Ka`u Calendar News Briefs Monday, Dec. 7, 2015

NEXTERA ENERGY IS NOT INTERESTED in selling Hawai`i Electric Light Co. to Hawai`i Island Energy Cooperative, Duane Shimogawa reported in Pacific Business News. On Thursday at the ongoing evidentiary hearing regarding the proposed merger of NextEra and Hawaiian Electric Co., the co-op’s lawyer David Minkin asked NextEra President Eric Gleason if the company would consider selling HELCO to the co-op after owning it for 10 years. 

      NextEra previously stated that it would not sell HECO or its subsidiaries for at least 10 years after the merger is completed, Shimogawa reported.
      This morning at the hearing, Minkin asked Gleason if he would not willing to commit to such a sell “even it was in the best interest of the public.” Gleason said the company is not interested in making such a commitment.
      See bizjournals.com/pacific.
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“WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN, but I for one haven’t been this encouraged in a long time,” U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz said upon returning from the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris. “I think we really have a fighting chance. A year and half ago, if you had said we’d have this many nations participating, that China would be participating aggressively, that would have sounded wildly optimistic to anyone. But that’s exactly what’s happening.” 

      Schatz told Todd Simmons, of Civil Beat, that sharing Hawai`i’s recent progress in clean energy was one of his most rewarding experiences at the conference.
      “I was able to tell the story of Hawai`i’s clean energy program in every meeting – how we started with a voluntary program and targets that weren’t enough,” Schatz said. “Then we increased targets and made them mandatory. My message was it’s important for the international community to start, and once you start down that road, you won’t turn back.
      “To have such an aggressive clean energy program in the 50th state – even more aggressive than California’s cap-and-trade program — gives momentum and gives heart to some who are wondering what’s realistic and what’s not.”
      Schatz also commended Marshallese and Palau delegations for their progress in bringing attention to their vulnerability to sea level rise.
      “We in Hawai`i know all about the plight of our neighbors in the Marshalls and Palau, but that story has only recently been told to the rest of the world,” Schatz said. “They’ve been extraordinary, and I told them that. By force of will, they’ve inserted themselves into a critical conversation. … They’re a force to be reckoned with now on the international stage.”
      See civilbeat.com.
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REP. TULSI GABBARD VOTED IN FAVOR of the conference report for S.1177, the Every Student Succeeds Act that passed last week. The legislation makes significant changes to the No Child Left Behind Act and includes language Gabbard introduced earlier this year to reauthorize funding for the Native Hawaiian Education Act, which provides grants for innovative Native Hawaiian educational programs across Hawai`i. It corrects measures Gabbard opposed in the earlier House version of the bill, including codifying low sequestration-levels of education funding and Title I portability, which would have reduced the amount of funding that schools with the most need receive. 

      “I have long called for updating No Child Left Behind, and this bill helps to address many of the current challenges in our education system, including overly stringent standardized testing requirements that have put unnecessary pressure on schools, teachers and students for years without effectively improving education for our keiki,” Gabbard said. The bill gives states more flexibility to determine the best way to measure success in their schools and provides support for innovation, teacher quality, STEM education and more. The inclusion of the reauthorization for the Native Hawaiian Education Act, based on the bill I introduced, will continue critical funding for thousands of Native Hawaiian children and families.”
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SEN. MAZIE HIRONO URGED President Obama to quickly implement the Administration’s newly proposed parole program to reunite Filipino World War II veterans with their family members. In July, after years of advocacy from Hirono and others, the Obama Administration recommended that the Department of Homeland Security create a parole program to allow certain family members of Filipino World War II veterans to come to the United States to provide support and care to their aging Filipino veteran family members who are U.S. citizens or Legal Permanent Residents. However, the Administration has not yet announced important details about eligibility and the application process. 

      “President Obama’s initial announcement this summer was a relief to Filipino World War II veterans and their families who have waited decades to be reunited and to those of us who fought for years to end the visa backlog,” Hirono said. “The Administration is doing the right thing for these families. However, it is imperative that the Administration implement the parole program as quickly as possible so these veterans and their spouses, many of whom are in their 80s and 90s, can finally be together with their children.”
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MATT GERHART PROFILED KA`U HIGH Trojans’ boys basketball team in Hawai`i Tribune-Herald. Coach Daryl Shibuya told Gerhart that many of the players were also on the school’s eight-man football team and will also participate in spring sports. “For a small school, it’s always a challenge,” Shibuya said. “We’ve got a lot of young boys. We just want to have unity, bond and develop humans as players.”
      With Evan Manoha the only senior playing this season, Shibuya gave younger teammates the opportunity to play more during last week’s Wai`akea/Kea`au tournament.
      “The only way we are going to accomplish anything is as a team,” Shibuya said. “I stress that everyday. There are no superstars.”
      See hawaiitribune-herald.com.
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KA`U RESIDENT DICK HERSHBERGER brings Hawaiian Volcano Observatory founder Thomas Jaggar to life tomorrow and every other Tuesday. Programs begin at 10 a.m., 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.

VOLCANO IN SLO-MO: WHAT HIGH-SPEED Cameras Tell Us about Lava Lakes and Explosions is the topic at After Dark in the Park tomorrow. Around the world, volcanologists are finding new ways to use technology to better understand volcanic eruptions. Jacopo Taddeucci, of the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology in Rome, shares his expertise in volcanology and geology that has made him a pioneer in the use of high-speed cameras to capture volcanic explosions. The talk features spectacular footage from Stromboli, Etna, Yasur (New Hebrides), Sakurajima (Japan), and Fuego (Guatemala) and Batu-Tara (Indonesia) as well as Kilauea.
      The program begins at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. $2 donations support park programs; park entrance fees apply.

STAMPING (KAPALA) WITH PLANTS is the topic Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Kilauea Visitor Center lanai in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Stamping a design on fabric using plants is a fun and easy way to express creativity and get in touch with Hawaiian culture. 

      Free; park entrance fees apply. nps.gov/havo.

HANA HOU RESTAURANT IN NA`ALEHU holds its annual Keiki Christmas Party Wednesday at 5 p.m. with food, gifts, music and a visit from Santa.
      Held in honor of its founder Drake Fujimoto, the gathering is co-sponsored by Patty Fujimoto and the Hana Hou staff, as well as the community group `O Ka`u Kakou and its president Wayne Kawachi.
      Music led by Uncle Ernie Kalani and Santa will greet the crowd. Santa will pose for photos with the keiki, who will also receive gifts. Police will offer families photo IDs for keiki. Everyone can enjoy a free meal.