Energy Conservation & Regular Folk

I don’t talk about energy conservation much because the regular folks already have this figured out.

I would feel a lot better, though, if the regular folks had a greater say about our energy policy.

When the oil price spiked in the summer of ’08, Moms all over the island were following their kids around, turning off lights. By that summer, one could see lots of big pick-up trucks in used car lots. Many more were parked along the roadsides with “For Sale” signs on their windshield.

My nephew’s family had a car and a big-tired 4-wheel drive pickup truck for work transportation. One day, my nephew told me: “Uncle, I’m going to sell my truck and get a scooter to go to work.” A young guy, selling his big-tired pickup truck, the one he used to take his pitbull riding in the back, for a scooter? There is no question that the regular folks get it about high energy costs! That consciousness is working its way through our whole society.

No, I don’t worry about the regular, rubbah slippah folks. I worry more about the folks that have no “real world” life experiences and are making survival decisions for the rest of us.

Unreasonable Expectations for Biofuels

Robert Rapier is one of the most respected voices on biofuels in the world. He lives on the Big Island now, and a few weeks ago he came to visit us on the farm. In his recent blog post on his Robert Rapier’s R-Squared Energy Blog, (we link to it over there on the right side of this page), he states:

 There was a recent article in MIT Technology review called What’s Holding Biofuels Back? There is a relatively simple answer to the question that I will delve into below, but the short answer to “What’s holding biofuels back?” is that we placed unreasonable expectations on them to begin with, and they have simply failed to meet those unreasonable expectations. People would think it was unreasonable if Congress mandated a cure for the common cold within 5 years, but they don’t think twice when Congress mandates the creation of a cellulosic ethanol industry within 5 years. Yet either scenario requires technical breakthroughs that are not assured.

 It’s apparent to me that the Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) decided to pursue biofuels three years ago, and it’s also apparent to me that inertia is moving them forward. Instead of being at the forefront of change, they are being very sluggish and slow to change directions.

The world has changed and the most important thing now is adaptability. It is not the strongest that will survive, but the ones who can adapt.

What bothers me most is the “one size fits all” way that HECO does business. For example, the PUC rejected HECO’s plan to institute smart grid proportionately for O‘ahu, Maui and the Big Island. They were going to force this on all islands and charge the cost to the ratepayer, in spite of the fact that the Big Island and Maui have different resources than O‘ahu – geothermal. But it’s not surprising, since HECO owns the Big Island’s HELCO and Maui’s MECO.

HECO is pushing hard for biofuels to be used as fuel for its subsidiaries on Maui and the Big Island. They would set up long-term power purchase agreements, which would effectively freeze out geothermal power on both Maui and the Big Island.

Why would we want to freeze out geothermal – which is cheap, dependable and a proven technology that does not emit greenhouse gases? This is our chance to push a solution that could raise our standard of living relative to the rest of the world. A solution that would elevate the host culture, and a solution that would help businesses grow. We must not make the wrong decision.

White Water coming!

Video: Climbing Up The Bamboo Pole

Richard Ha writes:

Awhile back I spoke to the UH Hilo Student Association Senate leaders about geothermal energy. I warned them that exponential growth fueled by a finite resource – oil – was a serious problem for us here on the Big Island.

Along the very same lines, Lloyds of London just warned its business clients to prepare or it could be catastrophic. I wrote about Lloyds of London's warning here.

I told the student leaders that we need to know what we are going to do before a catastrophe happens. "White water coming, we need to climb up the bamboo pole and lift up our legs." 

This video sums up everything I talk about on this blog.

Richard Ha Video 

Farmers & Biofuels

This article appeared in Pacific Business News on August 13, 2010:

Biofuels have supporters, but
scale remains an obstacle

Pacific Business News (Honolulu)
– by Sophie Cocke

Three years ago, representatives of Hawaiian Electric Co. met with farmers on the Big Island to discuss growing feedstock that could be converted to biofuel and used in the company’s generators. But discussions grew quiet when local farmers calculated how much they would be earning.

There are 42 gallons in a barrel of oil, each container of which weighs 286 pounds. So oil, at $80 a barrel, would yield the farmers about 28 cents per pound.

“There’s hardly anything a farmer will grow for 28 cents per pound,” said Richard Ha, one of the local farmers who attended the meeting.

Profits decline even more given that the feedstock must be drained to obtain the oil. Four pounds of a crop can result in only one pound of oil, meaning farmers would be getting paid only 7 cents per pound for their crops.

“The farmers never went back to another meeting,” said Ha.

This story looks at biofuels, and their role in Hawaii’s push for energy independence…. (Read more)

It is no secret that I am very concerned about betting too much of our future on biofuels just because we feel that we need them desperately. The critical chokepoint is feedstock.

We need to take a deep breath and we need to talk to farmers. Read about when I asked HECO not to let us get flattened by the wild bull.

Dawn Chang as Candidate for Kamehameha Schools Trustee

Dawn Chang is one of three candidates for a position as Trustee for Kamehameha Schools.

I have written about Dawn here before, recently when she was a consultant working on the Comprehensive Management Plan for Mauna Kea.

That was a controversial and very difficult situation, with extraordinarily strong feelings on both sides, and she really impressed me under fire. She did not falter. She just focused on pono and let the chips fall where they may. She even endured someone cursing her children’s future kids.

But, nevertheless, by the end of the long process, some of the most skeptical folks – the ones who were strongly against the Thirty Meter Telescope – called her “Sistah.” This is why we became friends for life.

The Court required candidates to demonstrate expertise in one or more of the following areas:
•    Business administration
•    Finance and investment
•    Strategic planning and policy setting
•    General areas of interest including education, law or governance

As well as possess the following:
•    A recognized reputation of integrity and good character
•    The capacity to fulfill the responsibilities of a fiduciary under trust law
•    Respect for and from the community

•    Consistent and active leadership in the community with specific emphasis on issues impacting the well-being of the people of Hawaii

•    A formal education

•    Outstanding personal traits including Hawaiian values

I have no reservations at all in supporting Dawn for the position as Kamehameha Schools Trustee and I’m sending in my written support. If any of you that know Dawn’s work, character and integrity would like to do the same, written comments and/or expressions of support must be received by 4 p.m. on September 14, 2010.

Mail to: Kamehameha Schools Trustee Screening Committee
c/o Inkinen & Associates
1003 Bishop Street
Pauahi Tower, Suite 477
Honolulu, HI 96813
email: jobs@inkinen.com

The Women of Hamakua Springs, & Tilapia

Last week we gave our workers fish from our first tilapia harvest.

PlanningFarm Manager and Son-In-Law Kimo, Grandma (my mom), my daughter Tracy, and my wife June

We are convinced that oil prices will keep rising, and that it will cost more and more to bring fish to Hawai‘i from all over the world.

GrandmaGrandma, in the middle of the action

We are trying to fit tilapia production into a zero waste program. Since tilapia is a vegetarian fish, we will be experimenting with how to utilize our waste bananas as well as vegetables. We want to be prepared for when it might be profitable to produce tilapia commercially.

Full netJune has a full net

For those who have not tried locally grown tilapia, I can tell you that I was so surprised myself to find out how good this fish is. Chef Alan Wong serves it in his restaurant. That is how good it is.

Heavy net kimo and juneAnd it’s heavy!

One of my favorite ways to prepare it is to get a smaller sized fish, deep fry it very crispy and eat the whole thing.

AurellioGrandma giving some fish to Aurellio

Farming is a tough business. We’d like to raise our workers’ pay but are finding it very difficult to do so right now. June is the one who made sure we are growing fish for our employees. We are committed to doing this from now on.

Women of hamakua springsThe women of Hamakua Springs

Putting the Bamboo in the Ground

A couple days ago I got a note from Henry Curtis saying he was on the Big Island for a few days of rest and relaxation, and that he wanted to drop by and talk story. Henry is executive director of the environmental group Life of the Land.

Since I had planned to plant bamboo, I figured we could talk story and do that at the same time. So I picked up Henry and his partner Kat Brady and took them riding in one of our Woods 4x4s.

As we drove, I pointed out the three ahupua‘a that run through our farm and the characteristics of each. Then we drove to the top of the ridge line that is the prominent feature of Kahua ahupua’a. From there we could see most of the farm and I pointed out the main features of each hupua’a. We could see the streams by the trees that grow alongside. I explained that I am interested in reclaiming the stream banks from invasive trees and grasses.

We talked about food security, energy security and community and after awhile we talked in shorthand because it was apparent that we all understood what is happening with oil and the direction the world is moving in. They absolutely understand farming —that it is not easy or automatic. I was happy to know that about them.

On the old sugar plantation field maps, sugar cane field acreages were written on the maps. The sugar companies raised sugar cane right to the riverbanks, so they used most of the land. But since then, invasive trees have started growing on the stream banks and now they are everywhere and moving into productive agricultural lands. We want to reclaim the productive land and plant bamboo in the non-productive land. In that way, we will maximize the productivity of our land area.

I told Henry and Kat that I want to use bamboo as a way to reclaim the streams and put the non-productive stream banks into production. When they are in season, June wants to give bamboo shoots to our workers.  The bamboo provides a primary windbreak for our bananas, and planted on the south side of streams, its shadow falls on the water, keeps it cool and helps to suppress pest trees. Bamboo can even be used for the construction industry.

Jerry Konanui had asked for photos of the kalo plants I recently found in Makea stream. So I asked Henry folks to help me get some plants. Here are a couple of them. In a couple of hours they were all wilted, so I gave them to Grandma to replant in the nursery. We want to make sure we do not lose the species. When they’re stronger, we’ll give them to Jerry for identification.

Henry curtis

Next we went up to the site of our hydroelectric project. I pointed out how lucky we were to have this great amount of water constantly flowing. On our property alone we have about 1/3 of the total amount of water that comes across the Waiahole Ditch on the way to Central Honolulu. Once I counted 35 streams between Hilo and Honoka‘a.

We had a very fun visit. Kat told me she loved the smell of dirt on her hands.

Hawai‘i Students Host Japan Students at Micro Robot Conference & Tournament

‘Imiloa Astronomy Center hosted the first International Micro Robot Conference and Tournament last month.

Waiakea High School and ‘Iolani School hosted students and teachers who came from Ritsumeikan High School, a super science high school in Kyoto, Japan. Over two weeks, the Hawai‘i group took its peers hiking through Kilauea Iki Crater, star-gazing from Mauna Kea, to Coconut Island for an acoustic shrimp study, on an Atlantis submarine drive off Waikiki, and to presentations by astronomers, geologists and marine scientists.

In November, Waiakea High and ‘Iolani will each send a 5-student/1-teacher delegation to the 8th annual Ritsumeikan International Super Science Fair in Kyoto.

Also planned is a micro robot outreach programs on all islands, which introduces the LETry robot and other micro-mechanisms to participating teachers.

KTA’s program Living In Paradise: Science is fun has a YouTube video featuring Dave Olive and the Japanese students and teachers. It’s the third segment on that video.

Pictures from the two weeks that the Waiakea and ‘Iolani students took the Japanese students around. Wow:

Picture 1
Picture 2 Picture 3 Picture 5 Picture 6 Picture 7

Answer: Bamboo

Here’s the question:

What is it that can

  • maximize the usage of the land
  • provide windbreak protection
  • shade out invasive species
  • cool off the streams
  • and provide food?

screen-shot-2016-11-22-at-4-45-45-pmThere are many varieties of bamboo. We’ve been looking for the kinds with shoots that are good to eat, in addition to providing all the other benefits.

Picture 2
Picture 3

June and I went to Quindembo Bamboo Nursery this weekend and came back with my pickup truck full of bamboo. I want to maximize food production here on the farm, so we will plant bamboo on the south sides of the streams. That way the shadow will fall on the stream, keeping it cool and shading out pest plants. We’ll leave enough room so we can still access the stream banks. We want to reclaim all the stream banks on the whole property. This will be a fun project and there is a lot of land to cover.

Picture 4

Since this will be on non-producing land, it will increase the property’s productivity. June points out that no matter what we end up doing with the bamboo, we can certainly give it to our workers for food.

Picture 5

West Meets East, and BioTork

We are trying out some Korean Natural Farming methods at the farm. We are also using commercially available micro-organisms when we start from seed, and that has eliminated our dieback problems. It’s only an observation so far, not science. But it’s working.

I found this video interesting:

Bruggeman.jpg

It’s a video interview with Terrance J. Bruggeman, executive director of BioTork. He discusses BioTork’s natural solution to the BP oil spill clean-up, using variants of naturally occurring organisms. Watch the video here.

BioTork is an bio-engineering company focused on three things: waste-to-biodiesel, using microbes to control agricultural pests and oil remediation. What they are doing sounds like what Korean Natural Farming does – using micro-organisms, instead of chemicals, to produce food. If so, it’s a game changer.