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Environment

News stories regarding Molokai’s outdoor environment

Hundreds Testify on GMO and Pesticide Bill

Wednesday, February 5th, 2014

More than 100 Molokai residents sat all day outside Molokai’s county offices last Tuesday, waiting to testify on a proposed Maui County bill aimed at regulating pesticide use and genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

As currently written, the bill would establish mandatory disclosure requirements for commercial agricultural companies using certain quantities of pesticides, create buffer zones around schools, other public areas and bodies of water, and require public notification before pesticide applications. It also calls for the county to complete studies on the possible environmental and health impacts of large-scale agricultural companies that use pesticides and GMOs.

Introduced by Maui Council Member Elle Cochran, the bill resembles one passed into law on Kauai in November.…

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Bill to Address Radiation Concerns

Wednesday, February 5th, 2014

Community Contributed

By Jade Bruhjell

Hawaii, a close neighbor of the nuclear disaster at Fukushima, sits poised to be further enveloped by radioactive elements brought by air and Pacific Ocean currents from Japan. Being a new sort of disaster, we find ourselves stunned and confused with conflicting reports, and after over two years, still unable to fathom how to cope with a continuing and escalating catastrophe here in our Island chain. Sea life and drinking water are two of the most affected aspects, and on Molokai, fishing is such a part of daily life that we need to think seriously about current levels of radiation.…

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Power Outages Unexplainable

Wednesday, February 5th, 2014

Maui Electric Company representatives visited Molokai last week to discuss a series of power outages on the island over the last year and explain their cause — or rather, to call them unexplainable.

There were 16 major outages on Molokai between Jan. 6 and Dec. 22, 2013, according to Joe Kentz, manager of Maui Electric’s transmission and distribution department. Three of those, not including a fourth in January of this year, have no identifiable cause.

“We really can’t explain what’s going on,” said Kentz. “I’ve been in this industry for 43 years and I’ve always been able to find the cause of a problem… We will find cause.…

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Ventures in Vanilla

Friday, January 31st, 2014

Ventures in Vanilla

Deep in one of Molokai’s lush east valleys, a translucent, arched roof frames green peaks and greener foliage as far as the eye can see.

“These are the girls!” says Patty McCartney with motherly pride, stepping through the door and glancing around fondly. She tilts her head to get a closer look at each, brushing them gently with her hand and telling them they’re beautiful and growing well.

The girls are vanilla plants, a type of orchid vine producing beans that hold one of the world’s most popular flavors and fragrances.

“I come up here and talk to them, sing to them, fertilize and pollinate them,” she says.…

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Celebrating Dr. King with Gardening

Wednesday, January 29th, 2014

Celebrating Dr. King with Gardening

Sust`ainable Molokai News Release

Last Monday, Sust`ainable Molokai celebrated Martin Luther King day with a community tree planting and workday at the Sust`ainable Molokai community permaculture farm. Honoring the national day of service, we had a small gathering of community, and our FoodCorps and Americorps service members, to put in some garden work and plant some trees.

The day began as it always does at the permaculture farm: Fred Richardson, the school garden coordinator, instructed everyone to walk around the site to survey and find pollinators. He then displayed the plants and trees that we’d be planting later that day — bamboo, pineapple, milo, coconut and mango — a diverse array, fitting to celebrate Dr.…

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Pulling Weeds in Halawa

Wednesday, January 29th, 2014

Pulling Weeds in Halawa

Community Contributed

By Shawn and Melissa Bryson

This is a story told from one gardener to another, when someone offers to pull weeds, you let ‘em.  As a ha`ole and a mainlander, I come to Molokai with my wife to be changed by the island, not to change the island.  Molokai isn’t just the navel of Hawaii or the former bread basket of the islands; it is also the kumu island, an island of sacred teachings.  We are thankful those teachings are sacred and not secret. We want to thank so many different folks for the aloha they have shared with us. …

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Maui Electric Hosts Community Meetings This Week

Monday, January 27th, 2014

Maui Electric News Release

Maui Electric Company invites the Molokai community to attend a series of public meetings regarding the recent power outages affecting customers on the island.

There will be three meetings to accommodate customers across the island. Light refreshments will be served.

The first meeting will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 28 at the Kualapu`u School Cafeteria 6 p.m. A meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 29 will take place at Kilohana Community Center at 6 p.m. On Thursday, Jan. 30, the final meeting will be at Kulana `Oiwi at 6 p.m.…

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Bravo for Brassicas

Friday, January 24th, 2014

Community Contributed

By Glenn I. Teves, UH County Extension Agent

In our local diet, we have a tendency to consume too much meat and rice, and not enough greens. Greens are the missing link to a healthy balanced diet, along with fruits, in meeting requirements of the food pyramid. Today, greens are finding their way into our diets through healthy drinks utilizing lettuce, kale, spinach and other greens.

The largest group of vegetable greens has a common ancestor that evolved into at least six rather distinct groups. Collectively known as crucifers, cabbages or mustards, and also by their Latin name, Brassicas, they include broccoli, cauliflower, collards, mustard greens, kale, Brussels sprouts, cabbages, and a mix of Chinese mustards.…

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Micro to Macro

Thursday, January 23rd, 2014

Micro to Macro

Studying the Universe with New Eyes

From yet-uncharted outer space life forms to swarming microscopic ocean organisms, University of Hawaii science educators shared their passion for discovery with Molokai High School teachers and students last weekend.

“It’s about giving students a window into the world of science and sharing a sense of wonder,” said Mary Kadooka of UH’s NASA Astrobiology Institute. Kadooka said she is passionate about supporting public school teachers and students with the resources they need delve into science.

To help achieve that goal, she was awarded a $50,000 grant through the Center for Dark Energy Biosphere Investigations (C-DEBI) to work with science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) programs at schools around the state.…

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Landfill Closed After Ordnance Discovery

Wednesday, January 22nd, 2014

Landfill Closed After Ordnance Discovery

The Molokai Landfill closed temporarily last week after workers discovered a potentially unexploded ordnance there on Monday.

“The ordinance was found during the sorting and separating of an older waste pile that consisted mostly of construction…waste with green waste mixed in it,” said Rod Antone, Maui County communications director.

The ordnance was from the 1940s, when military aircraft dropped practice bombs on some areas of Molokai for training, according to U.S. Army’s Staff Sergeant Corbin Heard with the 74th Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit at Schofield Barracks.

After the ordnance was found, the Molokai Police Department contacted Heard’s unit to investigate the bomb.…

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