Hawaii State Senate wants to sink coastal zone protection

Check this out. What the ^%()& are they thinking? Do they have any idea how important it is to protect Hawaii’s coastal zone and the planning program? Beware, Numb nuts at work, and wasting your tax money at the same time.

Please note that the measure passed out of the Senate today, a vote of 19-6, and referred to the House.

Aloha All,

Some of you may not yet know of the existence of this measure, as it seems to have been flying ‘under the radar’ this session, but I would like to draw your attention to it now.

SB1318_SD1 proposes to eliminate the State Office of Planning by repealing HRS 225M and repealing outright HRS 205A, the State Coastal Zone Management (CZM) statutes.

Some of the consequences of the measure are summarized here:

• The elimination of the Office of Planning
• The elimination of the statewide coordination of geographical information systems (GIS)
• The elimination of the governing ‘umbrella’ statutes — all objectives and policies of the CZM program —  for the protection and management all lands in the state and the ocean to the limits of the state’s police powers.  In many cases these statutes are the basis for other state and county agencies’ powers to manage the coastal zone, in terms of:
  • Recreational resources,
  • Historic and cultural resources,
  • Scenic and open space resources,
  • Coastal ecosystems,
  • Economic uses,
  • Coastal hazards,
  • Managing development,
  • Public participation,
  • Beach protection, and
  • Marine resources
  • The elimination of Special Management Area (SMA) permits
  • The elimination of Shoreline Setback Variances
  • The elimination of all Federal Consistency protections (the state’s ability to oversee the federal government’s use of Hawaii’s coastal resources)
  • The elimination of the Marine and Coastal Zone Advocacy Council (MACZAC)

  While the committee reports site this as a “belt-tightening” measure, this will cost the state far more than it will save:  both in terms of the loss of federal funding for coastal programs; and in the long-term through the loss of our state’s most precious land and ocean resources.
  

• These resources form the basis of not only our way of life, but also of Hawaii’s continued economic viability through its ocean-based industries and its ability to continue to attract tourists to pristine and safe island settings.
  This bill passed out of the Senate today (3/10/2009, by a vote of 19-6) to the House.
• Provide testimony if and when the bill is heard by the House (referral is expected to the Water, Lands and Ocean Resources Committee).  Of course, you should directly contact your Legislative representatives to share your thoughts and concerns about just how stupid this proposal is.

  Please also feel free to distribute this to other interested individuals and organizations.

Navy runs guided missile cruiser onto reef by Honolulu International Airport

Yes, took this shot today from my lanai looking out towards the reef runway. Sure thing, the billion dollar guided missile cruiser was run up on the reef last night.

They are unloading fuel to lighten it, and might be able to pull it off the reef at high tide tonight. Meanwhile, the Navy is a bit embarrassed and not saying much.

The state will probably fine them big time for screwing up the reef.

Situation beyond fubar.

Drillers have really hot hole to deal with by hitting magma

Drillers looking for geothermal energy on the Big Island of Hawaii got a pipe full of magma. Only 2.5 km down, the well hit a source of magma and up it came. The magma quickly cooled and solidified. The geologists were surprised by the shallow depth of the magma.

For story details see:  http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7780873.stm

Lava lake sloshing around in Halemaumau crater

USGS scientists confirmed the sighting of a lava lake sloshing around in Halemaumau crater at Kilauea volcano. Also the vent hole has grown in size with recent small earthquakes. The spectacle of an active lava lake in Halemaumau may be coming back to the way it used to be. It would prove quite a draw for residents and visitors alike since this active volcano is very easy to get to. No long treks in the boonies in order to get a good view of the crater since Hawaii Volcanoes National Park provides great access. Meanwhile lava flows continue to flow down to the ocean from the Pu’u O’o vent area. And tons of vog continue to be created.

Lava Flow to ocean creating littoral cone

The recent increase in the lava flow to the ocean is creating littoral explosions and a cone. The lava is bursting up in small explosions and piling up lava down wind creating an arc of lava. If it keeps up, an entire cone might  form around the spot the lava is hitting the shoreline. This is happening while Kilauea continues to erupt at Halemaumau crater and at Pu’u O’o along the south-east rift zone. Two eruptions at one time is unusal. The production of vog continues at a high level.

Vog Plume wraps around Mauna Loa

During a drive from Hilo down to South Point I went through the plume of vog coming from Halemaumau crater. Just past the Mauna Loa Road I entered the plume and was in it for about 11 miles. Going downhill towards Pahala I saw the plume stay above 2,000′ elevation and wrap around Mauna Loa. When I got down to South Point I could see the vog clearly wrapping around Mauna Loa and heading NW to Kona. It looked pretty bad towards Kona. South Point was clear and windy, as usual. The forests must be taking gas from all the vog.

VOG becoming a way of life

VOG – volcanic smog, air pollution, whatever you want to call it, is a big problem now in Hawaii. Kilauea’s double eruption has significantly increased the venting of the nasty gases and particles that your lungs and plants do not like. Protea growers are finding out that their plants are not happy with the volcanic droppings of acidic air. Visibility on the other islands, all the way to Kauai, some 300 miles from Kilauea, has dropped down to under three miles on some “kona wind” days. That’s winds coming from the southeast. The Halema’uma’u vent sends its plume around Mauna Loa and collects in the Kona-Kohala area. Makes for very red sunsets. Will people living there get up and leave, or will they hang in there and wait out Madam Pele’s latest show? Time will tell.

Kilauea has small explosion – first since 1924

At 2:58 a.m. H.s.t on Wednesday, March 19, 2008, a small explosion occurred at Halema`uma`u Crater at the summit of Kilauea Volcano in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. This event was erroneously reported as an earthquake earlier this morning. The explosion scattered debris over an area of about 75 acres (30 hectares), covering a portion of Crater Rim Drive and damaging the Halema`uma`u overlook. No lava was erupted as part of the explosion, suggesting that the activity was driven by hydrothermal or gas sources.

In addition to damaging the overlook, explosive debris covers the trail to the overlook, the Halema`uma`u parking area, and the portion of Crater Rim Drive adjacent to the parking area. On Crater Rim Drive the debris was up to 2 centimeters in size, with the size and thickness of debris increasing toward the overlook. The largest observed block ejected during the explosion was about 1 cubic meter (35 cubic feet) and must have been propelled from the vent located more than 70 m (230 feet) below the crater rim. Small impact craters from 30 cm (1 foot) blocks are abundant in the Halema`uma`u overlook area. Rock debris also extends halfway across the floor of Halema`uma`u Crater. The debris is composed of rock fragments that were derived from the walls of Halema`uma`u Crater. No fresh lava was observed on the floor of Halema`uma`u or in the ejected debris.

Info from USGS HAVO – volcano update

She’s back! Pele reaches the ocean once again

For months now, Madam Pele has making what the geologists call rootless shields. Not anymore. A flow has come down through Royal Gardens subdivision and headed east and then to the ocean. So now the residents and visitors get to hike in from Kalapana side to watch the flow and the ocean  collide. The large steam plume once again rises up with it toxic mix of acids ready to rot out your lungs if you are stupid enough to breathe it in. The trek in from Kalapana allows for upwind viewing. Of course, the County of Hawaii is now trying to set up a safe way for everyone to get a good view of this phase of the eruption.

Under the sea, around Hawaii – new digital maps

The Feds at NOAA have created a set of digital maps of the nearshore waters around the Hawaiian Islands. See the influence that a fresh water stream has on a coral reef. See where coral reefs are and are not. NOAA calls them “shallow-water benthic habitats.” Easier to call them coral maps. These shallow areas are where the Humpback Whales like to recreate in Hawaii.The maps can be found at:  http://ccma.nos.noaa.gov/products/biogeography/hawaii_cd_07/startup.html