green volume 3 number 5

CONTENTS

COVER PHOTO: Ian Gillespie

Sections22 Community: Farm Tours Organic farmers open their doors to the community

24 Q&A: Precautionary Principle Filmmaker Ed Brown talks health, commerce and chemical-coated tomatoes

28 Business: Sustainability Goes Corporate Hawai‘i recognizes the sustainable business corporation

30 Science: King Koa Restoring native koa forest in Ha-lawa Valley

Sustainable Living14 Art Robert Janson15 Style Me, Now16 Books Environmental Justice17 The Know Eating Local18 Home Sofas19 Outside Wild Foods20 Film Water Rights21 Almanac Composting

Departments06 Editor’s Note10 Contributors11 Letters12 Your Thoughts54 Marketplace56 Advertiser Directory58 Coming Next Issue

32 Food: Coming Full Circle The taro movement imagines a sustainable future by bringing Hawai‘i back to its roots

40 Conservation: Disappearing Sands When a place is defined by its beaches, it’s best to keep them around

48 Technology: Island Power Plant Should the responsibility of distributed energy be granted to an elite few or given to the many?

4 GREENMAGAZINEHAWAII .COM

EDITOR’S NOTE

Skin DeepI have to tell you, interviewing Director of Acceptable Levels? Ed Brown for the Q&A piece in this issue really got me thinking about what’s in the products my family uses and the chemicals we come into contact with on a daily basis. We buy organic food as often as possible and choose safe and natural beauty and health care products for the most part. Don’t get me wrong, we’re not eco-psycho, freaking out about ev-ery last piece of plastic that crosses our path, because after all, plastic is ubiquitous and that’s just the direction our society as a whole has embraced. Just pick up a pen, any pen, blue or black, and it’s plastic. It’s not like you’re going to stop writing. Not to mention, your car is more plastic than metal, even if it is electric. Anyway, Ed made a good point. There are hundreds of industrial chemicals that now call our fleshen bodies Hale Sweet Hale. They are in the water, in the air, basically unavoidable, like the flu, like love. But thanks to the dichotomy of life, as we are exposed to a litany of invisible chemicals all the time, we also have the opportunity to limit our contact to these harmful chemical fabrications. For me, the issue really hit home as I slathered a palm-full of gooey white sunscreen all over my face, arms and back before I headed out for a surf. What am I putting on my skin? What am I feeding my blood and lymph nodes? I used to go to Long’s and buy the biggest, cheapest tube of sunscreen with the highest SPF I could find. Why? Because I really go through the stuff and sunscreen is really, quite expensive. Judging from the amount of people I see out in the water, I’m sure a lot of people can relate. But really, I should have known better. While living in the Costa

Rican rainforest, I dogmatically applied 100-percent DEET to every inch of my exposed body every night before dusk to forgo the unpleas-ant experience of being completely dissected by mosquitoes. I did this for a period of about 2 months. No joke—my armpits turned red and peeled (sloughed skin) for about a year after my rainforest tenure. It’s like the internal pathway of the chemical from skin to bloodstream to sweat was highlighted by the trauma to the exit point. And now I’ve traded one chemical for another, rubbing sunscreen on almost everyday laden with PABA, avobezone, benzophenone and homosalate. Does anyone really know what these chemicals are for or what they do? Who cares, it’s a bargain. Right? Wrong. Now I have two daughters and it matters, really matters what’s in that sunscreen. I guess I’m never going to get a sunscreen in a plastic-free vessel, but I sure can find a natural and safe sunscreen that has no adverse health affects as it’s absorbed through my skin into my body, or my daughters’. And there’s no way around it, safe and natural sunscreen costs more. Is it worth it? For me, yes. No questions about it. You just have to look beyond the pervasive argument heard time and time again: I can’t afford an organic apple, so I’ll buy a Big Mac meal with fries and a soda. Sure, it seems cheaper in the now, but wait till you’re paying for health care for your diabetes. As consumers, we have to be smarter than the advertising campaigns. Think about it, if they could, they’d have you eating mint-flavored dog sh#!. And they’d be making a healthy profit. —Kevin Whitton

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Published by Little Tree PublicationsVOLUME 3 :: NUMBER 5 :: SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2011

EditorKevin Whitton

Lifestyle EditorAubrey Yee

Contributing WritersAdam Ayers, Dr. Summer Baptist, Priscilla Pérez Billig,Catherine Mariko Black, Stuart Coleman, Amanda Corby, Jade Eckhardt, Beau Flemister, Margaret Haapoja, Jack Kittinger, Ashley Lukens,Nicole Milne, Sarah Ruppenthal, Jessie Schiewe, Dr. Mark Shigeoka

Art DirectorKyle Tanaka

Contributing PhotographersWilli Edwards, Beau Flemister, Isaac Frazer, Ian Gillespie,Margaret Haapoja, Nicole Milne, Kyle Tanaka, Kevin Whitton,Michelle Whitton, Aubrey Yee

Contributing IllustratorsOrthreb Arios, Abi Braceros, Nicolette Davenport

Sales RepresentativeLola [email protected]

Ian [email protected]

General [email protected]

GREENP.O. Box 894061Mililani, Hawai‘i 96789

To receive a free subscription to the GREEN eZine, the complete online version of GREEN, please contact us at [email protected]. Annual hard copy subscriptions are also available at $24 for six issues.

Other than letters to the editor, we do not accept unsolicited editorial submis-sions. GREEN, Little Tree Publications and its associates are not responsible for lost, stolen or damaged submissions or the return of unsolicited material.

One-way correspondence can be sent to:P.O. Box 894061, Mililani, Hawai‘i 96789Email editorial inquiries to [email protected]

GREEN is trademarked and tradename registered in the state of Hawai‘i. All contents of this issue of GREEN are copyrighted by Little Tree Publications, 2011. All rights reserved.

GREEN is printed in the USA on recycled paper. Please recycle this magazine. Pass it on to a friend and extend the life of this publication.

CONTRIBUTORS

Adam Ayers

Adam Ayers was born in rural upstate New York, but lived in coastal North Carolina for most of his years. These days he’s just another haole surfer clogging O‘ahu’s lineups. He can recall long strings of numbers like Rain Man, but can’t remember names to save his life. He loves ‘awa, karaoke, pizza and cold beer, but not necessarily in that order. He does not have a Facebook page and cannot imagine living in a world without coffee. He shares a home in Honolulu with his girlfriend and their beautiful bulldog Patsy. Adam is pursuing a Ph.D. in urban and regional planning at the University of Hawai‘i at Ma-noa.

Catherine Mariko Black

Catherine Mariko Black was born in Kenya, but raised in Kailua. After graduating from Brown University with a B.A. in religious studies, she returned to the Islands as a journalist and community activist, explor-ing the connections between ecology and culture, social movements and local identity. A lover of travel, communication and community building, she currently splits her time between Hawai‘i and Buenos Aires, where she runs a neighborhood newspaper and cultural magazine in the city’s Historic District. She can be found on Saturday mornings giving tai chi classes in the local park and loves hand-pounded poi, especially if it’s from Waia-hole Valley.

Sarah Ruppenthal

Diploma in hand, Sarah Ruppenthal waved goodbye to a soggy college campus in Seattle, Washington seven years ago and boarded a one-way flight to Maui, searching for work and some much-needed Vitamin D. Today, she is an award-winning journalist, freelance writer and English instructor at University of Hawai‘i, Maui College. Sarah says she has discovered an endless supply of fascinating people, places and things in Hawai‘i—a writer’s dream come true. When she’s not hunched over her laptop working on a story, Sarah is relaxing at home on Maui’s iconic north shore with her husband and 115-pound puppy, Odie.


Cassie Saylor, Esthetician

Locally sourced food creates less pol-lution, builds the economy of Hawai‘i and is the right choice.

Erik Ing, Floral Specialist

Local food—I think local farmers care about the environment anyway, so most likely the product they grow, they put a lot of care into making sure it’s healthy for consumption.

Aviva Zion, Teacher

Both are important. It is the ultimate ideal. You’re helping the local econo-my, you’re eating what’s fresh now and organic, so it’s better all around.

Alicia Arnott, Server

Organic is better for you. I’m not into chemicals and pesticides on my food.

Nicole Sterman, Server

It’s hard because I want to support small independent farmers and the lo-cal economy, but organic is important globally for the condition of the envi-ronment. So I like to have a balance.

Logan McConnell, Musician

I say organic because the whole point is what’s going in my body. Local is important. It’s a tradeoff sometimes, but I go for organic.

YOUR THOUGHTS

What’s more important, locally sourced or organic food?


SMART ADVERTISINGMADE SIMPLE.

For more information about advertising opportunities with GREEN, email us at: [email protected]. Please included the word “advertising” in the subject line with your email inquiry.

greenmagazinehawaii.com/advertise

Advertise your business with GREEN: Hawai‘i’s Sustainable Living Magazine and tap into an emerging market of eco-conscious consumers that proudly support local Hawai‘i businessesoffering local sustainable products and services.

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LIFESTYLE ART

Robert JansonExpanding imagination with the mundane

Robert Janson is a Swedish architecture student with a wide and varied artistic eye. His ethereal plastic bag sculptures came about in response to a project set at Lund Technical College in Sweden. Artists Emilia Thurin Melin, Karin Backlund, Kim Öhrström, Alexander Carlén, David Ottosson, Emanuel Kjellberg, Filip Mayer, Johan Svartnäs, Pet-ter Nilsson and Janson were challenged to build a geometric sculpture in an abandoned room. There were no specifications on the material to be used. Janson decided that recycled plastic bags would be perfect to create the delicate, geometric, organic images he envisioned. The bags were inflated and tied into groupings of six or eight pieces in a starburst pattern. He then arranged these smaller groupings into a larger sculpture.

Once the sculpture was hung from the ceiling, he used gel lights to illuminate the bags giving them an ethereal, underwater quality reminiscent of jellyfish. This simple design from a material we use and take for granted everyday literally transformed an otherwise ugly and abandoned space into a magical stage for the imagination. In other installations, Janson has inflated bags and then frozen them, giving the impression of weight. He also will take an iron to the bags to “sculpt” them with heat. Janson’s plastic bag sculptures are merely a peek into his creative mind. —Aubrey Yee

jansonrobert.blogspot.com


LIFESTYLE BOOKS

Walden; or Life in the WoodsWalden; or Life in the Woods was written by famed Transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau way back in 1854 when the author decided to take a year and live a simple life in the woods documenting his experience. This enduring classic is full of famous aphorisms and quotes. As Thoreau explains, “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” In fact the cabin where he stayed was only three kilometers from town and he received visitors regularly. It was not a hermit’s life that he sought, but a reconnection to nature, simple living and self-sufficiency in the vein of the Transcendentalist movement of the time. In an age where cheaper, faster and more is better, we all need a reminder of the simple things that bring us the true pleasures in life. “Only that day dawns to which we are awake. There is more day to dawn. The sun is but a morning star.”

The Monkey Wrench GangThis 1975 novel has been dubbed a “comic extravaganza” by its author, Edward Abbey, and extravagant it is. Packing into a few weeks more adventures than many of us will have in a lifetime, the story follows Vietnam veteran George Washington Hayduke III as he returns to his desert home to find that the nature he held so dear is being threatened by rampant development. Taking a rafting trip down the Colorado River, Hayduke joins forces with a cast of wild characters as they take on the symbols of industry that threaten his beloved environment. A great read for anyone who is passionate about the preservation of nature, The Monkey Wrench Gang is a wonderful story as pertinent today as it was when it was written over 35 years ago.

The Milagro Beanfield WarWhen hustler Joe Mondragon chooses an arid patch of ground in the poor town of Milagro to grow his beans he quickly adopts a scheme to illegally tap into the main irriga-tion channel and steal the water he needs. Thus starts the Milagro beanfield war. As Joe’s bean field becomes a symbol to local farmers of their lost rights and stolen lands, they join forces with Joe to battle the water barons who are attempting to destroy their way of life. This is a beautiful tale of the common man versus the corporate interests in an all-too-fa-miliar story of water wars. With fresh water increasingly privatized and controlled by large corporate interests around the world today, the message of the Milagro Beanfield War could not be more pertinent.

Environmental JusticeReading for the deeper meaning

Reviews by Aubrey Yee


2 Little Pond Design – Dillon Sofa and Sectional

Enjoy clean lines and classic form with a double pull out bed inside. Non-toxic fabrics and soy-based foams are degradable as well as renewable.$3118 – $3778littleponddesign.com

3 CB2 – Avec Sofa

The Avec sofa features modern retro styling and eco-friendly construction including a certified sustainable, kiln-dried hardwood frame with seat and back cushions filled with soy-based polyfoam and fiber.$1299cb2.com

4 Pacific Home – Diamond Head Sofa

With sustainable wood frames and eco-friendly, soy-based cushions slipcovered in natural fiber fabrics available in a wide range of colors and textures, this sofa is a deep, comfortable seat.$2240 (shipping included)pacific-home.com

LIFESTYLE HOME

A silent but ubiquitous presence in every home, upholstery has traditionally been made from highly toxic foams, glues and laminated woods for decades. As if that weren’t enough, sofas were covered with non-renewable fabrics that off-gas toxic fumes for years. But times have changed. When making your next sofa purchase, look for design and construction features like sustainably harvested (or even better, FSC certified) hardwood frames, a signature of manufacturing quality ensuring that you are buying a piece that will last. Filler can be a killer, so choose soy-based, non-toxic foams or go natural with a down fill (unless you have allergies). Don’t forget about natural fiber fabrics like cotton, linen and hemp—definitely the best choice. Otherwise, a good poly-cotton blend can be a great alternative. —Aubrey Yee

1 Mitchell Gold – Dr. Pitt modular sectional

Customize the build of this sectional to fit your space. It’s sold in mod-ular pieces and slipcovered or upholstered in natural fabrics available in a variety of colors. It’s also constructed with an eco-friendly hardwood frame and eco-friendly high-density, high-resiliency cushioning.$543 – $8477 (shipping included)pacific-home.com

Please, Have A SitThese sofas beg you to kick up your feet and relax

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Farm ToursOrganic farmers open their doors to the community

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“There is a great curiosity to become more connected to our food—to see where it’s grown, eat locally grown produce and to know your farmer,” says organic farm-ing activist Annie Suite. To bridge the modern-day gap between food production and consumption, Suite and Pamela Boyar, recently launched Oahu-Agri Tours, the island’s first tour company bringing awareness and sup-port to local farmers. Suite, a self proclaimed fan of all organic food, and Boyar, who has 30-years experience helping farmers, enjoy finding new ways to support Hawai‘i’s small farm-ers. Their new endeavor is a natural progression from the success of their brainchild, Hale‘iwa Farmers’ Market, where over 3,000 shoppers are connected with local food vendors each Sunday. The farm tour departs from Honolulu five-days a week. A 24-seat E Noa tour bus ferries guests to several North Shore farms over the course of the day—each organic, under eight-acres and owned by relatively new

farmers. The schedule of stops varies by day of the week and participants can expect three stops on a tour. Spending a day with Oahu Agri-Tours is a sustain-able move in itself. Agritourism supports each participat-ing farmer who receives a set fee for each guest they see. For farmers like Mark Hamamoto, owner of Mohala Farms, the additional income can be substantial. “We’ve accepted a few grants, but we don’t want to take many because we want to show kids and other people that you can actually make a living as a farmer today,” says Hamamoto. When Hamamoto is not farming, he guides visitors through a seemingly endless sea of organic leafy greens and veggies, inspects mounds of homemade compost and offers a peak into the worm bin. In place of pesticides, the produce grows with complimentary herbs to ward off harmful insects. Suite and Boyar deal with the business end of the tours while farmers maintain a visitable condition for their property and provide samples of their products.

COMMUNITY

Educational and informative farm tours provide consumers with a tangible link to their local food sources while creating a new revenue stream for small farmers.


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The farmers lead guests around sharing tips, struggles and other inside information. “Increasing revenue streams through agritour-ism is a very creative way to utilize the assets of the farm without depleting them,” says Suite. At wetland taro farm Na Mea Kupono, guests are treated to a holistic account of taro farming. Ku‘uipo and Steven Bolosan plant, maintain, harvest and process several kalo lo‘i all on their own. Near a potable freshwater spring and native fruit trees, the couple shares with guests a healthy local style lunch, a Hawaiian crafts and culture presentation and a poi pounding demonstra-tion. Around the corner at the Waialua Sugar Mill guests get a behind the scenes look at the processing of two common daily indulgences: chocolate and coffee. Of course, they get a gener-ous amount to sample, too. The Waialua Estate cacao orchard gives Suite and Boyar hope for another profitable commodity for the islands, as Hawai‘i is the only U.S. state with an environment suitable for cacao cultivation. At Poamoho Organic Produce, guests stroll through 300 fruit trees above the lush Poamoho Gulch, led by owner Al Santoro, a former naval intelligence officer. Just seven years ago, Santoro and his wife began the transformation of former guinea grass laden sugar land into a flourishing farm. Santoro shares his methods for implementing permaculture farm practices using a poly-culture of multiple plant and animal species, contributing to an overall natural and harmonious growing environment. The tour also takes a stop at Tin Roof Ranch, the North Shore’s source for organic chicken and eggs, where Luann Casey and Gary Gunder share insight on becoming ranchers. Just a few years ago they simply wanted to learn where their food came from, a curiosity that led them to raise both eating and egg laying chickens. Today they process their organic chickens by hand and are making a foray into other sustainable ventures. Although agritours provide farms with financial help, it offers something perhaps more important for Hawai‘i’s journey towards a sustainable future. Each farm experience whittles away at the part in consumers that takes the ease with which we acquire food for granted. Casey’s admission of learning to adapt to processing chick-ens by hand enhances appreciation for the prepped meats on store shelves. Hamamoto, in his red-dirt stained work clothes, inspires folks to bypass imported organic greens and buy local. Watching Bolosan break a sweat pounding poi is an eye opener to what farmers endure to bring food to dinner tables. Tasting cacao in the orchard before the finished product, well, it just make chocolate taste even better. Agritourism is about cultivating consumers’ appreciation for farmers and inspiring them to buy local. Perhaps the most important thing is creating a consciousness of the importance of successful local farms on an island that imports 80 percent of its food. “A growing number of people see the benefits of eating close to the source,” says Suite. “With these changes comes the curiosity to explore the farms and learn about farming practices. We would love to see a significant increase in local food produc-tion, consumption and in the number of farms with organic grow-ing practices.” —Jade Eckardt

oahuagritours.com

COMMUNITY

From kalo to coffee beans, food security in Hawai‘i is contingent on a diversity of crops and farms grown right here in the islands.

GREENMAGAZINEHAWAII .COM 23

Q&A

Precautionary PrincipleFilmmaker Ed Brown talks health, commerce and chemical-coated tomatoes

Ed Brown grew up in a small Pennsylvania town, went to a small Pennsylvania state college, but had big ambi-tions for his career. After he graduated with a double major in speech communication and journalism, he moved to the Big Apple, working at CBS as a sports writer and an Internet company that developed stream-ing video technology. After taking a job at Bravo, he met and worked with high-profile filmmaker Michael Moore. Brown developed the filmmaking bug and moved back to Pennsylvania to make his first film. He lost everything. Shortly thereafter, Brown met and married his wife. Excited to raise a family, their excitement of a new preg-nancy turned to sorrow after a miscarriage. They tried again and now have a beautiful three-year-old son. Want-

ing to grow their family, his wife's third pregnancy once again ended in miscarriage. “After she lost the second one I got pretty pissed off,” recalls Brown. “I started say-ing this isn’t the dynamic of the universe, this isn’t god’s plan, something is going on and I want to know what.” Ed started looking at what she was putting in her body and was shocked to learn that the chemicals in many of the products in the supermarket are largely unregulated and are not held to any federal standards. The emotional experience became the impetus for his next film, Acceptable Levels?, a poignant documentary opening this September in Washington D.C. and San Francisco. —Kevin Whitton

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Q&A

Did you have any background or a basic knowledge of industrialchemicals before going into the project?Nothing. Once we were done looking in to what she was putting on her body, we started looking at everything that was going into her body, like food—and especially our son. We as parents refocused our attention toward our children and started to think, they’re much smaller than I am, I wonder if something could seriously be happening to them. We started looking into water, air quality and the products are kids were playing with. The stuff goes right into their mouths. If there’s an ac-ceptable level of risk with one particular chemical, what happens when you put 232 into your body everyday? I do think it’s strikingly odd that with chemicals, especially since we don’t really know anything about some of these, how can you say something has an acceptable level of risk when you don’t know what the risk level is?

How many different regions do you explore in the film and whatcommonalities do you see across the board?We have six different areas that we talk about: vaccines, water, food, cleaning products, children toys, cosmetics. What brings them all together? We all have inputs and those inputs come into contact with our bodies everyday. The term is ubiquitous. So if we are coming into contact with them everyday, how much are we coming into contact with? Maybe it’s a small amount, maybe a high amount. It depends. A gardener by trade may come into contact with pesticides a lot more than most people and his exposure level is going to be much higher. What ties all this together is that we are all in this realm. Every-one might think they’re separate from it, but we have 270 million peo-ple living in this country that come into contact with this stuff everyday because we bring it into our homes, we drink it and we breath it. It’s not like we can avoid all of it, but we can limit what we’re exposed to inside of our homes. Air quality is six times worse in your home than outside, but the EPA can’t come into your house and say let’s regulate this. The inputs. I’m breathing air, I’m alive and that means I’m being affected by this stuff one way or another.

What adverse health risks and diseases do you see in conjunction with this barrage of chemicals?Let’s take cancer for instance. Childhood cancer has increased over the course of the past 10 years. Where it was 1 in every 550 kids that have been affected by childhood cancer, and I’m talking about kids three years old and below, now 1 in every 300 kids are being affected by this. Now why would that just happen? I hear the argument all the time: If we’re living so much longer then we used to, how do you say that all this stuff is bad for you? That’s why I go back and use children as my fulcrum, my pivot point. When that many kids are affected by something like this, something has to be happening genetically and also environmentally. Autism is another big one where it depends on what state you live in. If you live in Minnesota, 1 in every 67 kids has autism. In Penn-sylvania, 1 in every 110 kids has autism. Nobody’s pointing the finger at vaccines and saying this is the culprit. My point is that we have a genetic ability to be affected very adversely by environmental chemi-cals we’re coming into contact with, and most of those are industrial waste byproducts. This is a great example, in Johnson & Johnson shampoo, when it comes to No More Tears, it’s not No More Tears because it’s so pure. It has a chemical agent in it that inhibits the pain receptors and nerves inside of your eyes. That’s why kids don’t feel that pain. During the processing of that shampoo, formaldehyde is a byproduct. So if formal-

dehyde is a part of that product and that’s how our son got eczema all over his skin, once we stopped using that product, his eczema cleared up.

What specifically can we learn here in Hawai‘i about the chemicals that we come into contact with on a daily basis?The one thing that stands out to me are sunscreens because the UV rays are much different here than other parts of the world. There are four major chemicals that are known to affect the body adversely: oxybenzone, parabens, phthalates, stuff like that, endocrine disrupting chemicals that are in a lot of commercial sunscreens. The point is, when you come to a place like Hawai‘i, where it’s 85 degrees and sunny almost every single day, you’re going to have to use something and many people don’t know what to do other than use sunscreen, so they buy whatever’s on the shelf. If I have to use sunscreen everyday and apply it two or three times, what am I applying to my skin? You absorb 60 to 70 percent of it. Skin is not a barrier, it’s just like a sponge. It will soak up whatever you put on to it. A great ex-ample of that are transdermal patches, like a nicotine patch. So when it comes to Hawai‘i and sunscreen, what you’re putting on your body, especially when you have to put a lot of it, year round, you might want to find a more naturally derived sunscreen that doesn’t contain a lot of the chemicals that many of the commercial brands have.

During your research, did you find any concrete, scientific linksbetween industrial chemicals and disease or health risks?The most difficult part of having 232 different, unique—and unique is the key word—chemicals inside of your body at any point in time is sitting back and saying, which one is going to do the damage, because

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we all do things differently on a different scale. And your genetic makeup might be different than someone else. The point of making this film is quite simply to say, if you don’t know what all these chemicals are going to do to you, and absolutely no one on this planet working in health care today, despite their elite status, they won’t be able to tell you either, then taking the precaution-ary principle is really the best way to handle things. We have an example in the film: we have two tomatoes, one is sprayed heavily with pesticides, one isn’t. Which one do you want to eat? Pretty easy.

What scares you the most about what you’ve learned whileconducting research for this film?I went from a degree of high skepticism to a degree of sitting back and being comfortable with the fact that it is very easy to change what we’ve been doing. It sounds pretty simple. As consumers, we should be able to tell them what we want and what we don’t want. But fundamentally, it comes back to the American Chemistry Council, the biggest trade association on the planet, and they’re not going to go down without swinging. Here’s my thing, I’m not afraid with what’s going to be put out there, but as an environmentalist, if we make the changes in the chemicals first, where else does it start and end, with all of us and all of our lives? And where most of this stuff is coming from is oil. Most of our products are derived from oil, even if it’s the plastics they’re being transported with. Only 19 gallons of a 42-gallon barrel of light sweet crude is being turned into gasoline. About nine percent of every single barrel of oil that we’re pulling out of the ground is going into creating the products that we use every single day. And that makes me feel empowered, and that’s what I want to show other people. I don’t want to eat oil and I don’t think it’s a great idea to put it on my skin. And that to me doesn’t sound crazy.

What gives you hope?Hope isn’t going to cut it. You have to actually do something about it.

These industrial chemicals are already out there in staggering numbers. What can we do to protect ourselves?This is a small step process, so don’t expect to do everything over-night. We’ve gotten ourselves into this situation very slowly, and that’s what we’re going to have to do to get out of it. Focus your attention on one thing first. If you’re living in Hawai‘i, sunscreen might be first. If you’re living in Pennsylvania, dairy products might be first. Ask yourself some simple questions. Do I want chemicals in what I’m eating? Do I want chemicals in the stuff my kids are eating? And you have to make budget minded decisions. A lot of people might think this is an unsexy subject, but it does make me feel better knowing I’m making better choices. As a consumer in a consumer-based economy, that’s what I want to do, make better choices. If we can all do that, or a large per-centage of us do that, maybe our dependence on foreign oil will change, maybe our dependence on the health care system would change.

macroscopicmedia.comacceptablesolutions.org

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Sustainability Goes CorporateHawai‘i recognizes the sustainable business corporation

With the recent signing of Act 209, Governor Abercrom-bie made Hawai‘i the fifth state in the union to enact legislation allowing for the formation of a new type of corporate structure: the sustainable business corporation (SBC). The former Senate Bill 298 of the 2011 legisla-tive session allows companies to formally declare that they exist for the benefit of both owners and other stake-holders, such as the community, employees, customers and the local and global environment. Nationally, corporations that operate for public ben-efit are often referred to as B Corps (B is for beneficial—check out bcorporation.net) and certified B Corps. These entities must meet strict environmental, social and governance standards. Per the terms of Act 209, Hawai‘i registered corporations that select the SBC designa-tion must so indicate it in their articles of incorpora-tion. They must also serve one or more of these public benefits: Provide low-income or underserved individuals or communities with beneficial products or services; Pro-mote economic opportunity for individuals or communi-ties beyond the creation of jobs in the normal course

of business; Preserve the environment; Improve human health; Promote the arts, sciences, or advancement of knowledge; Increase the flow of capital to entities with a public benefit purpose; The accomplishment of any other particular benefit for society or the environment. Since Act 209 does not authorize government over-sight of the sustainable practices of these businesses, Hawai‘i SBCs must appoint a Benefits Director or Officer to monitor compliance with the law and produce an annual report that highlights the company’s stakeholder benefits. The Benefits Director must be independent and not have any other material relationship with the company, which allows criticism of company operations to be freely expressed. The public benefit report must be posted on the company’s website or be otherwise avail-able. All SBCs are required to use third party certifica-tion to authenticate their policies and practices, which should lessen the likelihood of “greenwashing.” Nation-ally recognized B Corp or Green America standards, one of the Hawai‘i-based green business program standards

BUSINESS

With the new sustainable business corporation designation, Hawai‘i businesses that weave sustainability into their articles of incorporation can rise above the competition and shine for conscious consumers.


established by the Hawai‘i Department of Business, Economic De-velopment and Tourism, the Sustainability Association of Hawaii, Ma-lama Kaua‘i and the Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce all provide this crucial service. While SBC designation is voluntary and can only be revoked by the company, businesses will choose the designation to stand out from their peers. While varying levels of experience and com-mitment abound, the objective third party standard of social and environmental performance offers systemic integrity that should satisfy cynics and proponents alike. Nevertheless, promotion is one of the primary benefits of SBC designation, as proven by the various Hawai‘i green business programs’ web-based directories, printed maps, trade shows, seminars and collaborative adver-tising. All SBCs will be encouraged to join the Sustainability Association of Hawaii, the statewide green business membership and educational organization, in order to be featured in the online directory and gain access to consultants and resources that can further their sustainable practices. The public relations benefit matters because conscientious consumers are increasingly selective about those they do business with, and because there aren’t that many sustainability-focused businesses in Hawai‘i. Businesses that are highlighted with an SBC designation are likely to experience the loyalty of customers who prefer to shop, bank and invest with their values whenever possible. As such businesses experience success and gain market share, competitors take notice and will often adapt accordingly to tap into shifting consumer priorities, the net effect of which can transform entire industries and help bring costs down. The overall consequence is that a new norm is defined for how businesses within any sector can operate as responsive and responsible business citizens. Act 209 helps to facilitate this transition to a regenerative economy. —Michael Kramer

sahawaii.org

Michael Kramer is Managing Partner and Director of Social Research at Natural Investments, LLC and a Board Member of the Sustainability Association of Hawaii and the Hawaii Alliance for a Local Economy.

BUSINESS

King KoaRestoring native koa forest in Ha-lawa Valley

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For more than 1,000 years, Hawaiians sought sources of wood in their lowland rainforests. Acacia koa was the wood of choice for canoes, chipped and cut to form with various types of the basaltic stone adze. Today’s koa, with its signature curly grain and varied coloration that often create a three-dimensional sheen, is prized for furniture making and crafts. It is found on all the main Hawaiian Islands, including throughout the Ko‘olau Range on O‘ahu. Unfortunately, koa’s vitality is challenged by invasive plants such as strawberry guava, mule’s foot fern, maile pilau and bushy beardgrass. The endemic evergreen hardwood is also susceptible to koa wilt disease (Fusarium oxysporum), a fungus whose origin is unknown and which causes crown and shoot dieback,

root rot, bark and vascular system ruptures, branch discoloration and overall stunting. Even so, this favored species of tree is not without its champions. Almost 20 years ago, nine ku-puna and their families began camping one weekend a month in Ha-lawa Valley, working to keep bushy beardgrass and other pest plants from competing with the koa trees growing there. As volunteers added to their numbers, the group worked to protect ancient Hawaiian cultural sites, clean the forest and restore it with native plants. “We’ve been trying to take care of the valley for long time,” says 70-year-old Sweets Matthews of Na Ku-puna A Me Na Kako‘o O Ha-lawa, Hawaiian elders and volun-teers who have become caretakers of the valley. “It’s important to show how our ancestors lived, how they kept

SCIENCE

Next time you’re Town bound on the H-3, look for an A-frame valley filled with light green fern, then focus your eyes just below that to a flat expanse wooded with koa—a peek at one of the few koa forests remaining on O‘ahu.


the forest, the streams and the ocean clean because they used everything.” Above the sweeping valley floor where the group laborsspans the H-3 Freeway, stretching more than 15 miles from North Ha-lawa Valley, through the Ko‘olau Range, to Ha‘iku- Valley on the windward side. Interstate H-3, connecting leeward and windward O‘ahu, was the largest project ever undertaken by the Hawai‘i Department of Transportation (HDOT) and took years to complete. Five years ago, Matthews gave HDOT Landscape Architect Chris Dacus and the O‘ahu Invasive Species Committee (OISC) a tour of the area. The original construction staging area where equipment and material had once been stored had become a large stand of koa trees, regenerating on their own. There were ap-proximately 50 koa trees standing 30 feet high, but at the mercy of encroaching pest plants, mostly bushy beardgrass, maile pilau and strawberry guava. Dacus launched a restoration project to clean up a four-acre site at the staging area. “The common invasive species that plague all forests in the Ko‘olaus also plague Ha-lawa Valley,” explains OISC Coordinator Rachel Neville. “Strawberry guava, mule’s foot fern, Australian tree fern, albizia and bushy beardgrass all contribute in their own way to the destruction of the Hawaiian rainforest. We hope that removal of fire threats, like bushy beardgrass, also removes fire threats to the restoration site.” Hawaiian plant specialists Rick Barboza and Matt Schir-man of Hui Ku- Maoli Ola, were brought onboard to clear the area, collect koa seeds and plant 1,100 koa saplings that today stand two feet tall in the open areas and between existing trees. In the general vicinity, the hui also found fragrant native white hibiscus, koki‘o ke‘oke‘o, growing among the brush. Cuttings were taken, nursery grown, and about 200 saplings were planted at the stag-ing site. “Being there, you really get a feeling that this is a very special place,” Dacus recalls. “It’s the only opportunity to drive through a koa-‘o-hi‘a forest on the Island of O‘ahu. The former staging area is now 100 percent koa. Now the work will be to maintain it, to ensure it only improves.” Add to this the work of Nick Dudley, a forester at the Hawaii Agriculture Research Center who heads the state’s only koa disease screening program in collaboration with the U.S. Forest Service and the State’s Division of Forestry and Wildlife. With the overall goal to establish healthy koa plantings, maintain high rates of growth and ensure high quality timber, Dudley did a preliminary seed collection from koa trees in Ha-lawa Valley. By inoculating them with the pathogen that causes koa wilt, Dudley has identi-fied individual trees with a higher potential for survival and has them ready for planting at the restoration site. “Koa is one of the most important endemic Hawaiian timber species from an ecological perspective,” Dudley says. “No other native Hawaiian wood is as abundant or as valuable.” According to Dudley, the native low elevation koa-‘o-hi‘a forest in Ha-lawa Valley is one of the most intact on O‘ahu. He believes efforts toward koa restoration make sense, especially if continued screening work is done, so additional wilt resistant koa can be deployed. For the ku-puna caretakers, making sense of restoration may take on a more esoteric meaning. “We walk in the footsteps of our ku-puna,” says Matthews. “We will always be there to help keep the forest healthy and be there for each other.” —Priscilla Pérez Billig

SCIENCE

FOOD

In early 2011, Senate Bill 101, more commonly referred to as the “Poi Bill,” sparked a debate among foodies, sustainability circles and Hawaiian cultural practitioners over whether pa‘i ‘ai (hand-pounded taro before being diluted with water to make poi) should be exempt from Department of Health regulations and made available for public consumption. The bill’s organizers, an informal coalition of taro farmers, activists and cultural practitioners collectively known as the Legalize Pa‘i ‘ai ‘Ohana, argued that ex-isting legal frameworks mislabeled pa‘i ‘ai as a “potentially hazardous food” and failed to recognize the traditional methods of hand-pounding taro as a time-tested, safe precedent that had fed Hawaiians for over a thousand years. However, what the bill really demonstrated was the increasingly evident need for the culturally and ecologically unique cultivation of taro to find a secure place in Hawai‘i’s current legal and socio-economic reality. Although hundreds of supporters from vari-ous islands presented their testimonies at the State Capitol, the bill was nearly killed in committee due to opposition from some established poi mills. This raised the important question of whether legalizing pa‘i ‘ai would weaken or strengthen the existing taro farm-ing and poi industries—both of which have fought hard to retain what remains of their small piece of Hawai‘i’s agricultural pie. It also shed light on some of the more systemic challenges faced by this grassroots movement to reconnect Hawai‘i’s society, culture and economy with the ‘a- ina.

by Catharine Mariko Black

The taro movement imagines asustainable future by bringing Hawai‘i

back to its roots


FOOD

The Poi Bill has sparked new life into the tradition of pa‘i ‘ai (hand-pounded poi) and the poi industry, offering farmers a higher price for kalo, reintroducing countless varieties of kalo back into active agriculture and reconnecting community and culture through an important local food source, one that most people have never tasted before.

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Historic CropTo better appreciate the story of taro as a foundation of Hawaiian civilization and one of the major forces that shaped its relationship to the environment, some back-ground is helpful. According to a comprehensive report published in 2010 by the Taro Purity and Security Task Force (TPSTF), “Taro farming dates back an estimated 1,200 to 1,500 years to the time of the first arrivals of Pacific Islanders to Hawai‘i. By the time of Captain Cook’s landing in 1778, wet and dry taro-growing sys-tems here were the most fine-tuned in the Pacific, and taro had become the Hawaiians’ most important staple crop, feeding an estimated 300,000 to one million people.” In addition to being the foundation of ancient Hawai‘i’s agricultural economy, taro was one of the central pillars in its cultural value system. Ha-loa is the plant’s mythological name and refers to the elder sibling of humankind. Taro is also a physical embodiment of one of the principal gods in the Hawaiian pantheon: Ka-ne, the source of freshwater, sunlight, agriculture and life. Even today, the taro plant is used to symbol-

ize family, community and humans’ mutually beneficial relationship with the land. Although taro farming continued to play a sig-nificant role in Hawaiian agriculture well into the 19th century, the decline of the native Hawaiian population and the rupture of their traditional stewardship relation-ship with the land, coupled with the introduction of new crops such as rice, sugarcane and pineapple, and later urban development, dramatically reduced produc-tive taro lands from over 20,000 acres to approximately 500 acres today. The varieties that existed at the time of Western contact numbered between 300 and 400, developed from a handful originally brought by Polyne-sian settlers and adapted over time to the great diversity of climates and farming techniques developed in the Hawaiian Islands. Sadly, by the early 20th century most of the ancient varieties had disappeared, along with the lands and water that supported them. Many Hawaiians had abandoned their rural communities and lifestyle to seek economic opportunity in urban centers, and the beacons of traditional culture and language began to dim, kept alive by a dwindling number of committed families.

FOOD

Daniel Bishop has been farming kalo for decades and sees it as an encouraging sign for Hawai‘i’s future that a bright crop of young farmers are embracing kalo, like his 27-year-old son, owner of Homestead Poi.


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Birth of a MovementFast-forward to the 1970s and ’80s and the Hawaiian Renaissance, when for the first time in over a century, Hawaiian culture and history began to be regarded as inherently valuable and worth preserving. This was a critical period, when some of the last ku- puna who were a link to Hawai‘i in its pre-statehood days would pass their knowledge on to a younger generation of Hawaiians and non-Hawaiians inspired by the movement’s demands for political and cultural validation. This was the era when many of today’s recognized figures made their commitment to preserve the knowledge and values that defined Hawaiian culture—in hula, language, the arts and the traditional forms of subsistence agriculture best exemplified by taro farming. This was when now leg-endary names like Eric Enos, the Reppun brothers and Jerry Konanui began to spearhead initiatives like Ka‘ala Farm, the Waia-hole Ditch Contested Case, and the research, documentation and preservation of traditional Hawaiian taro varieties. Daniel Bishop was one of many people who awoke to a new way of understanding Hawai‘i and his own Hawaiian heritage during these fer-tile years of activism and cultural rediscovery. Raised in Kapahulu to a Hawaiian father and Chinese mother, he describes his youth as a time of being “lost” and uncertain about his place in Island society. His Hawaiian grandmother, born in Kalaupapa but raised by Catholic nuns, would squeeze his nose as a baby to make it less flat—an example, he says, of “the disconnect from my kanaka culture that was very evident in my family.” Bishop gained confidence during the Cultural Renaissance, and later as a fireman, even formed a hui with friends to do small-scale taro farming in Punalu‘u. But it wasn’t until he got involved with the group of activists and community members (including the Reppuns) behind the Waia-hole Ditch Contested Case in the mid-’90s that a clear sense of purpose began to emerge for Bishop. In 1996, as part of an attempt to locate taro farming sites of old Hawai‘i, the group identified an ancient, unused lo‘i on DLNR lands in Waia-hole Valley and decided to restore it as an informal community and educational project. On Wednesdays, friends and neighbors would spend the day cleaning, planting and harvesting taro at the “Mauka Lo‘i”, sharing food and building a space of intergenerational exchange, learning and collective work. “When I first walked out of the forest and saw the taro patch and the water running through the ‘auwai, it felt like coming home,” remembers Bishop, “and from that day forward I tried to be there as much as possible. Everything suddenly made sense. I belonged here, doing this work. I realized that I have a responsibility to generations past, present and future, and to the caring and management of the land. I realized that my foundation is the ‘a- ina.” Although land disputes resulted in the official closure of the Mau-ka Lo‘i a decade later, the group of farmers, cultural practitioners and community members continued to restore lo‘i around the state, often traveling at their own expense to share communal work days at sites from Ha-lawa to Waipi‘o, ‘I

-ao and Anahola Valleys. At some gatherings,

up to 400 people would participate, clearing the old ‘auwai (irrigation ditches), building the earth banks, repairing old stone walls and plant-ing; in essence, reconstructing these ancient spaces and methods of cultivation and connection with the land. Five years ago, Bishop obtained 12 acres of leased land near Waia-hole that he is slowly transforming into a small-scale diversified farm for taro as well as cacao, fruits and flowers. But he makes clear that this was a decision based on conviction rather than comfort.

“There’s a mystique about taro farming and right now it’s glamorous, people think it’s cool,” he comments. “But the reality is, there’s no money in it, there are no days off, when the sun’s shining you’d better work because the weeds are growing and if you have huli and no place to plant, you’re going to lose them.” Besides the intensive manual labor involved (taro farming is one of the least-mechanized agricultural industries out there), Bishop and other farmers point out two major limiting factors to their growth and security: one being the lack of accessible land and water, and the other being the low price of taro on the market.

Limitations and ChallengesThe 500 acres in taro cultivation across the state represent less than one percent of active agricultural lands in Hawai‘i. Yet according to the TPSTF Report, “Despite the almost catastrophic decline of active taro producing lands in Hawai‘i… there remain hundreds, if not thousands, of acres of taro-growing lands that lay fallow with the potential for rehabilitation and productivity. “Because all of the taro plant is edible; the entire crop represents a proportionally high contribution to local food self-sufficiency. A ratio of 1 to 0.75 exchange between raw taro and poi means taro growers provided over 3.2 million pounds of poi to consumers in Hawai‘i in 2008. While no data exists at this time, [these numbers] suggest taro farmers produce more food for local tables per capita than any other

FOOD

Kalo is highly suited for sustainable farming practices, but it's also extremely labor intensive.


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crop in the state.” Most taro farms are under three to five acres, with medium-sized growers averaging 10 acres and a rare few large growers with 20 to 50 acres or more (less than 10 percent of the 110 commercial farms recorded by the Department of Agriculture in 2008). There are many more subsistence-based growers who generally go unreported. Penny Levin is a restoration ecologist and small-scale farmer on Maui, one of many growers helping to revive the old taro varieties. She came to the Islands as a student over 20 years ago and learned her trade ini-tially with teachers like Eddie Kana‘ana at Ka‘ala Farm, the Reppuns in Waia-hole and Alton Arakaki of Moloka‘i, from whom she received her first collection of the old taro varieties. Also a member of the taro task force, she says that, “if you look at the estimates of land it would take to feed all the people of Hawai‘i right now, taro cultivation requires far less than most other staple ag-ricultural crops. We have this capacity for restoring taro production that’s huge, but the primary thing that stops us is lack of water and lack of access to land. Many taro lands are naturally very beautiful places, because they are in the riparian and coastal areas, so they’re desirable for development. And when you look at the price tag and taxes on these lands, you see why they’re so hard to farm.” Although there are some exceptions, such as Maui County’s tax exemption for taro farmers, by and large the state has not created incentives or subsidies for taro as it has for other crops. Taro lands that receive marginal agricultural designations (in a hierarchy defined primar-ily by sugar and pineapple) are more likely to be sold,

rezoned and built on for lack of protections. Chris Kobayashi farms approximately 10 acres in Wai‘oli, Kaua‘i, as her father did after he started plant-ing taro on the rice farm he cultivated with his parents. “I’m really fortunate to have inherited from my family,” Chris explains. “I’ve seen people say ‘oh, I going grow taro,’ but they can’t handle the wait and work before harvesting, which is a whole year, and they give up. Then there are other people who are really into it, but don’t have the land and water, and that needs to be made available to them because there’s no way they can afford to purchase it.” Kobayashi is one of few commercial growers who made a serious transition to organic and sustainable production methods (largely by eliminating chemical fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides and instead work-ing to replenish the soil), which she fell into by accident after experimenting with Japanese cucumbers and other mixed crops. Taro is, in fact, one of the crops best-suited to sus-tainable farming for a number of reasons. Its small scale naturally lends itself to food security, decentralization of supply and minimal use of fuel for production and trans-port. Its high degree of manual labor leaves a minimal carbon imprint, and wetland lo‘i use small amounts of natural resources as even the high volume of water that passes through them is returned to their stream sources. If Hawai‘i lost access to fuel tomorrow, the state’s taro farmers would be relatively unaffected compared to conventional agriculture, and considering we import 85 to 90 percent of our food, this is no minor detail. According to the TPSTF Report, “One recent study that considered how many acres we would need to be-

FOOD

Kalo suitable for pa‘i ‘ai must be more solid, more starchy and harvested earlier than kalo going to the poi mill. This ensures a delicious product fresh off the board.


FOOD

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A young ku‘i (poi pounder) uses a po-haku ku‘i ‘ai (stone) and papa ku‘i ‘ai (board) to pound pieces of kalo corm into a thick, doughy paste. Up until the passage of SB 101, the Poi Bill, Department of Health regulations restricted poi processed in this way from being sold to the public.


come food self-sufficient for a 1.3 million population, determined that approximately 29,000 acres would provide 2.5 cup of taro per day per person for a year; perhaps 10 percent of currently producing agricul-tural lands in the state.” But for small-scale or subsistence farmers, the other major limit-ing factor is the lack of a viable market to sell to. In her testimony for the Poi Bill, Levin stressed that the price of raw taro for a full-time, small-scale farmer does not provide enough income to care for a family (under $0.70/lb at the mill). The result can sometimes be poor choices in seeking supplemental income or families who hover around the poverty line, unable to afford health insurance. Most large-scale commercial taro farms have a direct relationship with large-scale commercial poi mills, such as those on Kaua‘i (where 65 percent of commercial taro production takes place) and the island of Hawai‘i.

Food as a BridgeThis is where pa‘i ‘ai enters the picture. Because taro farming is dif-ficult and not usually profitable, most who dedicate themselves to it do so either for love of the plant and its cultural importance or because they have access to land or poi processing. Daniel Anthony is a 32-year old ku‘i (which means “to pound”) practitioner who also grew up under the influence of Ka‘ala Farm and his father Vince Dodge’s traditional board-and-stone pounding workshops. When he began to pound taro seriously in 2009, the pa‘i ‘ai issue started to take on a new dimension. Although pa‘i ‘ai had become an increasingly common fixture at local parties, celebra-tions and fundraisers, Anthony began to sell it at farmers’ markets, to restaurants, and via his website: manaai.com. It wasn’t long before the DOH was alerted and the controversy over pa‘i ‘ai’s safety spurred the introduction of SB 101, the Poi Bill. But even more interesting was what had been occurring behind the scenes, which was perhaps the strongest reconnection between taro farmers and ku‘i practitioners in decades. Anthony and other young cultural activists began to raise the price of raw taro, paying two dollars or more per pound instead of the 70 cents that farmers got from conventional poi mills. They also started creating a market for pa‘i ‘ai, an artisan product which, unlike industrially produced poi, usually gets rave reviews from people who try it for the first time—tour-ists and locals alike. Anthony was selling pa‘i ‘ai for up to ten dollars a

pound, rather than the six or seven dollars per bag of poi at the grocery store, and he couldn’t make enough to satisfy the demand. “I get chicken skin. It’s like seeing the old pictures come to life—these young men at the boards, pounding poi for their communi-ties and calling us back to health”, says Levin, who spends a lot of time researching historical material on taro. “They’re bringing back a market that disappeared with the advent of mechanized mills 90 years ago. Most people, unless they kept the ku‘i tradition at home, have never tasted pa‘i ‘ai in their lifetimes. That’s how long it’s been out of circulation.” Not only is pa‘i ‘ai bringing new, especially younger, people back into the fold, but it is changing the way taro farmers worked with their crop. “When I started growing taro no one was ku‘i-ing. I was just grinding with a machine and the machine is really forgiving,” says Kobayashi. “We’ve been conditioned as commercial farmers and everyone’s taro has been going to the big mills. I thought our taro was pretty good, but Daniel comes back to me and says that it wasn’t. We had forgotten about the kind of taro that’s suitable for pounding, which has to be more solid, more starchy, and you have to pull it earlier. When you sell it to the ku‘i guys, you’re sacrificing weight and size for a higher price, but the rest you can still sell to the poi mill as the taro continues to mature, and there’s nothing wrong with that.” Kobayashi and other farmers don’t foresee that the poi mills will suffer, because not everyone can afford the higher prices of pa‘i ‘ai and poi will always have its purchasing public. Rather, they emphasize that pa‘i ‘ai is simply creating a new market where before there was none. Ed Kenney, owner of the award winning farm-to-table Town and Downtown restaurants, says that he had a standing order for Anthony’s pa‘i ‘ai before the DOH stepped in. “Pa‘i ‘ai is delicious and eating it fresh off the board is almost a religious experience,” remarks Kenney. “It’s so neutral that it pairs well with anything. You can pan-fry slabs of it in salt and butter and serve it with pretty much any protein. It gets kind of crispy outside and gooey on the inside and we get people all the time saying, ‘ho, it’s just like mochi!’” Most people wouldn’t associate the mud and back-breaking work of the taro farmer or the watery poi served at lu- ‘au with today’s Slow Food movement and its relatively affluent, cosmopolitan demographic, but pa‘i ‘ai seems to be crossing that bridge. Some people are even promoting it as a local superfood: it’s hypoallergenic, low-glycemic and has been effective in feeding cancer patients and infants. The bacteriocin-producing bacteria, which creates the souring element in poi, has been recognized as a food preservation element. They are also a source of healthy probiotics in the same manner as active bacteria yogurts, miso, tempeh, shoyu, tofu and natto—foods that have been shown to aid in digestion, reduce cholesterol and the chances of heart disease. These qualities, not to mention its taste and value-added, arti-san production, make pa‘i ‘ai a potent tool for connecting taro farming as a sustainable and culturally-significant industry with mainstream audiences. Amy Brinker, one of the authors of the Poi Bill, comments, “It’s like a gateway. Some people might never have [a taro farmer’s] con-nection to the water or see why it’s such an important issue, but they could have a connection to this food. Through it, they’re tapping into a bigger circle that’s interrelated, because you don’t get pa‘i ‘ai unless you get quality kalo, and you don’t get quality kalo unless you have an amazing farmer, and you don’t have an amazing farmer unless you have access to the land and the water. So through pa‘i ‘ai, you access an issue that might be otherwise too removed for most people to ac-tively participate in.”

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Dave Caldiero, chef de cuisine of Town and co-owner of Downtown, is proud to legally offer pa‘i ‘ai on his menus.


The Next Generation“Uncle” Jerry Konanui is a farmer and one of the state’s leading experts in taro and other traditional Hawaiian crops such as ‘uala (sweet potato) and ‘awa. His award-winning work as a teacher and communicator allows him to put a positive slant on what some ecologists see as a potentially disastrous future in Hawai‘i. “Lately people have been bringing to us varieties that we thought were gone forever, but I’m not so sure that we lost those varieties, I think that they’re coming back,” says Konanui. “I think our ancestors are helping us recover what we’ve lost. Right now we are living this craze of gas consumption, this overdevel-opment of our ‘a- ina, and our canoe is overfilled. But for those of us who are preparing ourselves, we’re getting our gardens ready, because we need to farm things that feed us. We need to go back, because going forward in the way that we have been is not going to work. Once you’re aware and you start preparing yourself, I think it’s really exciting.” For Bishop, the addition of his 27-year-old son, Hanale, to the farm two years ago was an encouraging sign that this work would be passed on. “We’re hoping to find younger guys who will start carrying the torch—passing this on from one generation to the next is a dream come true,” says Bishop. “Hanale is one of my heroes.” Now Hanale runs Homestead Poi, which buys his father’s taro at a respectable one dollar per pound and sells the finished product to friends and family networks, as well as at University of Hawai‘i, Kamehameha Schools and the Waia-hole Poi Factory. And it was his idea to start making poi. “He withdrew his IRA and bought his mill, did all his own research and now he’s farm-ing with me, because that’s the only way to make it work,” says Bishop. “I sell all my taro to him, he helps me plant and weed, and we’ve developed the farm faster than I would have been able to myself. It’s really sad that taro itself is not worth much money, that’s the reality of farming today, but the poi is.”

From Farm to RestaurantAfter several scares and stalls, the Poi Bill passed its final read-ing in the State Legislature on May 5, 2011 and was sent to Gov-ernor Abercrombie to be signed into law. Its primary obstacle, the fear of some established poi mills that pa‘i ‘ai would destabilize their already precarious and hard-won business, was surpassed by something that the close-knit taro farming and producing com-munity still conserves: a sense of family and a shared mission. Konanui, who was instrumental in negotiating the support of the poi mills, relates that, “It came down to reminding [them] what we stood for, things like majority rules, being pono, being out in the open. These are all the things we strive for in being Hawaiian. All of us who work with taro have this relationship and it tran-scends fears, it promotes unity, and that’s what happened.” One could say that the bill was held back by the same factors that hamper taro cultivation and processing in Hawai‘i: a limited market, resources and production infrastructure. But in the end, its passage was made possible by the deep sense of community, identity and purpose shared by those who choose to preserve the legacy of taro, of their kupuna ha-loa, of the ‘a- ina in the Hawaiian sense of the word, as “that which feeds.”

FOOD

CONSERVATION

If you read a daily newspaper or frequent a mainstream media website, then you’ve probably seen the Top 10 Beaches list that appears every year around Memorial Day, syndicated across the country. Hawai‘i has had at least two beaches in the Top 10 each year for the past five years, and has topped the list 11 times since the rankings began in 1991. Professor Stephen Letterman of Florida International University has gener-ated the list since its inception and updates it each year by rating America’s 650 major public recreational beaches based upon 50 physical factors like water color, midday air temperature and number of sunny days. Given the criteria chosen to evaluate the best beaches, it’s surprising that any beach outside Hawai‘i could even crack the Top 10. Why aren’t more of Hawai‘i’s beaches on this list? Perhaps because many of Hawai‘i’s beaches, like Kahanamoku Beach in Waikı-kı- (#3 on Dr. Beach’s 2011 list) are slowly disappearing. Without frequent beach nourishment projects that harvest offshore sand to restore the beach, Kahanamoku Beach would not be one of the world’s premier beach destinations. In fact, it might not even exist. Aside from Dr. Beach’s list, maybe a better question to ask is why are Hawai‘i’s beautiful beaches—beaches that attract tourists from around the world, offer a multitude of social, cultural and recreational opportunities—disappearing?

by Adam Ayers

When a place is defined by its beaches,it’s best to keep them around


CONSERVATION

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Beautiful beaches are synonymous with Hawai‘i and in high demand for residential and commercial development. But the desire to be beachfront is having disastrous consequences on beaches across the state and our precious sand is slowly disappearing.


Waimea Bay in the early 20th century, before sand was methodically removed to create Waikı-kı- ’s beaches.

CONSERVATION

Going, Going, GoneHawai‘i’s beaches are disappearing, or technically speaking, eroding, because of three primary reasons: sea-level rise, natural processes like swell events, cur-rents, tsunamis, coastal storms and hurricanes, and human alteration. The first two causes are naturally occurring (well, on second thought, human activity is partly responsible for sea-level rise, too) while the third reason, human alteration, has resulted in dramatic beach loss across the Hawaiian Islands. We may have no control over natural processes such as king tides, big waves or currents, but we do have control over the laws and policies that govern Hawai‘i’s coastline. One policy in particular, Hawai‘i Revised Statute Chapter 205A-46, allows coastal landowners to protect their homes under conditions of “hardship.” For instance, when the ocean shoreline encroaches to within 20 feet of a structure, property owners can be granted a variance that allows them to build a seawall to protect the property.

Research has demonstrated that rules allowing coastal landowners to build seawalls and other struc-tures to protect their property have been disastrous for Hawai‘i’s precious sandy beaches. According to the Uni-versity of Hawai‘i coastal geologist Chip Fletcher, O‘ahu has lost approximately 24 percent of its sandy beaches in just the past century. All of this lost sand adds up to 17 miles, and that’s just on O‘ahu. Even larger beach losses have been observed on the island of Maui. Dr. Fletcher’s research has shown that nearly all of the beach loss on O‘ahu has been attributed to shoreline armoring, or hardening of the shoreline. Other University of Hawai‘i researches corroborated Dr. Fletcher’s find-ings in 2010 and estimate that 40 percent of O‘ahu’s 112-mile coastline is armored, compared to just 25.6 percent in the 1970s.

Time Helps Us ForgetThe use of historical data can help sharpen our attention when we’re attempting to understand or document how

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the natural world has changed over time. Consider the follow-ing hypothetical situation: Suppose you asked two surfers, Gerry and Makana, how their local beach has changed. They both surf the same wave almost everyday, paddling out from the same stretch of sand, but Gerry has been surfing the spot since 1958, while Makana started surfing the same stretch of reef in 1993. Although both surfers will have historical perspectives and are commenting on the same beach, Gerry would provide a much dif-ferent perspective on how their local beach has changed since he has 35 more years of experience to pull from than Makana. The potentially different answers received from Gerry and Makana highlight what is known in fisheries management as the shifting baseline syndrome. Since Gerry and Makana started their surfing lives at the same beach during different time periods, their anchor, or baseline perspective is different. If you ask them what the beach used to look like when they first started surfing the break, Makana might say that the beach looks largely the same, while Gerry may reply that the beach used to be much wider with a greater abundance of marine life. As generations pass and the baseline shifts, the collective conscious accepts what they see now as normal. Had it not been for Gerry telling Makana about how wide the beach they paddle out from used to be, Makana would naturally accept that the tiny of pocket of sand he sees everyday is the way the beach has always looked. Gerry and Makana’s hypothetical perspective of their local beach is happening in reality on O‘ahu and two famous beaches (or lack thereof) highlight this baseline shift. The North Shore’s Waimea Bay has gone through drastic changes in recent decades, much like Diamond Head’s tiny Kaluahole Beach. So why do we think of the Bay’s Jump Rock and the waves splashing up against man-made stone walls fringing the Outrigger Canoe Club as just another day in paradise? On wave-exposed beaches in Hawai‘i, large ocean swells frequently bombard the coastline. These swells create power-ful rip currents that pull sand away from the beach and carry it offshore, where it stays until changes in currents or waves return it back ashore. On an unaltered, natural beach, sand lost during the wave cycles is gradually returned to the shore and a dune system present behind the beach acts as a rainy day fund in case more sand is needed. As a result, a healthy, natural beach’s profile doesn’t really change. In other words, when a dune system is present behind a sandy beach, it is difficult to notice when the beach is naturally migrating landward. This natural process is known as coastal erosion. The problem today is that the natural cycle of removal and renewal has stopped functioning in many places due to hu-man alteration or development along the shoreline. Hardening shorelines with seawalls and other structures accelerates the loss of sandy beaches, causing beach erosion (much different from coastal erosion). Because the shoreline is not allowed to perform its natural landward migration during periods of sea levels rise and the dune system is not allowed to replenish the sand necessary to keep the beach profile the same, the result is a significantly narrowed beach, or one that may be lost altogether. To view the results of this firsthand, take a stroll on almost any O‘ahu beach entirely fronted by seawalls, like the southeastern end of Lanikai Beach, anywhere along Ka-hala beach at high tide, or the dramatically altered Kaluahole Beach.

Decades ago, Kaluahole Beach was a wide and beautiful beach, unhindered by beachfront property. Unfortunately, seawalls have caused the permanent loss of sand up and down the coast and now this tiny beach is all that is left in either direction.

CONSERVATION

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spie To mitigate the loss of sand on the north side of Kailua’s

boat ramp, City and County buried sand grabbing blocks six feet deep. The strategy failed and the unsightly and hazardous sand grabbers were recently removed.


Kaluahole Beach is the small wedge of sand to the right of Ma-ka-lei Beach Park on Diamond Head Road. Kaluahole Beach was once very different than it is today (our friend Gerry could tell us about it). According to John R. K. Clark, author of The Beaches of O‘ahu and Hawai‘i Place Names: Shores, Beaches, and Surf Sites, Kaluahole Beach was at one time the finest beach in that area until homeowners built groins and eventu-ally seawalls to protect their homes, which were built too close to the ocean. As higher and higher seawalls were built, the sandy beaches fronting the seawalls disappeared, leaving only the small strip of sand that is there today. If you’re a surfer and have ever surfed one of the many surf breaks in that area (Ricebowl,

Tongg’s, Suicides and Graveyards), imagine spending the day down at Kaluahole Beach, surfing and relaxing just as you would today at Kaimana Beach. Perhaps Kaluahole Beach would have made Dr. Beach’s Top 10 list of America’s best beaches, if not for the inclusion of unsightly seawalls. We’ll never know. A different story of human intervention and perma-nent beach alteration occurred decades ago at Waimea Bay on the North Shore. You’re probably thinking, “Isn’t Waimea one of the most beautiful, widest and pristine beaches on O‘ahu?” Yes it is. But Waimea Bay has changed dramatically over the years and unless you were around the Bay in the 1940s and 1950s, you would never know the difference. Before sand mining opera-

CONSERVATION

It’s no secret. Waikı-kı- is a man-made paradise. It’s beaches have been replenished for decades with sand from as close as just offshore, to sand as far away as the mainland.


tions removed over 200,000 tons of sand to fill beaches in Waikı-kı- and elsewhere, there was so much sand in Waimea Bay that if you would have tried to jump off Po-haku Lele, Jump Rock, (the 20-foot tall rock jutting out of the water on the west side of the Bay) you would have jumped about six feet down into the sand below. Histori-cal photographs are a testament to how much wider the beach used to be in the Bay. Another threat to Hawai‘i’s beaches is sea level rise. Sea levels around the world rose from the last ice age until it leveled off around the 19th century. Since then, sea levels have slowly risen, until recently acceler-ating again in the early 1990s. Conservative estimates project the sea level around Hawai‘i to rise by one meter

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O‘ahu’s North Shore beaches, which grow and shrink seasonally, are a prime example of a healthy shoreline. The extensive dune system, complete with natural vegetation and homes setback far enough to allow natural sand flow to occur without damage to property, make walking on the beach in Country a spiritual endeavor.

(a little over three feet) or more by the end of this century. The impacts of a one-meter rise in sea level will be far-reaching and will require significant planning and adaptation. As you can imagine, sea level rise will speed up the effects of erosion on sandy beaches. Unless we begin a planned retreat from Hawai‘i’s coastline—especially in vulnerable coastal areas—Hawai‘i could be faced with the proposition of seawalls fronting nearly every shoreline across the state.

SOS: Save Our ShoreThere are many options available to deal with chronic erosion and sea level rise besides simply retreating from the coast. Adopting an anti-armoring policy could help ensure that the risk of future coastal de-velopment is absorbed by those choosing to build along the shoreline. When coastal landowners are allowed to protect their property at the expense of the public beach, the public trust loses a valuable social, cultural and recreational resource. This could be corrected by closing the Hawai‘i Revised Statute Chapter 205A-46 loophole. Another avail-able option that is continually used in Waikı-kı- and extensively along the east coast of the mainland United States is beach nourishment. Beach nourishment can be a good temporary fix as long as a suitable sand resource is readily available, but costs will likely become increas-

ingly prohibitive in the future. An alternative solution that has been employed in Kaua‘i and Maui Counties are variable erosion-based setbacks for new coastal construction projects. For large lots in Maui County (with an average lot depth greater than 160 feet), setbacks for coastal construction are determined by multiplying the rate of erosion by 50 years, and then adding another 20 feet of buffer area. The 20-foot buffer ensures that after 50 years, the shoreline doesn’t reach or inundate the building. For similarly sized lots on Kaua‘i, the building setback line is deter-mined by multiplying the erosion rate by 70 and adding an additional 40 feet buffer. Although the setback distances in both Maui and Kaua‘i Counties are smaller for rebuilding existing properties and for lots with an aver-age depth less than 100 feet, the new setback rules present reasoned and publicly palatable rules that will ensure that new development won’t be impacted by erosion and sea level rise for at least the next half century. Hopefully by then we will have figured out how to slow the thermal expansion of the oceans and reverse the melting of alpine and polar ice caps. Ensuring that Hawai‘i’s beautiful beaches stick around for our keiki will be a challenge, but with more awareness, education and reasonable coastal planning, we can help ensure that future gen-erations can enjoy the same beaches, just as we do today.

CONSERVATION

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TECHNOLOGY

It sounds like something straight out of science fiction: a submarine transmission cable snaking for miles along the ocean floor, shuttling gusts of wind-generated electricity to a bustling metropolis. This isn’t science fiction, but it’s also not reality—at least, not yet. It’s no secret that Hawai‘i relies on imported oil for 90 percent of its primary energy needs. In order to curb its craving for fossil fuel, the state established the Hawai‘i Clean Energy Initiative (HCEI), which aims to have 70 percent of the state’s energy come from renewable sources by 2030. HCEI catalyzed a number of renewable energy projects featuring wind, biomass, biofuel, photovoltaic, geothermal, concentrated solar and wave energy as potential clean energy sources. Of these distributed energy sources, wind power developers—dubbed “Big Wind” by many—have emerged as frontrunners in the quest for a clean energy future. Over the years, wind projects have breezed through Maui and O‘ahu, ostensibly paving the way for a larger-scale project that will link the windiest, sparsely populated islands of Moloka‘i and La-na‘i to densely populated O‘ahu.

by Sarah Ruppenthal

Should the responsibility of distributed energy be granted to an elite few or given

to the many?


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Last year, Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) set the plan into motion by entering into an agreement with Castle & Cooke Hawai‘i and First Wind Hawai‘i to purchase 400 megawatts (200 megawatts each) from two proposed wind farms to be built on sizable chunks of land on Moloka‘i and La-na‘i. Once the proverbial ball was rolling, the project became two-fold: the construc-tion of two wind farms spread across more than 12,000 acres of land, and then, the construction of an undersea cable system linking La-na‘i (approximately 70 miles of cable) and Moloka‘i (approximately 30 miles of cable) into an upgraded electric grid and operations system on O‘ahu. According to HECO, “The Interisland Wind Project [will] bring about 400 megawatts of clean, re-newable wind power via undersea cable to O‘ahu, where demand for electricity is greatest, but the potential for renewable energy is limited.” Once the system is up and running, project developers say there are plans to eventually connect the cable system to Maui. Key players include HECO, which will run the undersea cable system, Moloka‘i Ranch, Castle & Cooke

Hawai‘i and Pattern Energy (which replaced First Wind Hawai‘i), slated to develop the proposed wind farms on La-na‘i and Moloka‘i, respectively, and the State of Hawai‘i, which has committed to develop—and find ways to fund—the project. It’s an ambitious endeavor, for sure. But it’s also complicated and submerged in controversy, as some believe the project is not a catchall remedy for Hawai‘i’s energy woes, and may, in fact, create more problems than solutions. Any potential adverse effects—particularly from the installation of the transmission line—remain to be seen in the absence of an environ-mental impact study; however, the state Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism recently announced a $1.5 million contract with the University of Hawai‘i School of Ocean, Earth Science and Technol-ogy to conduct an ocean floor survey between the three islands. But the sheer magnitude of the project is raising eyebrows across the state, begging the painfully obvious question: Who is going to pay for this?

While turbines have been a ridgeline sight on Maui for quite some time, the proposed wind farms would cover about 30 percent of La- na‘i and 11,000 acres on Moloka‘i.


The state has not released the total cost of the project, but according to Moloka‘i resident Mike Bond, the price tag is likely to be around $4.5 billion, which includes various studies, as well as the construction and installation of infrastructure. Bond, former CEO of international energy company CEnergy and leader of a multinational task force that integrated the former Soviet Union’s electricity grid into Western Europe’s, is certainly no stranger to the renewable energy industry. Knowing the “energy biz” inside and out is exactly what compelled him to embark on a mission to squelch the Interisland Wind Project. Why? It’s simple, Bond says, “This does not make engineering sense, and it abso-lutely does not make any financial sense.” An initial attempt to have Hawai‘i residents foot the bill proved unsuccessful when it stalled in the last legislative session, but nonetheless received a good deal of support from legislators. The effort to have taxpayers pay up is expected to resurface in the state legislature next session. The bill, SB 367, sought to establish a regulatory structure for the project and would have authorized a “cable surcharge” assessed to ratepayers as a means to cover the installation costs of the cable system—costs

that are yet unknown. Additionally, the bill called for a “rate adjustment” to cover HECO’s investment in the in-frastructure of the wind farms and the cable system. Not surprisingly, SB 367, and the financial feasibility of the project itself, has been met with an escalating degree of opposition, particularly on Moloka‘i, La-na‘i and Maui, where the “not in my backyard” sentiment has taken on a whole new meaning. On Moloka‘i, Bond says residents were blown away by the scope of the wind project. According to an island-wide survey, more than 90 percent of its residents vehemently objected to the construction of a wind farm (or “wind factory,” as he refers to them) of nearly 70 turbines sited on 11,000 acres of land owned by Moloka‘i Ranch. For the most part, La-na‘i residents appear to feel the same way, evident by the scores of yard signs protesting the wind farm that would encom-pass nearly 30 percent of that island. However, there is a contingent—primarily laborers and union person-nel—that ardently supports the project. “It will create much-needed jobs and boost the local economy,” says International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Chairperson Jason Medeiros. “We need this, and more importantly, Hawai‘i needs this.”

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Most residents of La-na‘i and Moloka‘i oppose the wind farms and feel that a clean energy solution for O‘ahu should take place on O‘ahu.


But the ends don’t justify the means, says Henry Curtis, executive director of Life of the Land, an environmental and com-munity action group in Honolulu, who argues that powering O‘ahu should not require the industrialization of La-na‘i and Moloka‘i. “It [the Interisland Wind Project] was conceived in back rooms,” he contends, arguing that Big Wind is, in effect, blowing smoke—clouding the bigger picture—and that favorability toward wind power is indicative of a much bigger issue. “Although yesterday HECO favored biofuels and tomorrow they have said they will go with geothermal if Big Wind fails, they have publicly stated that there is no alternative to Big Wind.” Bond agrees. “It’s a huge scam foisted on the state,” he says. “In forty years in the energy industry, I’ve never seen anything as completely crooked as this. Intermittent power makes very little sense. It’s not cost-effective. It’s an engineering and marine disaster, and a financial tsunami waiting to happen.” While approval for Castle & Cooke’s wind farm on La-na‘i was granted by the Public Utilities Commission (PUC), the fate of the Moloka‘i portion of the project is still up in the air, thanks in part to those determined to take the wind of HECO’s sails. In July, Life of the Land and Maui County intervened in HECO’s proposal to have ratepayers finance its venture into Big Wind, contending that the utility should explore alternatives to wind power, or, in other words, not place all of its eggs into one basket. In addition, questions arose surrounding the legitimacy of the wind farm deal brokered between the two developers, with Castle & Cooke ceding 200 megawatts to Pattern Energy and Moloka‘i Ranch. Apparently, the PUC agreed. Soon after the motion was filed, PUC Chairwoman Hermina Morita issued a statement, saying, “Part of the PUC’s role in clean energy development in Hawai‘i is to ensure an open and fair process. However, the proposed assignment of 200 megawatts to Moloka‘i Ranch goes beyond the scope of the PUC’s waiver from the original competitive bid process.” As a result, the PUC ordered HECO to accept bids for at least 200 megawatts of renewable energy from all available renewable energy sources—not just Big Wind. As of this publica-tion date, HECO has petitioned the ruling. Many believe this may open the door for other renewable en-ergy projects—and shutter Big Wind on Moloka‘i for good. County of Maui Energy Commissioner Douglas McLeod explains, “HECO needs to be willing to look at technologies beyond wind. The PUC’s decision is certainly a catalyst for exploring other options.” Obviously, this is an amorphous issue that is constantly evolving and the outcome remains to be seen. Yet Big Wind on La-

na‘i is inching closer to reality, much to the dismay of residents like Robin Kaye, spokesperson for Friends of La-na‘i. “Why spend $1 billion for a cable, take over and cause irreparable damage to a huge portion of a neighbor island, all for perhaps six to eight percent of O‘ahu’s electrical demands,” he asks, “when we could better invest that money on solving O‘ahu’s challenges—on O‘ahu?” Yet, as the key players continue to crunch the numbers, one lingering question remains: is Big Wind really the best option? Not even close, says Bond. Only if the wind blows consis-tently, the curtailment factor (or, how much power is lost as it is flows through the pipeline), will yield a wind capacity factor that is far less than what the project promises to deliver. Bond estimates that out of the 400 megawatts generated between both

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More PV on O‘ahu means more jobs for Hawai‘i.


TECHNOLOGY

With electricity rates already at their highest on O‘ahu, should ratepayers have to fit the bill for two neighbor island wind farms and an undersea transmission cable?

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While distributed energy solutions should come from a collaboration of many sources—wind, solar, geothermal, biofuel—there are still thousands of rooftops available for PV, right now.

wind farms, only 36 megawatts will actually be produced. And by the time it reaches the grid on O‘ahu, it will only power two percent of residential homes on the island. Project officials dispute these figures; however, there is no concrete data to either prove or disprove this assertion, which is why HECO intends to study the short- and long-term possibilities of Big Wind, but only if the state follows suit. As of yet, there is no clear “Plan B” that has been introduced as a pathway to the state’s clean energy goals, leaving some to suspect that the 2030 HCEI benchmark may soon be dust in the wind. “There are a half-dozen roads we can take to be 100 percent energy self-sufficient,” says Curtis. “We must start with definitions. Under state law, heat from coal plants, ethanol made from coal and coal burned in garbage-to-energy facilities are all considered to be 100 percent renewable energy. Thus, the HCEI goal of 70 percent clean energy by 2030 aims at the wrong target—a corrupted definition of renewable energy, as clean energy is not defined under HCEI or state law, but is generally believed to mean renewable energy.” For starters, Bond argues that Hawai‘i would be best served by adopting energy conservation measures, which are very easy and very low cost. HECO continually targets ratepayers with public service an-nouncements that educate people on energy efficiency and environ-mental non-profits, like Kanu Hawaii, are pushing their own agenda of

energy conservation throughout communities across the state. But Kaye says we don’t need a Plan B. Like most of Hawai‘i’s so-lar energy installers, he feels that the state needs to help move Hawai‘i toward a decentralized renewable energy solution, where a multitude of smaller PV systems on top of residences and businesses in concert with other types and sources of renewable energy are the key energy producers, and not a continuation of our monopolistic centralized sys-tem. And with the PUC’s most recent Big Wind decision, Kaye believes that we may actually see proposals that address just that approach. Mike Bond also sees solar as a better alternative to Big Wind be-cause PV generated power is more reliable than wind and it also places the consumer in control—not the utility. “We could generate far more electricity out of 155,000 photovoltaic systems than five Big Winds,” exclaims Bond. “There’s no use of thinking of something like Big Wind until every house has PV on its rooftop.” Life and Land Director Henry Curtis is putting forth his ambitious vision of the creation of a Hawai‘i Energy Futures Table as one viable—and realistic—pathway to reaching a win-win solution. “Everyone who wants to sit at the table must ante in a solution to get the state off fos-sil fuels by 2040,” he says. “After being admitted to the table, people are free to change their views on solutions, as long as they still accept that Hawai‘i will be fossil fuel free by 2040.” We can only hope.

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Pacific Panel Cleaners, LLC808.772.4705 Oahu808.652.3946 Kauaipacificpanelcleaners.com

Paradise Eyewear1413 South King Street, 203Honolulu, Hawaii 96814808.955.3532

RevoluSun1600 Kapiolani Blvd., Suite 1700Honolulu, Hawaii 96814808.748.8888revolusun.com

RevoluSun - Iolani Lewis1600 Kapiolani Blvd., Suite 1700Honolulu, Hawaii 96814808.285.2210

Segway of Hawaii808.941.3151segwayofhawaii.com

Oahu

Aloha Air Cargo808.836.4191alohaaircargo.com

Baby aWEARness2752 Woodlawn Dr., 2nd FloorHonolulu, Hawaii 96821808.988.0010babyawearness.com

Bess Press3565 Harding AvenueHonolulu, Hawaii 96816808.734.7159besspress.com

Bishop Museum Press1525 Bernice StreetHonolulu, Hawaii 96817808.847.3511bishopmuseum.org

Book Ends600 Kailua RoadKailua, Hawaii 96734808.261.1996

Conservation Council for HawaiiP.O. Box 2923Honolulu, Hawaii 96802conservehi.org

Cool Roof Hawaii808.282.0477coolroofhawaii.com

Defend Oahu Coalitiondefendoahucoalition.org

Details International560 N. Nimitz Highway, #104Honolulu, Hawaii 96817808.521.7424details-international.com

Doi & D’Angelo Artworks808.247.4413doidangeloartworks.com

Down To Earth2525 South King StreetHonolulu, Hawaii 96826808.947.7678

201 Hamakua DriveKailua, Hawaii 96734808.262.3838

98-129 Kaonohi StreetAiea, Hawaii 96701808.488.1375downtoearth.org

ADVERTISER DIRECTORY

Support Our Advertisers When contacting our advertisers, please be sure to mention that you saw their ad in GREEN. Mahalo!


Simplicity Imports808.306.2382simplicityimports.com

Summer Baptist, ND1188 Bishop Street, Suite 1509Honolulu, Hawaii 96813808.783.0361sacredhealingarts.info

Sunetric808.262.6600sunetric.com

Surfrider Foundationsurfrider.org/oahusurfrider.org/mauisurfriderkauai.ning.com

Sustainable Marketplaceof the Pacific925 Bethel Street, Suite 100Honolulu, Hawaii 96813sustainablemarketplacepacific.com

The Bike Shop1149 South King StreetHonolulu, Hawaii 96814808.591.9162

98-019 Kamehameha HighwayAiea, Hawaii 96701808.487.3615

270 Kuulei RoadKailua, Hawaii 96734808.261.1553bikeshophawaii.com

The Green House224 Pakohana StreetHonolulu, Hawaii 96813808.524.8427thegreenhousehawaii.com

Tr3eesP.O. Box 671Haleiwa, Hawaii 96712808.888.0605tr3ees.com

Waikiki Worm Company1917 South King StreetHonolulu, Hawaii 96826808.945.9676waikikiworm.com

Maui

Ace HardwareLahaina Square840 Wainee Street, Unit ALahaina, Hawaii 96761808.667.5883

1280 South Kihei RoadKihei, Hawaii 96753808.879.7060

Bamboo Living HomesP.O. Box 792168Paia, Hawaii 96779877.857.0057bambooliving.com

Down to Earth305 Dairy RoadKahului, Hawaii 96732808.877.2661downtoearth.org

Hawaiian Moons Natural Foods2411 South Kihei RoadKihei, Hawaii 96753808.875.4356hawaiianmoons.com

Mana Foods49 Baldwin AvenuePaia, Hawaii 96779808.579.8078manafoodsmaui.com

Ohana Greenhouse & Garden Supply810 Haiku Road #107Haiku, Hawaii 96708808.575.9999ohanagreenhouse.com

300 Hukilike Street #2QKahului, Hawaii 96732808.871.6393

Rising Sun Solar810 Kokomo Road, Suite 160Haiku, Hawaii 96708808.579.8287risingsunsolar.com

State Farm InsuranceAgent Carey Tanaka335 Hoohana StreetKahului, Hawaii 96732808.877.4450

ADVERTISER DIRECTORY

COMING NEXT ISSUE

Home, both the concept and physical structure, are an important part of our lives. They offer shelter, safety, comfort and identity. Whether you own or rent, there is an undeniable connection between our homes, what we fill them up with and who we are. GREEN is dedicating the entire November/December issue to the home, from kitchenware, cleaning products and backyard turf to design and energy efficiency. The Home Issue will introduce you to five families that are living proof that you can have a sustainable and affordable home by looking inside their homes and their motivations. GREEN also checks out architect Gerald Choi’s technical and innovative abode and looks

into a new kind of housing development, where the focus is community and sustainability. Look for the November/December 2011 issue at local retailers starting in November 2011 at Jamba Juice locations across the state or check greenmaga-zinehawaii.com for a distributor near you. Email [email protected] and request your free subscription to the eZine, the complete online version of GREEN, delivered directly to your inbox. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @grnmagazine to stay up to date on all the latest green news, events and ideas.

Home Sweet HomeA sustainable lifestyle starts at home

This Ka-ne‘ohe Bay home, designed by Archipelago Hawaii and built by Mokulua Woodworking, received Hawai‘i’s first National Green Building Standards Gold home recognition.

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