Friday, July 31, 2009
The Garden Aisle
Introducing: The Garden Aisle
August, 2009
Katie Paul and Laurel Brier
August, 2009
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| ALOHA Kaua`i Gardeners and Growers, Thanks so much for your interest in The Garden Aisle! Our aim to bring both locally procured and Peaceful Valley Farm Supplies to a central location Kaua`i, while ensuring our prices are as affordable as possible. If you're contemplating starting your own "victory over recession" garden, the Garden Aisle is a one-stop resource for most everything you need. We're pleased to announce our first order due date will be next week on Thursday, August 6, before noon. Orders placed by this date will be available between August 20-22. That still gives you one week to decide on your orders. Check out our website at http://web.me.com/thegardenaisle to see what he have locally available, and also look at www.groworganic.com to see the wide selection of products offered by Peaceful Valley Farm Supply. PRICING: The prices Peaceful Valley offers on their site are the prices we offer to you (plus tax), and we internalize shipping so you don't have to! Please note, because we are internalizing shipping costs, we will not be able to offer the bulk discounts offered by Peaceful Valley at this time. Additionally, for bulk orders we will add a $200 charge per pallet. Although our goal is to help growers find more affordable amendments, at this time it's necessary for us to add this extra charge. Please keep in mind this is nearly 1/3 of the cost of shipping. ORDERING To place an order, please email us a list of each Item #, Name, Quantity, and Price of our local and Peaceful Valley products before each order due date PAYMENT We ask for a 50% upfront payment on each order, with the other half due at pick-up. After we receive your check we will process your order. Checks can be made out to The Garden Aisle, and sent to PO box 220, Anahola, HI 97603. |
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| The Garden Aisle Top 5 |
| Top 5 Ingredients for a Successful Garden |
| #1: Cover Crop |
| #2: Fertilize |
| #3: Dig, Spade, Weed, and get in shape |
| #4: Ready, set, GROW |
| #5: Expand your knowlege |
| Top 5 Ingredients for a Successful Garden With input from Garden Enthusiasts, Matt Field and April Couture, as well as Garden Aisle research. If you're new to gardening, the Peaceful Valley Catalogue can seem extensive: a list of amendments longer than you thought possible, enough tools to farm 10,000 acres, and pest control for any critter around the world! To help you through the process of choosing the right ingredients for your garden, we've put together a list with the help of a couple of garden experts to help you see where your gardening investment could be best spent. |
#1: Cover Crop  Cover crop is a great tool to increase nitrogen, organic matter, and soil fertility, as well as prevent nutrient depletion and soil erosion. Look for a warm-season cover crop such as buckwheat, sun hemp (crotolaria), or cowpea. A little goes a long way, so plant 2-3 lbs per 1000 square feet. ORGANIC BUCKWHEAT: item #SCN610, $1.99/lb SUNN HEMP: item # SCL815, $7.10/lb RED COWPEAS: item # SCL810, $1.80/lb (recommend buy innoculant with cowpeas) Cowpea Peanut & Lespedeza Inoculant (Treats up to 100 lbs of cowpeas, peanuts, black eye peas; adzuki, mung and velvet beans; pigeon pea; alyce clover, hairy indigo, crotolaria) ITEM # ISE200, $4.99/bag |
| #2: Fertilize As most of us on Kaua`i know, our soil needs some nutrition. There are a variety of products available, such as rock phosphate, lime, manure, bone meal and more, but to help out the small scale gardener we've picked out the best and most local options. VEGETABLE & ALL-PURPOSE MIX: A well-balanced organic fertilizer and a good all-around blend, this blend is highly recommended for vegetables, herbs, flowers, trees, shrubs, and container plants. Use at any stage of plant's life. Contains blood meal, fish bone meal, greensand, Norwegian kelp meal, langbeinite, soft rock phosphate and humic acid. Apply 5 lbs/100 sq ft. ITEM # F010, $8.99/6 lb box ITEM # F065, $27.99/25 lb bag KAUA`I BLUE ROCK DUST: used on a variety of organic farms in Moloa'a, this Kaua`i produced amendment contains a broad range of trace minerals which have been slowly lost through heavily farmed soils, erosion, and leaching. Known to improve soil vitality and plant health. Adding Rock Dust mineral content to a soil increases bacterial activity and promotes new root growth. These extended root systems allow plants to increase their mineral intake, and provide for stronger, healthier plants. The stronger a plant becomes, the better the yield, producing bigger, brighter, more flavorful fruits and vegetables. Use 1-2 lbs/ 100 sq ft. ITEM # 002, $10/3 lbs. HAWAI`I SPIRULINA: known to increase organic matter, reduce soil compaction, increase water retention, soil aeration and improve nutrient mobility. Also, slowly releases Nitrogen from the algae's cells into the soil. Can apply monthly during the growing season. 1 Tbs mixed with water is enough for 1,000 sq ft; 8 oz covers 15,000 sq ft. Plan to use within a few months of purchase. ITEM # 001, $4/lb KAUA`I WORM CASTINGS - 100% Kauai worm castings carry soluble plant nutrients and growth enhancing compounds, a diverse population of microbial life, and organic matter harboring a storehouse of nutrients that are not lost to rain and irrigation. Worm castings must be produced locally to be alive, and will be supplied the day of harvest. Our castings come from well-fed worms living in balanced environments by Crystal Harmony in Moloa`a. Simply spread a layer (about 1/2 inch deep) of worm castings around your favorite plants. Mulch and water. ITEM # 004 - $20/liter, $55/gallon, courtesy of Crystal Harmony KAUA`I WORM COMPOST HOME KIT - Start your own worm compost at home for an unlimited source of worm castings and tea! Provides adult worms, a rich population of healthy hatchlings, juveniles and eggs, as well as a bed of the rich food in which they were raised. The hatchlings and juveniles are so tiny that they add almost nothing to the weight of worms sold, but they are well started to jump start the worm bin population. ITEM # 003 - $55/1-2 lb starter kit, courtesy of Crystal Harmony  |
| #3: Dig, Spade, Weed, and get in shape Yes, gardening can be tough, but with the right tools your time can be much better managed, and your back less sore. Below are some of the biggest hurdles to gardening, and a tool to help: GRASS be GONE, DIGGING BEDS and PREPARING SOIL DIGGING SPADE, stainless steele: Polished stainless steel heads are easy to clean and rust resistant. These are perfect for ground preparation, double digging and other digging jobs. One piece weather-proofed hardwood handle splits to form a wishbone handle. 11"W x 7"L head, 28" handle and overall length of 39"(not good for rocky soils)ITEM # GDS260, $59.99  HAND TOOLS: FISKARS MULTI-PURPOSE PLANTING TOOL: Four tools in one. Slices through sod, digs out dandelions, carves through bags of soil, transports and transplants. The big grip is sturdy and comfortable. It's the first tool out of the shed and the last to be put away for the next battle.ITEM # GO377, $9.99  THREE PRONGED CULTIVATOR: Great for cultivating beds and clearing out established perennial gardens. Sharp tines work well for breaking the soil crust to loosen and aerate the soil. ITEM # GO370, $14.99 MAINTENANCE AND WEEDS FELCO #8 PRUNER: one of the most recommended tools a gardener can have. Expensive seeming, but high quality and guarenteed to become one of your best friends in the garden.ITEM # PF008, $59.99  GARDENING GLOVES: Excellent grip strength in a thinner, comfortable fit. Coated in nitril, a latex free substance known for its toughness against abrasion and thorns. Medium # GO1121, $7.99 Large # GO1122, $7.99 |
#4: Ready, set, GROW!  Ready to plant? Make sure your seedlings grow strong and healthy with these extras.36 CELL GREENHOUSE GROWER KIT: includes fiber grow cubes for growing flowers, vegetables, whatever you choose! Includes a re-usable carrying tray, professional greenhouse dome, and growing instructions and tips. ITEM # GP382, $5.99 ROOTS ORGANICS POTTING SOIL: A ready-to-use coco fiber-based potting soil, including high quality coco fiber, bat guano, premium earth worm castings, fish bone meal, feather meal, green sand, mycorrihzae, glacial rock dust, soybean meal, humic acid, and many more. Already blended with correct proportions of perlite and pumice for excellent drainage and a vigorous root system. ITEM # PSO600, $11.99/1.5 cu ft (30 lbs)  CERTIFIED ORGANIC SEEDS: There are lots of delicious herbs and veggies to plant, perhaps too many to choose from! To help speed up the search process we chose to highlight some of the most highly coveted varieties on island: BEETS: Chioga, ITEM #SNV8014, $1.99/250 seeds pack BROCCOLI: Di Ciccio, ITEM # SNV8019, $1.99/250 seeds pack CARROTS: Chantenay, SNV8029, $1.99/1,000 seeds pack CHARD: Rainbow, SNV8218, $1.99/250 seeds pack CORN: Double Standard, SNV8267, $1.99/50 seeds pack EGGPLANT: Purple Long, SNV8054, $1.99/50 seeds pack HERBS: Arugula, Basil, Genovese, ITEM #SNV8000, $1.99/250 seeds pack Chives, Garlic, ITEM # SNV8033, $1.99/250 seeds pack Cilantro, ITEM # SNV8035, $1.99/100 seeds pack Dill, Bouquet, ITEM # SNV8052, $1.99/1,000 seeds pack Parsley, Italian, ITEM # SNV8110, $1.99/1,000 seeds pack Thyme, English, ITEM #SNV8167, $1.99/250 seeds pack KALE: Lacinato: ITEM # SNV8067, $1.99/250 seeds pack Red Russian: ITEM # SNV8070, $1.99/250 seeds pack LETTUCE: Butterhead Red Ridinghood: ITEM # SNV921, $3.29/pack Jericho: ITEM # SNV2103, $3.29/450 seeds pack ONION: Evergreen bunching, ITEM # SNV8106, $1.99/250 seeds pack TOMATO: Gardener's Delight (cherry), ITEM # SNV8190, $1.99/50 seeds pack |
| #5: Expand your knowlege Want to learn more about gardening, sustainability, and more? These books will help  CARROTS LOVE TOMATOES: by Louise Riotte A thorough and practical guide to companion planting. Deals with flower and vegetable interplanting, plants to keep apart or plant together for best growth, plants that deter garden pests and diseases, and suggested plantings to suppress weeds. ITEM # BF150, $14.99 CHICKEN COOPS: 45 Building Plans for Housing Your Flock: Whether you're keeping one hen in a small backyard or 1000 hens in a large free-range pasture, you will find the perfect housing plan in this comprehensive handbook. The author combed the country to select these 45 plans for housing both laying hens and meat birds. Coops range from backyard to large-scale, moveable shelters, and low-budget alternatives using recycled materials. Easy-to-read diagrams and plans for coops included. ITEM # BO100, $19.99 PRESERVING FOOD WITHOUT CANNING OR FREEZING: Traditional but little-know French artisinal methods and recipes of food preservation that preserve more flavor and nutritional content, are less costly, and use less energy. Its 250 recipes encompass eight preservation methods (excluding freezing and canning) including drying, preserving whole in the ground or cellar, drying, lactic fermentation, salting and preserving in oil, vinegar, alcohol and sweet-and-sour, and with sugar. ITEM # BF355, $24.99 |
Thanks again for your interest, and please feel free to contact us with any questions or comments you may have about products, pricing, or orders.
Mahalo nui loa,
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Kaua'i County Council Struggles with No-brainer Decision on Small Wind Energy Generators
Good report from Michael Levine:
http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2009/07/30/news/kauai_news/doc4a71470756cc9093097419.txt
"Small wind systems: now, later or never?"
3 bills deferred for 2 weeks
By Michael Levine - The Garden Island
LIHU‘E — Community members raised concerns about “visual blight” caused by tall windmill towers and the nuisance of blades’ “whirring sound,” but a proposed bill clearing a path for small wind energy conversion systems could end up getting blown back until next year.
The ongoing debate on the merits of SWECS took a back seat to a discussion on the bill’s timing and the overlap between it and the highly anticipated, island-wide energy sustainability plan during the Kaua‘i County Council’s Planning Committee meeting Wednesday at the Historic County Building.
George Costa, county director of economic development, told committee members that the plan’s final report would not be done until January 2010, and Planning Committee Chair Jay Furfaro said he hopes to wait for that plan before moving forward on the SWECS legislation.
“The fact of the matter is I would at least like to see some recommendations. That’s what we paid for,” Furfaro said. “I have made it very clear to them (plan consultants) that on specific short-term projects I would like to see them make some recommendations so that we can move toward ordinances.
“I’m a big proponent to alternative energy, but the timing is critical,” he said.
Former Councilwoman JoAnn Yukimura, a co-sponsor of the bill that funded the energy sustainability plan to the tune of $200,000, said she would “hate to see this proposed bill deferred” until the plan is finalized because she doesn’t believe the plan will produce ordinances with specificity and will instead simply instruct government to streamline the permitting process for renewable energy projects.
“Now, as we move into an energy sustainability world ... we need to adjust our laws to look at the issues,” Yukimura said, adding she agrees with Apollo Kaua‘i’s Laurel Brier in that the SWECS bill can “run parallel” with the overriding energy plan.
“We shouldn’t use a late plan to further delay laws that would appropriately facilitate” renewable energy, Yukimura said. “All it does is delay your doing what has to be done. ... Time is of the essence.”
Tim Bynum read e-mails he had received from the consultant, Doug Hinrichs of Sentech.
“Just wanted to weigh in here real quickly saying that any legislation that promotes clean energy — such as the SWECS does — certainly dovetails with the Kaua‘i Energy Sustainability Plan, in my humble opinion,” Hinrichs wrote. “Some of these technologies are fully commercialized ... so it makes sense that they come online earlier than, e.g., ocean wave technologies. That’s of course on the technical and economic plane — I’ll leave it up to you guys/gals to figure out the politics ;-) (winking smiley emoticon).”
Similarly, sub-contractor Maurice Kaya told Bynum in an e-mail that “Proceeding with such a policy is expected to be consistent with the intent of the Kaua‘i Energy Sustainability Plan.”
“Besides utility scale renewable energy technology, small-scale customer-sited renewable energy systems are expected to be an important part of a broad strategy to achieve greater energy independence,” Kaya wrote. “Wind energy, just like solar thermal and solar photovoltaic systems, can be encouraged at the customer level as prudent public policy.”
Among the major concerns about the ordinance is the maximum height — measured from the ground to the tip of the rotor blade when extended vertically. If SWECS are limited to existing maximum building heights, they will have difficulty catching the wind as other structures in the area will get in the way.
Critics like Ken Taylor say SWECS will be a visual blight on the natural beauty of Kaua‘i, blocking neighbors’ viewplanes, and others, like Carl Imparato, worry about the “trade-off between sustainability and people hearing noise at 3 a.m.”
The bill, as originally written, would allow tower-mounted SWECS a maximum total height of 20 feet higher than the existing maximum building height in any given zoning district, and would allow roof-mounted SWECS to reach 10 feet above the roof line.
If passed, the bill would generally permit tower-mounted SWECS in Residential and Neighborhood Commercial zoning districts on lots at least one acre in size, and restrict them to one per acre. In Commercial zones, tower-mounted SWECS would be allowed on lots at least 20,000 square feet in size — just under half an acre — and restricted to one per every 20,000 square feet.
In Agricultural zones, one tower-mounted SWEC would be generally permitted for each lot one acre or larger, with an additional allowance for each additional three acres in the same lot, with a maximum of five windmills on any one lot. In Open zones, tower-mounted SWECS would be generally permitted on lots at least five acres in size, with limitations of one SWEC for every five acres and a five-SWECS total for any one lot.
Tower-mounted SWECS would be generally permitted in Industrial zones, and roof-mounted SWECS would be generally permitted in residential, industrial, commercial, agricultural and open zoning districts, with presumably the only limitation being the number of roofs on a given lot and the economic practicality of multiple windmills.
Tower-based and roof-mounted SWECS in other zoning districts, on smaller lots, or exceeding other restrictions would be required to obtain use permits.
With Bynum and colleague Lani Kawahara seeming to align themselves in the camp of not waiting for the final study, Furfaro at one point said, “It looks like I’m in the minority,” but remaining questions for the county attorney, Planning Department and the plan’s consultant convinced the committee to defer the matter for two weeks.
No amendments were taken up Wednesday, but council members circulated one and alluded to others that could be impacted by answers to their questions of the administration.
Proposals related to farm worker housing and shoreline setback and coastal protection were similarly deferred for two weeks, also by unanimous 4-0 votes. Committee member Derek Kawakami was absent and excused Wednesday. He left last week’s meeting to attend a conference on the Mainland. Chair Kaipo Asing and Dickie Chang are non-voting committee members.
For full coverage of the farm worker housing and shoreline setback bills, as well as the latest results of Kawahara and Bynum’s recent push for greater government transparency, see upcoming editions of The Garden Island.
http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2009/07/30/news/kauai_news/doc4a71470756cc9093097419.txt
"Small wind systems: now, later or never?"
3 bills deferred for 2 weeks
By Michael Levine - The Garden Island
LIHU‘E — Community members raised concerns about “visual blight” caused by tall windmill towers and the nuisance of blades’ “whirring sound,” but a proposed bill clearing a path for small wind energy conversion systems could end up getting blown back until next year.
The ongoing debate on the merits of SWECS took a back seat to a discussion on the bill’s timing and the overlap between it and the highly anticipated, island-wide energy sustainability plan during the Kaua‘i County Council’s Planning Committee meeting Wednesday at the Historic County Building.
George Costa, county director of economic development, told committee members that the plan’s final report would not be done until January 2010, and Planning Committee Chair Jay Furfaro said he hopes to wait for that plan before moving forward on the SWECS legislation.
“The fact of the matter is I would at least like to see some recommendations. That’s what we paid for,” Furfaro said. “I have made it very clear to them (plan consultants) that on specific short-term projects I would like to see them make some recommendations so that we can move toward ordinances.
“I’m a big proponent to alternative energy, but the timing is critical,” he said.
Former Councilwoman JoAnn Yukimura, a co-sponsor of the bill that funded the energy sustainability plan to the tune of $200,000, said she would “hate to see this proposed bill deferred” until the plan is finalized because she doesn’t believe the plan will produce ordinances with specificity and will instead simply instruct government to streamline the permitting process for renewable energy projects.
“Now, as we move into an energy sustainability world ... we need to adjust our laws to look at the issues,” Yukimura said, adding she agrees with Apollo Kaua‘i’s Laurel Brier in that the SWECS bill can “run parallel” with the overriding energy plan.
“We shouldn’t use a late plan to further delay laws that would appropriately facilitate” renewable energy, Yukimura said. “All it does is delay your doing what has to be done. ... Time is of the essence.”
Tim Bynum read e-mails he had received from the consultant, Doug Hinrichs of Sentech.
“Just wanted to weigh in here real quickly saying that any legislation that promotes clean energy — such as the SWECS does — certainly dovetails with the Kaua‘i Energy Sustainability Plan, in my humble opinion,” Hinrichs wrote. “Some of these technologies are fully commercialized ... so it makes sense that they come online earlier than, e.g., ocean wave technologies. That’s of course on the technical and economic plane — I’ll leave it up to you guys/gals to figure out the politics ;-) (winking smiley emoticon).”
Similarly, sub-contractor Maurice Kaya told Bynum in an e-mail that “Proceeding with such a policy is expected to be consistent with the intent of the Kaua‘i Energy Sustainability Plan.”
“Besides utility scale renewable energy technology, small-scale customer-sited renewable energy systems are expected to be an important part of a broad strategy to achieve greater energy independence,” Kaya wrote. “Wind energy, just like solar thermal and solar photovoltaic systems, can be encouraged at the customer level as prudent public policy.”
Among the major concerns about the ordinance is the maximum height — measured from the ground to the tip of the rotor blade when extended vertically. If SWECS are limited to existing maximum building heights, they will have difficulty catching the wind as other structures in the area will get in the way.
Critics like Ken Taylor say SWECS will be a visual blight on the natural beauty of Kaua‘i, blocking neighbors’ viewplanes, and others, like Carl Imparato, worry about the “trade-off between sustainability and people hearing noise at 3 a.m.”
The bill, as originally written, would allow tower-mounted SWECS a maximum total height of 20 feet higher than the existing maximum building height in any given zoning district, and would allow roof-mounted SWECS to reach 10 feet above the roof line.
If passed, the bill would generally permit tower-mounted SWECS in Residential and Neighborhood Commercial zoning districts on lots at least one acre in size, and restrict them to one per acre. In Commercial zones, tower-mounted SWECS would be allowed on lots at least 20,000 square feet in size — just under half an acre — and restricted to one per every 20,000 square feet.
In Agricultural zones, one tower-mounted SWEC would be generally permitted for each lot one acre or larger, with an additional allowance for each additional three acres in the same lot, with a maximum of five windmills on any one lot. In Open zones, tower-mounted SWECS would be generally permitted on lots at least five acres in size, with limitations of one SWEC for every five acres and a five-SWECS total for any one lot.
Tower-mounted SWECS would be generally permitted in Industrial zones, and roof-mounted SWECS would be generally permitted in residential, industrial, commercial, agricultural and open zoning districts, with presumably the only limitation being the number of roofs on a given lot and the economic practicality of multiple windmills.
Tower-based and roof-mounted SWECS in other zoning districts, on smaller lots, or exceeding other restrictions would be required to obtain use permits.
With Bynum and colleague Lani Kawahara seeming to align themselves in the camp of not waiting for the final study, Furfaro at one point said, “It looks like I’m in the minority,” but remaining questions for the county attorney, Planning Department and the plan’s consultant convinced the committee to defer the matter for two weeks.
No amendments were taken up Wednesday, but council members circulated one and alluded to others that could be impacted by answers to their questions of the administration.
Proposals related to farm worker housing and shoreline setback and coastal protection were similarly deferred for two weeks, also by unanimous 4-0 votes. Committee member Derek Kawakami was absent and excused Wednesday. He left last week’s meeting to attend a conference on the Mainland. Chair Kaipo Asing and Dickie Chang are non-voting committee members.
For full coverage of the farm worker housing and shoreline setback bills, as well as the latest results of Kawahara and Bynum’s recent push for greater government transparency, see upcoming editions of The Garden Island.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Sunshine begins to enter Kaua'i County Council Chambers
Equal access to the Kaua'i County Council agenda still has not been addressed, but the following progress has recently been made:
Update 7-28-09
Following the landmark Council meeting held July 22, 2009 in which Council Chair Kaipo Asing stated “I am willing as chair to work with you to solve the problems" changes asked for over two years ago are indeed starting to happen. (see below). We are very pleased at this turn of events and appreciate Mr. Asing's decision to allow the changes.
July 2nd 2008, The council chair in a press release announced that minutes of Council meetings and reports of Council actions will start to be posted on the County's web site
July 27, 2008 the Council Chair issued a memo stating that documents sent to all Councilmembers will be available upon receipt.
- July 28, 2007 County Clerk issued a routine memo stating minutes were ready for review; for the first time they were available in an electronic format on the Council services shared folders and hard copies.
Kaua'i Hydro Power Plant Raises it's Efficiency, Reliability
From: http://www.reliableplant.com/article.aspx?articleid=19100&pagetitle=Hydro+power+plant+in+Hawaii+raises+its+efficiency,+reliability
"Hydro power plant in Hawaii raises its efficiency, reliability"
RP news wires
"Hydro power plant in Hawaii raises its efficiency, reliability"
RP news wires
On the North Shore of Kauai, GE Energy’s Control Solutions business recently upgraded two 1906-era Pelton hydro turbines with Mark VIe digital controls and a new hydraulic system. This upgrade brought increased efficiency and reliability to the first hydroelectric plant ever built in Hawaii and still in operation today.
Kauai Coffee Company, owner and operator of the Wainiha hydro power plant, required a solution that could modernize the over 100-year-old mechanical fly-ball governors to a modern digital control while also supporting the continued life and maintainability of this essential power generator as a clean, renewable energy source for this western-most Hawaiian island. The plant was originally built to support the company’s prior sugarcane operations on the island.
“The new digital control system and its simple-to-use ToolboxST software tools are more accurate and dependable, easier to maintain, and – best of all – more efficient, allowing additional kilowatt hours of electricity to be generated each year,” explained Kauai Coffee Company’s project manager Dan Sargent. “The system and software ushers in a new era of power generation for this valuable company asset.”
The original 25-hertz generators were used to power irrigation pumps on the dry side of the island for sugarcane irrigation until GE converted them to 60-hertz generators in 1929 for connection to the electrical grid. Maintaining the 100-year-old governors to run efficiently and correctly was difficult with malfunctions resulting in costly repairs and downtime. GE Energy with its long-time expertise in servicing the worldwide installed base of hydro plants, partnered with Kauai Coffee’s experienced and skilled team to overcome these control challenges.
The entire harmonics and operation of the installation have now changed. Legacy controls on the dual needle impulse turbines created an imbalance on needle position that resulted in lost efficiency and continuous vibration and wear. The new control system achieved accurate balancing of the needles, which resulted in increased power production during lower water levels, less parasitic power consumption and smoother operations.
Start up time for the plant decreased from an average of four hours to less than 10 minutes. The Wainiha plant staff also benefits from the ability to monitor and easily troubleshoot its system in real-time, both on-site and remotely, contributing to plant productivity, maintainability and ease of operator training.
“This project highlights GE’s continued service support of the hydropower segment,” said Brian Palmer, vice president for optimization and control, GE Energy. “Our solutions can deliver increased efficiency and productivity for the installed base of hydro power plants around the world.”
Upgrading this plant is part of the Aloha state’s efforts to implement a progressive clean energy initiative. As part of a bill signed into law on June 25, 2009 (Link to Bill HB1464), utilities must generate 40 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2030. The Wainiha station generates four MW, enough power to supply its coffee processing factory, visitor center complex and main offices, while also producing six percent of the island’s total power generation.
Hawaii’s natural power-generating resources are primarily hydro, wind and geothermal, with other energy sources such as liquid fuels, gas and coal imported at high cost. With more than 40 feet of rain per year, the Wainiha plant’s water source, Mt. Waialeale, helps ensure that this project will provide consistent, reliable hydropower to help offset the rising costs of generating power from imported fuel.
In accordance with local customs, a traditional Hawaiian blessing complete with adorning native flowers and plants, was held on June 5, 2009, for the new control system inside the powerhouse. The ceremony fed positive energy into the system and honored the rich legacy of the original installation and its future contributions to hydropower supply for the Island of Kauai.
Stop Oil Speculation (SOS) Now! Latest
You recognized that speculators drove fuel prices last summer. You knew they were the primary cause of unprecedented price increases, and the front-page headline in the Wall Street Journal (7/28) states it clearly: "Traders Blamed for Oil Spike."
Finally, the government agency charged with regulating the speculators agrees with you. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is expected to find that oil speculators caused last year's price surge and drove the wild swings in oil prices that bore no relation to the laws of supply and demand. Your voice was heard loud and clear by Congress, the media and the CFTC.
Again, you can drive home the message that you sent to Congress last summer. Tell Congress that now is the time to close the loopholes and require strict limits on speculator trading, so that we can prevent future price spikes. These reforms, combined with increased domestic energy supply, exploration, alternative energy sources and conservation, will help stabilize and lower prices for all consumers in America.
While you are at it, share this important update with your friends and family, so that they too can let Congress know what they think about excessive oil speculation and the damage it has on the U.S. economy.
To learn more about this important issue, go to www.StopOilSpeculationNow.com. You also can keep up with the latest news and developments by following our coalition efforts on Twitter or Facebook.
Together, we can -- and must -- help protect America's economic recovery.
Thank you,
The Coalition to Stop Oil Speculation Now
Finally, the government agency charged with regulating the speculators agrees with you. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is expected to find that oil speculators caused last year's price surge and drove the wild swings in oil prices that bore no relation to the laws of supply and demand. Your voice was heard loud and clear by Congress, the media and the CFTC.
Again, you can drive home the message that you sent to Congress last summer. Tell Congress that now is the time to close the loopholes and require strict limits on speculator trading, so that we can prevent future price spikes. These reforms, combined with increased domestic energy supply, exploration, alternative energy sources and conservation, will help stabilize and lower prices for all consumers in America.
While you are at it, share this important update with your friends and family, so that they too can let Congress know what they think about excessive oil speculation and the damage it has on the U.S. economy.
To learn more about this important issue, go to www.StopOilSpeculationNow.com. You also can keep up with the latest news and developments by following our coalition efforts on Twitter or Facebook.
Together, we can -- and must -- help protect America's economic recovery.
Thank you,
The Coalition to Stop Oil Speculation Now
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
The Garden Island News series of good sustainability articles over the past month
It seems like each day there are one or two good articles in The Garden Island newspaper related to energy and sustainability issues. In fact, the newspaper is ahead of the curve of needed changes on Kaua'i. Let's hope the elected and appointed officials can catch up to the paper. The following is a list of the better articles and letters that we have not yet referenced here, starting with the most recent:
"KIUC, DHHL create new Energy Partnership Charter" By TGI staff "Public presses mayor on county recycling efforts" By Coco Zickos Energy experts urge community to help create public policyBy Coco Zickos TGI Unemployment on the riseVisitor and construction industries hit hardest" By Coco Zickos TGI
"County Council rules need work" By Walter Lewis Special to TGI
No more County Council delays on transparency" By David Thorp TGI letters July 20, 2009
"Plan sought before energy decisions" By Paul C. Curtis TGI
"Should Kaua‘i follow Cuba’s agricultural footsteps?" By Michael Pilarski Special to TGI
"Biodiesel operation predicts profits" By Paul C. Curtis TGI Work begins on farm housing billBy Michael Levine TGI Commission: Review, cut energy useBy Michael Levine TGI Together, we can make a differenceBy Bernard P. Carvalho Jr. Special to TGI Putting Kaua‘i ‘on the map’By Coco Zickos TGI 2020 visionNew county water manager eyes future" By Michael Levine TGI Farmers face garden troubles" By Sheadon Ringor TGI Furloughs hit home: Kaua‘i could lose $30 millionBy Dennis Fujimoto TGI
"KIUC, DHHL create new Energy Partnership Charter" By TGI staff "Public presses mayor on county recycling efforts" By Coco Zickos Energy experts urge community to help create public policyBy Coco Zickos TGI Unemployment on the riseVisitor and construction industries hit hardest" By Coco Zickos TGI
"County Council rules need work" By Walter Lewis Special to TGI
No more County Council delays on transparency" By David Thorp TGI letters July 20, 2009
"Plan sought before energy decisions" By Paul C. Curtis TGI
"Should Kaua‘i follow Cuba’s agricultural footsteps?" By Michael Pilarski Special to TGI
"Biodiesel operation predicts profits" By Paul C. Curtis TGI Work begins on farm housing billBy Michael Levine TGI Commission: Review, cut energy useBy Michael Levine TGI Together, we can make a differenceBy Bernard P. Carvalho Jr. Special to TGI Putting Kaua‘i ‘on the map’By Coco Zickos TGI 2020 visionNew county water manager eyes future" By Michael Levine TGI Farmers face garden troubles" By Sheadon Ringor TGI Furloughs hit home: Kaua‘i could lose $30 millionBy Dennis Fujimoto TGI
Video: 1 Megawatt Hydrogen Fuel Cell Power Plant
This is a video of a 1 megawatt Fuel Cell Power Plant at California State University, Northridge, in Los Angeles, CA. The power plant has a reformer that separates hydrogen from natural gas and then feeds the hydrogen into a fuel cell, generating electricity. The plant also recovers the heat generated and uses it for domestic heating on campus. In the future, some of the carbon emitted will be sequestered in a sub-tropical rainforest that is under construction.
While at present this power plant still uses fossil fuels (the natural gas is needed in order to extract the hydrogen from it), in the future the hydrogen will be generated either from landfill gas, or else it will be electrolyzed using wind, solar, geothermal, wave or hydroelectric energy. What is most important and exciting about this plant is the fact that it is using fuel cells--touted to be the future of electricity generation--today, and they are working seamlessly on a large scale.
KIUC would tell you it can't be done.
Monday, July 27, 2009
As the World Turns: Next Chance to see the Kaua'i County Council in Action
COMMITTEE MEETING NOTICE AND AGENDA
WEDNESDAY, JULY 29, 2009
9:00 A.M. OR SOON THEREAFTER
COUNCIL CHAMBERS
HISTORIC COUNTY BUILDING
4396 RICE STREET, ROOM 201.
LIHU’E, KAUA’I, HAWAI’I
PLANNING COMMITTEE AGENDA
Bill No. 2317
A BILL FOR AN ORDINANCE TO ESTABLISH A NEW
ARTICLE 28, CHAPTER 8, KAUA’I COUNTY CODE 1987,
RELATING TO SMALL WIND ENERGY CONVERSION
SYSTEMS
(Deferred 7/15/2009)
Bill No. 2318
A BILL FOR AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 8,
KAUAI COUNTY CODE 1987, RELATING TO THE
COMPREHENSIVE ZONING ORDINANCE (Farm Worker
Housing)
(Deferred 7/15/2009)
Bill No. 2319
A BILL FOR AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 8,
KAUA’I COUNTY CODE 1987, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO
THE COMPREHENSIVE ZONING ORDINANCE (Amending
Article 27, Chapter 8, Kaua’i County Code 1987, relating to
Shoreline Setbacks and Coastal Protection)
(Public hearing held on 7/22/2009)
WEDNESDAY, JULY 29, 2009
9:00 A.M. OR SOON THEREAFTER
COUNCIL CHAMBERS
HISTORIC COUNTY BUILDING
4396 RICE STREET, ROOM 201.
LIHU’E, KAUA’I, HAWAI’I
PLANNING COMMITTEE AGENDA
Bill No. 2317
A BILL FOR AN ORDINANCE TO ESTABLISH A NEW
ARTICLE 28, CHAPTER 8, KAUA’I COUNTY CODE 1987,
RELATING TO SMALL WIND ENERGY CONVERSION
SYSTEMS
(Deferred 7/15/2009)
Bill No. 2318
A BILL FOR AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 8,
KAUAI COUNTY CODE 1987, RELATING TO THE
COMPREHENSIVE ZONING ORDINANCE (Farm Worker
Housing)
(Deferred 7/15/2009)
Bill No. 2319
A BILL FOR AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 8,
KAUA’I COUNTY CODE 1987, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO
THE COMPREHENSIVE ZONING ORDINANCE (Amending
Article 27, Chapter 8, Kaua’i County Code 1987, relating to
Shoreline Setbacks and Coastal Protection)
(Public hearing held on 7/22/2009)
Kaua'i Mayor's initiative on sustainability
From the Kauaian SusHi Blog:
Mayor as playuh: Kauai’s lineman for county sustainability
Pinch me! For the first time, our island’s political leadership is stepping up to the sustainability challenge, and I’m feeling better about our chances with this big guy up front.
Mayor Bernard Carvalho isn’t just mouthing the “S” word…he’s serious about preparing Kauai for the sustainability transition coming down on his watch.
Carvalho is launching a series of newspaper columns on sustainability and is learning to fold-in the sustainability theme with his daily “stories” as he moves from appearance to appearance.
Ya gotta like Carvalho’s chances as a cheerleader for the behavior changes that are integral to these transition times.
After all, he learned something about motivational speeches in Don Shula’s locker room.
Says Carvalho, “By changing our lifestyles we can conserve energy, protect our environment, and reduce our monthly expenses all at the same time.”
Oh, and that image of the Mayor recycling his size-Xteen sneakers to promote curbside pickup initiatives is just priceless!
“Can I put this in my story for tonite?”, Carvalho wondered as we met last week to backfill his understanding of interconnections within the sustainability framework.
Carvalho graciously acknowledged my upcoming sustainability courseware at a public forum with Apollo Kauai that evening…and promised to promote it among “his people”. Kewl!
Published by Ken on July 26th, 2009 tagged Best Practices, Community Initiatives
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Solar-powered hydrogen powerplant already exists in Hawaii
Mr. Green on Kaua'i sent this to me. Interesting. Iceland's trying to do this. Hawaii already has a prototype. This is Mr. Green's 'wet dream.' Seems like more could be done with this idea.
by Senior Airman Carolyn Viss
15th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
5/20/2009 - HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE, Hawaii -- A $1.1 million solar array project to power the base hydrogen production and fueling station was completed here May 8, marking a "first" for both the Air Force and the state of Hawaii .
After about six weeks of installation, 810 solar modules can now produce 146 kilowatts of energy per hour - equivalent to what it would take to power about 30 standard homes - which is enough to handle the maximum power demand of the hydrogen plant.
"In fiscal year 2008, the average cost of power on base was 21 cents per kilowatt hour," said Josh Powell, vice president of construction operations at Sunetric.
At that cost, these solar panels will save an average of $43,000 per year, he said.
"In this energy-conscious environment, every little bit helps," Mr. Powell said.
Now that the solar panels are installed, they will go through a week-long commissioning process, said Tom Quinn, Hawaii Center for Advanced Transportation Technologies director.
"We need to test the inverter box (which turns DC power into AC power) to make sure everything is working properly, then slowly ramp it from 25 percent working power to 50 percent power and higher," Mr. Quinn said. "It's a typical safety check we go through before we crank it up to full power."
By May 22, the commissioning process should be finished, and the plant will be running on renewable energy, he said.
The $1.5 million hydrogen station was completed in November 2006; however, the fact that the hydrogen plant is now solar-powered means hydrogen is now a renewable fuel, Quinn said. This combination of solar panels with the hydrogen plant is what makes the project a dynamic, first-in-the-Air Force and first-in-Hawaii combination.
"The three principal players in this partnership are the Air Force Advanced Power Technology Office at Robins Air Force Base, Ga. ; the HCATT; and the 15th Airlift Wing," said Mr. Quinn.
The office at Robins AFB provides the funding and guidance for the program, and the 15th Airlift Wing operates and evaluates the equipment, he said.
"The Advanced Power Technology Office recognized that there is a wealth of military installations here as well as a need," Mr. Quinn said, "which provide the potential for joint service projects."
The way it works is simple, said Nolie Diakoulas, Sunetric project engineer. When the sun hits the photovoltaic panels, electrons move from front to back, creating a current that travels through small wires to a junction box in the back. The junction box takes the current from the small wires and moves it to larger wires, which travel to a combiner box and then to an inverter. There, DC power is converted to AC (usable) power, which runs the base hydrogen station.
"Solar panels have been around since the space program of the '50s," Mr. Powell said. "This is a long-lasting, well established material with a warranty for 25 years. We can expect this to produce at 80 percent effectiveness for at least the first 20 to 30 years of its life and continue essentially forever."
This system was designed for the specific environment here, he said.
The solar panels are wind-rated and hurricane proof, Mr. Diakoulas said. They're seismic-level four rated, hurricane proof, and designed not to blow away in the Hawaii trade w inds.
The state of Hawaii formed a partnership with the Air Force and established the National Demonstration Center for Alternative Fuel Vehicles in 2001, Quinn said. The goal of the program was to develop non-petroleum-based power for vehicles. Early projects included both hybrid and all-electric vehicles, to include the electric shuttle bus operating at the passenger terminal. More recently, a lithium battery-powered step van was developed and demonstrated and will soon go commercial. The first hydrogen-powered vehicle here was developed in 2003, and because the hydrogen plant is now powered by the solar array they have achieved a major demonstration milestone in the program.
"We have a total of seven hydrogen powered vehicles, all different types, here, but this truck is unique as it is a new concept vehicle," Mr. Quinn said. "Once we've tested and demonstrated its capabilities, we hope it will join the Air Force inventory."
Forwarded with: Very nice to talk with you, Dan. Please connect with Hickam as they have perfected this for Hawaii . Best always, Mark http://www.HGenerators.com
"First solar-powered hydrogen plant in AF complete on Hickam"
|
by Senior Airman Carolyn Viss
15th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
5/20/2009 - HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE, Hawaii -- A $1.1 million solar array project to power the base hydrogen production and fueling station was completed here May 8, marking a "first" for both the Air Force and the state of Hawaii .
After about six weeks of installation, 810 solar modules can now produce 146 kilowatts of energy per hour - equivalent to what it would take to power about 30 standard homes - which is enough to handle the maximum power demand of the hydrogen plant.
"In fiscal year 2008, the average cost of power on base was 21 cents per kilowatt hour," said Josh Powell, vice president of construction operations at Sunetric.
At that cost, these solar panels will save an average of $43,000 per year, he said.
"In this energy-conscious environment, every little bit helps," Mr. Powell said.
Now that the solar panels are installed, they will go through a week-long commissioning process, said Tom Quinn, Hawaii Center for Advanced Transportation Technologies director.
"We need to test the inverter box (which turns DC power into AC power) to make sure everything is working properly, then slowly ramp it from 25 percent working power to 50 percent power and higher," Mr. Quinn said. "It's a typical safety check we go through before we crank it up to full power."
By May 22, the commissioning process should be finished, and the plant will be running on renewable energy, he said.
The $1.5 million hydrogen station was completed in November 2006; however, the fact that the hydrogen plant is now solar-powered means hydrogen is now a renewable fuel, Quinn said. This combination of solar panels with the hydrogen plant is what makes the project a dynamic, first-in-the-Air Force and first-in-Hawaii combination.
"The three principal players in this partnership are the Air Force Advanced Power Technology Office at Robins Air Force Base, Ga. ; the HCATT; and the 15th Airlift Wing," said Mr. Quinn.
The office at Robins AFB provides the funding and guidance for the program, and the 15th Airlift Wing operates and evaluates the equipment, he said.
"The Advanced Power Technology Office recognized that there is a wealth of military installations here as well as a need," Mr. Quinn said, "which provide the potential for joint service projects."
The way it works is simple, said Nolie Diakoulas, Sunetric project engineer. When the sun hits the photovoltaic panels, electrons move from front to back, creating a current that travels through small wires to a junction box in the back. The junction box takes the current from the small wires and moves it to larger wires, which travel to a combiner box and then to an inverter. There, DC power is converted to AC (usable) power, which runs the base hydrogen station.
"Solar panels have been around since the space program of the '50s," Mr. Powell said. "This is a long-lasting, well established material with a warranty for 25 years. We can expect this to produce at 80 percent effectiveness for at least the first 20 to 30 years of its life and continue essentially forever."
This system was designed for the specific environment here, he said.
The solar panels are wind-rated and hurricane proof, Mr. Diakoulas said. They're seismic-level four rated, hurricane proof, and designed not to blow away in the Hawaii trade w inds.
The state of Hawaii formed a partnership with the Air Force and established the National Demonstration Center for Alternative Fuel Vehicles in 2001, Quinn said. The goal of the program was to develop non-petroleum-based power for vehicles. Early projects included both hybrid and all-electric vehicles, to include the electric shuttle bus operating at the passenger terminal. More recently, a lithium battery-powered step van was developed and demonstrated and will soon go commercial. The first hydrogen-powered vehicle here was developed in 2003, and because the hydrogen plant is now powered by the solar array they have achieved a major demonstration milestone in the program.
"We have a total of seven hydrogen powered vehicles, all different types, here, but this truck is unique as it is a new concept vehicle," Mr. Quinn said. "Once we've tested and demonstrated its capabilities, we hope it will join the Air Force inventory."
Forwarded with: Very nice to talk with you, Dan. Please connect with Hickam as they have perfected this for Hawaii . Best always, Mark http://www.HGenerators.com
Monday, July 20, 2009
Hydrogen power plant proposed for Molokai
"Hydrogen power plant proposed for Molokai"
By SUZANNE ROIG, The Honolulu Advertiser
By SUZANNE ROIG, The Honolulu Advertiser
POSTED: July 18, 2009
A New Mexico-based energy technology company has chosen Molokai for one of four sites on which it plans to build what it calls the world's first utility-scale, zero-emissions hydrogen power plants.
The Molokai plant, proposed by Jetstream Wind Inc., would use electricity from wind or solar or a combination of the two to separate water into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen would then be burned in a turbine - similar to what is used in a natural-gas-fired power plant - and would generate enough electricity to power 6,000 homes and businesses, the company said.
The company cannot disclose the exact location on Molokai for the plant because negotiations for the site are still under way, said Xavier Marquez, Jetstream Wind Inc. chief networking officer.
The company hopes to break ground in 30 to 60 days, Marquez said.
Yet, Hawaiian Electric Co. has not had any contact with the company about selling the power generated by its proposed new plant, said Peter Rosegg, HECO spokesman.
If Jetstream Wind is going to sell power to the utility on Molokai, it will need a Power Purchase Agreement with Maui Electric Co., said Maria Tome, Hawaii State Energy Office renewable transportation energy program manager. Maui Electric is a subsidiary of HECO.
Jetstream Wind began exploring the islands to launch its new energy venture about 16 months ago, Marquez said.
"There are numerous reasons for Hawaii," Marquez said. "The topography of the island works well for us to get peak production."
The company outlined its plans yesterday in New Mexico, the site of its first plant. That facility is expected to cost $219 million and be funded by private sources, said Henry Herman, company CEO.
Herman said Hawaii was chosen because of 2006 legislation encouraging the development of renewable hydrogen-based businesses by offering tax credits through the Hawaii Renewable Hydrogen Program backed by a $10 million Hydrogen Investment Capital Special Fund.
Jetstream Wind believes it can provide consistent power to the grid using renewable sources without any of the emissions that come with generating hydrogen from fossil fuels.
The potential of renewable-to-hydrogen power plants is being proved through tests, but it wasn't until recently that the technologies needed to make it work were even available, Herman said.
"We're the first company that had the foresight to jump on creating a combinatory system and putting the pieces together to make it viable for the public and for electrical generation," he said.
"Basically it's 8th-grade science scaled up very, very large," Herman said. "We need to go green to free us from our dependence on foreign oil."
Citing proprietary concerns, Herman provided few technical details about the inner workings of Jetsteam Wind's proposed plant in New Mexico.
The facility, which broke ground July 4 in Truth or Consequences, N.M., is the company's first power plant, and is expected to generate 150 construction jobs and 30 permanent jobs.
"Hydrogen Power Plant Planned: Firm Says It Will Be World's First"
Thu. July 16, 2009; Posted: 10:00 AM
Jul 16, 2009 (Albuquerque Journal - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- A fledgling Santa Fe-based technology company unveiled broad plans Wednesday for what it says will be the world's first utility-scale, zero-emission hydrogen power plant, a 10-megawatt complex to be constructed near Truth or Consequences, NM.
Jetstream Wind Inc. broke ground on the $219 million project near TorC on July 4, CEO Henry Herman, who founded the company 16 months ago, said in a news conference at the Hyatt Regency in Albuquerque. He said predevelopment for two other plants in New Mexico, at San Ildefonso and Nambe pueblos, and one in Hawaii could start before the end of the year.
The plants will use electricity generated from solar, wind and other renewable resources to separate water into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen could then be stored for later use to generate electricity that could be fed into the existing power grid. A solar installation will furnish direct-current electricity to create the hydrogen at the TorC plant, which will actually be located on about 600 acres of a cattle ranch close to Spaceport America.
Herman said the project is privately financed, but declined to provide more details.
"Dirt has been turned and we've actually started the permitting process, the electrical interconnection process, the soil sampling and survey," Herman said.
He said the project will create 150 construction jobs and 30 to 35 high-wage jobs once the plant is operational, about 14 months after the necessary permits are obtained.
The company's primary customers are expected to be utilities.
"These plants not only have the capability to attach to existing solar and wind farms to firm up variable power, but with this technological configuration, we can adapt existing natural gas fire plants to burn renewably generated hydrogen," he said. Hydrogen produced at the plant could also be stored for future uses such as home heating, water heating, fuel for cars, buses and other vehicles, as products are developed.
Herman called the technology "absolutely proven" and said the plant is a scaled-up version of a model developed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
Jetstream spokeswoman Ornesha De Paoli said DC current from renewable sources will run an electrolyzer that separates the hydrogen and oxygen in the water. The hydrogen will be compressed and stored within composite materials in below-ground bunkers. The hydrogen fuel then can be run through an internal combustion engine and fed back to the grid as electricity, she said.
PNM spokeswoman Cathy Garber said the company has not been approached by Jetstream and she added she was unfamiliar with its technology.
Prasad Potturi, electrical engineering manager for the state Public Regulation Commission, said a plant of its size would not need location approval from the commission or approval to sell electricity.
Changes to this Blog
I'm going to make some changes to the scope of this blog.
As I see it, the four most important determinates of localized economic sustainability on these islands going forward are:
1. Energy; 2. Water; 3. Food; and 4. Waste. How these are handled in the years ahead will determine how well Hawaii weathers the new macroeconomic realities of the world.
Of the above four determinates, I believe 1. Energy is the most critical one for Hawaii, esp. because of how isolated the Hawaiian Islands are with the energy that it takes to get things here and the excessive reliance upon outside sources of energy.
Therefore, I will be narrowing the focus of this blog to mostly energy issues. Nevertheless, when a really good piece of numerical analysis or current events come along, I may still post something about them here.
By narrowing the focus here, I can post more broadly at another site that I have just been added to: www.islandbreath.org or www.islandbreath.blogspot.com . My other blog on the now defunk'd ferry will probably have very few posts from here on out. Also, in August or September a new Pacific Islands based news aggregator website will be starting up, and I expect to be a contributing writer for them. Will let you know more when they are up and running.
With my next post here, I continue with the energy issue, a couple of interesting articles on Hydrogen energy plans for Hawaii.
As I see it, the four most important determinates of localized economic sustainability on these islands going forward are:
1. Energy; 2. Water; 3. Food; and 4. Waste. How these are handled in the years ahead will determine how well Hawaii weathers the new macroeconomic realities of the world.
Of the above four determinates, I believe 1. Energy is the most critical one for Hawaii, esp. because of how isolated the Hawaiian Islands are with the energy that it takes to get things here and the excessive reliance upon outside sources of energy.
Therefore, I will be narrowing the focus of this blog to mostly energy issues. Nevertheless, when a really good piece of numerical analysis or current events come along, I may still post something about them here.
By narrowing the focus here, I can post more broadly at another site that I have just been added to: www.islandbreath.org or www.islandbreath.blogspot.com . My other blog on the now defunk'd ferry will probably have very few posts from here on out. Also, in August or September a new Pacific Islands based news aggregator website will be starting up, and I expect to be a contributing writer for them. Will let you know more when they are up and running.
With my next post here, I continue with the energy issue, a couple of interesting articles on Hydrogen energy plans for Hawaii.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Peak Oil Day - July 11
Peak Oil Day
By Richard Heinberg · Jul 3 2009
On July 11, 2008, the price of a barrel of oil hit a record $147.27 in daily trading. That same month, world crude oil production achieved a record 74.8 million barrels per day.
For years prior to this, a growing legion of analysts had been arguing that world oil production would max out around the year 2010 and begin to decline for reasons having to do with geology (we have found and picked the world’s “low-hanging fruit” in terms of giant oilfields), as well as lack of drilling rigs and trained exploration geologists and engineers. “Peak Oil,” they insisted, would mark the end of the growth phase of industrial civilization, because economic expansion requires increasing amounts of high-quality energy.
During the period from 2005 to 2008, as oil’s price steadily rose, production remained stagnant. Though new sources of oil were coming on line, they barely made up for production declines in existing fields due to depletion. By mid-2008, as oil prices wafted to the stratosphere, every petroleum producer responded to the obvious incentive to pump every possible barrel. Production rates nudged upward for a couple of months, but then both prices and production fell as demand for oil collapsed.
Since then, with oil prices much lower, and with credit tight to unavailable, up to $150 billion of investments in the development of future petroleum production capacity have evaporated. This means that if a new record production level is to be achieved, further declines in production from existing fields have to be overcome, meaning that all of those canceled production projects, and many more in addition, will have to be quickly brought on-stream. It may not be physically possible to turn the tide at this point, given the fact that the new “plays” are technically demanding and therefore expensive to develop, and have limited productive potential.
On May 4 of this year, Raymond James Associates, a prominent brokerage specializing in energy investments, issued a report stating, “With OPEC oil production apparently having peaked in 1Q08, and non-OPEC even earlier in 2007, peak oil on a worldwide basis seems to have taken place in early 2008.” This conclusion is being echoed by a cadre of other analysts.
Maybe it’s a stretch to say that the production peak occurred at one identifiable moment, but attributing it to the day oil prices reached their high-water mark may be a useful way of fixing the event in our minds. So I suggest that we remember July 11, 2008 as Peak Oil Day.
We are now approaching the first-year anniversary of Peak Oil Day. Where are we now? The global economy is in tatters, yet oil prices have recovered somewhat (they’re now about half what they were in July 2008). World energy consumption is down, world trade is down, the airline industry is shrinking, and most of the world’s automakers are on life support.
It is too late to prepare for Peak Oil—a year too late, in fact. Now the name of the game is adaptation. We are in an entirely new economic environment, in which old assumptions about the inevitability of perpetual growth, and the usefulness of leveraging investments based on expectations of future growth, are crashing in flames. Even if economic activity picks up somewhat, this will occur in the context of an economy significantly smaller than the one that existed in July 2008, and energy scarcity will quickly cause most green shoots to wither.
It is impossible to say what will happen in the future with regard to oil prices. Clearly, very high prices kill demand by undercutting economic activity. Thus it is possible that the barrel price of petroleum may never break last year’s record. On the other hand, if the value of the dollar were to collapse, then the sky’s the limit for prices in dollars per barrel.
It is easier to forecast the oil supply trend: though we’ll see level-to-rising production temporarily from time to time, in general it’s down, down, downhill from now on.
Even though Peak Oil is now in the past, its annual commemoration on Peak Oil Day may serve an important purpose by reminding us why our economy is shrinking, and by focusing our thoughts on ways to facilitate the transition to a post-petroleum world.
What are some appropriate ways to commemorate Peak Oil Day? I’d suggest spending time in nature, engaging in a 24-hour oil fast, or organizing a neighborhood bicycle parade and solar-cooker bakeoff.
Mark your calendar. What will you be doing on July 11?
Help us "celebrate" Peak Oil Day by signing our petition.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Governor's Complete Veto List...long...scroll down to today
Will be interesting to see how much of this is overridden. The Special Session for that has begun. The list with her explanations:
Governor's Statements of Objection (Veto)
Governor's Statements of Objection (Veto)
HB895 HD2 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: May 7, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO TAX ON TOBACCO PRODUCTS OTHER THAN CIGARETTES
Unintentionally suspends the tax on all tobacco products other than cigarettes, would lower the proposed tax increase on cigarettes, and establishes a taxing regime on cigars that is counter to federal requirements and would be virtually unenforceable. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB1741 HD1 SD1 CD1
Veto Date: May 7, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO THE CONVEYANCE TAX
Discourages investments and weakens the economy by raising the conveyance tax up to 257 percent, from $0.35 to $1.25 per $100 of property value. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB1747 HD1 SD1 CD1
Veto Date: May 7, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO TAXATION
Discourages investments and weakens the economy by raising the income tax by up to 33%, from a top marginal income tax rate of 8.25 percent to 11 percent. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
SB1111 SD1 HD1 CD1
Veto Date: May 7, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO TAXATION
Exacerbates declines in visitor arrivals and tourism industry job losses by raising the transient accommodations tax by 28 percent over the next two years. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB1405 HD2 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 1, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO THE GENERAL EXCISE TAX
Places Hawai‘i companies, particularly those involved in on-line website development that make customer referrals to out-of-state businesses, at a competitive disadvantage to mainland and international firms by attempting to tax the activities of these out-of-state businesses. Furthermore, the bill is legally defective in that it violates Article III, Section 14 of the Hawai‘i State Constitution regarding the subject matter each bill can include within its scope. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
SB 912 SD2 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 6, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO PERMANENCY HEARINGS
Jeopardizes $38 million in annual funding from the federal Administration for Children and Families, U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB 1611 HD2 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 6, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO LABELING OF MEAT AND FISH PRODUCTS
Attempts to regulate the gas treatment of meat and fish in violation of the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution because this area is pre-empted by federal law and compromises the ability of the State to enforce the Hawai‘i Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB 690 HD2 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 6, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO INSURANCE
Requires health insurers to extend coverage to part-time employees of a group or association, in violation of the provisions of the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
SB 1058 SD2 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 6, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES
Sets up a Task Force on medical marijuana and salvia divinorum. Until federal marijuana laws are changed, State law enforcement agencies should not be asked to recommend ways to violate these laws through access, transport, or increases in the use of marijuana. Salvia divinorum can be added to the list of controlled substances, if deemed necessary, without the convening of a task force. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB36 HD1 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 10, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO HEALTH
Erodes the general fund by up to $2.1 million per year by increasing the amount of money retained in the Environmental Health Special Fund. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB343 HD1 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 10, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO RURAL PRIMARY HEALTH CARE TRAINING
Appropriates $140,000 in general funds to the University of Hawai‘i for a program they did not include as a priority in their own budget. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB358 HD1 SD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 10, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO DRUG TREATMENT
Would allow the courts to place drug offenders convicted of crimes in secure drug treatment facilities, but there are no such facilities in Hawai‘i, nor are there plans to build any by the Judiciary or any other State department. The potential fiscal impacts of such a facility would be significant and could not be afforded at the present time. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB982 HD3 SD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 10, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO FAMILY LEAVE
Appropriates $10,000 from the Department of Labor’s Special Fund for Disability Benefits to finance a family leave data collection system. Such a system is not critical to the functioning of State government and this bill represents a misuse of the original intent for these funds. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB986 HD1 SD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 10, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOL FACILITIES
Imposes conflicting building standards on school construction, which is estimated to increase the costs of school buildings by 8-15%. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB989 HD1 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 10, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO CHILDREN'S HEALTH CARE
Appropriates $400,000 in State general funds to extend the Hawai‘i Children’s Health Care Program for three years, moneys that are outside the budget and a program that provided free, taxpayer-subsidized health insurance for children whose families previously paid for that insurance. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB1504 HD1 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 10, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO HEALTH
Duplicates the work of the State Health Planning and Development Agency by establishing the Hawai‘i Health Authority to develop a comprehensive plan to provide health care in Hawai‘i and appropriates $50,000 from the State Health Planning and Development Special Fund to develop the plan. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
SB266 SD2 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 10, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO GLOBAL WARMING
Limits the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority’s ability to focus on tourism promotion and marketing at this critical time for Hawai‘i’s main industry by appropriating $100,000 from the Tourism Special Fund to study climate change. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
SB423 SD1 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 10, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO HEALTH
Appropriates $12,291,054 in State general funds to access federal matching funds for payments to Hawai‘i hospitals. Due to the State’s fiscal status, there are no general funds available to provide the requisite State match. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
SB1665 SD2 HD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 10, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO HIGHER EDUCATION
Appropriates $2.4 million from the unemployment insurance trust fund, of which $200,000 would be given to each community college for programs that are already available through the University of Hawai‘i and the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB1692 HD2 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 13, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO HOUSING
Requires the Hawai‘i Public Housing Authority to conduct a pilot project in state public housing but fails to address the underlying causes, including self-sufficiency programs and abundant low income rental housing. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
SB1160 SD2 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 13, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO THE HAWAI‘I PUBLIC HOUSING AUTHORITY.
Prohibits the sale of any land developed for public housing. This will inhibit the Administration’s ability to manage State resources, as well as conflict with Hawai‘i Public Housing Authority's ongoing plans for mixed-use development. The bill is technically flawed because it adds new statutory language prohibiting the sale of public housing land while still retaining the old statutory law allowing Hawai‘i Public Housing Authority to “sell, exchange, transfer, assign, or pledge, any property, real or personal, or any interest therein to any person or government.” One section of the Hawai‘i Revised Statutes will purport to take away a power that another section of the Hawai‘i Revised Statutes still clearly grants. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
SB1350 SD2 HD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 13, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO KAKA‘AKO
Would adversely impact affordable housing options in the state by creating a new reserved housing mandate for developers of both commercial and residential property in Kaka‘ako that is unrealistic and unworkable. This bill will hurt large and small landowners alike by halting development for owners with lots larger than 20,000 square feet and discouraging owners with lots smaller than 20,000 square feet from consolidating their properties. Places a temporary moratorium on building permits during a period of economic decline when we should be encouraging construction activity. Read the Governor's statement of objection.
HB31 SD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 14, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES
Creates a new restriction on employers that prevents them from being able to inquire into an individual’s credit history for employment purposes. If enacted, this bill has the potential to jeopardize an employer’s ability to protect safety and financial security in the workplace. Read the Governor's statement of concern.
HB952 HD1 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 14, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO LABOR
Removes the right of workers to vote by secret ballot regarding whether or not they want to join a union, eliminating one of the most fundamental and valued democratic principles – the secret ballot. Also mandates timelines for collective bargaining and gives employees, but not employers, the ability to recover attorneys’ fees and costs in prohibitive practice complaints. Read the Governor's statement of concern.
HB1479 HD2 SD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 14, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO LABOR
Places an undue burden on contractors by requiring them to submit a fringe benefit reporting form to the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations for both union and non-union workers working on public works contracts. Contractors must already comply with all applicable laws for doing business with the State and this bill imposes an unnecessary burden on them which has no public benefit. Read the Governor's statement of concern.
HB1676 HD1 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 14, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO PUBLIC WORKS
Inappropriately requires the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations to enforce private collective bargaining agreements covering workers on public works projects financed through Special Purpose Revenue Bonds. Grievances related to collective bargaining agreements should be addressed through the Hawai‘i Labor Relations Board or the National Labor Relations Board, not the Department of Labor. Read the Governor's statement of concern.
SB695 SD1 HD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 14, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO WORKERS’ COMPENSATION
Requires employers to continue paying for workers’ compensation medical care after it has been determined that continued treatments are inappropriate, excessive, or an independent physician has determined the employee is ready to return to work. Read the Governor's statement of concern.
HB128 HD1 SD1 CD2
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO ELECTIONS
Restricts the ability of the Governor to fill vacancies on the Campaign Spending Commission, changes the percentage of political contributions by non-residents, enables certain State and county contractors to contribute to political campaigns, and allows candidates to provide significant sums to political parties. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
HB183 HD1 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO EDUCATION
Fails to rectify fundamental flaws in the operation of the Hawai‘i Teacher Standards Board. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
HB541 HD1 SD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO CIVIL SERVICE PERSONNEL
Attempts to extend the Department of Education’s reliance on the executive branch civil service system, despite the 2005 Reinventing Education Act’s requirement for a separate Department of Education civil service system, but contains a defective effective date. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
HB590 HD1 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO RENEWABLE ENERGY FACILITIES
Duplicates language contained in HB1464 which was passed and signed into law as Act 155. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
HB754 HD1 SD1 CD2
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO THE HAWAI‘I TOURISM AUTHORITY
Transfers the tourism and research statistics function to the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority, which could jeopardize the independence, accuracy, and reliability of tourism data since the information will no longer be developed by an independent, neutral party. In addition, this bill removes four members representing the Administration from the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority Board. These members represent key agencies with missions that directly relate to the tourism industry. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
HB975 HD1 SD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO AGRICULTURAL WATER SYSTEMS
Unnecessarily exempts the transfer of agricultural water systems from the long-standing county subdivision and land recordation process. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
HB1271 HD3 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO GOVERNMENT
Extracts $31 million per year from Hawai‘i residents by imposing a barrel tax on all petroleum used in the State, without materially changing the ability of the State to meet its energy independence and food security goals. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
HB1471 HD2 SD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO FARMS
Inappropriately uses Tourism Special Funds for an agricultural food safety pilot program that lacks accompanying enforcement requirements or meeting special funding criteria. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
HB1525 HD1 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO MEDICAID
Requires the Department of Human Services to include additional reporting requirements in all future Medicaid health insurance plan contracts, which are irrelevant to the State's monitoring of these contracts and access by patients to quality health care. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
HB1538 HD1 SD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO ENVIRONMENTALLY-SENSITIVE PRODUCTS
Requires the Department of Education to grant a procurement preference to environmentally-sensitive cleaning and maintenance products for use in public schools that are certified by only one private organization, rather than relying on U. S. Environmental Protection Agency certifications. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
HB1544 HD1 SD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO TAX EXEMPTIONS
Increases taxes on Hawai‘i residents by reducing the Hawai‘i income tax personal exemption by 2 percent for every $2,500 over the income threshold of $119,963 for individual filers and $179,963 for joint filers. Hawai‘i’s personal exemption is already very low at $1,040, less than one third of the federal allowed exemption ($3,500). Read the Governor's statement of objections.
HB1552 HD2 SD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO PUBLIC LANDS
Violates Article XI, Section 5 of the State Constitution by singling out a parcel of land in a specific locale that grants special privileges to private individuals on that land. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB1 SD1 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO OPIHI
Establishes unenforceable and inconsistent standards and procedures for the harvesting of opihi. The Department of Land and Natural Resources can handle this issue through existing ocean management regulations. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB19 SD1 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO PROCUREMENT
Increases the cost of State public works projects by providing procurement preferences on public works projects to bidders who are party to a registered apprenticeship agreement with the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, even though their price to construct the project is higher. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB43 SD2 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO PHYSICIAN WORKFORCE ASSESSMENT
Requires doctors to pay a $60 physician workforce assessment fee, in addition to the $240 they must already pay, when renewing their medical license for a program that the John A. Burns School of Medicine did not include as a budget priority. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB50 SD1 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO RENEWABLE ENERGY PRODUCERS
Sets onerous terms and conditions for leasing public lands without auction to renewable energy producers. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB387 SD1 HD1 CD2
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO THE STATE BUDGET
Unnecessarily transfers various programs and divisions within the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism to other departments that do not have an expertise in economic development and diversification. Also requires the Governor to report all budget restrictions to the Legislature 30 days after the end of each quarterly allotment period. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB415 SD2 HD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO HOME CARE AGENCIES
Requires the Department of Health to license home care agencies, a function that belongs in the Department of Human Services. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB420 SD2 HD2
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO NATUROPATHIC MEDICINE
Expands the scope of practice of naturopathic physicians by authorizing them to administer injections, perform minor office procedures (i.e., minor surgeries), and prescribe medicines and certain drugs, for which they may not have sufficient training. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB539 SD1 HD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO CORRECTIONS
Proposes an inappropriate, vague, and unfunded legislative reorganization of the Department of Public Safety’s Intake Services Division and proposes the establishment of a Reentry Commission which is unnecessary and duplicative of the work of an existing commission. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB605 SD1 HD3 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO NOISE
Establishes an unrealistic maximum nighttime noise level for urban areas that may be unenforceable by the Department of Health and county liquor commissions. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB777 SD1 HD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO COMPREHENSIVE SEXUALITY HEALTH EDUCATION
Adversely impacts the State's ability to fund sex education programs that teach abstinence. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB1005 SD2 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO PUBLICITY RIGHTS
Inappropriately attempts to register and treat publicity rights as if they were equivalent to the registrations and protections of a business trade name. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB1183 SD2 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO DISCRIMINATORY PRACTICES
Unnecessarily requires the Hawai‘i Civil Rights Commission to adopt administrative rules by the end of the year to change certain definitions related to the Americans with Disabilities Act when they already have the authority to do so. Further, there is no federal requirement to change these definitions at the state level at this time. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB1206 SD1 HD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO COUNTIES
Interferes in the authority of the City and County of Honolulu City Council to determine if the Board of Water Supply requires their approval to issue tax-exempt revenue bonds. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB1218 SD2 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO MORTGAGE LOAN ORIGINATORS
Fails to establish a regulatory framework that complies with the federal Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act of 2008. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB1224 SD1 HD2 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Overridden, Becomes Law
RELATING TO AIRPORT CONCESSIONS
Adversely impacts the revenues of the State airport system necessary for the operations of the airports and to fund the Airport Modernization Plan. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB1250 SD1 HD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO EDUCATION
Increases the length of time that the Department of Education may employ unlicensed teachers, making the State non-compliant with the requirements of No Child Left Behind. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB1345 SD1 HD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO AGRICULTURE
Requires disproportionate compensation to certain lessees of public lands when the Board of Land and Natural Resources withdraws a portion of their leased lands for a public purpose. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
SB1678 SD3 HD1 CD1
Veto Date: July 15, 2009 Veto Stands
RELATING TO TAXATION
Abdicates the setting of State tax policies to a national governing board established under the Streamline Sales and Use Tax Model Agreement and Act when Congress enacts this agreement. Read the Governor's statement of objections.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Pie in the Sky
The bill that Gene Ward sponsored and Linda Lingle signed has the state spending $500,000 to "write" up and submit a space port plan to the FAA. It is my contention that this could be done for less than $100,000. The idea is slightly unrealistic and the extra $400,000 is an indication of waste and abuse. See the WSJ coverage of this today:
From: http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2009/07/15/hawaii-looks-to-space-tourism-to-aid-recession-woes/
July 15, 2009, 11:25 AM ET
"Hawaii Looks to Space Tourism to Aid Recession Woes"
By Conor Dougherty
From: http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2009/07/15/hawaii-looks-to-space-tourism-to-aid-recession-woes/
July 15, 2009, 11:25 AM ET
"Hawaii Looks to Space Tourism to Aid Recession Woes"
By Conor Dougherty
Hawaii, hit hard by the global recession, is hoping that space flight will help it pull out of the tourism slump.
 |
| Hawaii hopes to attract tourists riding on crafts like this concept from Rocketplane Global. (Associated Press) |
According to the Honolulu Advertiser, the state would start by spending up to a million dollars developing a spaceport.
But Hawaii isn’t alone: The state is already facing heady competition from states including Florida, Okalahoma and New Mexico, all of which are moving into the space tourism market.
Interestingly, the space idea isn’t a new none. Hawaii had hoped to build a rocket pad in the 1980s, an effort that went nowhere. In principle, the economic idea behind a spaceport probably isn’t much different than cruise terminals, something Hawaii is well familiar with. The state hopes tourists will come to Hawaii for space flight, and when they aren’t in the air they will be staying at one of the state’s many hotels, eating at a local restaurant or otherwise spending money in the state. There are, of course, plenty of people who question the wisdom of spending a million dollars in the middle of a budget crisis on an industry that may or may not develop.
The tourism slump has hit Hawaii hard. Visits fell by 7% in May from last year and visitor spending was down 15%, or $133 million, over the same period. The decline in visitors had led to rising unemployment and a decline in tax revenue that has forced the state to cut social services. Several tourism related businesses including Aloha Airlines have filed for bankruptcy protection. The Hawaii Superferry — another big idea meant to expand the state’s tourism market — has halted operations amid its Chapter 11 filing. There’s no way to know, but it would seem that, if they were around, a Hawaii company selling $200,000 rocket tickets would also be hurting in this economy.
See also:
YouTube - Hawaii Will Become A Space Port Announces Rep Ward | |
  | 3 min 26 sec - May 2, 2009 LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE PASSES HB 994 TO PROMOTE SPACE TOURISM Representative Gene Ward (R-Hawaii Kai-Kalama Valley) said ... |
YouTube - Space Tourism with Reps. McKelvey and Ward Part 2
Part 2 of 4 Space Tourism with Representatives Gene Ward and Angus McKelvey Guests John Strom, VP of Business Development Enterprise Honolulu and ...Monday, July 13, 2009
Travel + Leisure's Highest Rated Islands in the World for 2009
From: http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/stories/2009/07/13/daily5.html?ana
I question whether they included French Polynesia or New Zealand in this, but here are the results of their readers:
I question whether they included French Polynesia or New Zealand in this, but here are the results of their readers:
"Survey: Kauai world's 4th best island"
Pacific Business News (Honolulu) Monday, July 13, 2009
Pacific Business News (Honolulu) Monday, July 13, 2009
For the second year in a row, Kauai has been named the fourth-best overall island in the world by readers of Travel + Leisure.
The Garden Island followed Bali, Galápagos, and Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia in the 2009 World’s Best Awards survey, which will appear in the August issue of Travel + Leisure.
Top 10 Islands Overall| Rank | '08 | Name | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Bali | 87.41 | |
| 2 | - | Galápagos | 86.80 | |
| 3 | 10 | Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia | 86.09 | |
| 4 | 4 | Kauai | 85.90 | |
| 5 | - | Mount Desert Island, Maine | 85.87 | |
| 6 | 3 | Maui | 85.48 | |
| 7 | - | Aeolian Islands, Italy | 85.13 | |
| 8 | - | Maldives | 84.43 | |
| 9 | - | Big Island | 83.92 | |
| 10 | - | Vancouver Island | 83.74 |
In a separate survey, Travel + Leisure asked its readers to rate the islands of Hawaii on natural attractions, activities and sights, restaurants and food, and people and value.
Kauai came out on top in that survey, edging out Maui. The Big Island, Maui and Lanai followed.
“What makes the honor of being named ‘Hawaii’s Best Island’ is the acknowledgment that Kauai’s incredible beauty and diversity of activities matches the demands of Travel + Leisure’s discerning readers seeking a memorable vacation,” said Sue Kanoho, executive director of the Kauai Visitors Bureau.
The full 2009 World’s Best Awards can be viewed at www.travelandleisure.com.
Kaua'i Farm Worker Housing Ordinance...Bill Mark-up Meeting 7/15/09 9am Council Chambers
County Council Committee Meetings
9 a.m., Wednesday, Historic County Building, Council Chambers
• Planning Committee — Bill No. 2291, a bill for an ordinance relating to the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance.
• Planning Committee — Bill No. 2317, a bill for an ordinance relating to Small Wind Energy Conversion Systems.
• Planning Committee — Bill No. 2318, a bill for an ordinance relating to Farm Worker Housing.
Here was a good local article on the testimony hearing taken on this last week:
http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2009/07/09/news/kauai_news/doc4a5594ba34bea252292184.txt
"Farm workers plead for housing"
By Michael Levine - The Garden Island LIHU‘E — Dozens of Kaua‘i farmers stuffed Council Chambers Wednesday afternoon, voicing their support for a proposed bill that would clear the way for farm worker housing and provide much-needed support for the agriculture industry.
“I believe there is a strong consensus on this island that we need to grow more of our food — for our security, our health and our economy,” former County Councilwoman JoAnn Yukimura said in written testimony. “We will not be able to do this without addressing the need for farm worker housing.”
Bill No. 2813, if passed, would amend Section 8-1.5 of the Kaua‘i County Code by adding to the list of definitions entries for “farm,” “farm worker,” and “farm worker housing.” It would also amend Section 8-7.3 of the code to include farm worker housing as one of 15 uses and structures that require a use permit in agricultural districts.
With the room packed with a standing-room-only crowd that could have made the fire chief cringe, farmer after farmer took to the microphone to ask the council to pass the legislation. Many said the current terms of the bill — which was amended by the Planning Department and Planning Commission — were too restrictive in its definitions and might not do enough for new or prospective farmers.
Specifically, some farmers asked that the requirement that the term “farm worker” refer to an employee who works no less than 14 hours per week, rather than the 19-hour minimum currently in the proposed legislation.
Also, one farmer complained that the definition “Farm worker housing means housing over and above the residential density allowed in the Agriculture District ... (on) a farm that has generated at least $35,000 of gross sales of agricultural products per year, for the preceding two consecutive years, for each farm worker housing unit on the lot” should be reduced to $12,000 or be removed altogether.
“Be careful about putting money in the definition of a farm,” Moloa‘a farmer Scott Pomeroy said. “There’s no doubt that ag land needs to be protected ... it’s just that the business of farming ... has been to extract as much money or product out of an acre of land as possible. That’s led to severe depletion of the soil” and puts more and more pressure on the farmers.
Another Moloa‘a farmer, Scott Neuman, said money could probably do better in a savings account than in a farm, but that Kaua‘i farmers put their hearts, souls and money “where their mouths are.”
“The profit is minimal with back-breaking work,” he said.
His wife, Linda, said she has lived illegally on their 10-acre farm for seven years because she has no choice.
“Passing this bill shows the community your support for family farming,” she said. “We need help.”
Planning Committee Chair and Council Vice Chair Jay Furfaro, who introduced Bill No. 2813 last month, said that accomplishing all the bill set out to do is “easier said than done.” He said removing a requirement for a use permit could create the potential for a lot of abuse, and added that some issues may have to be addressed through an upcoming update to the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance. In short, Farm Worker Housing legislation is not a cure-all.
“I am looking forward to the Planning Committee meeting next week to work out some of the details,” Furfaro said in an interview during a caption break, with all but a few chairs full of yet-to-testify farmers.
“Why can’t we feed ourselves? We have the Garden Island here, so where’s the garden?” asked Keone Kealoha of Malama Kaua‘i in his testimony. “This is something that we have the ability to manage ourselves. ... I think that together we can figure out what those details [should be].”
Bill 2813 Timeline
• June 3 — Introduced by Jay Furfaro, passed on first reading by a 7-0 vote
• July 8 — Public hearing held, dozens of farmers attend to show support
• July 15 — Planning Committee meeting to be held, amendments to be discussed
Additional ideas for amendments presented on behalf of JoAnn Yukimura were:
1. The definition of "farm worker" should include farm owner or contract worker.
2. The requirement of $35,000 gross proceeds in two preceding years per farm worker unit does not fit the economic realities of farming various crops. Other Hawaii counties allow farmers to meet alternative criteria in lieu of the $35,000 [or less]. One alternative might be demonstrating that 75% [or less] of the farm's land is used for farming (including fallow land).
3. The required farm plan should not be approved by the Planning Dept. who do not necessarily have farming background. The farm plan should be approved by either the Soil & Water Conservation District Committee or by the Real Property Tax Div. Agriculture Inspector.
One other point to add:
"...One of the biggest issues many of us who are living on a CPR will face is having the bill address each individual farm as its own entity. This includes all of the Molo’a Hui lands, our own farm, and most of the north shore farmers. Really, in talking to some of the Kapahi people at the hearing, they also are farming on CPR lands. Aloha, The Wooton Family, Kauai Kunana Dairy"
Other good amendment ideas were mentioned at the July 8th Council meeting that will hopefully be brought forward to the best, most realistic ordinance bill possible on July 15th.
Here is a copy of the original bill No. 2318 with the key section of it below:
http://www.kauaiinfo.org/Billl%20%202318%20Farmworker%20Housing.pdf
...“Farm” means an operation or enterprise in operation for at least one year, the core function of which is the commercial cultivation of crops, including but not limited to crops for bioenergy, flowers, vegetables, foliage, fruits, forage, and timber or the raising of livestock, including but not limited to poultry, bees, fish, or other animal or aquatic life that are propagated for commercial purposes as evidenced by the annual filing of a Schedule F form with federal income tax filings by the owner or lessee.
“Farm worker” is an employee or intern who works no less than nineteen (19) hours per week in farm-related operations on a farm.
“Farm worker housing” means housing over and above the residential density allowed in the Agriculture District, as established in Section 8-7.5, which meets the following criteria:
(a) Is accessory to a farm that has generated at least $35,000 of gross sales of agricultural product(s) per year, for the preceding (2) two consecutive years, for each farm worker housing unit on the lot, as shown by State general excise tax forms and Federal Schedule F forms.
(b) The owner or lessee of the respective lot on which the farm worker housing is being proposed shall provide a farm plan to the Planning Department that demonstrates the feasibility of the respective farm’s commercial agricultural production.
(c) Is used exclusively for the housing of farm workers and their immediate family.
(d) For a family – the living space does not exceed 1200 square feet in area
(e) For a single person – the unit does not exceed 650 square feet in area
(f) If the farm ceases operation or fails to meet the definition of a farm, the owner shall remove all farm worker housing from the subject parcel within four (4) months of the triggering event (the cessation of a farm or failure to meet the definition). If the farm worker housing is attached to a primary dwelling unit that is part of the density allowed on the subject property, only the additional kitchen shall be removed, and not the additional
structure itself. At the time the owner is allowed another kitchen to create a farm worker housing unit, the owner shall sign a unilateral agreement giving the Planning Department the right to make two (2) unannounced inspections per year by the Planning Department for the purpose of ascertaining compliance in the case where the farm worker housing must be removed. Said agreement shall be recorded in the Bureau of Conveyances or the Land Court, as the case may be. Nothing in the agreement shall prevent the Planning Department from making as many properly executed announced inspections as may be necessary for the enforcement of other planning laws.
(g) Said housing shall be located on the subject parcel where the farming is occurring and the owner shall not, subsequent to obtaining the required zoning permits for the farm worker housing, subdivide said housing from the farm nor form any condominium property regime around said housing.
(h) Said housing may be portable and or temporary, but in all cases shall meet all health, safety and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (O.S.H.A.) requirements.
(i) A property shall be eligible for farm worker housing only when all of the subject property’s respective maximum permitted residential densities, as established in Section 8-7.5, have been permitted and constructed.
(j) The owner of farm worker housing shall annually certify to the Director of Planning that the Farm Worker Housing meets the conditions of subsection a through i above and shall give written consent to the Planning Department for an annual announced inspection by the department.
(k) Prior to the issuance of the building permit, the applicant shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Planning Director that the applicant has recorded in the Bureau of Conveyances or the Land Court, as the case may be, the above conditions, explicitly stating that the use permit does not run with the land but is personal to the specific applicant, and that any subsequent owner must secure a separate use permit for farm worker housing...
9 a.m., Wednesday, Historic County Building, Council Chambers
• Planning Committee — Bill No. 2291, a bill for an ordinance relating to the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance.
• Planning Committee — Bill No. 2317, a bill for an ordinance relating to Small Wind Energy Conversion Systems.
• Planning Committee — Bill No. 2318, a bill for an ordinance relating to Farm Worker Housing.
Here was a good local article on the testimony hearing taken on this last week:
http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2009/07/09/news/kauai_news/doc4a5594ba34bea252292184.txt
"Farm workers plead for housing"
By Michael Levine - The Garden Island LIHU‘E — Dozens of Kaua‘i farmers stuffed Council Chambers Wednesday afternoon, voicing their support for a proposed bill that would clear the way for farm worker housing and provide much-needed support for the agriculture industry.
“I believe there is a strong consensus on this island that we need to grow more of our food — for our security, our health and our economy,” former County Councilwoman JoAnn Yukimura said in written testimony. “We will not be able to do this without addressing the need for farm worker housing.”
Bill No. 2813, if passed, would amend Section 8-1.5 of the Kaua‘i County Code by adding to the list of definitions entries for “farm,” “farm worker,” and “farm worker housing.” It would also amend Section 8-7.3 of the code to include farm worker housing as one of 15 uses and structures that require a use permit in agricultural districts.
With the room packed with a standing-room-only crowd that could have made the fire chief cringe, farmer after farmer took to the microphone to ask the council to pass the legislation. Many said the current terms of the bill — which was amended by the Planning Department and Planning Commission — were too restrictive in its definitions and might not do enough for new or prospective farmers.
Specifically, some farmers asked that the requirement that the term “farm worker” refer to an employee who works no less than 14 hours per week, rather than the 19-hour minimum currently in the proposed legislation.
Also, one farmer complained that the definition “Farm worker housing means housing over and above the residential density allowed in the Agriculture District ... (on) a farm that has generated at least $35,000 of gross sales of agricultural products per year, for the preceding two consecutive years, for each farm worker housing unit on the lot” should be reduced to $12,000 or be removed altogether.
“Be careful about putting money in the definition of a farm,” Moloa‘a farmer Scott Pomeroy said. “There’s no doubt that ag land needs to be protected ... it’s just that the business of farming ... has been to extract as much money or product out of an acre of land as possible. That’s led to severe depletion of the soil” and puts more and more pressure on the farmers.
Another Moloa‘a farmer, Scott Neuman, said money could probably do better in a savings account than in a farm, but that Kaua‘i farmers put their hearts, souls and money “where their mouths are.”
“The profit is minimal with back-breaking work,” he said.
His wife, Linda, said she has lived illegally on their 10-acre farm for seven years because she has no choice.
“Passing this bill shows the community your support for family farming,” she said. “We need help.”
Planning Committee Chair and Council Vice Chair Jay Furfaro, who introduced Bill No. 2813 last month, said that accomplishing all the bill set out to do is “easier said than done.” He said removing a requirement for a use permit could create the potential for a lot of abuse, and added that some issues may have to be addressed through an upcoming update to the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance. In short, Farm Worker Housing legislation is not a cure-all.
“I am looking forward to the Planning Committee meeting next week to work out some of the details,” Furfaro said in an interview during a caption break, with all but a few chairs full of yet-to-testify farmers.
“Why can’t we feed ourselves? We have the Garden Island here, so where’s the garden?” asked Keone Kealoha of Malama Kaua‘i in his testimony. “This is something that we have the ability to manage ourselves. ... I think that together we can figure out what those details [should be].”
Bill 2813 Timeline
• June 3 — Introduced by Jay Furfaro, passed on first reading by a 7-0 vote
• July 8 — Public hearing held, dozens of farmers attend to show support
• July 15 — Planning Committee meeting to be held, amendments to be discussed
Additional ideas for amendments presented on behalf of JoAnn Yukimura were:
1. The definition of "farm worker" should include farm owner or contract worker.
2. The requirement of $35,000 gross proceeds in two preceding years per farm worker unit does not fit the economic realities of farming various crops. Other Hawaii counties allow farmers to meet alternative criteria in lieu of the $35,000 [or less]. One alternative might be demonstrating that 75% [or less] of the farm's land is used for farming (including fallow land).
3. The required farm plan should not be approved by the Planning Dept. who do not necessarily have farming background. The farm plan should be approved by either the Soil & Water Conservation District Committee or by the Real Property Tax Div. Agriculture Inspector.
One other point to add:
"...One of the biggest issues many of us who are living on a CPR will face is having the bill address each individual farm as its own entity. This includes all of the Molo’a Hui lands, our own farm, and most of the north shore farmers. Really, in talking to some of the Kapahi people at the hearing, they also are farming on CPR lands. Aloha, The Wooton Family, Kauai Kunana Dairy"
Other good amendment ideas were mentioned at the July 8th Council meeting that will hopefully be brought forward to the best, most realistic ordinance bill possible on July 15th.
Here is a copy of the original bill No. 2318 with the key section of it below:
http://www.kauaiinfo.org/Billl%20%202318%20Farmworker%20Housing.pdf
...“Farm” means an operation or enterprise in operation for at least one year, the core function of which is the commercial cultivation of crops, including but not limited to crops for bioenergy, flowers, vegetables, foliage, fruits, forage, and timber or the raising of livestock, including but not limited to poultry, bees, fish, or other animal or aquatic life that are propagated for commercial purposes as evidenced by the annual filing of a Schedule F form with federal income tax filings by the owner or lessee.
“Farm worker” is an employee or intern who works no less than nineteen (19) hours per week in farm-related operations on a farm.
“Farm worker housing” means housing over and above the residential density allowed in the Agriculture District, as established in Section 8-7.5, which meets the following criteria:
(a) Is accessory to a farm that has generated at least $35,000 of gross sales of agricultural product(s) per year, for the preceding (2) two consecutive years, for each farm worker housing unit on the lot, as shown by State general excise tax forms and Federal Schedule F forms.
(b) The owner or lessee of the respective lot on which the farm worker housing is being proposed shall provide a farm plan to the Planning Department that demonstrates the feasibility of the respective farm’s commercial agricultural production.
(c) Is used exclusively for the housing of farm workers and their immediate family.
(d) For a family – the living space does not exceed 1200 square feet in area
(e) For a single person – the unit does not exceed 650 square feet in area
(f) If the farm ceases operation or fails to meet the definition of a farm, the owner shall remove all farm worker housing from the subject parcel within four (4) months of the triggering event (the cessation of a farm or failure to meet the definition). If the farm worker housing is attached to a primary dwelling unit that is part of the density allowed on the subject property, only the additional kitchen shall be removed, and not the additional
structure itself. At the time the owner is allowed another kitchen to create a farm worker housing unit, the owner shall sign a unilateral agreement giving the Planning Department the right to make two (2) unannounced inspections per year by the Planning Department for the purpose of ascertaining compliance in the case where the farm worker housing must be removed. Said agreement shall be recorded in the Bureau of Conveyances or the Land Court, as the case may be. Nothing in the agreement shall prevent the Planning Department from making as many properly executed announced inspections as may be necessary for the enforcement of other planning laws.
(g) Said housing shall be located on the subject parcel where the farming is occurring and the owner shall not, subsequent to obtaining the required zoning permits for the farm worker housing, subdivide said housing from the farm nor form any condominium property regime around said housing.
(h) Said housing may be portable and or temporary, but in all cases shall meet all health, safety and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (O.S.H.A.) requirements.
(i) A property shall be eligible for farm worker housing only when all of the subject property’s respective maximum permitted residential densities, as established in Section 8-7.5, have been permitted and constructed.
(j) The owner of farm worker housing shall annually certify to the Director of Planning that the Farm Worker Housing meets the conditions of subsection a through i above and shall give written consent to the Planning Department for an annual announced inspection by the department.
(k) Prior to the issuance of the building permit, the applicant shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Planning Director that the applicant has recorded in the Bureau of Conveyances or the Land Court, as the case may be, the above conditions, explicitly stating that the use permit does not run with the land but is personal to the specific applicant, and that any subsequent owner must secure a separate use permit for farm worker housing...
Organic gardeners outcompete industrial farmers
From: http://www.islandbreath.org/
Russian Gardeners
SUBHEAD: A growing number of people believe that Russian gardeners, or dachniks, hold keys to the planetary survival.
SOURCE: Shannon Rudolph
Why is this the case?
Simply because on their minuscule plots of what was formerly marginal unproductive land, tens of millions of Russian families now grow more food than the total of the country's commercial agriculture.
INDEX: Agriculture, Food, Gardening
SOURCE: Shannon Rudolph
Organic gardeners outcompete industrial farmers
Why is this the case?
Simply because on their minuscule plots of what was formerly marginal unproductive land, tens of millions of Russian families now grow more food than the total of the country's commercial agriculture.
A "commune" of Russian dachniks in front of shared housing on 7/27/08.
From http://yav.org.ru/eng/actsandevents/08-07-26earthday.htm
They require no government subsidies, are not dependent on fossil fuels or machinery, use predominantly organic growing methods, and are fabulously productive, while at the same time upholding the millennia-old tradition of living in union with Mother Earth.
Russian gardeners' example shows that an agriculture based on the ideals of beauty, permanence, and non-violence is practicable on the national scale even in the industrially developed countries.
Groundbreaking new research
Forthcoming in August 2008, Family Gardens: Russia's Primary Agriculture by Dr. Leonid Sharashkin presents what is probably the first comprehensive study of the monumental economic, social, and cultural significance of Russia's vast permaculture movement.
Far from being an abstract theoretical study, Dr. Sharashkin's research is of crucial practical importance to anybody concerned with the future of humanity.
Russia's unique family gardening practice offers a missing link to our understanding of how everybody can attain self-sufficiency while living a lifestyle gentle on the Earth.
They require no government subsidies, are not dependent on fossil fuels or machinery, use predominantly organic growing methods, and are fabulously productive, while at the same time upholding the millennia-old tradition of living in union with Mother Earth.
Russian gardeners' example shows that an agriculture based on the ideals of beauty, permanence, and non-violence is practicable on the national scale even in the industrially developed countries.
Groundbreaking new research
Forthcoming in August 2008, Family Gardens: Russia's Primary Agriculture by Dr. Leonid Sharashkin presents what is probably the first comprehensive study of the monumental economic, social, and cultural significance of Russia's vast permaculture movement.
Far from being an abstract theoretical study, Dr. Sharashkin's research is of crucial practical importance to anybody concerned with the future of humanity.
Russia's unique family gardening practice offers a missing link to our understanding of how everybody can attain self-sufficiency while living a lifestyle gentle on the Earth.
Sharing the knowledge
The Earth gives so freely without asking anything in return. This is what we call the miracle of fertility.
Believing that we can all benefit from following nature's own ways, Dr. Sharashkin is making his entire 300-page doctoral dissertation available for a free download from this website, PrimaryAgriculture.com. To download the PDF file (3 Mb) click here http://primaryagriculture.com/dissertation.pdf
The Earth gives so freely without asking anything in return. This is what we call the miracle of fertility.
Believing that we can all benefit from following nature's own ways, Dr. Sharashkin is making his entire 300-page doctoral dissertation available for a free download from this website, PrimaryAgriculture.com. To download the PDF file (3 Mb) click here http://primaryagriculture.com/dissertation.pdf
Australian Town, State Government Ban Bottled Water
From: http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-40916120090709
"Australian Town, State Government Ban Bottled Water"
by Belinda Goldsmith Reuters Australia July 12, 2009
CANBERRA - An Australian town has banned bottled water, claiming to be the first in the country to revert to the tap for the sake of the environment and prompting the nation's largest state government to stop buying bottled water.
Residents of rural Bundanoon, a picturesque, tourist destination 150 kms (93 miles) southwest of Sydney, voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to rid the town of bottled water to combat the carbon footprint from bottling and transporting it.
Local businesses in the town of 2,500 people have agreed to replace all single-use bottles with reusable bottles that can be filled from water fountains and to bear the loss of sales.
"Bottled water has a role to play in various parts of Australia and many parts of the world but we don't really need it as we have a wonderful municipal water supply," local businessman Huw Kingston, who led the campaign, told Reuters.
"We're not a bunch of raving greenies but this is us showing we can work together as a community for sustainability."
Kingston, who runs a combined cafe and bike shop, said the ban was voluntary, with "no water police in Bundanoon," so it was up to the town's 50 to 60 businesses to implement the change.
He said a catalyst for the campaign was an application by Sydney company Norlex Holdings Pty Ltd to build a local water extraction plant, raising people's awareness of the issue. The application was rejected but an appeal is before the courts.
The campaign has spread beyond Bundanoon, prompting the government of New South Wales (NSW), Australia's most populous state, to also look at ways to cut down on bottled water.
Organizations like conservation group WWF have campaigned against bottled water, saying resources are wasted in bottling and transporting water which may be no safer or healthier than tap water while selling for up to a thousand times the price.
NSW Premier Nathan Rees this week announced an immediate ban on state departments and agencies buying bottled water.
"Tap water isn't just better for the environment, it's better for your wallet - you can refill your drink bottle 1,350 times for the average cost of a bottle of spring water," Rees said.
Australians spent about $500 million (US$395 million) on bottled water in 2008, a 10 percent increase on 2007.
Environmental group Do Something!, which helped drive a ban on plastic bags in Coles Bay in the state of Tasmania, welcomed the NSW government and Bundanoon bans.
"We are very much hoping that this move will get Australians to rethink the half billion dollars a year that they spend on bottled water," said Do Something! chairman Jon Dee...
"Australian Town, State Government Ban Bottled Water"
by Belinda Goldsmith Reuters Australia July 12, 2009
CANBERRA - An Australian town has banned bottled water, claiming to be the first in the country to revert to the tap for the sake of the environment and prompting the nation's largest state government to stop buying bottled water.
Residents of rural Bundanoon, a picturesque, tourist destination 150 kms (93 miles) southwest of Sydney, voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to rid the town of bottled water to combat the carbon footprint from bottling and transporting it.
Local businesses in the town of 2,500 people have agreed to replace all single-use bottles with reusable bottles that can be filled from water fountains and to bear the loss of sales.
"Bottled water has a role to play in various parts of Australia and many parts of the world but we don't really need it as we have a wonderful municipal water supply," local businessman Huw Kingston, who led the campaign, told Reuters.
"We're not a bunch of raving greenies but this is us showing we can work together as a community for sustainability."
Kingston, who runs a combined cafe and bike shop, said the ban was voluntary, with "no water police in Bundanoon," so it was up to the town's 50 to 60 businesses to implement the change.
He said a catalyst for the campaign was an application by Sydney company Norlex Holdings Pty Ltd to build a local water extraction plant, raising people's awareness of the issue. The application was rejected but an appeal is before the courts.
The campaign has spread beyond Bundanoon, prompting the government of New South Wales (NSW), Australia's most populous state, to also look at ways to cut down on bottled water.
Organizations like conservation group WWF have campaigned against bottled water, saying resources are wasted in bottling and transporting water which may be no safer or healthier than tap water while selling for up to a thousand times the price.
NSW Premier Nathan Rees this week announced an immediate ban on state departments and agencies buying bottled water.
"Tap water isn't just better for the environment, it's better for your wallet - you can refill your drink bottle 1,350 times for the average cost of a bottle of spring water," Rees said.
Australians spent about $500 million (US$395 million) on bottled water in 2008, a 10 percent increase on 2007.
Environmental group Do Something!, which helped drive a ban on plastic bags in Coles Bay in the state of Tasmania, welcomed the NSW government and Bundanoon bans.
"We are very much hoping that this move will get Australians to rethink the half billion dollars a year that they spend on bottled water," said Do Something! chairman Jon Dee...
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Kaua'i Mayor's Proactive Message on Conservation
From: http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2009/07/12/news/kauai_news/doc4a598508b644f194063698.txt
"Together, we can make a difference"
By Bernard P. Carvalho Jr. – Special to The Garden Island Over the past six months, I have said it over and over again: “Together, we can!” I truly believe that there is no challenge we can’t overcome if we work together with open hearts and hands willing to get the job done.
One of the areas of biggest challenge for us is a word that is on everyone’s lips these days: sustainability. To be truly sustainable, we must learn how to balance the needs of our economy, our environment and our communities in order to meet our current needs, without compromising the needs of future generations.
Can we do this? I believe we can. And I’m asking each of Kaua‘i’s residents to play a part in stabilizing our economy and protecting the future of our beautiful island. Every month in this column, thanks to a partnership with Apollo Kaua‘i and The Garden Island newspaper, I will be addressing ways in which we can live, work and play more sustainably.
This month, I want to begin by saying “Mahalo” to our community for staying upbeat and patient during these tough times. Because of Kaua’i’s spirit, people from all over the world can come here to forget their own troubles. This is a gift we offer the world. We also offer one of the most beautiful locations on earth. With this opportunity, we also have a chance to show those who visit how to properly respect the land and ocean.
There is a direct link between a healthy economy and a thriving local population, and much of what we need to do starts right in our own homes and businesses. Take energy costs, for example. High energy consumption is not only bad for our environment; it’s bad for our pocketbooks as well. By changing our lifestyles we can conserve energy, protect our environment, and reduce our monthly expenses all at the same time.
Each month, with the assistance of Apollo Kaua‘i — a local organization dedicated to researching energy solutions — I’ll be sharing with you some practical tips on how we can begin to move the needle on sustainability. These are things we all can do, and indeed, must do, if we are going to protect the quality of our lifestyle now and into the future:
1.) It’s time to recycle! Set up bins at your home and at work — for paper, plastic, cardboard, newspaper, cans and glass. Empty these bins at the nearest recycle locations. The more we recycle now, the sooner we can be prepared for the added convenience of curbside pickup.
2.) Use clotheslines instead of dryers. This saves money and saves energy, and it’s easy to do.
3.) Ride a bike and ride the bus. Use your car less. This will save the environment, save you money and take off some extra pounds.
I urge you to make a commitment to start these three actions right away.
Please share this message with your ‘ohana, friends and work associates. Make it your message. Together, we will make a difference.
Mahalo nui loa.
• Bernard P. Carvalho Jr. is mayor of Kaua‘i County. This is his first monthly column on sustainability written exclusively for The Garden Island.
"Together, we can make a difference"
By Bernard P. Carvalho Jr. – Special to The Garden Island Over the past six months, I have said it over and over again: “Together, we can!” I truly believe that there is no challenge we can’t overcome if we work together with open hearts and hands willing to get the job done.
One of the areas of biggest challenge for us is a word that is on everyone’s lips these days: sustainability. To be truly sustainable, we must learn how to balance the needs of our economy, our environment and our communities in order to meet our current needs, without compromising the needs of future generations.
Can we do this? I believe we can. And I’m asking each of Kaua‘i’s residents to play a part in stabilizing our economy and protecting the future of our beautiful island. Every month in this column, thanks to a partnership with Apollo Kaua‘i and The Garden Island newspaper, I will be addressing ways in which we can live, work and play more sustainably.
This month, I want to begin by saying “Mahalo” to our community for staying upbeat and patient during these tough times. Because of Kaua’i’s spirit, people from all over the world can come here to forget their own troubles. This is a gift we offer the world. We also offer one of the most beautiful locations on earth. With this opportunity, we also have a chance to show those who visit how to properly respect the land and ocean.
There is a direct link between a healthy economy and a thriving local population, and much of what we need to do starts right in our own homes and businesses. Take energy costs, for example. High energy consumption is not only bad for our environment; it’s bad for our pocketbooks as well. By changing our lifestyles we can conserve energy, protect our environment, and reduce our monthly expenses all at the same time.
Each month, with the assistance of Apollo Kaua‘i — a local organization dedicated to researching energy solutions — I’ll be sharing with you some practical tips on how we can begin to move the needle on sustainability. These are things we all can do, and indeed, must do, if we are going to protect the quality of our lifestyle now and into the future:
1.) It’s time to recycle! Set up bins at your home and at work — for paper, plastic, cardboard, newspaper, cans and glass. Empty these bins at the nearest recycle locations. The more we recycle now, the sooner we can be prepared for the added convenience of curbside pickup.
2.) Use clotheslines instead of dryers. This saves money and saves energy, and it’s easy to do.
3.) Ride a bike and ride the bus. Use your car less. This will save the environment, save you money and take off some extra pounds.
I urge you to make a commitment to start these three actions right away.
Please share this message with your ‘ohana, friends and work associates. Make it your message. Together, we will make a difference.
Mahalo nui loa.
• Bernard P. Carvalho Jr. is mayor of Kaua‘i County. This is his first monthly column on sustainability written exclusively for The Garden Island.
Governor Lingle's Veto List so far...
Gov. Linda Lingle has until Wednesday to veto bills passed by the Legislature last session. A list of the governor's vetoes so far is at http://hawaii.gov/gov/initiatives/veto.
Regarding Kaua'i County Council's Excessive use of Executive Sessions
Walter raises some interesting points today with the following Op-Ed. I'll just say that the County may not have fully responded to the OIP nor the individual regarding the recent request on the June 3rd meeting, but that doesn't mean they won't. The 10-day response requirement is the formality, but a little more time has been taken before further appropriate action is pursued. Also, June 3rd did contain an Executive Session regardless of whether the vote was properly taken. The minutes for that June 3rd Executive Session have been completed, although not shared, yet.
From: http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2009/07/11/opinion/kauai/doc4a5853cde9aea330404140.txt
"Council’s secret sessions should outrage public"
By Walter Lewis
The Hawai‘i Sunshine Law declares that it is the policy of the state that the formation and conduct of public policy — the discussions, deliberations, decisions and action of governmental agencies — shall be conducted as openly as possible.
On Kaua‘i, however, the reverse seems to be true. The prevailing practice of our rogue county is to use secret executive meetings of the County Council and of the county’s boards and commissions to conduct discussions of policy and to make decisions about actions to be taken in many cases where openness should occur.
Our Sunshine Law, with its open government concepts, has been in effect for many years. However, the present deviation of Kaua‘i from it was largely initiated in 2002 with the advent of Lani Nakazawa as County Attorney and Kaipo Asing as County Council chair.
Ms. Nakazawa determined to darken public access to governmental processes by decreeing that communications from her office to county offices and agencies were to be treated as subject to attorney client privilege and not to be disclosed by persons and bodies receiving them except by following procedures that were never identified.
Although disclosure of opinions elsewhere is customary, in recent years only one opinion from the Kaua‘i county attorney office has been made public.
The Sunshine Law contains certain exceptions allowing secret meetings to be held for specified purposes, and a focus was given to one which approved clandestine meetings “to consult with the board’s attorney on questions and issues pertaining to the board’s powers, duties, privileges, immunities and liabilities.”
Even though at the time Kaua‘i had a charter provision which required that County Council meetings be open except for consideration of claims, it appears Ms. Nakazawa persuaded the council to ignore it. Having eliminated the only real barrier to closed council meetings, it was then observable that, subject to having an attorney present at executive sessions, the council could discuss virtually anything they wanted to and claim that they were consulting the attorney on matters relating to their powers, duties, privileges immunities or liabilities.
The Kaua‘i County Council has never been particularly comfortable with its role as a deliberative assembly with its members preferring behind-the-scenes steering of issues and the collegiality of reaching unanimous decisions, and the new freedom espoused by Ms. Nakazawa was inviting.
For the new council chair, the practices and interpretations initiated by Ms. Nakazawa were made to order. Having the ability to channel discussions of topics of controversial nature into closed sessions fit Mr. Asing’s plans. Since his accession to the council chair, the frequency of executive meetings of the council have almost trebled the rate of such meetings before he became its chair.
The other council members also seemed amenable to the latitude of executive meeting avoiding public scrutiny. Even members who professed publicly belief in the principles of the Sunshine Law were staunch supporters of the legality and propriety of the executive session milieu.
Apart from a few militant citizens who challenged the soaring use of executive meetings by the council, the general public didn’t seem to care. In 2008 the voters, aided by a deceptive statement of its rationale, approved comfortably a charter amendment which relieved the council of the threat of having to limit executive meetings to those on the subject of claims, even though the council had already flagrantly disregarded it.
Moving in lockstep with the practices of the council, county boards and commissions took advantage of the rulings and advice emanating from the county attorney’s office and increasingly availed themselves of the secrecy present in executive meetings. And they did not need to worry about the nagging requirement limiting subjects to claims that the council had at least to notice although not to conform to.
The State Office of Information Practices was established to administer compliance with the Sunshine Law and the Uniform Information Practices Act. Its determinations of interpretation of these laws are supposed to be definitive, but when the council did not like an OIP opinion on its practices in one executive meeting in 2005 investigating the termination of former Police Chief Lum, the Council initiated a lawsuit to negate it.
(Encouragingly the State Supreme Court has recently granted certiorari in this case to hear on August 10 an appeal of lower court decisions favoring the county.)
This year, the OIP acting on a complaint about a closed council meeting that did not even assert that it was an executive meeting sought information from the council, but their request which is supposed to be answered within ten days has been ignored.
The Sunshine Law specifies that executive meetings may only be held upon an affirmative recorded vote of two-thirds of the members present. And the reason for holding the session must be stated. Our council sometimes goes into executive meetings without a vote although mysteriously the minutes correct this deficiency.
Recently the council has held two executive meetings ostensibly for the purpose of consulting with counsel about the amendments made to the charter in November 2008. It is generally believed that these meeting were, in fact, to consider the role of the council to either implement or to challenge the amendment to require council action on permitting accommodations for visitors.
The matter is of considerable interest having been passed convincingly by the voters and discussion about it should clearly be held in the public view, but our council is evidently disinterested in informing us about their analysis.
Other illustrations could be offered, but apparently the citizens of Kaua‘i are content with the reckless way its council and other agencies treat their obligation to conform to the policy of the State to open up the governmental processes to public scrutiny and participation.
Unless and until there is a public outrage about the disregard of openness by our government, it will certainly continue.
• Walter Lewis is a resident of Princeville and writes a biweekly column for The Garden Island.
From: http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2009/07/11/opinion/kauai/doc4a5853cde9aea330404140.txt
"Council’s secret sessions should outrage public"
By Walter Lewis
The Hawai‘i Sunshine Law declares that it is the policy of the state that the formation and conduct of public policy — the discussions, deliberations, decisions and action of governmental agencies — shall be conducted as openly as possible.
On Kaua‘i, however, the reverse seems to be true. The prevailing practice of our rogue county is to use secret executive meetings of the County Council and of the county’s boards and commissions to conduct discussions of policy and to make decisions about actions to be taken in many cases where openness should occur.
Our Sunshine Law, with its open government concepts, has been in effect for many years. However, the present deviation of Kaua‘i from it was largely initiated in 2002 with the advent of Lani Nakazawa as County Attorney and Kaipo Asing as County Council chair.
Ms. Nakazawa determined to darken public access to governmental processes by decreeing that communications from her office to county offices and agencies were to be treated as subject to attorney client privilege and not to be disclosed by persons and bodies receiving them except by following procedures that were never identified.
Although disclosure of opinions elsewhere is customary, in recent years only one opinion from the Kaua‘i county attorney office has been made public.
The Sunshine Law contains certain exceptions allowing secret meetings to be held for specified purposes, and a focus was given to one which approved clandestine meetings “to consult with the board’s attorney on questions and issues pertaining to the board’s powers, duties, privileges, immunities and liabilities.”
Even though at the time Kaua‘i had a charter provision which required that County Council meetings be open except for consideration of claims, it appears Ms. Nakazawa persuaded the council to ignore it. Having eliminated the only real barrier to closed council meetings, it was then observable that, subject to having an attorney present at executive sessions, the council could discuss virtually anything they wanted to and claim that they were consulting the attorney on matters relating to their powers, duties, privileges immunities or liabilities.
The Kaua‘i County Council has never been particularly comfortable with its role as a deliberative assembly with its members preferring behind-the-scenes steering of issues and the collegiality of reaching unanimous decisions, and the new freedom espoused by Ms. Nakazawa was inviting.
For the new council chair, the practices and interpretations initiated by Ms. Nakazawa were made to order. Having the ability to channel discussions of topics of controversial nature into closed sessions fit Mr. Asing’s plans. Since his accession to the council chair, the frequency of executive meetings of the council have almost trebled the rate of such meetings before he became its chair.
The other council members also seemed amenable to the latitude of executive meeting avoiding public scrutiny. Even members who professed publicly belief in the principles of the Sunshine Law were staunch supporters of the legality and propriety of the executive session milieu.
Apart from a few militant citizens who challenged the soaring use of executive meetings by the council, the general public didn’t seem to care. In 2008 the voters, aided by a deceptive statement of its rationale, approved comfortably a charter amendment which relieved the council of the threat of having to limit executive meetings to those on the subject of claims, even though the council had already flagrantly disregarded it.
Moving in lockstep with the practices of the council, county boards and commissions took advantage of the rulings and advice emanating from the county attorney’s office and increasingly availed themselves of the secrecy present in executive meetings. And they did not need to worry about the nagging requirement limiting subjects to claims that the council had at least to notice although not to conform to.
The State Office of Information Practices was established to administer compliance with the Sunshine Law and the Uniform Information Practices Act. Its determinations of interpretation of these laws are supposed to be definitive, but when the council did not like an OIP opinion on its practices in one executive meeting in 2005 investigating the termination of former Police Chief Lum, the Council initiated a lawsuit to negate it.
(Encouragingly the State Supreme Court has recently granted certiorari in this case to hear on August 10 an appeal of lower court decisions favoring the county.)
This year, the OIP acting on a complaint about a closed council meeting that did not even assert that it was an executive meeting sought information from the council, but their request which is supposed to be answered within ten days has been ignored.
The Sunshine Law specifies that executive meetings may only be held upon an affirmative recorded vote of two-thirds of the members present. And the reason for holding the session must be stated. Our council sometimes goes into executive meetings without a vote although mysteriously the minutes correct this deficiency.
Recently the council has held two executive meetings ostensibly for the purpose of consulting with counsel about the amendments made to the charter in November 2008. It is generally believed that these meeting were, in fact, to consider the role of the council to either implement or to challenge the amendment to require council action on permitting accommodations for visitors.
The matter is of considerable interest having been passed convincingly by the voters and discussion about it should clearly be held in the public view, but our council is evidently disinterested in informing us about their analysis.
Other illustrations could be offered, but apparently the citizens of Kaua‘i are content with the reckless way its council and other agencies treat their obligation to conform to the policy of the State to open up the governmental processes to public scrutiny and participation.
Unless and until there is a public outrage about the disregard of openness by our government, it will certainly continue.
• Walter Lewis is a resident of Princeville and writes a biweekly column for The Garden Island.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Interesting news about events associated with the Earth's magnetic fields
We haven't talked about it much here, but we are aware of the expected astronomical event of Ascension 2012 and a possible shift in the Earth's magnetic poles and/or axis of rotation. Whenever I read any plans or forecasts beyond 3 years out, this is always at the back of my mind, "OK, but what will happen around Dec. 21, 2012?" There will be an astronomical alignment of our solar system with our galactic center, but even the astronomers don't know what exactly will happen. The last time it happened was before our recorded history. The date has gained a wide following in the spiritual world, but it is also a scientific event.
Into this drops an interesting article recently on the East African Rift from a reliable Eastern European news agency:
From: http://macedoniaonline.eu/content/view/7331/53/
"Russians order Flight Changes, after Massive Magnetic Shift downs Airliners"
Macedonian Int'l News Agency
Tuesday, 30 June 2009
Reports circulating in the Kremlin today are saying that Russian Air Force Commanders have issued warnings to all of their aircraft to exercise “extreme caution” during flights “in and around” an area defined as Latitude 17 North [North Atlantic Ocean] Latitude 3 South [South Atlantic Ocean] to Latitude 8 North [Indian Ocean] Latitude 19 South [Indian Ocean] between the Longitudes of 46 West, 33 West, 46 East and 33 East, and which covers the greater part of the African Tectonic Plate.
The reason for this unprecedented warning, these reports state, are the rapid formations of “geomagnetic storms” emanating from the boundaries of the African Tectonic Plate that due to their intensity have caused the loss of two major passenger aircraft during the past month leaving nearly 300 men, women and children dead.
The first aircraft to be downed by this phenomenon was Air France passenger flight 447, and which these reports say that upon encountering one of these geomagnetic storms, on June 1st, near the western boundary of the African Tectonic Plate close to Brazil’s Fernando de Noronha Islands, was “completely annihilated” causing the deaths of 216 passengers and 12 crew members as their plane plunged in pieces into the Atlantic Ocean.
The second aircraft to be downed occurred on the eastern boundary of the African Tectonic Plate today when another of these geomagnetic storms slammed from the sky a Yemeni Airways flight to the Island Nation of Comoros in the Indian Ocean of which of the 153 passengers and crew aboard, only 1 “miracle child” has been rescued, so far.
To the catastrophic events occurring within the African Tectonic Plate it has been known for over a year with the reporting of a “new ocean” forming in Ethiopia, and as we can read as reported by Nature News Service:
“Although the birth of an ocean is an extremely rare phenomenon on the largest of historical scales, the geophysics is currently experiencing such an event. Even more dazzling, this occurs in one of the Earth's most inhospitable and arid regions, the Afar Depression in Ethiopia.
The African continent is literally unstitching itself apart just like the sleeve of an old shirt, along the area known as the East African Rift, which traverses it beginning with the southern end of the Red Sea, going through Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique. The molten lava beneath the Earth's surface makes it thin by constantly pushing against it, and eventually breaks it and tears it apart.”
Though Western scientist assert that the formation of this new ocean is not likely to be finished for millions of years, Russian scientists state, unequivocally, that due to the Suns current unprecedented Deep Solar Minimum, our Earth is in danger of being, literally, “ripped apart”, at the worst, or nearing a “total pole reversal” due to an as yet unexplained, but extremely powerful, gravitational force emanating from the outer reaches of our Solar System...
Russian scientists further warn that the West’s “obsession” with manmade Global Warming is a deliberately designed propaganda effort to shield their peoples from the fact that not only our Earth, but all of the planets in our Solar System are currently undergoing rapid warming, and as proved, beyond all doubt, by Doctor Scientist Habibullo Abdussamatov, head of space research at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Astronomical Observatory in Russia, when in 2007 he released his findings that for the previous 3 years the ice caps of Mars have been melting at an unprecedented rate.
And, as reported by one, of many, dissident Western news sites, “Photographs of the merging of two red spots on Jupiter, evidence of warming on Neptune's largest moon Triton, warming on Pluto that is "puzzling scientists" and, of course, the already documented warming trend on Mars all add up to convincing evidence for increased solar activity across the entire solar system.”...
Click on above image to enlarge
I went looking and found a couple of good scientific documents on magnetic fields and the East African Rift, they are here (search for 'magnetic') and here. It will be interesting in the few short years ahead (3) to see if "global warming" is more associated with Ascension than carbon and GHG's. We will know soon enough.
Into this drops an interesting article recently on the East African Rift from a reliable Eastern European news agency:
From: http://macedoniaonline.eu/content/view/7331/53/
"Russians order Flight Changes, after Massive Magnetic Shift downs Airliners"
Macedonian Int'l News Agency
Tuesday, 30 June 2009
Reports circulating in the Kremlin today are saying that Russian Air Force Commanders have issued warnings to all of their aircraft to exercise “extreme caution” during flights “in and around” an area defined as Latitude 17 North [North Atlantic Ocean] Latitude 3 South [South Atlantic Ocean] to Latitude 8 North [Indian Ocean] Latitude 19 South [Indian Ocean] between the Longitudes of 46 West, 33 West, 46 East and 33 East, and which covers the greater part of the African Tectonic Plate.
The reason for this unprecedented warning, these reports state, are the rapid formations of “geomagnetic storms” emanating from the boundaries of the African Tectonic Plate that due to their intensity have caused the loss of two major passenger aircraft during the past month leaving nearly 300 men, women and children dead.
The first aircraft to be downed by this phenomenon was Air France passenger flight 447, and which these reports say that upon encountering one of these geomagnetic storms, on June 1st, near the western boundary of the African Tectonic Plate close to Brazil’s Fernando de Noronha Islands, was “completely annihilated” causing the deaths of 216 passengers and 12 crew members as their plane plunged in pieces into the Atlantic Ocean.
The second aircraft to be downed occurred on the eastern boundary of the African Tectonic Plate today when another of these geomagnetic storms slammed from the sky a Yemeni Airways flight to the Island Nation of Comoros in the Indian Ocean of which of the 153 passengers and crew aboard, only 1 “miracle child” has been rescued, so far.
To the catastrophic events occurring within the African Tectonic Plate it has been known for over a year with the reporting of a “new ocean” forming in Ethiopia, and as we can read as reported by Nature News Service:
“Although the birth of an ocean is an extremely rare phenomenon on the largest of historical scales, the geophysics is currently experiencing such an event. Even more dazzling, this occurs in one of the Earth's most inhospitable and arid regions, the Afar Depression in Ethiopia.
The African continent is literally unstitching itself apart just like the sleeve of an old shirt, along the area known as the East African Rift, which traverses it beginning with the southern end of the Red Sea, going through Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique. The molten lava beneath the Earth's surface makes it thin by constantly pushing against it, and eventually breaks it and tears it apart.”
Though Western scientist assert that the formation of this new ocean is not likely to be finished for millions of years, Russian scientists state, unequivocally, that due to the Suns current unprecedented Deep Solar Minimum, our Earth is in danger of being, literally, “ripped apart”, at the worst, or nearing a “total pole reversal” due to an as yet unexplained, but extremely powerful, gravitational force emanating from the outer reaches of our Solar System...
Russian scientists further warn that the West’s “obsession” with manmade Global Warming is a deliberately designed propaganda effort to shield their peoples from the fact that not only our Earth, but all of the planets in our Solar System are currently undergoing rapid warming, and as proved, beyond all doubt, by Doctor Scientist Habibullo Abdussamatov, head of space research at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Astronomical Observatory in Russia, when in 2007 he released his findings that for the previous 3 years the ice caps of Mars have been melting at an unprecedented rate.
And, as reported by one, of many, dissident Western news sites, “Photographs of the merging of two red spots on Jupiter, evidence of warming on Neptune's largest moon Triton, warming on Pluto that is "puzzling scientists" and, of course, the already documented warming trend on Mars all add up to convincing evidence for increased solar activity across the entire solar system.”...
Click on above image to enlargeI went looking and found a couple of good scientific documents on magnetic fields and the East African Rift, they are here (search for 'magnetic') and here. It will be interesting in the few short years ahead (3) to see if "global warming" is more associated with Ascension than carbon and GHG's. We will know soon enough.
Rolling Stone: The Great American Bubble Machine (Oil)
Rolling Stone: The Great American Bubble Machine PT.1 of 5
Rolling Stone: The Great American Bubble Machine PT.5 of 5
Rolling Stone: The Great American Bubble Machine PT.5 of 5
Friday, July 10, 2009
Kaua'i Leads the Nation in New Solar Watts Per Customer, Because Their Unresponsive Utility is the Most Petroleum Dependent Utility in the Country
What the local newspaper is reporting on today about KIUC's members:
Regarding "KIUC members led U.S. in solar production," quoting from that:
"...Not all members are in financial positions to take advantage of the government tax credits. 'You’ve gotta be able to take advantage of the tax situation,' to make installing PV cost-effective, [CEO Randy] Hee said."
WRONG. For the member/consumer the tax credits are actually a lesser reason to install PV. Having control of their utility rates in the face of an uncertain future that the utility is not reacting to adequately is the main reason that commercial and residential customers on Kaua'i are installing PV in noteworthly numbers.
This is a success story for the individual consumers and businesses on Kauai that recognize this and are acting on it in per capita numbers that lead the nation. This is also an indication of the failure of KIUC to adequately address their excessive reliance upon price sensitive liquid petroleum fuels for power generation. Very few utilities in the U.S. are so dependent upon liquid fuels for power generation. Regardless of the history, and how we got here, this would be looked upon as irresponsible by most utilities and their shareholders.
"KIUC members led U.S. in solar production"
By Paul Curtis - The Garden Island LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative members who installed their own photovoltaic systems piloted the utility to lead the nation in solar watts per customer (47.1) in 2008, and cumulative solar watts per customer (70.6) through the same year.
That’s according to the 2008 Top Ten Utility Solar Integration Rankings, published in May by the Solar Electric Power Association, for the customer side of the electric meter or member-installed solar systems designed to generate electricity.
KIUC also ranked second nationally in terms of PV systems installed by consumers in 2008, with the 2008 total solar watts per customer figure being second in the nation for either side of the electric meter, behind only the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission’s 2,696.3.
In the public power utilities category, KIUC was again second in the nation only to San Francisco in the category of solar watts per customer, and third behind San Francisco and Oakland, Calif. in the cumulative category.
Randy Hee, KIUC president, told members of the KIUC board of directors, staff and members at last week’s board meeting that KIUC’s members have the highest number of consumer-installed solar systems in the nation, per kilowatt-hour.
Generous federal and state tax credits help most members pay for up to 65 percent of the cost of systems, which can run in the neighborhood of $40,000 but can reduce a member’s monthly electric bill to near $0 because they generate electricity the members would otherwise have to buy from KIUC.
Systems are being installed by members, and contractors say KIUC is easier to work with than some other electrical utilities, Hee said.
“Something is working in that area. ... And it’s not something that we do alone. It’s actually customer-connected solar, so it takes effort from members,” Hee said. “On our side, it’s us enabling that interconnection.
“This is the second year in a row (for the high ranking), so we’re pretty pleased with the progress in that area,” Hee said.
“Solar’s a tough deal to put in ourselves because we can’t take advantage of the tax credits (as a nonprofit, member-owned cooperative), so for us it’s mostly trying to enable others to get it in,” he said.
“It’s difficult for us to get it done. We try to make interconnection agreements easy and fair to members,” said Hee.
Not all members are in financial positions to take advantage of the government tax credits. “You’ve gotta be able to take advantage of the tax situation,” to make installing PV cost-effective, he said.
According to the SEPA 2008 report press release, renewable portfolio standards, impending carbon policy, and fluctuating costs of power generation and fuel resources top the list of drivers towards improved utility perception of solar electric options.
“Residential and commercial photovoltaic projects will continue to be important stimulants for job creation and small-business growth, but they will be complemented by large-scale photovoltaic and concentrating solar power projects,” said Mike Taylor, SEPA director of research and education.
“The variety of ways solar power is being implemented signals an increased maturity in the market,” Taylor said.
SEPA is comprised of over 550 utilities and solar industry members. From national events to one-on-one counseling, SEPA is a resource for unbiased and actionable solar intelligence, according to the release.
SEPA can help people take time and risk out of implementing solar business plans, the release states.
The SEPA Web site is www.solarelectricpower.org.
Regarding "KIUC members led U.S. in solar production," quoting from that:
"...Not all members are in financial positions to take advantage of the government tax credits. 'You’ve gotta be able to take advantage of the tax situation,' to make installing PV cost-effective, [CEO Randy] Hee said."
WRONG. For the member/consumer the tax credits are actually a lesser reason to install PV. Having control of their utility rates in the face of an uncertain future that the utility is not reacting to adequately is the main reason that commercial and residential customers on Kaua'i are installing PV in noteworthly numbers.
This is a success story for the individual consumers and businesses on Kauai that recognize this and are acting on it in per capita numbers that lead the nation. This is also an indication of the failure of KIUC to adequately address their excessive reliance upon price sensitive liquid petroleum fuels for power generation. Very few utilities in the U.S. are so dependent upon liquid fuels for power generation. Regardless of the history, and how we got here, this would be looked upon as irresponsible by most utilities and their shareholders.
"KIUC members led U.S. in solar production"
By Paul Curtis - The Garden Island LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative members who installed their own photovoltaic systems piloted the utility to lead the nation in solar watts per customer (47.1) in 2008, and cumulative solar watts per customer (70.6) through the same year.
That’s according to the 2008 Top Ten Utility Solar Integration Rankings, published in May by the Solar Electric Power Association, for the customer side of the electric meter or member-installed solar systems designed to generate electricity.
KIUC also ranked second nationally in terms of PV systems installed by consumers in 2008, with the 2008 total solar watts per customer figure being second in the nation for either side of the electric meter, behind only the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission’s 2,696.3.
In the public power utilities category, KIUC was again second in the nation only to San Francisco in the category of solar watts per customer, and third behind San Francisco and Oakland, Calif. in the cumulative category.
Randy Hee, KIUC president, told members of the KIUC board of directors, staff and members at last week’s board meeting that KIUC’s members have the highest number of consumer-installed solar systems in the nation, per kilowatt-hour.
Generous federal and state tax credits help most members pay for up to 65 percent of the cost of systems, which can run in the neighborhood of $40,000 but can reduce a member’s monthly electric bill to near $0 because they generate electricity the members would otherwise have to buy from KIUC.
Systems are being installed by members, and contractors say KIUC is easier to work with than some other electrical utilities, Hee said.
“Something is working in that area. ... And it’s not something that we do alone. It’s actually customer-connected solar, so it takes effort from members,” Hee said. “On our side, it’s us enabling that interconnection.
“This is the second year in a row (for the high ranking), so we’re pretty pleased with the progress in that area,” Hee said.
“Solar’s a tough deal to put in ourselves because we can’t take advantage of the tax credits (as a nonprofit, member-owned cooperative), so for us it’s mostly trying to enable others to get it in,” he said.
“It’s difficult for us to get it done. We try to make interconnection agreements easy and fair to members,” said Hee.
Not all members are in financial positions to take advantage of the government tax credits. “You’ve gotta be able to take advantage of the tax situation,” to make installing PV cost-effective, he said.
According to the SEPA 2008 report press release, renewable portfolio standards, impending carbon policy, and fluctuating costs of power generation and fuel resources top the list of drivers towards improved utility perception of solar electric options.
“Residential and commercial photovoltaic projects will continue to be important stimulants for job creation and small-business growth, but they will be complemented by large-scale photovoltaic and concentrating solar power projects,” said Mike Taylor, SEPA director of research and education.
“The variety of ways solar power is being implemented signals an increased maturity in the market,” Taylor said.
SEPA is comprised of over 550 utilities and solar industry members. From national events to one-on-one counseling, SEPA is a resource for unbiased and actionable solar intelligence, according to the release.
SEPA can help people take time and risk out of implementing solar business plans, the release states.
The SEPA Web site is www.solarelectricpower.org.
KIUC false statements about IRP-3 and relying upon bogus forecasts
Anywhere else in America, utility executives would be fired over this kind of stuff. Here the newspaper hasn't yet reported on it:
From: http://kauaian.net/blog/?p=1474
KIUC forecast update: on cooking the numbers
From: http://kauaian.net/blog/?p=1474
KIUC forecast update: on cooking the numbers
You’re anxious to know what’s in KIUC’s updated Equity Management Plan, right? You want to know how rate increases and investment in renewables will impact our coop’s financials in the years ahead, right?
Good luck! Although it was approved at the Board’s April meeting, this document is still not available on the KIUC website.
Good news! It is available as an appendix to KIUC’s request to the PUC for a rate increase…though it’s not easy to get (go to this PUC Documents page and search for 2009-0050, then click on Volume I of the Verification Exhibits and go to page 315…whew!)
Now that you’ve got the EMP, go to Table A-20 in the “base case” results section (page 358), and checkout the demand forecast as updated by R.W. Beck.
Bad news! KIUC’s “base case” scenario for the EMP through 2018 shows kWh sales actually growing faster than previously thought! That’s right, the EMP consultant (Beck) sees demand rebounding sharply in the next few years and reaching 620GW by 2018, versus 605GW envisioned by the IRP consultant (Black & Veatch).
[Of course, that’s good news if you’re trying to justify spending $66 million on a new 17.4MW fossil fuel generator to meet “near term capacity” challenges, as KIUC management seems to be doing.]
Still, the only way this demand growth can be achieved is by assuming that growth rates skyrocket to more than 8% in the years 2011-2014. That’s what Beck predicts, but surely no credible analyst would believe this! IMHO, they’re just “cooking the numbers” to support the ‘desired’ outcome. `Aue!
BTW, the press release notes that this EMP “mentions specific generation technologies that were selected as part of the recently approved IRP, although it is not an endorsement of any particular generation technology.”
Of course, there’s a key piece of that statement that’s false: the IRP was not approved…it was shelved by the PUC, together with an order to proceed with the new CESP (Clean Energy Scenario Plan) process. (Oh, and, checkout footnote 6 of this document where the PUC slaps KIUC’s hand for not publicizing the IRP.)
Nor is it strictly true that no particular generator has been endorsed, since work is well underway on site planning and feasibility work for the GenX fossil fuel generator to be added at Kapaia.
Never mind that the name for this generator keeps changing. In the IRP it’s called GenX (cute, yeah?), while in the EMP it’s called 1X1 Solar Titan Combined Cycle (though it’s got nothing to do with solar energy).
It should be noted that the EMP is (maddeningly) not searchable, so extracting any of these findings for more careful analysis becomes a huge chore…countless pages of (pictures of) spreadsheet results must be copied into your own spreadsheet. Aaaargh!!
On a minor note, it’s also curious that KIUC habitually attaches copies of Board presentations to the monthly meeting minutes…but not my testimony at their May meeting (which they helpfully note is attached to the original minutes in their office). Surely their unwillingness to share my testimony has nothing to do with its content! (Get it here.)
Still, I must say, if this is transparency, I need new eye wear.
First, KIUC hides the IRP, and now the EMP. And they won’t say whether they’re adopting the CESP process, or whether GenX is proceeding, regardless…
Is it that they really don’t want us to know what they’re doing? If so, why?
Published by Ken on July 7th, 2009 tagged Energy, Best Practices
Japanese tourists abroad way down on flu scare
The stats are delayed, but this was just released:
From: http://www.tourism.jp/english/statistics/outbound.php
From: http://www.tourism.jp/english/statistics/outbound.php
| -----------Jan | ---Feb | ----Mar | -----Apr | ----May | 2009---Total |
|---|
| Hawaii | 88,619 -12.7% | --92,789-- ---5.5% | 102,699-- +0.6% | 84,387 +8.8% | ---77,925 ---15.5% | -----446,419 -----5.3% |
|---|
Thursday, July 9, 2009
"Stop Oil Speculation Now" Gearing Up Again
News today from an Airline lobby that began this time last year. The oil markets are already reacting to this campaign being thrown into action again. Oil speculators are such wooses:
Rampant oil-market speculation is driving up energy and food prices for the second year in a row. Just yesterday, the Wall Street Journal and other news media reported that continued speculation could "worsen the global economic downturn." We cannot allow this to happen.
Last year, you participated in the Stop Oil Speculation Now coalition, a multi-industry collection of businesses, labor groups, associations and concerned citizens united in support of responsible energy policies and prices. Thanks to your efforts, the threat of congressional action brought on by public outrage helped burst last summer's oil bubble and returned prices to reasonable levels.
Now that the speculators have returned, Congress and federal regulators again are considering action. Throughout this summer, we will keep you abreast of the latest news on this issue and let you know about the best opportunities to make your voice heard. By demanding that policymakers close known loopholes, increase market transparency and require strict limits on speculative trading, we can prevent future price spikes. These reforms, combined with increased domestic energy supply, exploration, alternative energy sources and conservation, will help lower prices for all Americans.
Now is the time to learn more about this important issue at www.StopOilSpeculationNow.com and to encourage your friends to get involved at the S.O.S. Your Friends link on the Web site. You can also keep up with the latest news and developments by following us on Twitter or Facebook.
Together, we can help protect America's economic recovery.
Thank you,
The Coalition to Stop Oil Speculation Now
Rampant oil-market speculation is driving up energy and food prices for the second year in a row. Just yesterday, the Wall Street Journal and other news media reported that continued speculation could "worsen the global economic downturn." We cannot allow this to happen.
Last year, you participated in the Stop Oil Speculation Now coalition, a multi-industry collection of businesses, labor groups, associations and concerned citizens united in support of responsible energy policies and prices. Thanks to your efforts, the threat of congressional action brought on by public outrage helped burst last summer's oil bubble and returned prices to reasonable levels.
Now that the speculators have returned, Congress and federal regulators again are considering action. Throughout this summer, we will keep you abreast of the latest news on this issue and let you know about the best opportunities to make your voice heard. By demanding that policymakers close known loopholes, increase market transparency and require strict limits on speculative trading, we can prevent future price spikes. These reforms, combined with increased domestic energy supply, exploration, alternative energy sources and conservation, will help lower prices for all Americans.
Now is the time to learn more about this important issue at www.StopOilSpeculationNow.com and to encourage your friends to get involved at the S.O.S. Your Friends link on the Web site. You can also keep up with the latest news and developments by following us on Twitter or Facebook.
Together, we can help protect America's economic recovery.
Thank you,
The Coalition to Stop Oil Speculation Now
Kaua'i County Council online Minutes are now searchable and cut-and-pasteable, but not current
A second insightful letter to the editor, by a librarian, on July 7th commented on the initial Minutes up on the Kaua'i County Council website were image files only, not OCR, not cut-and-pasteable, and not searchable.
The next day, July 8th, I was in a Council Member's office and we noticed that that had been changed on July 8th and the Council Minutes on the public website are now OCR, searchable, and can be cut-and-pasted. I noticed later, though, that the minutes online to the public are only through June 3rd, not anything from the two meetings nor committee meetings since then even though the Minutes have been created at a minimum from the mid-June Council Meeting already.
Additionally, the public still expects action on all three goals listed at www.kauaiinfo.org including allowing all Councilmembers to place items on the Council agenda and circulating Council Service documents equitably to all Councilmembers in a timely manner, something that can be seen is not being done just by the date stamps on the few Minutes posted at www.kauaiinfo.org. Below was the second excellent letter to the editor in addition to Ed Coll's on this matter:
From: http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2009/07/07/opinion/letters_to_the_editor/doc4a52e2bb8a427114501425.txt
"Public deserves real accessibility"
I am a librarian. I know how crucial making important information readily accessible to citizens is to sustaining democracy.
I would like to expand on Ed Coll’s July 4 letter in The Garden Island. He makes it clear that reporter Michael Levine’s contention in his July 3 article “Council minutes posted online” that “it appears one major gripe has been rectified” is incorrect. Mr. Coll is absolutely right that in making key public documents available on the county’s Web site, mere accessibility is not enough.
These online documents need to be useful, easy to use, and searchable. Council staff’s scanning printed minutes to create image files, and then converting these to Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) format does little to really enhance their accessibility to the public.
As Mr. Coll says: you can’t copy and paste parts of the document to use in writing testimony; you can’t search it. You also cannot search for the documents by keyword on the county’s Web site like you can for those from other county commissions, boards, and departments.
The council needs to follow the example of other county agencies and put documents online the modern way — converting digital text files to .pdf files. This process takes seconds and the online documents created are so much more useful to the public, and can get put online faster.
The public deserves real accessibility to council public documents. The actions described in the article will not achieve this goal. A few meeting minutes, recap memos and agenda outlines do not constitute real accessibility.
To really give the public the information it requires to effectively participate in public decision making, a lot more types of documents need to be posted online: full agenda packets and accompanying documents; the public testimony and correspondence, full text of resolutions, bills and committee reports, relating to each agenda item; and full text departmental staff reports on topics before the council or Planning Commission (plus documents like permit applications and draft EISs and EAs).
The county’s IT specialist, Eric Knutzen, has said that the administration is about to start posting and even doing live video streaming of the meetings of the planning and police commissions. These files would be enhanced to allow searching by topic when the saved videos are posted online. The technology is here now, or will soon be, to have streaming video of live council meetings — and why not have the meetings shown live on Ho‘ike.
That’s real open and transparent government. Other counties in Hawai‘i are offering their citizens online access to all or most of the documents and files I have listed above. Kaua‘i County departments, boards and commissions have been posting a host of documents online for awhile now. Why not the Council?
Is it that the council chair and council clerk fear that ready public access to council documents online will lessen their power? That’s not a valid reason. It’s also a violation of the state’s Uniform Information Practices Act.
These documents belong to the public. They will be used to make decisions that will impact our lives and the lives of future generations. We have a right to have ready access to these documents, so we can effectively participate in decision making that affects all of us.
David Thorp, Kalaheo
The next day, July 8th, I was in a Council Member's office and we noticed that that had been changed on July 8th and the Council Minutes on the public website are now OCR, searchable, and can be cut-and-pasted. I noticed later, though, that the minutes online to the public are only through June 3rd, not anything from the two meetings nor committee meetings since then even though the Minutes have been created at a minimum from the mid-June Council Meeting already.
Additionally, the public still expects action on all three goals listed at www.kauaiinfo.org including allowing all Councilmembers to place items on the Council agenda and circulating Council Service documents equitably to all Councilmembers in a timely manner, something that can be seen is not being done just by the date stamps on the few Minutes posted at www.kauaiinfo.org. Below was the second excellent letter to the editor in addition to Ed Coll's on this matter:
From: http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2009/07/07/opinion/letters_to_the_editor/doc4a52e2bb8a427114501425.txt
"Public deserves real accessibility"
I am a librarian. I know how crucial making important information readily accessible to citizens is to sustaining democracy.
I would like to expand on Ed Coll’s July 4 letter in The Garden Island. He makes it clear that reporter Michael Levine’s contention in his July 3 article “Council minutes posted online” that “it appears one major gripe has been rectified” is incorrect. Mr. Coll is absolutely right that in making key public documents available on the county’s Web site, mere accessibility is not enough.
These online documents need to be useful, easy to use, and searchable. Council staff’s scanning printed minutes to create image files, and then converting these to Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) format does little to really enhance their accessibility to the public.
As Mr. Coll says: you can’t copy and paste parts of the document to use in writing testimony; you can’t search it. You also cannot search for the documents by keyword on the county’s Web site like you can for those from other county commissions, boards, and departments.
The council needs to follow the example of other county agencies and put documents online the modern way — converting digital text files to .pdf files. This process takes seconds and the online documents created are so much more useful to the public, and can get put online faster.
The public deserves real accessibility to council public documents. The actions described in the article will not achieve this goal. A few meeting minutes, recap memos and agenda outlines do not constitute real accessibility.
To really give the public the information it requires to effectively participate in public decision making, a lot more types of documents need to be posted online: full agenda packets and accompanying documents; the public testimony and correspondence, full text of resolutions, bills and committee reports, relating to each agenda item; and full text departmental staff reports on topics before the council or Planning Commission (plus documents like permit applications and draft EISs and EAs).
The county’s IT specialist, Eric Knutzen, has said that the administration is about to start posting and even doing live video streaming of the meetings of the planning and police commissions. These files would be enhanced to allow searching by topic when the saved videos are posted online. The technology is here now, or will soon be, to have streaming video of live council meetings — and why not have the meetings shown live on Ho‘ike.
That’s real open and transparent government. Other counties in Hawai‘i are offering their citizens online access to all or most of the documents and files I have listed above. Kaua‘i County departments, boards and commissions have been posting a host of documents online for awhile now. Why not the Council?
Is it that the council chair and council clerk fear that ready public access to council documents online will lessen their power? That’s not a valid reason. It’s also a violation of the state’s Uniform Information Practices Act.
These documents belong to the public. They will be used to make decisions that will impact our lives and the lives of future generations. We have a right to have ready access to these documents, so we can effectively participate in decision making that affects all of us.
David Thorp, Kalaheo
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Regulating Energy Speculators
Airtime: Tues. Jul. 7 2009
Insight on the tough new rules to clamp down on speculative trading, with Bart Chilton, Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) commissioner and CNBC's Hampton Pearson.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Hawaii Hotels Occupancy Report for May...May is always slow, June and July have been OK
From: http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/20090706/NEWS01/907060336/Hawaii+hotels+report+occupancy+dropping
"Hawaii hotels report occupancy dropping"
"Hawaii hotels report occupancy dropping"
Despite deep discounts on room rates, Hawai'i hotels were less than 62 percent full in May, marking the worst May since at least 1987...
May was the fourth straight month of record lows for occupancy in Hawai'i's hotels. Toy said the steep decline does not bode well for the rest of the summer and the rest of 2009...
The May hotel results reflect a 6.9 percent decline in visitor arrivals to Hawai'i and a 15 percent decline in visitor spending, according to data released earlier by the state.
Although all Islands showed fewer people staying in hotels, the Big Island was particularly hard hit, with the occupancy rate dropping below 50 percent. The Big Island suffered an 8.2 percentage point drop to trail all Hawai'i markets with an occupancy rate of 49.3 percent...
This is Cool....Chalkbot
Nike's Chalkbot on the Roads of France:
Here is a pic of it in France just before the Tour started:
Here is where you enter the messages online to be run by Chalkbot:
http://www.nike.com/nikeos/p/livestrong/en_US/chalk_messages
Have already keyed in 5 messages for Chalkbot. Damned if I'm gonna get some supportive phrases for Lance on the race course pavement of France...ha ha ha, this is cool.
Here is a pic of it in France just before the Tour started:
Here is where you enter the messages online to be run by Chalkbot:
http://www.nike.com/nikeos/p/livestrong/en_US/chalk_messages
Have already keyed in 5 messages for Chalkbot. Damned if I'm gonna get some supportive phrases for Lance on the race course pavement of France...ha ha ha, this is cool.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
How bad is the Hawaii State Budget Gap?
The Worst Expected 2010 State Budget Gaps
12. (Tied) Hawaii
Percent of General Fund: 19.8%
Highest Estimate FY 2009 Gap: $424.6 million*
Percent of General Fund: 7.4%
2007 Total Tax Revenue: $11.176 billion
Debt at end of FY 2007: $5.959 billion
From: http://www.cnbc.com/id/31706523
"'We're in the Middle of a Crash': Black Swan"
By: CNBC.com | 02 Jul 2009
The financial system is crashing and action must be taken by the US government to convert debt into equity to produce a more stable environment, Nassim Taleb, author of "The Black Swan," told CNBC Thursday.
"You may have green shoots, whatever you want to call them, you may have temporary relief, but you are still in a world that's breaking," Taleb said on "Squawk Box."
Anything that's fragile like the financial system will eventually crash, he said.
"We're in the middle of a crash," Taleb said. "So if I'm going to forecast something, it is that it's going to get worse, not better."
The government needs to deleverage debt and not try stimulus packages that will inflate assets, he said.
"What makes me very pessimistic in not seeing any leadership or awareness on parts of government on what has to be done, which is deleverage $40-to-$70 trillion," Taleb said.
"The monkey on our back is debt," he added.
As an example, Taleb said banks should not be sending demands for larger and larger sums from homeowner in arrears on their mortgage. Instead the bank should offer to lower the monthly payments in return for part-ownership of the property.
"People would be able to start from scratch on a healthy basis. You don't want to wait for foreclosure," he said.
From: http://seekingalpha.com/instablog/439656-arbitrary-vote/11018-economic-fragility-underestimated-collapse-may-be-imminent
"Economic Fragility Underestimated - Collapse May Be Imminent"
Jul 2, 2009
The mainstream media and government are communicating that the economy is on a positive track toward recovery while downplaying the likelihood of another economic catastrophe similar or worse than that experienced in the fourth quarter of 2008 and first quarter of 2009. In actuality, there is a significant chance that the U.S. will experience a severe economic collapse, beyond what has already been experienced, either this year or within the next few years. If there is a perceived, sustainable economic rebound before this happens, do not be fooled - the underlying economic problems still exist and will likely eventually surface in economic collapse.
This following analysis further explores this warning by describing:
- The 4 key reasons an economic collapse is likely imminent
- Why these 4 reasons make the economy vulnerable
- Warning signs and triggers to monitor to foresee a collapse before it happens
- What can result from an economic collapse
- Ideas for preparation
The 4 Key Reasons an Economic Collapse is Likely Imminent
- The U.S. has unprecedented, massive amounts of current and coming debt.
- Foreign countries have experienced their own crises, and they cannot offer added levels of debt funding for the U.S. Even if they could, they are unlikely to do so.
- Productivity is declining, and everything the government is doing is further hurting productivity.
- The U.S. is printing unprecedented, massive amounts of money and no longer has an ability to control inflation and deflation. >>See rest of this article (good graphs) [Esp. the Alt-A and Option ARM graph for 2010 and 2011...trouble with them in those yrs.]>>
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Not so Transparent Local Government Disclosure
From: http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2009/07/04/opinion/letters_to_the_editor/doc4a4f093198055100778676.txt
The illusion of transparency
The devil is often in the technical details. The “transparency that appears to be coming to Kauai” is an illusion and actually designed to frustrate citizen participation in governance (“Council minutes posted online,” The Garden Island, July 3).
Council members Bynum and Kawahara’s Goal No. 2, “make key public documents readily available to the public on the County web site,” is laudable but not sufficient.
These documents should also not only be accessible (readily available) but useful as well. By useful, I mean the ability to do text searches of the document and easily copy and paste portions of the minutes from the Web site into another document.
Let’s say a citizen wants to submit testimony on an upcoming issue. In the preparation of such testimony it would be helpful to copy and paste quotes from the county document into the citizen’s testimony (as opposed to having to retype the quotes).
Retyping takes time and typographical errors can and are made. Wouldn’t it be more efficient to just cut and paste such quotes into your testimony? Of course it would.
What if (heaven forbid) there were people in government who wanted to limit citizen participation, and yet wanted to technically comply with Goal No. 2. Here is a road map to create a dilatory process to limit citizen participation:
Print out a hardcopy of the document, and scan it back into the computer as an image file, then convert that image file to a PDF file, and upload it to the internet.
Surprisingly, it appears this is what the county is doing before publishing the minutes online. What possible rationale is there for such procedure? The result of this process is a PDF file containing a non-text search-able, non-text copyable and non-pasteable document.
Citizens could access (look at), the document but find it very difficult to use in the creation of testimony. This is also a lot more work for county employees, but apparently hindering citizen participation is worth the extra effort.
The efficient thing to do would be to convert the word processing document into a text search-able, copyable, pasteable PDF file. This can be accomplished in a few keystrokes.
I hope Council members Bynum and Kawahara will flesh-out Goal No. 2 to prevent such dilatory tactics already being deployed to circumvent the intent of their laudable struggle for citizen transparency and access.
Ed Coll, Puhi
What’s worth hiding?
In 2005, our County Council went into an executive session (No. 177) to consider an investigation incident to the removal of Police Chief Lum. After two citizens asked the state Office of Information Practices to examine the legality of the session and OIP decided that the minutes of the session must be made public, the County sued OIP to prevent disclosure of them.
Michael Levine’s fine article (“Supreme Court to hear County v. OIP,” The Garden Island, July 2) reports that the State Supreme Court has now granted OIP’s appeal from lower court decisions favoring the county.
Many of us have wondered why the county has fought so hard to keep the minutes out of public view and how much of a burden the taxpayers incurred to meet the county’s legal costs for this effort.
As the county’s dogged struggle was made despite a very clear state law, Section 92F —15.5, which says that the county may not contest an OIP decision to reveal minutes, and our County Charter Section 3.07(e) did not allow an executive session to be held for the stated purpose, it seemed an attempt should be made to find out how much our county has spent on the case.
So I contacted our usually helpful Finance Department and asked for the amount that the county spent on outside legal counsel for the case — no telling how much in-house costs there were — since 2005.
They said that they have records on total expenses for outside counsel costs, but no data for individual cases and they referred me to the Office of the County Attorney for this information.
I have been told that only our County Attorney can release such records, and I am eagerly awaiting his call, but prospects dim with each passing day.
The public remains in the dark both as to why the county fought so hard on the case and how much it has cost taxpayers to do so. Our people are entitled to be better served.
Glenn Mickens, Kapa‘a
The illusion of transparency
The devil is often in the technical details. The “transparency that appears to be coming to Kauai” is an illusion and actually designed to frustrate citizen participation in governance (“Council minutes posted online,” The Garden Island, July 3).
Council members Bynum and Kawahara’s Goal No. 2, “make key public documents readily available to the public on the County web site,” is laudable but not sufficient.
These documents should also not only be accessible (readily available) but useful as well. By useful, I mean the ability to do text searches of the document and easily copy and paste portions of the minutes from the Web site into another document.
Let’s say a citizen wants to submit testimony on an upcoming issue. In the preparation of such testimony it would be helpful to copy and paste quotes from the county document into the citizen’s testimony (as opposed to having to retype the quotes).
Retyping takes time and typographical errors can and are made. Wouldn’t it be more efficient to just cut and paste such quotes into your testimony? Of course it would.
What if (heaven forbid) there were people in government who wanted to limit citizen participation, and yet wanted to technically comply with Goal No. 2. Here is a road map to create a dilatory process to limit citizen participation:
Print out a hardcopy of the document, and scan it back into the computer as an image file, then convert that image file to a PDF file, and upload it to the internet.
Surprisingly, it appears this is what the county is doing before publishing the minutes online. What possible rationale is there for such procedure? The result of this process is a PDF file containing a non-text search-able, non-text copyable and non-pasteable document.
Citizens could access (look at), the document but find it very difficult to use in the creation of testimony. This is also a lot more work for county employees, but apparently hindering citizen participation is worth the extra effort.
The efficient thing to do would be to convert the word processing document into a text search-able, copyable, pasteable PDF file. This can be accomplished in a few keystrokes.
I hope Council members Bynum and Kawahara will flesh-out Goal No. 2 to prevent such dilatory tactics already being deployed to circumvent the intent of their laudable struggle for citizen transparency and access.
Ed Coll, Puhi
What’s worth hiding?
In 2005, our County Council went into an executive session (No. 177) to consider an investigation incident to the removal of Police Chief Lum. After two citizens asked the state Office of Information Practices to examine the legality of the session and OIP decided that the minutes of the session must be made public, the County sued OIP to prevent disclosure of them.
Michael Levine’s fine article (“Supreme Court to hear County v. OIP,” The Garden Island, July 2) reports that the State Supreme Court has now granted OIP’s appeal from lower court decisions favoring the county.
Many of us have wondered why the county has fought so hard to keep the minutes out of public view and how much of a burden the taxpayers incurred to meet the county’s legal costs for this effort.
As the county’s dogged struggle was made despite a very clear state law, Section 92F —15.5, which says that the county may not contest an OIP decision to reveal minutes, and our County Charter Section 3.07(e) did not allow an executive session to be held for the stated purpose, it seemed an attempt should be made to find out how much our county has spent on the case.
So I contacted our usually helpful Finance Department and asked for the amount that the county spent on outside legal counsel for the case — no telling how much in-house costs there were — since 2005.
They said that they have records on total expenses for outside counsel costs, but no data for individual cases and they referred me to the Office of the County Attorney for this information.
I have been told that only our County Attorney can release such records, and I am eagerly awaiting his call, but prospects dim with each passing day.
The public remains in the dark both as to why the county fought so hard on the case and how much it has cost taxpayers to do so. Our people are entitled to be better served.
Glenn Mickens, Kapa‘a
Hawaii Island Hotel Occupancy Rates
Video: Business Report: Hotel Occupancy
| Written by Sunrise on KGMB9 | |
| July 03, 2009 by Howard Dicus | |
|
Statewide occupancy is at 72 percent. On Kauai, occupancy is at 69 percent full, which is 12 points worse then a year ago with room rates down 18 percent to averaging $184 per night. On Oahu, the average is $151 per night. Hotel occupancy is at 76 percent full and 3 points down from a year ago. Maui is at 70 percent full, almost as good as a year ago. The average room rate is $229 per night which is down 18 percent from last year. The Big Island is down 12 points from a year ago at 60 percent full with room rates averaging at $170 per night. Comparing Hawaii to other city's on the mainland, Maui's occupancy is near L.A.'s, Kauai is near national level and Big Island is below Orlando. |
Friday, July 3, 2009
Sarah Palin...Should Linda Lingle follow her lead?
Linda Lingle has unsuccessfully pressed her points for more than a year now and seems to becoming less and less relevant in Hawaii policymaking. Her furlough was just stopped by a state Circuit Judge. Now solving the budget will probably have to fall to the Legislature coming back into Special Session. Lingle also threatens to veto nearly a third of all the bills passed in the last Legislative Session (many of them are good, well thought out bills), but that doesn't mean much because the Democrats in the Legislature have a supermajority and can override all of her vetos if they want, which I would expect them to do. Furthermore, Lingle cannot run for another term. Her terms are up.
So the question arises, why doesn't Lingle follow the example of Sarah Palin and resign? If anything from the Republican perspective this would give Duke Aiona a chance to make himself better known and define himself seperate from Linda Lingle's legacy before the next election cycle. Having been a close student of civics for a few decades, I think it makes sense for all involved that Linda Lingle resign in the next few months. We'll see what happens...
So the question arises, why doesn't Lingle follow the example of Sarah Palin and resign? If anything from the Republican perspective this would give Duke Aiona a chance to make himself better known and define himself seperate from Linda Lingle's legacy before the next election cycle. Having been a close student of civics for a few decades, I think it makes sense for all involved that Linda Lingle resign in the next few months. We'll see what happens...
Rockstar...Tour starts tomorrow
Jul 03, 2009
"Why I Ride: An Open Letter"
by Lance Armstrong
WHY I RIDE
About a year ago, during our LIVESTRONG Summit in Columbus, Ohio, I started thinking about returning to professional cycling. I knew I could compete at the highest level of racing but this time I was motivated from a different perspective.
Meeting so many people over the years…so many survivors…has built in me an ever greater sense of urgency addressing the hurdles in cancer control and, ultimately, telling survivors’ stories. The stories tell it all. The triumphs and challenges are all part of the LIVESTRONG community and the human narrative. That collective, grassroots movement built by all of you has been remarkably powerful for me personally and also powerful in moving cancer back into the consciousness of decision makers.
That energy is why I am riding again: to make cancer a global priority.
A GLOBAL SOCIAL MOVEMENT
Cancer will be the leading cause of death, globally, in 2010. This disease affects 28 million people worldwide. Its projected growth over the next 20 years statistically dwarfs other diseases. In many parts of the world, cancer is considered a death sentence. Survivors are labeled and cruelly stigmatized. With 30 to 40 percent of all cancers being preventable, a shared global strategy that combines prevention and innovation is essential. As LIVESTRONG and our partners continue to build a global social movement, it’s imperative that we tie the strands of all disease control together to be more effective.
We know the numbers. We know various ways to control this disease. We know how to better care for those suffering. We know where triggers exist. Simply put, we know a great deal. What is missing in this equation is a global focus supporting those who are suffering in silence, organizing community action and aggressively developing the most innovative research.
THE SUMMIT AND BEYOND
The purpose of the LIVESTRONG Global Cancer Summit is to draw the eyes of the world to the global cancer burden and also the challenges of stigmatization. Our Dublin Summit and global campaign will provide a platform for telling the stories and highlighting the outstanding work going on around the globe to alleviate the pain and suffering of cancer. Over the last six months, our LIVESTRONG team and I have met with various prime ministers, health and finance ministers, parliamentarians, cancer experts, NGO leaders, advocates and, of course, survivors to see how can we continue to push for fresh investments in cancer control. We have asked leaders all over the world to offer new “commitments” in making cancer a global priority. The response has been tremendous and this same cross-section of leaders – well-known and not so well-known – will all be collaborating in Dublin for two and half days of forward-thinking action.
We will see participation from all five continents, 62 countries, over 300 commitments and an anticipated 500 delegates, joining together in Dublin from August 24th-26th to make cancer a global priority. The growing global network of advocates spurred by this Summit has committed roughly $200 million in fresh investments, just as a start. Government commitments are estimated in the billions. While financial contributions are obviously important, other leaders will be using the Summit to announce significant policy shifts, advocacy campaigns or direct services to survivors. So, the LIVESTRONG Global Cancer Summit is providing the license and platform in which to highlight great advances and collaboration on the next steps for action.
Some examples include:
Jordan:
$300 million for the King Hussein Institute for Biotechnology and Cancer, funding three cancer control initiatives, including creating an Office of Advocacy and Survivorship
Netherlands:
The Dutch Cancer Society will be introducing web-based clinical trials.
China:
The Chinese Anti-Cancer Association is planning to screen 530,000 women per year in 30 provinces
Brazil:
TUCCA (Brain Tumors Assoc. for Children and Adolescents), will be building the first pediatric hospice in Brazil
Australia:
$2 billion in the new Australian government budget for cancer control
LET’S CHANGE THE EQUATION
Building a social movement takes time, focus and ultimately an impassioned, consistent and active chorus of voices for change. LIVESTRONG has become a community for people from all over the world doing just that. While the Dublin Summit and continuing global campaign provide an occasion for elected leaders to tell their stories and exhibit truly innovative practices in combating this disease, it is also about individual advocates, multilateral organizations, NGO’s and community-based leadership all over the world working together. LIVESTRONG can only accomplish progress in partnership with others, collaborating across all sectors on prevention and innovative practices.
It’s so empowering to see individuals all over the world advancing this issue in the most creative ways. It’s also encouraging to see more leaders in power taking innovative steps. LIVESTRONG chooses lead as a source for inspiration, knowledge and by offering the tools to build this newly emerging global social movement.
What a great reason to ride again.
Thanks for all you do.
LANCE ARMSTRONG
State Supreme Court to hear County of Kaua'i vs. OIP and other transparency developments today
In follow-up to reporting on the Kaua'i County Council's excessive use of Executive Sessions as with the following post from June 5, 2009, the State Office of Information Practices on June 23, 2009, appealed a prior Kaua'i County Council Executive Session case to the State Supreme Court as reported in:
"Supreme Court to hear County v. OIP"
By Michael Levine - The Garden Island
LIHU‘E — The Hawai‘i Supreme Court last week agreed to hear a case in which the Kaua‘i County Council is suing the state Office of Information Practices to keep certain records concealed.
The court issued an order accepting OIP’s petition for a writ of certiorari on June 23, according to a clerk, and on Wednesday scheduled oral arguments for the morning of Aug. 10.
The writ is the latest in a long line of legal battles stemming from a controversial executive session meeting convened by then-Council members Kaipo Asing, Jimmy Tokioka, Jay Furfaro, Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho, Daryl Kaneshiro, Mel Rapozo and JoAnn Yukimura on Jan. 20, 2005, known as ES-177... More of this story
The State Supreme Court would not be taking this case if it were not interested in entertaining an OIP argument against Kaua'i County and contrary to the two lower courts' decisions. This sould be another dandy State Supreme Court hearing and ruling.
And on related transparency matters as raised at Kauaiinfo.org the following announcement was released late Thursday, June 2, 2009:
7/2/2009 5:36:08 PM - Council meeting minutes and memoranda of actions taken to be posted on County Council website -
"Supreme Court to hear County v. OIP"
By Michael Levine - The Garden Island
LIHU‘E — The Hawai‘i Supreme Court last week agreed to hear a case in which the Kaua‘i County Council is suing the state Office of Information Practices to keep certain records concealed.
The court issued an order accepting OIP’s petition for a writ of certiorari on June 23, according to a clerk, and on Wednesday scheduled oral arguments for the morning of Aug. 10.
The writ is the latest in a long line of legal battles stemming from a controversial executive session meeting convened by then-Council members Kaipo Asing, Jimmy Tokioka, Jay Furfaro, Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho, Daryl Kaneshiro, Mel Rapozo and JoAnn Yukimura on Jan. 20, 2005, known as ES-177... More of this story
The State Supreme Court would not be taking this case if it were not interested in entertaining an OIP argument against Kaua'i County and contrary to the two lower courts' decisions. This sould be another dandy State Supreme Court hearing and ruling.
And on related transparency matters as raised at Kauaiinfo.org the following announcement was released late Thursday, June 2, 2009:
7/2/2009 5:36:08 PM - Council meeting minutes and memoranda of actions taken to be posted on County Council website -
LIHUE -- Council Chair Bill "Kaipo" Asing and Council Vice Chair Jay Furfaro announced today that after more than a year of planning the County Council website will include Council meeting minutes, along with memoranda of actions taken at Council meetings (also called "Recap Memos").
Printed copies of Council meeting minutes have always been available upon request from the Council Services office.
Putting meeting minutes and Recap Memos on the Council website is part of a county-wide effort to make more and more public information available online. Discussions between the Council and boards and commissions offices on posting of minutes of County boards, commissions and Council meetings were launched in 2007.
The implementation of posting Council minutes was delayed by several factors, including the untimely passing of the late Mayor Bryan Baptiste, the complex subsequent transition in county leadership, the special 2008 Mayoral election, the relocation of the Office of the County Clerk - Elections Division, and the seating of a new Council.
Council meeting minutes may be located by going to the County’s main “www.kauai.gov” web page, clicking on the “County Council” link, and then clicking on the “Council Documents” link on the Council’s main web page.
Council meeting minutes will be posted starting with the May 20, 2009 meeting. The Council’s web site will also host the Council’s memoranda of actions taken at recent Council meetings (“Recap Memos”) which allows the public to view the results of Council meetings. Additional meeting minutes and Recap Memos will be added on an ongoing basis.
The Council's capability to yet further upgrade its web presence will be improved with planned upgrades to Historic County Building wiring late this year and next year. County Council operations are scheduled to be temporarily relocated in the fourth quarter of 2009, in order to accommodate extensive renovations at the Historic County Building.
For more information, please contact the Council Services office at (808) 241-6371.
# PAU #
Kaua'i Mayor requests 2 year stay on hefty pay raises
Regarding Across the Board 20% Pay Raises past 2 years for Top 30 Kaua'i Officials Thursday, June 11, 2009, was the following related newspaper story of July 2, 2009:
"Mayor asks Commission to defer pay raises"
By Paul Curtis - The Garden Island
LIHU‘E — Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. has asked the county Salary Commission to defer pay raises for himself and county department heads scheduled to take effect Dec. 1.
In a letter to Virginia “Gini” Kapali, commission chair, Carvalho asks for an amendment to a resolution passed by the commission establishing salaries for Carvalho and county department heads, to defer the scheduled 7 percent raises until Dec. 1, 2011... More of this story
Nice move by the Mayor. See if the commission honors his request...
"Mayor asks Commission to defer pay raises"
By Paul Curtis - The Garden Island
LIHU‘E — Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. has asked the county Salary Commission to defer pay raises for himself and county department heads scheduled to take effect Dec. 1.
In a letter to Virginia “Gini” Kapali, commission chair, Carvalho asks for an amendment to a resolution passed by the commission establishing salaries for Carvalho and county department heads, to defer the scheduled 7 percent raises until Dec. 1, 2011... More of this story
Nice move by the Mayor. See if the commission honors his request...
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Hirono letter on H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act.
 |
July 1, 2009
Thank you for contacting me to share your views about H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act.
This bill (1) requires electric utilities to meet 20 percent of their electricity demand through renewable energy sources and energy efficiency by 2020; (2) reduces carbon emissions from major U.S. sources by 17 percent by 2020 and over 80 percent by 2050 compared with 2005 levels; (3) invests in new clean energy technologies, energy efficiency, and pollution-reducing transportation projects; and (4) prevents tropical deforestation and prepares for domestic and international adaptation.
In addition, H.R. 2454 establishes five programs to protect consumers from energy price increases, including assistance with utility bills for low- and moderate-income families in the form of energy rebates and tax credits.
The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) just released analyses of the climate change bill. The CBO estimated the cost to the average household to be under fifty cents a day. This estimate does not take into consideration the potential benefits associated with the bill, such as the development of new technologies or energy savings from improved energy efficiency standards. In its own analysis of H.R. 2454, the EPA forecasted strong economic growth under the legislation.
H.R. 2454 is by no means perfect, but we can't make the perfect the enemy of the good. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairmen Waxman and Markey worked tirelessly to listen to the concerns of members representing diverse districts. They also worked with leadership to bring the bill to the House floor for a vote, where it passed (219 yeas to 212 nays) on June 26, 2009.
As a member of the Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition, I shared my thoughts about the bill with my colleagues and members of the Obama administration. I also weighed considerations from constituents like you, who let me know how this bill would impact Hawaii.
I voted for the American Clean Energy and Security Act because it will provide an important signal to the marketplace to invest in clean energy technologies, which will create jobs, restore our competitiveness, free us from vulnerability to foreign oil suppliers, and finally begin to address climate change. It is no small feat that over a hundred organizations from a variety of sectors-including electric utilities, energy companies, consumer groups, businesses, labor unions, and environmental groups-have come together to support H.R. 2454.
It is expected that the Senate will soon take up this historic legislation, and I hope that it will be passed and signed into law this year.
I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue. Please do not hesitate to contact me again if I can be of assistance.
Sincerely,
Mazie K. Hirono
Member of Congress
Governor Lingle's LONG Intent to Veto List...Special Session Coming
There's a lot of good bills on this list:
http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session2009/lists/RptVetoIntent.aspx
I look for a Special Session to override a lot of this.
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