June 20, 1999
Sports become a major player in Big Island economy

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

There's no better place than Hawai`i to enjoy athletics outdoors. Centuries ago, Hawaiians held athletic training in high regard. Keen competition was part of many celebrations.

Today, new emphasis on health and tourism brings media attention and money into our island's economy. Major annual events such as the Ironman Triathlon, Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament and Queen Liliuokalani Outrigger Canoe Races are joined by University of Hawai`i at Hilo athletics and an Olympic-qualifying triathlon, resulting in a multi-million dollar impact.

The Olympics in Sydney, Australia, will include triathlon for the first time. The only Olympic-qualifying triathlon event in the United States will be held in Hawai`i County Saturday, June 26, during a three-day sports medicine conference.

The International Triathlon Union Big Island World Cup Triathlon, a Healing Island event, is sponsored by Dr. Earl Baaken, Five Mountain Medical Community, Hilton Waikoloa Village, Waikoloa Resort, North Hawai`i Community Hospital, Labman Hawai`i, Hiller Orthopedics, Hawai`i Tourism Authority and numerous other business and community supporters.

About 150 world-class athletes will be involved in the event, which will receive international television coverage anticipated to reach 50 countries and 200 million people.

Waimea sports medicine physician Dr. Doug Hiller is race organizer and Gerry Rott is race director. Rott owns Hawai`i Sports Connection and B&L Bike and Sports in Kona. She also organizes the second annual Lavaman Triathlon, a non-Olympic event, Sunday, June 27.

This is the signature event for Dolphin Days Summer Fest June 24 through 27 at Hilton Waikoloa Village. Approximately 350 athletes will participate. "We want to be the sports haven of the state in terms of events and camps," Rott said.

Two training camps will follow these events. One is for 30 young athletes selected by their national federations or national Olympic committees in preparation for the Athens 2004 Olympic Games. The second is a month-long high-altitude training camp organized by Dr. Hiller and Labman Hawai`i, an international sports medicine research group.

During the high-altitude camp, athletes will live at high altitude most of the day and train at sea level.

"The idea is to increase red blood cell mass, which in turn increases the maximum oxygen-carrying or aerobic capacity," Hiller said.

For information on the races contact Rott by e-mail sports@ilhawaii.net or telephone 329-3309.

Another annual running event on the summer calendar is the Kilauea Volcano Wilderness Run which includes a marathon and several shorter distance runs. For further information and to register for the Saturday, July 24, event, contact organizer Howard Shapiro by e-mail artpeac@aloha.net or telephone 985-8725.

In October, the Ironnman Triathlon World Championship celebrates 21 years since a beer bet among 15 men started what has grown into the premier athletic endurance event in the world.

A career Navy man, John Collins, enjoyed running and open water swimming while stationed on O`ahu. While attending a running race awards ceremony, a debate arose over who was in better shape, runners or swimmers.

Collins came up with a way to settle the argument. He suggested it was possible to tie the Waikiki Rough Water Swim to a perimeter bike ride and conclude with a run of the Honolulu Marathon course. The full race would be a little more than 140 miles.

During a band break, Collins "ran on stage and just issued the challenge. I laid out the course, the locations and how one race naturally led to the next. I said the gun will go off at 7 a.m. The clock will keep running and whoever finishes first, we'll call the Ironman."

February 18, 1978, Collins and 14 others showed up to take on the challenge. The event attracted the attention of Sports Illustrated magazine in 1979 and ABC Sports in 1980. In 1981, the race was moved to Kona.

Nearly 1,500 competitors, ages 18 to 79, compete from all 50 states and 50 countries. Overall prize purse is $250,000. The first place men's and women's winner each is paid $35,000. Most competitors qualify at races worldwide. Another 2,000 enter the US race lottery, which awards 150 slots.

Organizer Sharon Ackles told the Hawai`i Island Chamber of Commerce the Ironman Triathlon receives the most media coverage of any sporting event on the island. Television highlights are estimated to reach more than a billion homes worldwide.

For more information on the Ironman, set for Saturday, Oct. 23, contact Ackles at 329-0063.

The economic impact of Vulcan athletics was estimated by UHH economics professor David Hammes at more than $5 million.

According to UHH athletic director Bill Trumbo, "each year the university sponsors and manages more than 90 separate events that attract more than 110 teams from the mainland, state and foreign countries. Those activities accounted for more than 5,000 individual student athletes, coaches, team personnel, families and fans on the Big Island for an average stay of four days."

In addition, UHH has approximately 130 student athletes participating in nine intercollegiate sports, not counting cheerleaders, spirit squad members or the Vulcan Band.

"Declining levels of support from the state general fund have seriously challenged our department's ability to operate a quality program," Trumbo said. "We've had to turn to other sources. Harvey Tajiri and his leadership team have broken all goals for success in our fundraising program."

"We are close to attaining our total annual goal and this is only June," Tajiri said. "Last year about $97,000 cash and $51,000 in in-kind contributions totaled about $149,000. This year, we've surpassed $121,000 cash so far. And we've gotten $48,000 in in-kind contributions. Our goal is $175,000 for the year. We are really confident we will go over that."

Major sponsors include KTA Super Stores, CitiBank, Bank of Hawai`i and Aloha Airlines.

"Through athletics, we're trying to help the university bring recognition to this island," Tajiri said. "Along with other university programs such as theatre and the arts, athletics brings the town and gown relationship together."

UH Hilo baseball recently became affiliated with the Western Athletic Conference. Other WAC members are University of Hawai`i - Manoa and universities in California and Texas. Trumbo sees the affiliation as a valuable asset to recruiting programs and island-wide marketing efforts. (University of Nevada will become the ninth member of WAC with the 2000-2001 season.)

"The press, radio and television coverage we will get in Houston and Northern California will hit major metropolitan areas. Houston is the fifth largest metropolitan area in the United States, four times as large as the entire state of Hawai`i."

For more information on UHH programs, to discuss how your business can benefit from a tie-in or to volunteer to help at events, call 974-7621.

Several ocean events are on the summer calendar.

Saturday, June 26, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. is the third annual YMCA Ocean Festival and Uncle Pete Hendrick's Sailing Regatta at Kawaihae Harbor. The day's agenda includes aquatic exhibitions and experiences such as windsurfing, surfing, sailing, monofin swimming, free-diving, lifeguard rescues and paddling. Call the Waimea Family YMCA for more details, 885-7420.

The Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament will be held in August. Contact 329-6155.

Saturday through Monday, September 4-6, the annual Queen Lili`uokalani Outrigger Canoe Races will be held along the coast from Kailua-Kona to Honaunau. This is the world's largest long distance canoe race with 2,500 paddlers plus it's the silver anniversary for the women's race. Contact Fern, 329-0833.

New VAC gallery manager

Kate Whitcomb is the new gallery manager at Volcano Art Center.

"Her background in sales, display, management and teaching is ideal for her new position with us," said Marilyn Nicholson, executive director. "She is an artist with an impressive number of shows to her name.

"Since 1982, she has taught art at Honolulu Academy of Arts, Waikiki Aquarium, Temari, Hongwanji Mission School, Contemporary Museum and Le Jardin Academy. She's installed shows, managed receptions and exhibited throughout the state.

"Kate has nearly 20 years of art sales and management to her credit and she has an unmistakable personal style and flair."

Former gallery manager, Natalie Pfeifer, served since 1992. In April she joined her husband Dave at his new job in Iowa.

A short history of the 1877 Volcano House, reborn as Volcano Art Center in 1974 under the leadership of the late Russ Apple and photographer/architect Boone Morrison, appeared in the May/June issue of Volcano Gazette.

Author Kent Warshauer noted: "The Volcano Art Center Gallery as it appears today is the result of countless hours of hard work and skilled labor by many, many people, most of whom were volunteers."

For more information on Volcano Art Center programs, check out their web site www.bishop.hawaii.org/vac/home.html or telephone 967-8222. The gallery telephone number is 967-7565.

Other activities

Hilo County Farm Bureau and UH-Manoa Cooperative Extension Service will offer two two-hour workshops with Dr. Kent Fleming in Pahala and Hilo on Basic Farm Record Keeping.

The classes will provide farmers and potential farmers with information on how to set up a simple record keeping system or how to improve their current system. Class work will enable farmers to comply with general accounting requirements for all commercial farmers and ranchers.

Pahala workshops will be held on successive Tuesdays, June 22 and 29, from 3 to 5 p.m. in the Huliau o Ka`u meeting room. Hilo classes will be held on successive Wednesdays, June 23 and 30, from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Komohana Agricultural Complex.

Call the Big Island Farm Bureau, 969-4876, to register.

Installation of new officers of the Hawai`i Island Chamber of Commerce will be held Tuesday, June 29, at the Hilo Yacht Club. Featured speaker will be Scott Young, executive vice president of American Classic Voyages of Chicago, president of American Hawai`i Cruises.

Incoming officers are Carol Van Camp, president; Newton Chu, first vice president; Robert Cooper, second vice president; and Deanna Bauman, treasurer. John Tolmie is the immediate past president.

For more details and reservations, contact the Chamber, 935-7178.

If you have labored long and hard to create a water feature on your property, consider entering the Big Island Water Garden Club pond contest.

Send a 3 by 5 photograph of your pond to Elda Rae Yoshimura, 124 South Wiliwili Street, Hilo HI 96720. Include your name, address and telephone number plus directions to the pond. Judging will take place during the week of July 18 to 25.

For further information, contact George Sakai, 959-8508, or Yoshimura, eldarae@gte.net or phone 935-0689.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel. Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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June 13, 1999
Hawaiian kava looms large in booming international herbal markets

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

Plants used in medicine are seeing a worldwide boom. Far beyond digitalis and aspirin, gingko biloba and St. John's wort have entered family medicine chests and vocabulary.

Hawaiian `awa - or kava -- is next on the horizon. Used throughout the South Seas for centuries, `awa is gaining recognition for its ability to reduce stress and anxiety, and to promote a sociable atmosphere.

Recently, the Association for Hawaiian `Awa (AHA) held its second annual conference at Liloa Willard's Ho`owaiwai Farms and Gardens in Papaikou.

Keynote speaker Vincent Lebot, head of the root crops program CIRAD and one of the authors of Kava: The Pacific Elixir, pointed to the large populations in China and India. He noted the centuries-old practice in each country of using herbal medicines.

"There are huge markets ahead," Lebot said. "I really think the future is bright."

Among his recommendations to Hawai`i growers and processors was to bottle prepared `awa.

Drinks That Work, a California company with roots in Hawai`i, markets "Kava: Root of Peace" in seven-ounce bottles.

"Hotels and resorts are embracing it in a lot of different ways," said Noelani Whittington of Kona. "The Orchid at Mauna Lani is using the product in room amenities, food and beverage outlets, retail stores and on their voyaging canoe. The Hilton Waikoloa also has the product. All are stressing the cultural value as well as health benefits."

In Hawai`i, "The brewing and drinking of `awa is particularly identified with Kane and Kanaloa, two gods who are primordial," according to Native Planters in Old Hawai`i.

A smaller company Uka Kava Company was started by Clifford and his son Colin Souza from Honoka`a about a year ago to market a Hawaiian `awa drink called "Kava-ade" as well as fresh and dry root, extract and powder. Kava-ade, a lemonade-like drink, also has a companion product, "Very Kava Berry," with a strawberry flavor. Both Uka Kava beverages are available at Big Island Delights in the Waiakea Shopping Plaza.

Kava bars in Vanuatu were among pictures Lebot used to illustrate his lecture. "You go to the bars for a beer. We go for kava."

He said the first kava bar in Hawai`i will open on O`ahu this month. Hale Noa will be on Kapahulu Avenue.

Lebot noted that `awa is specific to Oceania. Also known as kava and ava, the giant pepper plant (Piper methisticum) is cultivated in Vanuatu, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and Hawai`i.

"We all share the same germplasm. It is unique to this area of the world," Lebot said. "It is important for Hawai`i growers to know what you have and preserve those varieties."

In Native Planters, the authors note "There are certain localities on each of the islands which used to be famous for their `awa." Both Samuel Kamakau and Abraham Fornander, cited in Native Planters, list the Puna District of Hawai`i County.

In Vanuatu he noted the existence of "feral kava," that which escaped from cultivation. Pig damage and human gathering is disrupting ancient groves hidden away in gullies there and in Hawai`i.

Lebot advised, "Don't let the smugglers, thieves and pigs destroy these groves. Find them and protect them. Make them part of a park."

Nursery-grown plants, in short supply last year for farmers wishing to plant quantities of `awa, now are available from several Big Island businesses: Hawaiian Pacific Kava Company, Ho`owaiwai Farms, Alia Point `Awa Nursery and H. Eunice Nursery.

More than 30 metric tons of fresh kava were produced in the South Pacific, one-third of it for export, according to Lebot. Approximately 12,000 hectares (28,000 acres) are in production with Vanuatu and Fiji as the major production areas. More than 120 varieties are known throughout the South Pacific.

Planting `awa with other crops was recommended, especially when the plants are young and need some shade. One photograph showed the use of three or four coconut fronds placed around `awa plants like an umbrella. Taro and corn were other crops mentioned. Too much shade on an older crop results in a lower kavalactone content. The crops used for interplanting should be harvested as the `awa matures.

In addition to sun damage, `awa is susceptible to wind damage. Establishing windbreaks first is part of preparing acreage for `awa production.

"Wind will shake the canes and break them at the base opening the door to pathogens."

Lebot strongly advised against interplanting with ginger, calling it "bad news."

He also cautioned against planting with any crop that has invasive roots. Rats are a problem in Vanuatu especially on acreage where the crop has been interplanted with sweet potatoes.

"In Vanuatu, the kava is grown for our own pleasure. We uproot it in the afternoon and drink it in the evening. We know what it is and keep the best for ourselves.

"Each harvest is a selection of an individual plant," Lebot said pointing to the practice of leaving cut canes in the ground until after the root was prepared and sampled. "If it's good, we go back for those canes. If it's not good, we forget about them."

Lebot said, "You will need a lab in Hawai`i to test your product."

Of several identified kavalactones, six are designated as major active ingredients. Different varieties of `awa contain varying proportions of these kavalactones: demethoxy-yangonin, dihydrokavain, yangonin, kavain, dihydronethysticin and methysticin. Some are sedative and muscle relaxants while others are euphoriants producing a sense of well being and calm.

He suggested ginseng, as an herbal export product, is an excellent model. He stressed the necessity for control of quality as bad `awa products are doing damage to the market.

"Nine out of 10 don't work. You have to read the labels very carefully. Nothing beats the fresh drink."

In fact, when introduced to the audience of more than 100, Lebot said, "I prefer to introduce myself as a kava drinker rather than a kava expert. I've been drinking it daily for 18 years and I don't look so bad."

It was a fascinating and delightful presentation. The AHA seminar was sponsored in part by the Rural Economic Transitional Assistance - Hawai`i program.

For more information, contact the Association for Hawaiian `Awa at P. O. Box 636, Pepe`ekeo HI 96783. The association produces a newsletter. Telephone editor Ed Johnston at Alia Point `Awa Nursery, 961-4953.

Drinks That Work may be contacted at P. O. Box 1528, Santa Cruz CA 95061-1528 or telephone (831) 454-9900.

Uka Kava Company may be reached by e-mail cliff@interpac.net or telephone 959-6651.

Other activities

East Hawai`i Friends of Public Radio will gather at the Palace Theatre Wednesday (June 16) at 5 p.m. On the agenda is an update on efforts to secure a suitable site and to obtain the necessary licenses from the FCC.

Contact organizers Phyllis Eide eide@hawaii.edu or Alice Moon at Borders, 933-1410, for further information.

Thursday (June 17) is the Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce "after hours" gathering from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Rocky's Pizza at Keauhou Shopping Center. RSVP to the Chamber, marni@kona-kohala.com or telephone 329-1758.

The Hawai`i Island Chamber of Commerce is accepting nominations for Entrepreneur of the Year and Humanitarian of the Year. Deadline for nominations is Friday (June 18).

The business awards are sponsored by HICC, First Hawaiian Bank and Island Business Magazine.

For details, contact HICC at 935-7178 or stop in the office at 106 Kamehameha Avenue.

HICC also will host "Brown Bags to Cyberspace" at Bytes and Bites, 223 Kilauea Avenue in Hilo, Tuesday, June 22 from noon to 1 p.m.

A last minute reminder: Taste of the Range tickets are flying out the door. You don't want to miss this fourth annual gathering of ranchers and chefs Friday (June 18) at Hawai`i Preparatory Academy for an all-you-can eat gourmet feast from 6 to 8 p.m.

Advance tickets ($20) are limited to 1,500, most of which have been sold. IF any tickets are left, admission at the door will be $25. Call the Waimea office of UH-CTAHR CES 887-6183.

The Hawai`i Agriculture Research Center (HARC) and the UH College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR) will hold a workshop on seed technology and tree improvement Friday and Saturday, July 9 and 10.

Nicklos Dudley, HARC forester and J.B. Friday, CTAHR forestry extension specialist will cover topics including examples of success of programs in Hawai`i with koa and eucalyptus species, tree seed collection and handling, and availability of tree seed for forestry projects. In addition to classroom sessions on Friday, the workshop will include a field trip Saturday to provenance trials for koa and eucalyptus.

Hawai`i Forest and Communities Initiative, USDA Forest Service and Hawai`i State Department of Labor and Industrial Relations support the program.

Workshop size is limited to 25. A $10 fee covers transportation from Hilo to field sites and a box lunch. Register with J.B. Friday, jbfriday@hawaii.edu or telephone 959-9155 or write 875 Komohana St., Hilo HI 96720.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel. Back issues are archived at http://hawaii-island.com in the Economic Development category. Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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June 6, 1999,
Day lilies bring a fresh new season of color to island acres

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

Those who say Hawai`i has no seasons have never seen a field of day lilies in bloom. This is their high season and Hamakua Gardens at Ninole is one place to see this wonderful display.

Retired chemist Charles Trommer became interested in day lilies (Hemerocallis) in 1954. He and his wife Marina have lived on the Big Island since 1987 and have more than an acre in day lilies and much of the balance of the property planted with choice fruit trees, heliconia, palms, bromeliads and other tropicals.

Depending on the variety, day lilies bloom from mid spring to fall with the heaviest bloom of many varieties right about now. Colors go far beyond the old style pale orange used in Hawai`i landscaping 40 and more years ago. Today's palette ranges from palest yellow to a deep velvety scarlet and beyond. Individual flower forms go from single to double, and from smooth petal edges to ruffles.

"Kate Carpenter is fairly new," said Trommer gesturing to a pale peach day lily. "I'm hybridizing with it like mad. See all these seed pods?"

Day lilies are propagated by dividing the clumps every few years or by planting seed. The plants enjoy full sun to partial shade, a soil with ample humus and lots of mulch.

"I use whatever I can get my hands on," Trommer said. "We have used mac nut shells and hulls, and wood chips in thick layers. During dry seasons as we've had lately, it's very important to conserve moisture."

Other blooms pointed out by Charles and Marina as we walked down the rows were Lemon Supreme with a very high bud count; Phoenecian Ruffles, a deep purple flower with ruffled edges; Royal Eventide, a double purple; Len Lehman, a double pink; Baja, a velvety scarlet with a yellow throat; Barth's Chocolate, perhaps the darkest day lily in the field, named for Joseph Barth, a Unitarian minister; Tropical Parfait, a miniature hybridized in Florida; Howard Camp, a hot orange; Pogo, a double orange; Highland Lass, a pale lavender; and Condilla, an orange double.

Condilla was introduced at Tranquil Lake Nursery, Trommer's former enterprise in Massachusetts, and was a prizewinner. Chablis Blanc is among the more unusual varieties as it has an extended blooming life.

"This yellow day lily blooms first in the spring and frequently is the last flower around in the fall, from March to November," Trommer said. "Hybridizers are interested in this variety's generic material in hopes of getting longer life in new crosses. Chablis Blanc blooms even later at higher altitudes."

Lokahi is a very new hybrid, crossed by former resident Mike Longo.

"It's very hard to describe all the colors in this flower. There's yellow and orange watermarked with peachy pink and a green throat." Trommer said. "There are only two plants in the field right now so there aren't nearly enough to sell yet."

Day lilies range in price from four dollars per rhizome to $200 for a rare or new variety.

"We were delighted with the interest shown at the recent Pua Plantasia in Kona," Trommer said. "Many Kona and Waimea residents have called and come to the garden since then."

Cathy Botz of Hawai`i Island Exotics in Pahoa echoed this sentiment. "We made lots of sales. Gunnar and I took over a big truckload and pretty much sold out," Botz said. "Bedding plants, six-inch herbs and peppers of many varieties sold great. We were busy all day. Pua Plantasia definitely was worthwhile and we want to do it again. We also enjoyed the new venue. The hotel (Aston Keauhou Beach Resort) renovation was beautiful."

Trommer offers a caution regarding importing stock from the mainland. When he moved to Hawai`i, he sold his commercial nursery and sent 4,500 varieties of day lilies to the new location. A few more than 700 varieties survived of which 100 rarely bloom.

"What does well in the northeast part of the mainland may not do well at all in Hawai`i," Trommer said.

As is true in many cases, plants grown here do well here.

Contact the Trommers by e-mail crtrommer@aol.com or telephone 963-6340.

The Trommers are active in many local horticultural organizations. They participate in the Big Island Association of Nurserymen annual sale and hope to participate in the 47th annual Hilo Orchid Society show and sale July 2 through 5 in Edith Kanaka`ole Memorial Tennis Stadium, a much larger venue for the popular event.

The theme this year is "An Explosion of Orchids." Among companies, individuals and associations participating are Sato Nursery, Carmela Orchids, Hawai`i Orchid Growers Association, Big Island Dendrobium Growers, Glenwood Orchid Acres, Bergstrom Orchids, Rolfe Horticulture and the Hawai`i Chapter of the American Rhododendron Society (vireya rhododendron).

Hours will be 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday, July 2 through 4, and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday, July 5. Tickets are available from Hilo Orchid Society members or at the door. Contact Floyd Lundquist, president, at 982-6228. Kamehameha Day

Friday is a state holiday commemorating the warrior who united the islands into a kingdom, Kamehameha the First.

Friday, June 11, the 15th annual Kamehameha Day will be held on Coconut Island sponsored by Malia Puka O Kalani Catholic Church. Free admission. The day's activities include entertainment, children's games, food and craft booths, demonstrations and Royal Court.

Saturday, June 12, the annual King Kamehameha Day floral parade will be held on Ali`i Drive in Kailua-Kona starting at 9 a.m.

June is Dairy Month.

Big Island Dairy Cooperative president Ed Boteilho said, "Hawaii's dairy industry makes a significant contribution to the economic health of our island and the state's economy, while providing fresh and wholesome food for our children and families."

The dairy industry is ranked fourth among Hawaii's agricultural sectors, with a state-wide total farm gate value of $29.4 million. Four family-run farms with 2,500 cows on the Big Island account for $7.5 million in annual production.

"Everyone is committed to enhancing Hawaii's fresh milk industry through continuing education, employment of modern technology and skills, and continued marketing efforts," Boteilho said. "Cooperation is key to helping local dairies remain competitive and stay in business, despite the increasing cost of doing business and importation of milk from the mainland."

How much better it is to enjoy "Island Fresh" milk than milk with 2,500 miles on the gallon before it gets here!

Other activities

Friday, June 11, the Hilo Orchid Society meets at 7 p.m. in the Komohana Agricultural Complex. Orchid pests and diseases will be featured in a video from the American Orchid Society. Members will augment the presentation with information on local practices to identify, control and prevent problems.

For more information, contact vice president Stan Dinsmore at 982-7098. The Brothers Cazimero will appear at Kahilu Theatre in Waimea Saturday, June 19, at 8 p.m. For tickets, contact the theatre at 885-6868.

Saturday and Sunday, June 19-20, Father's Day music festival at Waiki`i. The event will benefit Waimea's Punana Leo Hawaiian language immersion school. Gates open at 8 a.m. for non-stop entertainment and activities from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. both days. Saturday's line-up includes Akoni Malacas, Gary Haleamau, Genoa Keawe, Three Ds (Del Beasley, Kawika Kahiapo and Dwight Kanae), Hapa, Sean Na`au`ao and Kapena. Sunday's line-up includes Harold Kama Jr., Straight Up, Lorna Lim, Kekuhi Kanahele, Ho`aikane, Makaha Sons with Robi Kahakalau, and Sudden Rush.

Other activities include Hawaiian language games, lei making by Barbara Meheula, hula drum making by Kana`e Keawe, lauhala weaving by Elizabeth Lee, Hawaiian tattooing with Ski Kwiatkowski, Hawaiian saddle making with Albert Moniz, and a Hawaiian sailing canoe exhibit by Makali`i crew members.

Contact Roy Cordeiro (808) 254-4665 or cell 276-5438. Food and craft vendors seeking information should call 885-7166.

Tickets are available at Waimea's First Hawaiian Bank and Cook's Discoveries. Aloha Airlines AlohaPass members are offered with purchase of a two-day festival pass for $30 the opportunity to purchase a second two-day pass for $15. The coupon is in the AlohaPass newsletter summer edition.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel. Back issues are archived at http://hawaii-island.com in the Economic Development category. Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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May 30, 1999
Summer arrives on Big Island with food celebrations

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

Food, glorious food, will be celebrated all over Hawai`i County in summer festivals that range from day-long family outings to luxurious week-long extravaganzas. Two festivals offer great opportunities for learning: Taste of the Hawaiian Range and Cuisines of the Sun.

The island's most accessible food event, Taste of the Hawaiian Range, has a limit on attendance -- 1,500 -- for the first time in its four-year history. Tickets ($20) still are available at Kona Wine Market, Kuhio Grille, Nori's Saimin, Kamuela Liquor, Cook's Discoveries, Parker Ranch Grill, K&M Seed Company, Big Island Farm Bureau office and the UH-CTAHR Cooperative Extension Service offices in Hilo and Waimea.

Taste of the Hawaiian Range will be held Friday, June 18, 6 to 8 p.m. in the Taylor Commons Dining Room on the Hawai`i Preparatory Academy campus. More than 40 local and mainland chefs will prepare dishes from forage-raised (grass-fed) critters: beef, venison, elk, bison, goat, lamb, crayfish, chicken, pork and mutton.

Every year, it has been a real challenge to make it all the way around the room at this all-you-can-eat event. At every table there is the opportunity to watch the chefs at work, to talk to them about techniques and ingredients, and, at some stations, to pick up copies of recipes. Other Big Island producers join ranchers with salads, cheeses, exotic desserts and non-alcoholic beverages.

This event supports the annual Forage Field Day conference held by UH-CTAHR CES for ranchers throughout the state. Get your Taste of the Hawaiian Range tickets now. If there are any left, tickets will be $25 at the door. For further information or for charge card purchases, telephone 887-6183.

In addition to offering the opportunity to learn from chefs during the evening feast, educational opportunities are offered during Forage Field Day, which begins with registration at 8:30 a.m. at the Mealani Research Station in Waimea.

Featured speakers in the morning include Allan Nation, editor of Stockman Grass Farmer Magazine, who will discuss trends in grass farming and forage fed meat production. Gaspar Tatarian, owner and chef of La Fusta in New York City, will speak on the qualities he looks for when selecting meat. All beef used at La Fusta is grass fed in Argentina. Tatarian will prepare the national meat dish of Argentina, parrillada, at Taste of the Hawaiian Range.

The production side of the livestock business will be discussed by Kelly Gooding, president of the Kaua`i County Farm Bureau and coordinator of the Kaua`i pasture poultry project; Dr. Young Kim of the animal science department at UHM-CTAHR; Toby King, manager of Kehena Ranch; and Earl Spence, assistant manager of Kahuku Ranch.

The Hawai`i County 4-H Livestock youngsters will prepare lunch with meat provided by Palama Meat Company. The luncheon speaker, Dr. Salom "Shorty" Namrof of U-UNESCO Texas Division, will address "Secrets of the Niche."

Marketing will be addressed by Jean Myers, president of Myers Advertising, who has created successful campaigns for Star Markets, Hawaiian Host Chocolates, Kahala Mandarin Oriental, Hawai`i State Farm Fair and Panasonic Hawai`i. Kurt Hirabara of Hirabara Farms will discuss his approach toward value marketing an agricultural product. Dr. Harlan Hughes, extension livestock economist with North Dakota State University, will speak on economic trends in the nation's livestock sector.

The demand side of the industry will be addressed by Richard Cook, zone manager of the US Defense Commissary Agency; Lani Petrie, Kona Specialty Meats and the Hawai`i Cattle Producers Cooperative; Rich Habein, Hawai`i Natural Meats; and Ernest Matsumura, Miko Meats.

A registration fee includes luncheon. Call 887-6183 for more information and to register. The next festival will be Saturday to Wednesday, July 24-28, the 10th annual Cuisines of the Sun at the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel.

"We have gathered some of the world's greatest chefs and winemakers to present a program truly worthy of its name: 'As good as it gets: culinary marvels for the new millennium,' said hotel general manager Bill Sayce.

Challenged with updating the century's most glorious dishes for the opening feast are Jeremiah Tower of San Francisco's Stars, Todd English of Boston's Olives, Ming Tsai of Wellesley, Massachusetts' Blue Ginger, Mauna Lani Bay's executive chef Phil Sassaman and Canoe House chef Pat Saito; and Francois Payard of New York's Payard Patisserie & Bistro.

Sunday morning begins with fruit and vegetable juice blended with nutraceuticals (herbs, spices, tonics) demonstrations and lecture by Alan Wong of Honolulu. New York's Payard, a James Beard Foundation Pastry Chef of the Year winner, will lead a hands-on cooking class devoted to preparing and sampling the world's best chocolate desserts.

Sunday evening's event features organic meat and produce and vegetarian-based dished with Lee Hefter of Beverly Hills' Spago, Michael Mina of San Francisco's Aqua, and Lidia Matticchio Bastianich of New York's Felidia and Philippe and Pierre Padovani from Honolulu's Padovani Bistro & Wine Bar along with local growers, fishermen and purveyors.

Monday's events are a Master's Class featuring Jeremiah Tower, a panel of winemakers on "Secrets from the Cellar," and an evening of "Fusion Fever" with Alan Wong and Roy Yamaguchi.

Tuesday continues the theme with concentration on what dishes and cuisine will excel in the next millennium.

Fees range from $3,200 (double occupancy) for four nights in an ocean view room and all Cuisine of the Sun events to a program fee of $950 per person for all Cuisine events (no room). It is possible to attend one day or an individual event.

For more information, contact Nina Segovia, 885-6622, or toll free 1-888-424-1977. Several other festivals offer food as part of a larger celebration.

Friday, June 11, is the 15th annual Kamehameha Day on Coconut Island sponsored by Malia Puka O Kalani Catholic Church. There is no admission charge for the day-long event from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Activities include entertainment, children's games, food and craft booths, demonstrations and Royal Court. The Hawaiian plate lunch at this event has been a most generous serving and delicious combination in the past.

For more information, call 935-9338.

Saturday, July 10, the 18th annual Kilauea Cultural Festival will be held on the lawn fronting the main building at Kilauea Military Camp in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Admission is free.

"Hawaiian food will be offered at a tasting booth," said Kupono McDaniel, festival coordinator and an interpretive ranger. "In all there are about 30 booths that will feature arts and crafts, hula, entertainment, food and demonstrations. Among entertainers scheduled are Na Lelelima O Na Kupuna, Darlene Ahuna, Pa`ani Kilauea, Becky Pau and `Ohana, and Keli`i Ho`omalu `Ohana. Demonstrations will include lei making, lauhala weaving, and kahili making among others.

"This year we are honoring all kupuna. The name of the festival has been E ho`omau i ka po`ohala -- Carry on the virtues, arts and skills of the family. This year our theme is drawn from `Olelo No`eau (Hawaiian Proverbs and Poetical Sayings). The theme is Ku I Ka Mana -- Our lives are enriched by the knowledge of our elders."

`Olelo No`eau by the late Mary Kawena Pukui was published by Bishop Museum Press in 1983 and was illustrated by Dietrich Varez. "Ku i ka mana" translates "like the one from whom he received what he learned" and is "said of a child who behaves like those who reared him. Mana is food masticated by an elder and conveyed to the mouth of a small child. The haumana (pupil) receives knowledge from the mouth of his teacher."

For more information, look at the Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park web site http://www.nps.gov/havo or directly to the festival information at www.nps.gov/havo/festive1999.htm or telephone the interpretation department, 985-6011.

Sunday, July 25, noon to dusk, the fifth annual Mango Festival will be held at the Pahala Community Center. All kinds of goodies will be featured including mango pies, jams, jellies, pickles, and ice cream. Come early to make sure you get one of the pies. At least 100 pies are made by volunteers the night before. Volunteers interested in helping should contact Halimah Shabazz, festival coordinator, at 928-8270.

"A grove of mango trees in Ka`u is the basis for the festival. I'm looking at them now and they're loaded with fruit," said Shabazz. "More than 108 trees, 40 varieties, were planted between the 1930s and 40s. We just learned that the old sugar plantation village may be leveled in 2001."

Bossa Nova Boogie and Ka`u are among featured entertainers. The festival also will include a big plant sale, local crafts, a farmers' market, a raffle including mango trees, and plate lunches with a mango main dish. Past entrees have included mango pasta, mango barbecue sauce, and mango curry. Vegetarian dishes also are available.

Saturday, August 28, Carmen Miranda lives! The Gala Food Bank Headdress Ball will be held at Hilton Waikoloa Village grand ballroom starting at 5:30 p.m. The ball will benefit the Hawai`i Island Food Bank.

A contest will be held for the most outrageous, beautiful, towering headdress worn by contestants from corporate donor-sponsors. In addition to fine dining and dancing to great music, the evening will include Latin American dance exhibitions by Ron and Karla Montez and Babineaux and Forest, and a live auction.

For more information, contact Gene Erger by e-mail oconger@webtv.net or telephone 885-0018 between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m.

The state's oldest food festival, the Kona Coffee Cultural Festival, will be held November 7 -14. For more information, check out the web site http://www.konacoffeefest.com or telephone Current Events, 326-7820.

Other activities

Friday through Sunday, June 11 to 13, the 11th annual Hawai`i High School Rodeo State finals will be held at Parker Ranch Paniolo Park in Waimea. Each day begins at 9 a.m. There is a nominal admission fee that will help contestants go to the nationals.

Currently, 13 entrants are expected from Maui, four from Moloka`i, nine from Kaua`i, 24 from Hawai`i island and four from O`ahu. Contact Dr. Billy Bergin, 331-4666.

An electronic newsletter produced by the Business Research Library of the Hawai`i Small Business Development Center Network brings news of the latest census population estimates and interesting web sites.

The US Department of Commerce's Bureau of the Census recently released state and county population estimates for July 1, 1998. The state population, now estimated at 1,193,001, shows a 0.1 percent change from the previous year. Hawai`i County population is estimated at 143,135, a 0.9 increase from the previous year.

To review Forbes Magazine's "Boomtowns USA" rankings go to http://www.forbes.com/forbes/99/0531/6311220a.htm (Forbes, 31 May, 1999).

To review the Bank of Hawai`i's 1998 annual economic report go to http://www.boh.com/econ that includes chief economist Paul Brewbaker's review of retail markets and improvements in the Asian economy.

An archive of SBDCN past issues is available at http://www.hawaii-sbdc.org/ or e-mail sbw@mrtc.org to subscribe.

Remember those who served our nation on Memorial Day.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel. Back issues are archived at http://hawaii-island.com in the Economic Development category. Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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May 23, 1999
Genetic preservation proposed for Hawaiian plant species

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

Tropical plants have been known for many years to be among the most sensitive organisms subject to damage by invading pests including those brought by man. There is little to be done about it.

For two years a program has been forming to address that problem, in part, by building a conservation system - a seed bank of sorts - that will incorporate the many variations a tropical plant species can assume in different climates and elevations.

This year, for the first time, Hawai`i was brought into the program and a draft report has been issued by the US Department of Agriculture's Dr. Thomas Conkle, research plant geneticist, Institute of Forest Genetics at Berkeley, California's Pacific Southwest Research Station. He was aided by Dr. J. B. Friday of Hilo, the extension forester for the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources; and Nicklos S. Dudley, forester with the Hawai`i Agriculture Research Center in `Aiea.

Approximately 20 tree species have been identified as priority plants for consideration with koa and `ohi`a at the top of the list and species including kukui, `iliahi, kou, kamani and milo among the others.

The final list is not determined. Reasons to include a specific plant include considerations of ecology, commercial value, cultural significance and necessity for wildlife habitat. "It's an incredible undertaking," one forester commented. "There could be an important impact on our economy and the environment."

Mid-April meetings were held in Honolulu and Hilo to open discussions of the document that continues under preparation. Understandably the work is seen by professionals in biology and forestry as a harbinger of significant change in the relationship the federal and state government maintains with forests and plains.

A major problem with Hawai`i's forested lands under state ownership is poor management. For decades it has been official policy of the state to "let the forests alone." That policy - which runs against professional advice from the state's own foresters - is ruinous of healthy forest development anywhere and it's particularly harmful in tropical environments where introduced life such as wild pigs, harmful weeds and diseases can wipe out healthy forest stands in short time.

The problem of plant diversity in Hawaiian landscapes' varying climates and elevations is addressed in the draft report, which illustrates the complexity in an understandable manner.

For purposes of identification of a specific plant's "native" habitat, the state is divided first by island and then into different sections on each island. Forest bird communities make one such division and the Big Island, for example, is cut into six sections for that consideration. Further definition is found in the network of vegetation and a final definition would use the geographic boundaries of the state's 68 forest reserves. Hawai`i Island has 27 of those.

This classification is required because seed or young plants collected from one of these divisions can very likely fail if planted in another. That's sad but true, a hard lesson learned by planting of forests that failed before recognition of this trait.

Extension forester Friday believes Conkle's institute will play an important role in managing wild populations of important native species. "We also were excited to learn about forest genetic conservation efforts elsewhere in the Pacific," Friday said. "Some of our native or Hawaiian introduced species made the lists of other island nations and I think we have much to learn from other Pacific people about forestry."

Conservation is a new priority for forestry in some senses that may explain the practice of "letting the forest alone" in much of Hawai`i. Management is a mainstay in any approach to conservation.

"Forests will only be actively managed when they are economically productive," Dudley noted. "There are significant economic values beyond timber. Water resources, specialty forest products and tourism options are important. You derive great economic value from the forests beyond the value of the trees."

Leonard Newell, Pacific Islands Forester with the United States Forest Service in Honolulu, is credited with coordinating United States and Hawai`i involvement in the Forest Genetic Resources Workshop held in Apia, Samoa, in April of this year.

Newell recruited Conkle to be the technical expert, and organized participation of the Hawai`i community. Newell and Conkle foresee an ongoing program to conserve, and where appropriate, improve Hawai`i's forest genetic resources through collaboration and sharing of costs.

"Because there are so many negative pressures on Hawai`i's natural forests, a program of genetic resource conservation and improvement is essential to the future of these forests. They should be allowed to continue to evolve," according to Newell.

The text of the 1992 federal Hawai`i Tropical Forest Recovery Act, authored by Sen. Daniel K. Akaka, is included in the report. Many believe that many of the act's goals are yet to become visible to the average citizen.

Our state forests still need attention. Some critical programs undertaken in recent years - such as the Hawai`i Forestry and Communities Initiative - were left unfunded by the 1999 Legislature after its modest appropriation was deleted in Sen. Andy Levin's Senate Ways and Means Committee version of the budget bill. The measure brings in generous matching funds from the federal government to allow the program to provide essential coordination of the state agencies dealing with forestry issues.

That the United Nations finally recognizes Hawai`i has forests is a heartening sign. The genetic conservation program originated in the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and the Australian Agency for International Development. Inclusion of Hawai`i provides our state's professionals - in both private and public sectors - an opportunity to learn and share their knowledge in an important area that can bring much good to our islands.

Other forest topics are part of the Kilauea field station seminar schedule at the Biological Resource Division of the US Geological Survey in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. The brown bag lunchtime seminars are held on Fridays at noon in the BRD conference room, building 344, throughout the summer.

Friday, May 28, Richard Wass, refuge manager of the Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge, will discuss what the forest will be like in the year 2000.

Friday, June 11, Patrick Hart of UH-Manoa will speak on what an old growth Hawaiian rainforest looks like. Friday, June 25, Eric VanderWerf of UH-Manoa will talk about delayed plumage maturation and demography of the `elepaio.

Future topics include the Ola`a-Kilauea Management Area, conservation biology, roosting behavior of the palila, and the Hawaiian hawk.

For more information on the continuing series, contact Bethany Woodworth by e-mail: bethany_woodworth@usgs.org

Alien plant pests such as miconia, ivy gourd, fountain grass and gorse have attracted volunteers and professionals to various eradication efforts. There's another plant pest that has a whole festival.

Sunday, May 30, is the 10th annual Banana Poka Round-up at the old Civilian Conservation Corps camp in Koke`e State Park, Kaua`i, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Traditional and local folk music, forest craft workshops for the whole family, and exhibits about Hawai`i's beautiful but fragile environment are included. One workshop will teach basket and card crafting with forest materials, including the pesky banana poka vine. Another workshop will teach Oshibana card making.

For more information, contact Koke`e Museum at (808) 335-9975.

Astronomy education in Hilo

Something new is in the works. A NASA sponsored Mauna Kea Center for Astronomy Education will be constructed near the Subaru Telescope headquarters in the University of Hawai`i at Hilo Research and Technology Park. The space-oriented museum will include a planetarium. Regular programs will be planned for school children.

Mahalos to senior Senator Daniel K. Inouye and UH Regent Stan Roehrig for the concept and support. Point of contact is Bill Chen at UH-Hilo.

Other activities

Tomorrow is the first in a series of public hearings on the Mauna Kea Science Reserve draft plan from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the Waimea Community Center. Tuesday (May 25), the public hearing will be held at Kealakehe Elementary School Cafeteria and Thursday (May 27) in Wentworth Hall at UH-Hilo on the same time schedule.

For more information, contact Larry Kimura or Pila Wilson at UH-Hilo, 974-7454 or 974-7564.

Friday through Sunday, May 28-30, "The Last Hoedown of the Century" is this year's theme for western days in Honoka`a. Sidewalk sales of crafts and food, displays, paniolo entertainment. Children's games Friday from noon to 6 p.m. Saturday parade at 10 a.m. followed by rodeo. Saturday evening Saloon Girl contest and steak dinner and dance. Sunday rodeo all day.

Contact Honoka`a Business Association, Kathleen Baker, 775-0043, or Berry Nakashima 775-9987.

Saturday and Sunday, May 29 and 30, a workshop on managing information in rural America (MIRA) will be held at Kilauea Military Camp Theater in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. The MIRA session, funded by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, is organized by Community Support Organizations, Cooper Center Council, Ka`u Learning Center and Na`alehu Main Street and is open to all non-profits in Hawai`i.

"The theme of the workshop is strengthening our non-profit organizations through technology," said Mac Cooper. "The recurring theme of the W. K. Kellogg Foundation funded MIRA initiative is 'people first, technology second'."

Cultural diversity, geographic information systems, and rural communities in America are among topics to be discussed. Participants may register online at http://www.vegenet.com by following the link to MIRA conference registration, by e-mail to mirareg@kalepa.vegenet.com or mail to Na`alehu Main Street, P. O. Box 107, Na`alehu HI 96772.

Participants are asked to bring a biodegradable kinolau symbolic of their districts suitable for weaving into a lei or placing in a puolo for ho`okupu.

Sunday, May 30, is the Keauhou Kona Triathlon - Hawai`i's only Ironman qualifying race. Half-marathon and Olympic distances included. For more information, contact 329-0601.

Tuesday through Saturday, May 25-29, Ka Ulu Lauhala O Kona Festival will be held at Keauhou Beach Hotel. Workshops, ho`olaulea and craft show included. Contact 325-5592.

In May and June the Na Mea Hawai`i Hula Kahiko series will be held at Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Free, open to the public, outdoor hula performances. For more information, contact 967-8222.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel. Back issues are archived at http://hawaii-island.com in the Economic Development category. Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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May 16, 1999
Buyers: 'Big Island ready for buying wave from mainland'

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

In recent years Hawai`i has enjoyed three waves of interest in island property by foreign buyers from Canada, Saudi Arabia and Japan. We may be in for a fourth wave from our own U. S. mainland.

J. W. A. 'Doc' Buyers believes the first signs of this interest are reaching our shores and the cause of the tide this time is new technology's gift allowing anyone to conduct their lives and business just about anywhere.

Buyers is chairman and chief executive officer of C. Brewer and Co., Ltd. and was recently named president of the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board. He has his own best example of Big Island growth enabled by technology, the move of C. Brewer's headquarters from Honolulu to Hilo where, he points out, his communications ability surpasses that available in New York City.

In a speech for the 1999 Forecast Breakfast by the Institute of Real Estate Management and Certified Commercial Investment Member Hawai`i Chapters, Buyers said this communications boom is joined by the "super U. S. economy" and growth in diversified agriculture and tourism to boost the Big Island's future. Recent sales of expensive property look like more waves coming in.

"Last year a man who is a principal in a leading buy-out firm purchased three lots on the water near the Hualalai golf course and the Four Seasons Hotel," Buyers said.

"These were unimproved oceanfront lava lots without a beach or landscaping and he paid $14 million cash! I doubt if even the Japanese would have paid that price in the 1980s."

In January, Buyers continued, he was introduced by a long-time friend from Philadelphia to a woman who is building a home in Ka'u near Honoapu on a 49-acre parcel. She's brought in her own architect from Nepal!

"My third example just happened when a friend of mine sent a message that a Seattle executive was flying here in his own personal jet, which is the only way he and his wife travel," Buyers said. "He likes Hawai`i very much and wants to build a compound in a remote, private location. If the site is too far from the airport he will commute by helicopter and he's planning a home and other buildings for friends with whom he travels."

Big Island contractors tell Buyers they are doing well building homes for folks "from the mainland who are between 50 and 65 years of age." Buyers said they don't use the phrase "second home" because many of these newcomers have three or more homes, sometimes scattered around the world.

Buyers credited the "incredibly bullish stock market" for spurring this growth. "Certainly the wealth of the gentleman from Seattle may have come from his options of Microsoft stock which has made him a multi-millionaire."

Buyers dramatized the growth of communications with his own experience. "Back in 1986 when I proposed a spaceport for the Ka'u area, there were no fax machines, no internet, no websites, no e-mail, no America On Line, no cellular telephones, no fiberoptics, no laptop computers, no Yahoo, no Amazon, no Dell computers, no Disco, no Sun Microsystems, no Microsoft, all of which are dependant upon satellites.

"Back then we were just getting used to the fact that the Today Show no longer came tomorrow." Same-day television arrived in Hawai`i at KGMB Feb. 28, 1976.

Yukio Takeya, principal broker for Ala Kai Realty, finds some agreement with the points Buyers made. Takeya was part of the Big Island group hosting a large contingent of realtors from throughout the state April 23-24.

"Those realtors couldn't believe what they saw in East Hawai`i," Takeya said. "We took them up to University of Hawai`i's high tech park and they were astonished at the very advanced communications available for astronomy." High-speed systems run the Mauna Kea telescopes from the Hilo campus and provide vital communication with home offices in Britain, Japan and Colorado.

The realtors were also given a tour of diversified agriculture sites in Hamakua and Puna and shown how high technology is important in that industry from tissue culture to marketing.

"A couple who own a vineyard in Napa Valley was with us and they saw a 10-acre site above the Hamakua road that has a large number of tropical fruits growing and they were very interested in both the variety and volume being produced," Takeya noted.

He also said Waiakea and Hilo High Schools have produced a dozen National Merit Scholars in recent years showing ability and the way "Big Island folks can handle all the technical challenges the future brings."

Buyers believes that concentration on our strong points will bring success.

"It is my own belief that more and more people will be moving to the most beautiful islands in the world with the best weather and U.S. political stability," Buyers said. "Why? Because these communication techniques enable them to live and work anywhere.

"Furthermore, today's communications are relatively inexpensive compared to the long distance rates of the 60s, 70s and 80s."

Buyers said the outlook for continued low interest rates and economic growth for the country will enable us to build a huge wave of interest in relocation to the island of Hawai`i.

Other activities

Friday and Saturday, May 21-22, is the annual Pua Plantasia sponsored by the Kona Outdoor Circle at Aston Keauhou Beach Resort.

Friday evening's gala on the Royal Garden Lawn includes dinner, entertainment and fundraising auctions. Committee members have been hard at work making exotic tropical spreads to sell including lilikoi, jaboticaba, and guava jellies and mango chutney.

Saturday hours are 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. In addition to plants and cut flowers, Pua Plantasia includes Big Island products. Tom Shea, Kona Outdoor Circle's educational director, will be on hand as will others in informational booths for all interested gardeners.

The island's most reasonable food event, Taste of the Hawaiian Range, has a limit on attendance (1,500) for the first time in its four-year history. Tickets ($20) still are available at Kona Wine Market, Kuhio Grille, Nori's Saimin, Kamuela Liquor, Cook's Discoveries, Parker Ranch Grill, K&M Seed Company, Big Island Farm Bureau office and the Cooperative Extension offices in Hilo and Waimea.

Taste of the Hawaiian Range will be held Friday, June 18, 6 p.m. in the Taylor Commons Dining Room on the Hawai`i Preparatory Academy campus. More than 40 local and mainland chefs will prepare dishes from forage-raised (grass-fed) critters: beef, venison, elk, bison, goat, lamb, crayfish, chicken, pork and mutton.

Every year, it has been a real challenge to make it all the way around the room at this all-you-can-eat event. Other Big Island producers join ranchers with salads, cheeses, exotic desserts and non-alcoholic beverages.

Get your tickets now. For further information or for charge card purchases, telephone 887-6183.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel. Back issues are archived at http://hawaii-island.com in the Economic Development category. Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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This island is blessed with a number of family-run businesses, some still in the same family after three generations. The popular Koehnen's Interiors is one, celebrating 70 years in business this week.

"My grandfather, Frederick William Koehnen, came to Hawai`i as an apprentice bookkeeper for H. Hackfeld and Company in 1908," said Karyl Franks, daughter of Helie and Carl Rohner and manager of the Hilo store. "He bought a business from Doc Hill in the area where Hana Hou and Basically Books are now and opened Koehnen's on May 13, 1929."

"We started out selling jewelry, silver, china and gifts," said Helie Rohner. "Furniture was added in 1948. Carl started up that department after he came home from the Army. We were engaged in 1943 and married in 1944."

In 1957 Koehnen's purchased the old Hackfeld building, known by then as the AmFac Building, at the corner of Waianuenue and Kamehameha and moved the business.

"About a week before we opened, there was a torrential rain in Hilo and the basement flooded," Karyl said.

"Mattresses were floating when we came down to look," Halie said. "I don't know how we did it, but we got things cleaned up and opened on time."

F. W. Koehnen remarked at the grand opening that he had come to work for Hackfeld in 1908, the year construction began on the building he now owned. Construction was finished in 1910. The `ohia floors, milled in Pahoa, and the koa staircase that came from Hamakua are original to the old Hackfeld building.

"When this building was built, it was all mule carts and hand labor," Halie said. "There's a fully excavated basement that runs from Waianuenue to Shipman Street. In 1957, when we moved here from the old location, 12 men carried the showcases down Kamehameha. They fit in so well with the original woodwork.

"During the 1960 tidal wave, we would have been okay but the front doors popped open. We already had hauled many things upstairs and cleared off the bottom shelves. But the doors opened and the water poured in. Huge koa showcases were pushed over. The display islands floated over to the far wall and, amazingly, all of the gift items were still on the top shelves."

"I was a kid then," said Randy Rohner, third-generation manager of the new Kona store. "I remember fish flopping in the store and silt everywhere. It was really slippery. There was muck everywhere. And I remember a smell - I can't describe it."

What didn't fare so well was silver stored under the cases against the wall.

"The community support was fantastic," Halie said. "People managed to get through the security barricades and came to help clean up. We had bank managers in here soaking and polishing all that silver."

"After we got the fish out the door and took a break from cleaning, I looked out and it was like being on a whole new planet," Karyl said. "There wasn't a thing recognizable on that end of town. I remember Bill Stearns came and took me for a plane ride. He told me, 'You have to see this.' People everywhere were washing the dirt out of their sheets and clothes in the streams. Every park, every flat place was filled with drying fabric. It was beautiful."

Christmas window decoration is a tradition started by F. W. Koehnen.

"Our grandfather used to hand make all the village pieces," Karyl said. "He used balsa wood, Venetian blinds, plaster of Paris. Those things were destroyed in a basement flood."

Halie remembers "We used to spend all Thanksgiving Day putting it up. Then we'd start earlier, but keep the windows covered. It was such a treat this past season to hear one of our customers say, 'You're the Nieman-Marcus of Hilo'." Karyl said as a child "I can remember what a treat it was to come to downtown Hilo because every store was decorated."

She continues the tradition with special tours for school children.

Karyl returned to Hilo in January 1994. Her brother Randy started working full-time in 1971. He now manages the company's Kona store in the old industrial area on Kaiwi Street.

"The Kona store reflects a more tropical contemporary look with Asian accents," Randy said. "The building we're in is only 25 years old. It's nothing like the Hilo store in terms of structural uniqueness."

The quality of service is the same in both.

"We go above and beyond what the normal retailer would do," Randy said. "We stand behind the product long after it leaves the store. The best advertising we have is word of mouth. It's been most gratifying to hear customers say 'I'm so glad you're back.' We had a store in Captain Cook for many years."

The Kona store celebrates its second anniversary in August.

"The potential for future growth in Kona is going to keep us busy."

er activities

Friday, May 14, the Hilo Orchid Society will hear from Glen Barfield on the origins of miltoniopsis orchids. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the Komohana Agricultural Complex.

Saturdays from May 15 through June 19, the Hawai`i Small Business Development Center and Alu Like will co-sponsor an Entrepreneurship Training Program. It will be held at UH-Hilo campus, EHK 126, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The program is designed for anyone interested in starting or expanding a small business. It will include lectures and hands-on workshops covering the key elements of business.

Sessions will focus on the practical side of business ownership including business start-up, market research, avoiding legal pitfalls, planning, and advertising and marketing on a budget.

Kehaulani Coleman of the Alu Like Business Development Center will present the seminar series. There is a cost of $50, which includes materials. To register or ask for more information, call Alu Like on O`ahu toll-free at 1-800-459-3969.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel.

Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

May 2, 1999
Two programs launch to increase Big Island forest acreage

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

Two efforts this month will result in expanded forest plantings in Hawai`i County. One offers financial aid and the other seeks volunteers to help plant trees.

A cost-share program will help owners or lessors of two acres or more to plant trees or improve timber stands. The federally funded program pays up to 50 percent of costs.

"Sign up for the fiscal year will be until Wednesday, May 19," said tropical forestry specialist J.B. Friday of UH-CTAHR.

In Hawai`i, the Forestry Incentives Program is administered by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service with technical assistance from the State of Hawai`i Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife.

Individuals and groups, including youth organizations, are eligible to apply as are corporations without publicly traded stock and forest landowners who do not manufacture forest products full-time. The individual or group must own or lease land suitable for conversion from nonforest land into forest land (afforestation), for reforestation, or for improved forest management. An additional requirement is that the individual or group not own more than 1,000 acres of eligible forestland.

Funding for Hawai`i in fiscal 1999 is approximately $14,000 statewide. Cost-share rates range from a maximum of $120 per acre for tree planting to $700 per acre for site improvement.

Field offices for USDA NRCS are in Kealakekua, 322-2484, Waimea, 885-6602, and Hilo, 933-6955, for further details.

Monday, May 17, volunteers will plant more than 900 native Hawaiian dry forest plants into the Kaupulehu experimental research plots in North Kona.

"This project represents a major step in our on-going efforts to develop efficient and effective means for restoring Hawai`i's highly degraded dry forest ecosystems," said Bob Cabin of the Forestry Research Laboratory. "This research has been made possible due to the cooperative efforts of many groups and agencies including the Department of Forestry and Wildlife, Hawai`i Forest Industry Association, Kamehameha Schools Bishop Estate, the National Tropical Botanical Garden, the Nature Conservancy, US Forest Service, US Fish and Wildlife Service, and last but most importantly numerous individuals from the greater North Kona community.

"Based on past experience, outplanting these plants into the rugged a`a lava substrate that dominates this site will be slow and arduous. We'd really love to have all the help we can get."

If you would like to volunteer, please contact Cabin by e-mail at cabinr@aloha.net or telephone 935-6292 for further details and directions.

"The outplanting may spill over into Tuesday and perhaps Wednesday depending on how many people show up," Cabin said. "For logistic reasons, we'd prefer to get as many plants in the ground on Monday as possible."

National cookbook seeks local recipes

The National Japanese American Historical Society is compiling recipes for a cookbook that represents regional flavors from throughout Japanese America.

"From Hawai`i to Massachusetts, Illinois to Texas, the book will include favorite potluck recipes so you can prepare meals to share at family picnics and parties," said coordinator Gayle Nishikawa. "The book will feature old time recipes handed down generation to generation for New Year celebrations."

Send your favorite recipes. The committee also seeks special memories surrounding the people, places or special occasions that are a part of your recipe's history. Photographs (copies, please, not originals) also are welcome.

Please include your name, address, city and zip code, telephone number and e-mail address. Indicate a category: New Year's, Potluck or Regional Cooking (recipe of Japanese origin but adapted to your area such as tofu salad). Also indicate how the recipe should be filed: appetizer, soup or salad, main dish, rice dish, side dish or dessert.

For more information or to submit a recipe, write to NJAHS Cookbook, 1684 Post Street, San Francisco CA 94115 or e-mail gnishi@aol.com or check the website www.njahs.org

Deadline for submission of recipes is May 30. Sponsorships to assist with publication also are being sought.

Founded in 1980 in San Francisco, NJAHS changed its name from Go For Broke in 1983. The organization has several publications, videos and museum exhibits.

One exhibit "Go For Broke, the story of the 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team," was shown at the US Army Museum at the Presidio of San Francisco, the Smithsonian Institution and the Bishop Museum.

There are many other exhibits available including "Strength and Diversity: Japanese American Women, 1885-1990."

Thursday, May 6, the Hawai`i Island Chamber of Commerce membership meeting will recognize Small Business Administration award winners and hear from Diane Quitiquit, director of the County's department of research and development. The luncheon meeting will be held in the Moku`ola Room of the Hilo Hawaiian Hotel starting at 11:30 a.m.

Call the Chamber for reservations at 935-7178.

Friday through Sunday, May 7-9, the Kona Orchid Society holds its annual show at Lanihau Center. Hours are 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday.

Cindy Shriver will present a free Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar session Friday, May 7, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Bytes and Bites at 223 Kilauea Street in Hilo. "Seating is limited, so be early," said computer maven David Martin Sprague.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel. Back issues are archived at http://hawaii-island.com in the Economic Development category. Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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April 25, 1999
Big Island joins national 'Million Solar Roofs' initiative

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

President Clinton's "Million Solar Roofs" initiative, unveiled in 1997, marshals the collective efforts of government, business, utilities and other groups to boost use of the sun for energy. Hawai`i County is on the bandwagon.

As the slogan implies, the goal is to have one million solar energy systems installed on buildings and homes throughout the nation by 2010.

"It's been a year and a half that Hawai`i County, under the leadership of Mayor Yamashiro, has been working with Hawai`i Electric Light Company (HELCO) to support the US Department of Energy million solar roofs initiative," said Raymond Carr, energy coordinator with the County Department of Research & Development.

Recently, the US Department of Energy awarded Hawai`i County $25,000 in grant funding for the Million Solar Roofs Initiative (MSRI).

Carr introduced Peter Dreyfuss, national coordinator for MSRI, to the Hawai`i County Council earlier this month. The major solar energies under discussion were solar water heating and photovoltaic (PV) power generation.

"The work of this initiative depends on local partnerships," Dreyfuss told the Council. "We're concerned about climate change and see renewable energy as a way to reduce emissions and pollution. Economic development is what MSRI is all about. The money you pay for oil leaves this economy."

"One project under consideration [for use of the grant funding] is a Photovoltaic-powered aerating fountain at the ponds in Lili`uokalani Park to revitalize those ponds in this high use park area," said Carr.

The Department of Energy is the lead agency for MRSI, according to Dreyfuss who noted "this doesn't work in the same way most government initiatives work."

Dreyfuss said the federal program seeks to assist state and local governments in eliminating barriers to solar energies for example in changing building codes or restrictive covenants and in making installation part of one's home mortgage financing. In addition, the Federal government has pledged 2,000 installations on federal buildings by the year 2000.

"Most of those will probably be in Hawai`i primarily because of the work by Eileen Yoshinaka of the US Department of Energy [Pacific liaison]," Dreyfuss said.

He mentioned US Navy housing on O`ahu, Moanalua Terrace, which includes solar systems.

"Other counties in Hawai`i have followed Hawai`i County's lead. More than 45,000 roofs are committed in Hawai`i."

Tom Goya, manager of HELCO's customer services department, noted that with 20 MSRI partners in the state, commitments have been made to install more than 786,000 solar energy systems by 2010."

"We anticipate announcing 36 partnerships around the country soon," Dreyfuss said. "In Chicago, for example, the 'Windy City' also is gong to become the 'Solar City.' They are pledging not only to install solar energies on roofs but also to enter the solar manufacturing business in an Empowerment Zone."

Locally, HELCO's sun power for schools program has $20,000 funding augmented by customers who sign up to contribute as little as one dollar a month. A one-kilowatt solar electric (photovoltaic) system is up and running at Kealakehe High School, the first in the program. Hilo High School was the next to install a system.

More than 400 customers signed up to help in 1998. New cards must be filled out for 1999. For more information on becoming a Sun Power partner, contact Amy Iwamoto at HELCO, 969-0137.

The system at Kealakehe was among motivating factors in the installation of the world's largest hotel rooftop PV system at Mauna Lani, installed last year.

"There is a possibility that the hotel may wish to expand the system," said John Crouch of PowerLight Corporation, director of the Pacific region, who installed the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel and Bungalows system.

"PV has become quite commercially viable in the islands. There are places where wind doesn't quite fill the bill and PV systems do. PV is a pretty universal application: there are no moving parts, no noise. The areas where it is most economically viable are the leeward sides with more sunshine and less cloud cover, but we are installing some upland systems too."

For more information on PowerLight Corp. systems, contact Crouch at 883-9411. A second installation was at Mauna Lani Resort's golf course.

"The system runs our golf clubhouse during the day," said Neil "Buster" Bustamante vice president of operations. "Nighttime, we have some utilization of our local power company. The PV system, presently running at 104 percent of our original projections, charges our carts. We use it for air conditioning and some of our kitchen needs.

"We also have an experimental program of a PV system on our golf carts. We are seriously considering outfitting 180 carts with PV systems. Normally, a cart is good for 18 holes before it needs recharging. With this system, they can run all day before needing a charge."

Other PV systems around the island include a lighting system donated and installed by HELCO that powers a light at the end of Chain of Craters Road to serve as a beacon for nighttime lava-viewing hikers. The system also provides light to a nearby pavilion with safety bulletins and educational displays.

A complete off-grid PV system was installed at `Ainahou Ranch, also in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.

"The former Shipman ranch retreat house is being renovated as an educational facility for the public. It will receive power from the 900-watt PV array, complete with battery bank, inverter, and a back-up generator," said Goya.

Funding for the project came from a Federal Energy Management Program grant through the National Renewable Energy Laboratory contract with HELCO.

A custom designed PV light was installed by HELCO at Honaunau boat ramp. Another PV light was installed at Kiholo Lookout for safety purposes.

"Prototypes of the lights we recommend for use in Hawai`i are available for inspection at the HELCO parking lot in Hilo," said Goya. "Another display system fronts the Kona HELCO engineering office."

County Councilwoman Nancy Pisicchio said of Dreyfuss' presentation, "This is a classic example of sustainable development. I hope the County takes full advantage of this opportunity.

Councilman Leningrad Elarianoff wanted to know the payback period. Dreyfuss said it depends on the type of system and where it is installed. For example in the parks along bayfront in Hilo, "there are no lines. It probably would be cheaper to put in PV powered lights than to plant poles and run lines. The purpose of MSRI is to increase demand and drive down cost. We anticipate 40 percent higher efficiency and 50 percent lower cost on PV cells by 2010."

Councilwoman Julie Jacobson commented, "This program amplifies benefits of solar. There are myths about this being futuristic, but we've got the technology now to make it practical."

Since MSRI was announced, more than 1,000 solar water heaters have been installed in Hawai`i County.

"The most cost-effective use is water heating for swimming pools," Dreyfuss said. Councilman Dominic Yagong said that certainly interested him.

"The coldest pool in the county is in Honoka`a. It's like something from Alaska."

Last year, the State Legislature voted to extend state energy tax credits. Gov. Ben Cayetano signed the measure into law extending tax credits through July 1, 2003, on solar water heaters and heat pumps for single family residences. Taxpayers can claim credit equal to 35 percent of the installation up to a maximum credit of $1,750.

HELCO has a rebate program for solar water heating and heat pumps. For more information, call 969-0118.

For more information on the Million Solar Roofs initiative, visit the web site http://www.eren.doe.gov/millionroofs/

Other activities

Today (April 25) is the last day of the Big Island finals in the Hawai`i High School Rodeo Association competition at Parker Ranch arena. State finals will be held at Parker Ranch arena June 11-13. Help the kids out with a small donation at the gate.

Friday, April 30, a special one-day conference will be held by the Hawai`i County Office of Aging at the Hawai`i Naniloa Resort.

Honolulu native and current Assistant Secretary for Aging, Dr. Jeanette Takamura will be the keynote speaker. Prior to her appointment to President Clinton's cabinet level, Dr. Takamura served as Hawai`i State Director for the Executive Office of Aging. She now oversees more than 700 state and local agencies to develop and coordinate Administration policies.

Other topics on the agenda include humor as therapy, musicology and healing, facing retirement alone, modified exercise and prevention of falls, body mechanics for caregivers, relieving stress, pets as therapy, and agencies and networking.

The conference is co-sponsored by the Hawai`i County Office of Aging and Hilo Community School for Adults. Co-chairs are Rudy Legaspi and Elaine Sugai.

For further information and to register, contact Hilo Community School for Adults, 974-4100.

May Day is Lei Day in Hawai`i (thank you Leonard "Red" Hawk for the song).

The Waimea Outdoor Circle annual general membership meeting and luncheon will be held Saturday (May 1) from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Garden Room, Mauna Kea Beach Hotel. For reservations, call Louise Belt, 885-4069.

The Art of Business will be presented by Ira Ono for the Hawai`i Small Business Development Center Tuesday, May 4, at the UH-Manono Campus Multi-Purpose Room from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The focus of the seminar is to teach artists and crafts people business skills needed to become financially successful. Some of the topics to be covered include how to identify your customers, catalog sales, representatives, pricing, marketing strategies, packaging and display, trade shows, presentation techniques for wholesale or retail sales.

Participants are encouraged to bring samples of their work to share and be critiqued. Registration deadline is Friday, April 30. For more information, call 969-1814.

Correction

The telephone number for Alia Point `Awa Nursery published last week was incorrect. The correct number is 961-4953. Apologies for the error.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel. Back issues are archived at http://hawaii-island.com in the Economic Development category. Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565.

E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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April 18, 1999
New beverage offers market for Hawaiian `awa

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

What's old is new again is the message to Big Island farmers this week.

Local farmers have known for a long time that they can grow nearly anything here. The question always arises though, "Where do we sell our product?"

Visiting the island this week were principals in a Santa Cruz company, Drinks That Work, who offer one answer.

"Ten years ago, the thought of 'drinking your vitamins' was absurd," said Joel McCleary of Pu`u O Hoku Ranch on Moloka`i. "Five years ago, the notion existed, but most of the existing products tasted awful. Today, this concept represents an entire new beverage industry - functional beverages - and is one of the fastest growing segments in the $17 billion nutraceuticals industry.

"Decades ago, people would go to their neighborhood drug store and get an herbal tincture from the pharmacist. The reason the soda fountain existed was to provide a delivery system for that remedy. Many of our popular soft drinks originated in that time. Soda is an herbal memory of that era. In the 19th century, the United States' largest export, second only to tobacco, was sassafras, the basis of root beer."

In 1997, McCleary joined with three other top talents to found Drinks That Work. Co-founder Brian Lovejoy, who joined McCleary on the Big Island visit, gained his beverage experience working for seven years at Odwalla Inc., the nation's largest producer of whole, natural fruit and vegetable juices.

Others involved in the start-up were ethno-botanist Dennis McKenna, who participated in the `awa conference held here last August, and Michael Young, former chief operating officer at Odwalla where he helped drive the company's revenue from $12 million to $90 million in three years.

Since then Loren Israelsen joined the Drinks That Work board of directors. He served as president of Nature's Way Products, vice president off the American Herbal Products Association, co-counsel to the European American Phytomedicine Coalition and advisor to the Office of Dietary Supplements on botanical research priorities.

Visiting C. Brewer's `awa nursery on the Hamakua coast were (from left) Brian Lovejoy of Drinks That Work, Ed Johnston of the Association for Hawaiian `Awa, and Joel McCleary of Pu`u O Hoku Ranch.

Nursery manager Matthew Archibald and `awa division head John Cross explained the nursery's production and plans for expansion. "We've just introduced three beverages to the western United States," Lovejoy said. "Forza for sustainable energy is a morning drink combining tropical fruits with extracts of bitter orange, rose root, panax ginseng and St. John's wort to promote a sense of well being. Kava is an alternate to the afternoon cocktail. The robust, lightly carbonated brew has distinctive fruit, spice and floral notes. We use premium quality Polynesian kava (`awa) root as it has been used in the south Pacific for millennia - as a social, ceremonial and medicinal elixir.

"The third beverage is Luna, a creamy, lightly spiced blend of valerian root, passion flower, chamomile and griffonia seed in milks of grain and soy. The formulation is known for sleep enhancing properties."

The `awa used in the kava beverage comes from Molokai, Fiji and Vanuatu. The beverages have been on the market for 8 weeks and already are in more than 150 stores from Seattle to San Diego plus Hawai`i. Abundant Life on Kamehameha Avenue in Hilo is one outlet on this island. The company principals look forward to the day when all `awa in the beverage comes from Hawai`i.

"Our dream is to have these beverages come from an Hawaiian agricultural product and be a Hawai`i processed juice," McCleary said.

"There is a potential for co-branded products with spas and resorts," Lovejoy said. "We could process here if the economics are right."

"Our tourism business basically is a healing business," McCleary said. "People come here to regenerate, to slow down. This can help.

"We have 10 acres planted on Pu`u O Hoku Ranch," McCleary said. "We're growing organically, which isn't possible for everyone."

A much larger planting is underway on C. Brewer's former sugar cane land on the Hamakua Coast.

"We have about 10 varieties here in the nursery," said Matthew Archibald. We're able to produce about 10,500 plants per month and plan on doubling the nursery by next March."

Manager John Cross said the company is in "serious negotiations with a German pharmaceutical company. They want 100 tons a year soon with about 150 tons two years from now. We are looking at planting 250 acres eventually. In this first year, we'll probably get between 75 and 100 acres planted.

We keep our plantings in varietal stands so we can state the kavalactone percentage on each harvest. We're planting in hills to make it easy for the root systems to get out there. So far, we are finding the fibrous roots are prolific. They have the highest percentage of kavalactones."

Hawaiian `awa has proven to be of better quality and contain a higher percentage of kavalactones desired by pharmaceutical companies. Archibald estimated that production per plant, wet weight, could approach between 17 and 20 pounds. With 2,000 `awa plants per acre, Cross estimates island farmers could see a net profit of $8,000 to $10,000 per acre.

The Association for Hawaiian `Awa (AHA) was founded in May 1998 with assistance from McCleary, his wife Lavinia Currier and their Sacharuna Foundation. The purpose of AHA is research, education and preservation of the cultural and medicinal values associated with the `awa plant.

With the assistance of Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, the Rural Economic Transitional Assistance-Hawai`i project and the University of Hawai`i Small Business Development Center, a conference was held at Ho`owaiwai Farm in August 1998 and a quarterly newsletter is published. An effort to form an `awa growers association is underway.

"The ultimate goal of the [growers'] organization should be to assist growers, especially those with struggling small farms, to secure financial rewards for their hard work and risk," McCleary said. "`Awa is a beneficial plant and a symbol of Hawaiian oppression, endurance and cultural revival. It's fitting that it should be a boon to the farmer while it helps to diversify our agricultural economy."

McCleary noted that `awa, like hula and Hawaiian language, was outlawed in the early missionary days.

Pu`u`ala Farms, another certified organic `awa farm, has a new `awa product on the market - Hawai`i` Kava Tea. It is a blend of `awa root, leaf, stem and natural flavors packed in individual tea bags. It is 100 percent Hawai`i grown, according to the April 1999 AHA newsletter.

For more information on the awa association, the growers' group and the newsletter, contact editor Ed Johnston of Alia Point `Awa Nursery at 961-4963 or write AHA, P. O. Box 636, Pepe`ekeo HI 96783. For more information on the beverages, check the web site drinksthatwork.com

Ka`u on the net

The Ka`u District offers several informational sites on the World Wide Web. Among them is Ka`u Landing.

"A forum for Ka`u Landing readers has been set up and we're looking forward to your input," said editor Michael Gibson. "Go directly to http://venus.beseen.com/boardroom/h/25379 or just go to our home page and click on the forum link. For a full description of April articles, visit the table of contents page at: http://www.kau-landing.com/contents.html or browse through our online archive to find articles from the past 6+ months at: http://www.kau-landing.com/archive.html

Other activities

Monthly talk-story sessions on community health are held from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at Tutu's House in Waimea at the Parker Ranch Shopping Center. The next one is Thursday, April 22. Hosted by Five Mountain Medical Community, the sessions are for everyone, not just health professionals. For information, contact Betsy Cole by e-mail at fminfo@fivemtn.org or telephone 885-9227.

More than $2,000 in merchandise prizes and medals will be presented next Sunday, April 25, at the Battle of the Saddle mountain bike challenge. For more information, contact Hawai`i Sports Connection, 329-3309, or D'armand Cook at C&S Cycle and Surf, 885-5005.

Friday, April 23, Tom Conkle of the US Forest Service Institute of Forest Genetics will offer a workshop from 1 to 4 p.m. at the conference room of the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife on the corner of Kilauea and East Kawili Streets in Hilo.

The purposes of the workshop are to compile a base-line situation assessment of the status of Hawai`i's forest genetic resources; to determine what actions are necessary for conserving important forest genetic resources of Hawai`i; and to have Hawai`i's forests included in the world forest data base maintained by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Currently this data base shows that no forests exist in the Pacific islands.

For more information, contact Len Newell of the USDA Forest Service Institute of Pacific Island Forestry by e-mail lenewell@gte.net or telephone him in Honolulu at (808) 522-8231.

Miconia eradication continues on the Big Island on four Saturdays next month. May 8, 15, 22 and 29 work groups will assemble at the Onomea Hongwanji parking lot. For detailed information on attire and chores, contact the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board at 966-5416.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel. Back issues are archived at http://hawaii-island.com in the Economic Development category. Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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April 11, 1999
Big Island macadamia oil makes hit nationally for flavor, health

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

A new macadamia nut oil product from Hawai`i has reached chefs in New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco, Portland, Sacramento, Honolulu, Kona and Hilo.

Packaged very much like estate-created virgin olive oil - in tall, square bottles with a no-drip cap - the golden oil comes from MacFarms of Hawai`i on the Big Island.

Dietary studies during the past five years and more reveal macadamia nut oil to be 80 percent monounsaturated fat. The higher this percentage, the greater the beneficial effect on HDL/LDL ratio - the good vs. bad cholesterol. During the past decade, consumer demand for olive oil has tripled primarily due to its beneficial cardiovascular effect. Macadamia nut oil at 80 percent is six percentage points higher than olive oil, which checks in at 74 percent monounsaturated.

Of all the oils, macadamia nut oil boasts the most favorable ratio (one to one) of Omega 3 to Omega 6 fatty acids.

"Macadamia nuts have a bad reputation for having a lot of fat, but it turns out the fats don't impact cholesterol," commented UH Professor of Medicine J. David Curb, principal investigator of a federally funded research project.

Dr. Curb observed that macadamia nuts, like olive oil, are high in oleic acid, a monounsaturated fatty acid believed to be beneficial in cutting cholesterol. The nuts are the only food to also contain significant amounts of palmitoleic acid, another monounsaturated fatty acid.

In a recent dietary study, preliminary indicators suggest the palmitoleic acid content of macadamia nuts may actually aid in fat metabolism, possibly reducing stored body fat. This is one reason world-class Ironman Triathlon endurance athletes tagged MacFarms macadamia nuts the official Hawai`i food for the annual event.

Intense research by MacFarms resulted in the distinctive natural golden color of the oil being maintained through processing and packaging. Food consultants rate the oil as easy to use, agreeable in texture or "mouth feel," having excellent coating properties and a very high smoke point.

With olive, sesame and most other oils, flavor and aroma almost disappear as the cooking temperature reaches sautéing levels. For olive oil, that loss-of-flavor temperature is 170 degrees F - not even half the optimum sauté temperature of 365 degrees F. Macadamia nut oil has a smoke point of 389 degrees F and retains its nutty flavor and bouquet at very high temperatures.

For more information, check MacFarms of Hawai`i's web site www.macfarms.com or telephone 328-2435.

The oil is sure to be a hit.

Mac nut recipes

Here are a couple of thoughts on integrating macadamia nut oil into your recipes.

Pesto & Cheese Triangles

Ingredients: 10 sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed

1/2 cup macadamia nut oil

pesto (2 cups firmly packed basil, 3 cloves garlic, 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, 1/2 cup macadamia nut oil, 1/4 cup chopped macadamia nuts, salt and pepper; blend. The remainder may be refrigerated with a thin layer of surface oil to prevent darkening.)

6 rounded tablespoons grated Swiss cheese

6 rounded tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove two sheets of phyllo dough from package. Keep remaining sheets of phyllo from drying out by covering with a damp cloth. With the two sheets stacked, cut into long strips, three inches wide. Brush with oil. Place one tablespoon of pesto at bottom of each strip and cold the corner up to make a triangle. Continue folding until the entire strip is folded in a triangular shape. Continue with other strips until all ingredients are used. Place triangles on baking sheet; brush each with oil and bake for 15 minutes until golden brown. Serve immediately. Makes 20.

Triangles may be prepared ahead and frozen until ready to bake. Recipe doubles easily. (Adapted from Take Home Aloha Recipes by Oils of Aloha and Food Consultants of Hawai`i.)

Macadamia Fish

Ingredients: 4 to 6 fish cutlets

1 cup macadamia nuts finely chopped

1 cup seasoned flour

3 tablespoons macadamia nut oil

1 egg

2 tablespoons lemon juice

chopped parsley, pepper and salt

Dry fish cutlets and roll in seasoned flour. Cover cutlets with beaten egg and roll in macadamia nuts. Heat oil in pan and fry fish gently until light brown on either side. Add lemon juice and continue to cook for another five minutes. Serve garnished with parsley. (from MacFarms of Hawai`i).

The Hawaii Macadamia Nut Association 39th annual conference will be held Friday and Saturday, May 7 and 8, at the Hilo Hawaiian Hotel. Contact Ellen Mehos, 322-0935.

June 18-19, the Las Vegas Trade Show will be held at the MGM Grand Hotel. The Hawai`i Food Manufacturers Association sponsors this business-to-business mini-trade show. It's a good time to take your product to meet buyers and distributors responsible for getting products into restaurants, grocery stores and other businesses. Booths cost $250 for HFMA members, $350 for non-members. Contact Charijean Watanabe at Hawai`i Baking, (808) 488-6871, extension 248.

Mahalo Plenty!

Crewmembers from USS Crommelin pitched in to erect playground equipment from the foundation up. They were assisted by local Navy recruiter MM1 Dan Rodrigues (right). The project had been on hold for two years. Crommelin sailors completed assembly in less than a day.

A big Big Island mahalo to the 15 or so crewmembers of the frigate USS Crommelin who took time out of their liberty during Merrie Monarch Festival weekend to erect playground equipment at Keikiland, a County park near St. Joseph's School. Early estimates place the value of the savings to our County at $25,000.

"The economic benefit [of Navy ship visits] in the community is tremendous," said John Davis, immediate past president of Hilo Council of the Navy League.

Navy League is a civilian organization that works to support all the sea services and locally encourages port calls by the US military.

"Navy League serves as the liaison between the Navy and Hilo for events like this. We help arrange community service projects, sporting activities, tours, church transportation, whatever the ship needs."

Crewmembers joined Hawai`i County police officers for a softball game in the rain Sunday (April 11) at Carvalho Park. It was a 15-15 tie at the end of the seventh inning. Final score was 18-16 with both sides claiming victory because Crommelin loaned players to the police team. Other officers and crew took KMC tours of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. CDR Craig Kleint and Crommelin's 220 sailors hosted free public tours of the ship Friday and Saturday.

Rear Admiral John W. Townes III, Commander Navy Region Hawai`i, joined CDR Kleint to host a reception aboard Crommelin for the Merrie Monarch Festival Royal Court and Hilo Council of the Navy League following welcoming ceremonies Friday. RADM Townes and his wife Nancy were so impressed with the Merrie Monarch Festival that they made reservations for next year before the competition was over.

"I really like the small town feeling, the friendliness, and the scenery," said more than one sailor. "I'm coming back with my family."

For information on Hilo Council membership and programs, contact Neal Herbert, vice president, 935-1946.

Other activities

Happy National Library Week (April 11-17). Go thank your nearest librarian. Volunteer to help read aloud or shelve books. Donate your used books to a Friends of the Library group - there are several on this island. And call your neighborhood library for a schedule of events this week.

Friends of Thelma Parker Library in Waimea are hard at work preparing for their semi-annual book sale Saturday, April 24, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Funds supplement state library funds for books, tapes, videos and equipment. Donations may be dropped off during library hours. They welcome encyclopedia and magazine sets.

There's an impressive line-up for the 15th Big Island Science Conference, which will be held April 15-17 at UH-Hilo, sponsored by Sigma Xi and the Hawai`i Science Teachers Association. Researchers, educators and the public are invited to hear presentations on a variety of subjects from terrestrial and marine biology to astronomy.

For more information e-mail jene@hawaii.edu or telephone 974-7411.

Last chance to sign up for the professional wood finishing workshop Saturday, April 17, with Greg Johnson of Avon, New York. Big Island contact is Matthew D'Avella, 326-5452. Sessions also are scheduled for Maui and O`ahu.

Johnson is the principal wood finisher for the Wendell Castle shop in New York. The workshop will include a slide-illustrated talk on recent projects at Castle and demonstrations on spray gun maintenance and operation, setting up a finishing room and booth. Also covered will be clear finishes, color work and hand rubbing to the desired sheen.

The Hawai`i Forest Industry Association sponsors the professional wood finishing seminar series. Cost of the seminar is $60 for non-members. There is a discount for current members. Space is limited and pre-registration is a must.

Correction

KITV broadcasts the Merrie Monarch Festival live.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel. Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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April 4, 1999
King Kalakaua's festival brings many benefits to Big Island

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

As we begin the 36th annual Merrie Monarch Festival it's a good time to reflect on the history of King David Kalakaua. His historic relationship with the US Navy puts a plus on the festival's economic impact on our island.

King David Kalakaua, born in 1836, was elected king in 1874 and reigned until his death in 1891. He was a scholar, poet, talented musician and lyricist, and champion of Hawaiian culture and arts.

With his encouragement, "many of the nearly extinct cultural traditions of the Hawaiian people were restored," said Dottie Thompson, festival chairperson. "These included the myths and legends, and the hula, which had been forbidden by the missionaries for more than 70 years.

"Ancient Hawaiians had no written language. All communications beyond the spoken word took place in the form of chants and dance. Hula and its accompanying chants recorded Hawaiian genealogy, mythology and prayers of the heart and mind. The hula was the means by which the culture, history, stories and almost every aspect of Hawaiian life was expressed and passed down through generations."

Kalakaua also was quite a seaman. His former boathouse has been rebuilt adjacent to Aloha Tower Marketplace and houses the Hawai`i Maritime Center. Kalakaua embarked on a voyage around the world in January 1881, the first monarch to do so. His visit to the United States, particularly to Washington DC, was required to achieve ratification of the Reciprocity Treaty, a long-sought agreement to allow duty-free exchange of products between the Kingdom of Hawai`i and the United States.

Kalakaua was the first king to visit the United States and he was royally received. He met with President Chester A. Arthur and spoke to Congress on the value of the treaty to both nations, according to Caroline Curtis in Builders of Hawai`i.

"As an added inducement, Hawai`i offered the Pearl River Lagoon, for a US naval base," Curtis wrote.

The bay fed by Wai Momi (Pearl River) has been called Pearl Harbor since 1836. The treaty meant that unrefined sugar, rice and other agricultural products from Hawai`i and a large number of manufactured goods from the United States could enter each country customs-free. Many sugar planters felt this was necessary for the growth of their industry and meant greater economic stability for the kingdom. Indeed, sugar production increased ten-fold under the mutual agreement. In 1875 Hawai`i exported 25 million pounds. In 1890, the kingdom's export exceeded 250 million pounds.

Agreement regarding Pearl Harbor wasn't reached until 1898, according to Captain William T. Rice, USNR (retired) in Pearl Harbor Story.

"The actual work of deepening and widening the channel wasn't started until 1901, at which time a coaling station for the fueling of ships was erected just inside the entrance," Rice wrote.

In 1908, Congress authorized construction of a Naval Station at Pearl Harbor, according to A. Grove Day in History Makers of Hawai`i. [That same year the US Army Corps of Engineers began construction on Battery Randolph (Fort DeRussy) with walls facing the ocean 20 feet thick.] In August of 1918, the Pearl Harbor dry dock formally was opened by Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels. Helene Hale, George Naope and Gene Wilhelm were the organizers of the first Merrie Monarch Festival in 1964.

"The Navy was involved from the very beginning," Hale said. "We started with the idea of encouraging more tourism to East Hawai`i. The downtown businesses really participated and everyone wore attire common to the days of King Kalakaua. We took a lesson from the Whaling Spree in Lahaina in many of the activities we planned in those early days such as beard contests and barbershop quartets.

"It was Dottie Thompson who turned the Merrie Monarch Festival into the fantastic hula competition it is now. She deserves a lot of credit for her 30 years of hard work."

Thompson took over leadership of the Merrie Monarch Festival in 1969 when the Hawai`i Island Chamber of Commerce was about to drop sponsorship. The date may change from year to year because the festival always begins on Easter Sunday.

Once again, the US Navy will be actively involved. Pearl Harbor's commander, Rear Admiral John W. Townes III and his wife Nancy arrive in Hilo on Thursday. RADM Townes assumed command of Navy Region Hawai`i, a newly created structure, in January. Townes is Commander for both Naval Base Pearl Harbor and Naval Surface Group MIDPAC.

An Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate USS Crommelin will arrive in Hilo with 220 officers and crew under the leadership of Commander Craig Kleint. Because of the busy cruise ship schedule, the Navy ship will not pull up to Pier One until 6 p.m. Thursday, April 8.

Crommelin will host free tours of the ship Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The official Merrie Monarch and Hilo Council of the Navy League greeting will take place Friday, April 9, at 11 a.m. at Pier One with a performance by Akoni and His Palapalai Patch and presentations to the Royal Court. The public is invited to the dockside greeting. For more information on Hilo Navy League activities, contact vice president CAPT Neal Herbert, USCG (retired), 935-1946.

In addition to attending the hula competition, participating in the parade and other Merrie Monarch Festival activities, Crommelin is providing a community relations crew to the County's Department of Parks and Recreation to erect playground equipment.

A recently completed report from the Maritime Committee of the Chamber of Commerce of Hawai`i by Leo A. Daly estimates cruise ship visitor spending at $125 per day. The same certainly is true of visiting sailors. Last year there were a total of five Navy and Coast Guard ships in Hilo with 2,631 officers and crew and four ships or submarines to Kailua Bay with 1,000 officers and crew. These visitors stayed longer on the Big Island than the one-day cruise ship visitors, averaging three days in port.

Using the Statewide Cruise Facilities report estimate of per day spending, $125, the Hilo Council of the Navy League estimated sailor spending alone added an additional $5.08 million to Hawai`i County's economy in 1998. Each ship also had "operations" spending for tugs, line handling or lighter service, produce and supplies, tour buses, fuel, sewage pumping, water, telephone service, rental cars and other services amounting to approximately $150,000 per ship or $1.65 million. These figures do not include the DBED&T multiplier effect.

Janice Otaguro in Honolulu Magazine said, "Under Thompson's direction, [the Festival has] blossomed into the most popular Hawaiian cultural happening in the state. Every year, the 5,000 tickets for the event go on sale January 2 and sell out in four days.

Ticket sales, t-shirts and programs aren't the only economic impact. There are 27 halau on the schedule. The dancers, musicians, support staff and a crush of visitors fill East Hawai`i hotels and bed and breakfast accommodations to capacity. Rental cars and vans are hard to find. Craft vendors and lei makers flock to Hilo. KHON-TV broadcasts the entire competition live.

"I'm sure there are more than 12,000 visitors and residents who come to enjoy the Merrie Monarch Festival in one way or another," Thompson said. "Let's welcome them all."

Lava, volcanoes, earthquakes and the realm of Pele are among themes explored in hula during Merrie Monarch. Another exploration takes place Saturday, April 10, when an eruption hazards symposium will be held at UH-Hilo Campus Center from 9 a.m. to noon. The symposium will be presented by the Center for the Study of Active Volcanoes (CSAV) and is sponsored by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Topics to be covered vary from the phenomenon of flowing lava to lava's effect on structures. Of special interest are preventive measures that communities may take to reduce risks in a volcanic environment.

Speakers include Steve Self of UH-Manoa, Jim Kauahikaua and Jack Lockwood from Hawai`i Volcano Observatory, Christina Heliker from US Geological Survey, Harry Kim of Hawai`i County Civil Defense. Also involved is Sandy Smith who will share stories about the loss of a home in the 1960 Kapoho eruption and the 1989 Kalapana flow.

The eruption hazards symposium is free and open to the public. For more information, contact CSAV at 974-7631.

Other activities

Friday, April 9, the Hilo Orchid Society will meet at 7 p.m. in the Komohana Agricultural Complex to discuss preparations for the annual show and sale to be held in July at the Edith Kanaka`ole Stadium.

For more information, call 982-7098.

Tickets are still available for Hawai`i Ag Day in Pearl City at the UH Urban Garden Center. Pre-event price is $10 at all Safeway stores.

Contact Hawai`i Ag Day Festival hot line (808) 532-7483 or web site www.hawaiiag.org

April 15-17 at UH-Hilo, the 15th Big Island Science Conference will be sponsored by Sigma Xi and the Hawai`i Science Teachers Association. For more information e-mail jene@hawaii.edu or telephone 974-7411.

Saturday, April 17, a professional wood finishing workshop with Greg Johnson of Avon, New York, will be held on the Big Island from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Contact Matthew D'Avella, 326-5452.

Johnson is the principal wood finisher for the Wendell Castle shop in New York. He has worked there since 1989 and has finished exclusively the Castle-designed art furniture, pianos, and clocks as well as having the responsibility for restorations on older Castle art pieces for private collectors and museums. The workshop will include a slide-illustrated talk on recent projects at Castle and demonstrations on spray gun maintenance and operation, setting up a finishing room and booth. Also covered will be clear finishes, color work and hand rubbing to the desired sheen.

Thursday, April 22, the professional wood finishing seminar will be held on Maui at John Wittenburg's shop. Contact Wittenburg, 244-4917.

Saturday-Sunday, April 24-25, the seminar will be held on O`ahu at Martin & MacArthur. Contact Marian Yasuda, 538-0448, or Alan Wilkinson, 456-1006.

The professional wood finishing seminar series is sponsored by the Hawai`i Forest Industry Association. Cost of the seminar is $60 for non-members. There is a discount for current members. Space is limited and pre-registration is a must.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel.

Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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March 28, 1999
Timber management conference reveals forestry's complexity

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

Forestry's difficult technical and economic problems received a thorough discussion at a state-run conference given by the State of Hawaii on its request for proposals (RFP) to harvest 11,700 acres of timberland near Hilo. The project is seen as a long-term base for forestry on the Big Island.

At issue are harvesting schedules for the Waiakea Timber Management Area (WTMA) that will result in the greatest economic stimulus to the island's economy. Planting started in 1959 and continued through 1968 with mixed results. Neither the state nor foresters think the same planting techniques would be used today whether in the matter of spacing trees in the land or in selecting trees to be planted in the many sections and their varying soils.

Much has been learned about growing trees here in the 40 years since this project started. The issue of putting new knowledge to work in reforesting the area after its harvest is an important consideration for the state and private sector bidders. Everyone wants a forest replacing the present trees to be healthier and more productive.

Mayor Stephen Yamashiro attended the workshop and made his disappointment with the bidding process clear.

"Your department is taking the long view," the mayor told representatives of the State's Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR). "But that ignores the economic goal of the Waiakea timber project and our island needs more employment now."

At issue in the mayor's statement was a 500-acre per year limit on harvest of eucalyptus trees, which represent three of the eight species on about 4,000 acres.

"This island leads the state in unemployment, in drug use, in spouse and child abuse and we need jobs that won't come with a 500-acre limit."

The acreage limit bothering the mayor was placed in the Forest Management Plan for the area. If the devil is in the details, that's where he lives in this document. The fine print, adopted by the Board of DLNR Sept. 11, 1998, controls bidders seeking a land lease to harvest trees. Five bids are expected by the April 12 deadline.

Carl T. Masaki, forestry program manager for DLNR's Division of Forestry and Wildlife, noted that the 500 acres wasn't arbitrary but was set by dividing the years necessary to grow a new crop on harvested land into the total acres available. Eucalyptus has a 12-year cycle, which, if divided into the 4,000 acres under discussion, would actually be only 333 acres annually. But the condition of the area's existing trees and other considerations lead the board to raise the first-recommended 300 acres per year to 500 in adopting the management plan. The point is, more acreage annually speeds proper re-planting.

Most foresters and landowners in the audience took the mayor's side - seeking to enlarge the annual harvest area - but held out different reasons. Forestry's technical strides could bring the state a wealth of knowledge if no annual limit were placed on a bidder's proposal, it was suggested, and the state should be open to receiving bids based on that new knowledge. Each bid would contain that company's best information.

It was noted that only eucalyptus trees have an annual acreage limit. Other species are limited by the quantity of wood harvested and that varies with species.

Foresters generally thought the acreage of eucalyptus to harvest annually should be about 1,000 in the Waiakea area for the best influence on the forest of the future.

The mayor noted the very large bonding required includes $800 per acre to assure the state replanting will occur. Eight hundred dollars an acre is a generous replanting budget. That's added to the $1,000 per acre performance bond and one potential bidder said the total is about $900,000 annual bonding. The mayor was referring to that in seeking a higher annual harvest.

"What are you afraid of?" Yamashiro asked the state. "You're assured of replanting to your specifications."

Similar arguments by several landowners and managers were voiced. They want to see better quality trees in terms of the wood made available - koa, for example, rather than more eucalyptus. They cannot plan on that and plant quality timber unless the state's project encourages veneer milling - for example - on the Big Island. A veneer mill and other expensive equipment can't be justified with a 500-acre limit.

But Ed Winkler of Hilo disagreed with the questions at this point in the bidding process. This is the first such public bid on commercially planted timber in recent state government history, Winkler noted, and concerns of the nature raised should have been posted when the management plan was under discussion.

Winkler's primary concern was that added uncertainty could result in the RFP being withdrawn for further board review and further delay in getting the small and very promising Hawaiian forest industry started on this new direction.

Winkler said there was room within the management plan for fine-tuning on all the species to be harvested as time went along and the state and private sector partnership learned from their experience.

It was reported that the state later agreed to consider proposals that included more than the 500-acre limit if other concerns - such as a better re-planting schedule - are met. Everyone agrees that the state has had difficulty in recent years with its responsibility to manage and maintain forests on state lands. The present department leadership and staff are working to overcome that deficit.

The discussion was serious and all were learning of difficulties faced in the present contract. It was an even-tempered and high level discussion of the tone and clarity that the state needs as it finds its way out of the present economic slump to build new opportunities for present residents and children to follow.

Other activities

Businesses with the potential and desire to sell to the government should attend a government contracts workshop Wednesday, March 31, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at The Banyans, All Hands Club, Pearl Harbor Naval Base.

Marge Roberts, the contracting point of contact for all competitive sourcing and privatization issues for the Pacific Air Force will lead the workshop.

The day-long program will cover how to get started, methods of contracting, types of contracts, solicitation, and outsourcing. Seating is limited to 200.

For more information, contact Hector Venegas at hector@pixi.com or telephone (808) 523-2931. There is a $45 fee that covers materials, coffee, lunch and refreshments.

Saturday, April 10, Hawaii Ag Day at Pearl City - UH-Urban Garden Center - 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. More than 100 booths will feature product displays and sampling with top chefs.

Pony rides, petting zoo, plant doctor, educational talks, garden tours, silent auction, and entertainment are all part of this great day. Admission $10 pre-sale tickets available at Safeway stores, $15 at gate ($10 for children 5-16 years). Contact Hawaii Ag Day Festival hot line (808) 532-7483 or web site www.hawaiiag.org

April 15-17 at UH-Hilo, 15th Big Island Science Conference sponsored by Sigma Xi and the Hawaii Science Teachers Association.

"The conference provides an opportunity for island researchers to share their findings with the local science community. Local educators also will share developments in science education," said Jene Michaud of the Natural Science Division at UH-Hilo.

"During the daytime on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, there will be sessions on geology, VOG, terrestrial biology, lava caves, and marine and aquatic biology. On Thursday evening is a special event during which local observatories will share their latest findings."

The Thursday evening program will be followed by an observing session at the UHH Observatory.

For more information e-mail jene@hawaii.edu or telephone 974-7411.

Saturday, April 17, a professional wood finishing workshop with Greg Johnson of Avon, New York, will be held on the Big Island from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Contact Matthew D'Avella, 326-5452.

Thursday, April 22, the seminar will be held on Maui at John Wittenburg's shop. Contact Wittenburg, 244-4917.

Saturday-Sunday, April 24-25, the seminar will be held on O`ahu at Martin & MacArthur. Contact Marian Yasuda, 538-0448, or Alan Wilkinson, 456-1006.

The seminar series is sponsored by the Hawaii Forest Industry Association. Cost of the seminar is $60 for non-members. There is a discount for current members. Space is limited and pre-registration is a must.

Friday, April 23, is the annual Maui County Agricultural Trade Show & Sampling, also known as the Ulupalakua Thing. Chefs will demonstrate their specialties using Maui meats and produce. Entertainment, tours and a farmers market round out the agenda.

Tickets are $10 for a full afternoon from noon to 4 p.m. at Tedeschi Winery and Ulupalakua Ranch in upcountry Maui. For more information, contact Barbara Santos, (808) 845-0457.

Friday, April 23, is the entry deadline for the annual golf tournament to benefit the Business-Education Partnersip. Sponsored by Central Pacific Bank and KTA Super Stores, the tournament will be held Wednesday, May 5, starting at 11 a.m. at the Hilo Municipal Golf Course.

For more information, contact Alan Garson of the Business-Education Partnershio, 933-4481, or Miles Nishimoto at Central Pacific Bank in Hilo.

April 23 & 30, May 7 & 14, Hawaiian Skies astronomy at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Study the heavens with astronomer Stephen James O'Meara, 967-8222.

Focus on the Economy is a weekly column on science, technology, business and agriculture provided by the Hawai`i Island Economic Development Board, which receives partial funding from the Hawai`i County Department of Research & Development and GTE Hawaiian Tel. Readers with announcements or questions are invited to write to K.T. Cannon-Eger, HC 1 Box 5164, Kea`au, HI 96749-9511 or phone (808) 966-8565. E-mail to focus@hawaii-island.com

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March 21, 1999
New edition of Big Island travel guide has fresh discoveries

By K. T. Cannon-Eger

How big is the Big Island? So big to one 20-year resident writer and photojournalist says that "I'm still learning new things everyday about this wonderful place."

And luckily, John Penisten chooses to share those findings in a new edition of "Hawai`i -- The Big Island: Making the most of your family vacation," a delightful volume for visitors and a great reference for residents.

"Of the six million visitors to the Aloha State in the last year, a million or so of them spent all or part of their stay on the Big Island," Penisten said. "They are drawn by the Big Island's