event is Sept. 14. Organized by Hawaiʻi Island Racers, the 50K begins at 6 a.m., Half Marathon at 7 a.m., and 5K at 7:15 a.m., all starting from Kaʻū Coffee Mill at 96-2696 Wood Valley Road in Pāhala. Proceeds go to support ʻO Kaʻū Kakou. For more details on the event and registration fees, visit https://www.kaucoffeetrailruns.com/.

See The Kaʻū Calendar June Edition at www.kaucalendar.com