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| No charge to dump trash at Hawai`i County transfer stations, including Pahala, following Environmental Management Committee hearing public testimony yesterday. Photo from Hawai`i Zero Waste |
A PROPOSAL TO PAY TO THROW out trash got dumped by Hawai`i County’s Environmental Management Committee yesterday. Kohala County Council member Margaret Wyle introduced a bill to charge residents $1 per 33-gallon trash bag, with one bag free per week. After hearing public testimony mostly opposing the bill, Wille withdrew her proposal. Ka`u News Briefs received many comments on Facebook regarding the measure after reporting about it on Tuesday.
Barney Maliki: “Weren’t property taxes put in place to provide for public services such as trash disposal, roads, public facilities, etc? Now they raise taxes plus want the people to pay additional fees for the exact things we are already paying the taxes for! The county and state need to take a step back and reevaluate their annual operating budgets. … Watch how much trash will end up on the roadways then. I think I’ll just do like the old days and set up a burn barrel so all the neighborhood can smell my burning trash. And if I get complaints, that’s too bad; that’s my pulehu pit. So then the county will make a bill against pulehu barrels.” Larry Cush: This is a flawed proposal and will only increase the throwing of trash where it doesn’t belong. It would be better to put the money into making recycling easier and increase access to transfer stations. Dumb plan, the county could pay people to bring trash and recycles to transfer station and save more money. This cost should come from property taxes and perhaps sales tax.”
Irene Perrigo Eklund: “I don’t mind paying, but many just won’t pay, and our island will be covered in garbage. Also, we have enough hoarders, some will just hold onto the garbage on their lots. Not a good thing.”
Momi Maikai: I can see more people dumping everywhere except at the dump. Office of Environmental management loses all credibility! Charge for rubbish? Maybe she shouldn’t be on the council.”
Don Hatch: “We already have a problem with people dumping their garbage on the side of the road, even when they can drop it off for free at the transfer stations. If we charge them to drop off their refuse, then we will have a bigger problem. This is simply another expense that will trash our neighborhoods. I know several people that pick up their neighbor’s trash and take it to the transfer station for them. Some are doing it to make their life easier, and others are doing it because their neighbors are elderly and can’t do it for themselves. All this will do is give the Waste Management folks additional staff and increase Hawaiian cost of living.
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| PUC Commissioner Lorraine Akiba |
HENRY CURTIS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR of Life of the Land, reported thoughts of Public Utilities Commissioner Lorraine Akiba regarding the future of utility companies on his blog at ililanimediamedia.blogspot.com. Life of the Land is one of many organizations that submitted testimony to the PUC in opposition to the proposed merger of Hawaiian Electric Co. and NextEra Energy. Akiba made the remarks at a National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners conference in New York City.
“Success for us would be if we are able to get the utilities of our state to function as utilities of the future in terms of being energy services management companies and seeing customers as their active partners and giving those customers choice and empowerment,” Akiba said.
“One of the things that distinguish Hawai`i and because we are an island grid ... we have to row together. We can’t be throwing each other off the canoe and the canoe’s going to capsize and everybody goes down in the ocean.
“So a collaborative process is what we’ve been focusing on. Technical working groups with stakeholders, advocates and all the folks that have to be at the table.
“And sometimes I think at the commission we feel like we are the adults on the playground or sometimes we’re the referee at the ultimate fighting championship. Depending on the day, our staff comes back and reports to us on the success of our various collaborative working groups.
“I think collaboration is important for a small state like ours with the kind of utility structure we have, and so therefore that the process becomes ingrained, so that utilities no longer have to have us monitoring that dialogue but can actively engage in that dialogue with third parties, who help them deliver their services to customers, and (with) customers themselves. Then we can really have achieved that change, and they will be operating as utilities of the future.”
To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.
“One of the things that distinguish Hawai`i and because we are an island grid ... we have to row together. We can’t be throwing each other off the canoe and the canoe’s going to capsize and everybody goes down in the ocean.
“So a collaborative process is what we’ve been focusing on. Technical working groups with stakeholders, advocates and all the folks that have to be at the table.
“And sometimes I think at the commission we feel like we are the adults on the playground or sometimes we’re the referee at the ultimate fighting championship. Depending on the day, our staff comes back and reports to us on the success of our various collaborative working groups.
“I think collaboration is important for a small state like ours with the kind of utility structure we have, and so therefore that the process becomes ingrained, so that utilities no longer have to have us monitoring that dialogue but can actively engage in that dialogue with third parties, who help them deliver their services to customers, and (with) customers themselves. Then we can really have achieved that change, and they will be operating as utilities of the future.”
To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.
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| Mee Moua |
THE WHITE HOUSE HAS APPROVED a new policy to reunite Filipino World War II veterans with their children – an initiative that Sen. Mazie Hirono has long been fighting for. Since her election to the U.S. House in 2006, Hirono has pushed to end the visa backlog and expedite the visa process for the children of Filipino World War II veterans, including introducing the Filipino Veterans Family Reunification Act in the House in the 110th, 111th and 112th Congresses while Sen. Daniel Akaka introduced the same legislation in the Senate. In the Senate, Hirono worked with the Hawai`i delegation to introduce the Filipino Veterans Family Reunification Act in the 113th Congress on a bipartisan basis and then successfully included it in the Senate-passed Comprehensive Immigration Reform bill. This year, Hirono again reintroduced the Filipino Veterans Family Reunification Act on a bipartisan basis with the Hawai`i delegation and has continued pushing for its passage. Hirono has been working with advocates and colleagues on finding an Administrative solution to reunite the families of Filipino World War II veterans. Prior to the White House announcement, Hirono sent a letter to the President requesting that he take action by granting the sons and daughters of Filipino World War II veterans parole while they wait in the visa backlog.
“This is a day to celebrate,” said Mee Moua, president and executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice. “Even though the U.S. government promised Filipino World War II veterans U.S. citizenship in recognition of their service and contributions to America, it took more than 50 years before they actually received citizenship. Until now, the inhumanely long visa backlog has separated them from their children and denied them the opportunity to live together in the United States. We are grateful to the Obama Administration, and appreciate Sen. Hirono and other members of Congress for their leadership in elevating this issue so that our veterans can be reunited with their families and receive the love and care they need during their golden years. It’s long past time the United States made good on its promise, and we hope U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will implement this as soon as possible.”
Jane Clement, president of the Congress of Visayan Organizations Foundation, said “Sen. Hirono has consistently been by our side as we’ve fought to unify the families of Filipino WWII veterans. It has been an emotional, decades-long ordeal. We appreciate her work in both the U.S. House and Senate, and we are especially grateful to Pres. Obama for utilizing his executive powers to provide expedited processing for the children of Filipino WWII veterans. We will now do all we can to ensure families are aware of this new development and that they have the support needed to help file the appropriate applications and have the necessary documents to finally bring their families together.”
To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.
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Jane Clement, president of the Congress of Visayan Organizations Foundation, said “Sen. Hirono has consistently been by our side as we’ve fought to unify the families of Filipino WWII veterans. It has been an emotional, decades-long ordeal. We appreciate her work in both the U.S. House and Senate, and we are especially grateful to Pres. Obama for utilizing his executive powers to provide expedited processing for the children of Filipino WWII veterans. We will now do all we can to ensure families are aware of this new development and that they have the support needed to help file the appropriate applications and have the necessary documents to finally bring their families together.”
To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.
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| Jazz in the Forest presents a tribute to Miles Davis. |
FINAL PERFORMANCES OF The King and I take place tonight through Sunday. The show plays tonight and tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. and tomorrow and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. at Kilauea Military Camp Theater in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.
Tickets for tomorrow’s matinee are by reservation. Advance sale tickets for evenings and the Sunday matinee are available at Kilauea General Store, Kea`au Natural Foods and The Most Irresistible Shop in Hilo.
Tickets for tomorrow’s matinee are by reservation. Advance sale tickets for evenings and the Sunday matinee are available at Kilauea General Store, Kea`au Natural Foods and The Most Irresistible Shop in Hilo.
Call 982-7344 for reservations or more information.
JAZZ IN THE FOREST PRESENTS a tribute to Miles Davis and Island All-Star Jazz Jam tomorrow at Volcano Art Center’s Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village. Jr. Volcano Choy and VAC Jazz Ensemble jam with various jazz stars from the Big Island. Performances are at 4:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Tickets for matinees are $15 for VAC members ($20 non-members) and for the evening shows are $20 for VAC members ($25 non-members).
Tickets are available through today at volcanoartcenter.org, VAC’s Administration Office, VAC Gallery in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park and Basically Books in Hilo. Any remaining tickets will be sold at the door. Tickets may be picked up at VAC's office today until 5 p.m. or held at Will Call tomorrow.
Tickets for matinees are $15 for VAC members ($20 non-members) and for the evening shows are $20 for VAC members ($25 non-members).
Tickets are available through today at volcanoartcenter.org, VAC’s Administration Office, VAC Gallery in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park and Basically Books in Hilo. Any remaining tickets will be sold at the door. Tickets may be picked up at VAC's office today until 5 p.m. or held at Will Call tomorrow.
KUMU HULA BOBO PALACAT and Hula Halau Na Pua Ha`aheo `o Kona perform tomorrow from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on the hula platform near Volcano Art Center Gallery in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Loke Kamanu and `ohana share Na Mea Hula on the gallery porch from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.
SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.
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| See kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.swf and kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.pdf. |
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| See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_July2015.pdf. |
