Images of Old Hawaiʻi

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Wind, Wings and Waves

Hawaiʻi is the world’s most-isolated, populated-place, we are about: 2,500-miles from the US mainland, Samoa & Alaska; 4,000-miles from Tokyo, New Zealand & Guam, and 5,000-miles from Australia, the Philippines & Korea.
We are surrounded by a vast ocean and sometimes naively feel isolated, separated and protected from outside threats and negative impacts.  Unfortunately, we take too much for granted.
Formation of Hawaiian Island chain started more than 70 million years ago.  Yet despite millions of years of isolation, plants, animals and insects found their way to Hawaiʻi … on Wind, Wings and Waves.
Some seeds, spores and insects arrived on the wind.  A few birds flew or were blown off course; in them or stuck to their feathers were more seeds.  Some seeds managed to float here on ocean currents or waves.  Ocean currents also carried larval forms of fish, invertebrates, algae and even our freshwater stream species.
It is estimated that one plant or animal arrived and successfully colonized every 30,000 years.  Over millions of years in isolation, these original plant and animal species changed, forming into our native species.
The first alien species arrived with Polynesians in the year 300 A.D. or so. In 1778, Hawaiʻi was placed on the world map; and so started new invasive species pathways.
It is estimated that in the last 230+ years, as many as 10,000 plants have been introduced: 343 new marine/brackish water species; Hawaiʻi went from 0 native land reptiles to 40; 0 amphibians to 6 (including coqui) and there is a new insect in Hawaiʻi every day.
The greatest threat to Hawaiʻi’s native species is invasive species.
Hawaiʻi has the dubious distinction of being called the endangered species capital of the world and unfortunately leads the nation in endangered species listings with 354 federally listed threatened or endangered listed species.
With only 0.2% of the land area of the United States, nearly 75% of the nation’s historically documented plant and bird extinctions are from Hawaiʻi.  We have more endangered species per square mile on these islands than any other place on Earth.
Impacts from invasive species are real and diverse: Tourism and agriculture-based economy; Forests’ ability to channel rainwater into our watersheds; Survival of native species found nowhere else; Health of residents and visitors; and Quality of life that makes Hawaiʻi a special place.
Today, the pathways to paradise are diverse, including: air & ship cargo; ship hulls & ballast water; hand-carry/luggage; mail & freight forwarders; forestry activities; horticulture trade; aquaculture; pet trade; botanical gardens and agriculture experiment stations (or simply on you and your clothing.)
While I was at DLNR, we formed and I co-chaired the Hawai‘i Invasive Species Council, a multi-jurisdictional agency, established to provide policy level direction, coordination, and planning among state departments, federal agencies, and international and local initiatives.
Our focus was primarily on two actions: the control and eradication of harmful invasive species infestations throughout the State; and prevention the introduction of other invasive species that may be potentially harmful.
We must continue to be vigilant in stopping new pests from coming in and eradicating those that have already made it to our shores.
We share a common goal.  Whether your concern is in having enough water, healthy reefs, diverse forests, a healthy economy or a healthy family, we all want the same thing:  To make and keep Hawaiʻi a great place to live.

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Lāna‘i Culture & Heritage Center Presents “Aloha Lāna‘i”

No plans this weekend?  Problem solved.
Lāna‘i Culture & Heritage Center Presents “Aloha Lāna‘i” a Benefit Fundraising Event on the Island of O‘ahu, Sunday, March 25th, 2012 – Saint Louis High School – Mamiya Theater.
I was early and fortunately got my tickets early; but I understand due to an overwhelming response to the Aloha Lanai Benefit Concert, the event has been sold out.
Not to fret – arrangements have been made for overflow seating in the Saint Louis Presidential Suite adjoining Mamiya Theater.
Sunday, March 25, 2012 at Saint Louis Campus – Mamiya Theater; $30.00 at door.
Outside at 4:00 pm – Strolling musicians; Voices of Lanai Oral History Program; Silent Auction Opportunities viewing and bidding; Food ; Sales of CDs from contributing musicians; Sales of Lanai Culture & Heritage Center Publications and a special “Aloha Lanai” t-shirt.
In the Mamiya Theater at 6:00 pm – Welcome presentations/program background and call to support; Raffle Giveaway and Silent Auction; Music and Hula.
Proceeds benefit heritage, preservation and cultural-historical education programs on Lāna‘i.

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

How Much Land Do We Need To Be Food Self-Sufficient?

Given the recent and on-going conversations on food “self-sufficiency” and “sustainability,” in trying to answer the above question, I first looked to existing State plans to see the estimates and computations noted there.
To my surprise, there is no detail in the Hawaii 2050 Plan (the State’s most recent long-range planning document) that quantifies how much land is needed for food self-sufficiency.
While it does use “happy words” (as I describe its text) generalizing that we need to do this or that; however, no roadmap to get there or measures of success are included.
I then did an internet investigation into the matter to see if ‘rules of thumb’ or other standards could apply.  The evidence is variable.
As noted by the graphic used here, some suggest, at a self-subsistence level, a family of four can live off of approximately 2-acres of land.
Extend that to the Hawai‘i’s existing defacto population of about 1.5-million people, we need about 750,000-acres of land to feed everyone.  (Of course, there are economies of scale when moving from individual family subsistence production to commercial scale production, so this number is inflated.)
(By the way, de facto population is defined as the number of persons physically present in an area, regardless of military status or usual place of residence.  It includes visitors present but excludes residents temporarily absent, both calculated as an average daily census.)
The 750K acres for 1.5M people conflicts with a report on feeding the people in the city of Detroit.  In that report, Detroit’s 5.4-million people would require only 164,250-acres to feed everyone there, per year.
Extrapolating that to Hawai‘i’s 1.5-million de facto population that means, under the Detroit analysis, Hawai‘i only needs about 45,625-acres of farmland to feed the State.  Hmmm.
Another study on Costa Rica “Quantifying Sustainable Development: The Future of Tropical Economies” suggests that it takes about 495,000-acres of land to feed 1.2- to 1.6-million people.
Of course, all of these estimates do not include the significant dietary supplement we are able to use in Hawai‘i by harvesting seafood from the surrounding ocean.
Nor does it include opportunities that concentrated farming offer, like aquaponics, hydroponics, intensive grazing, etc.
So, while we talk about food “self-sufficiency” and “sustainability” what are we doing about it?
Lately, I think the only ‘action’ has been talk – folks go to a meeting, talk, then they prepare a plan.  They meet again, and talk some more.  Then everyone goes away satisfied that they are ‘doing’ something (until the next happy words meeting.)
Presently, the State designates about 1.9-million acres as “Agriculture.” The USDA reports Hawai‘i’s total farm acreage is 1.1-million acres of land.
And, of course, you can farm lands that are not designated ‘agriculture;’ meaning, a lot more land is available for food production from lands under other land use classifications (including everyone’s own backyard.)
 
Given that, should we all feel comfortable there will be food for us in the future?
Not quite.
I think it is about time we have a frank discussion about what our needs are and start to take the necessary steps to ultimately realize our goal of food self-sufficiency and sustainability.
The world is changing in lots of ways – we cannot blindly go along with business as usual (with just happy words) in addressing this important and critical need.

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Riddling

Riddling – no, it’s not telling tough, puzzling stories with veiled double meanings.  It’s a process used in the making of sparkling wine (champagne – under the traditional “Methode Champenoise”.)
First, some very basics in wine making.
Grape juice has sugar; yeast is added and it ferments the juice, consuming the sugar – producing alcohol, carbon dioxide and heat.  Made in unsealed containers, ‘still’ wine has no bubbles.
In making a sparkling wine, first the winemaker makes a still wine (no bubbles) and puts it into a champagne bottle.
Then, to make the bubbles, a small amount of sugar and yeast is added to the wine in the bottle.
A bottle cap (like a Coke bottle cap) seals the bottle and it is set aside to referment; this traps the carbon dioxide bubbles produced by the fermentation of the added sugar and yeast.  This process also traps the dead yeast cells in the bottle.
After appropriate rest, it’s time to remove the yeast residue.  The bottles are put in A-frame holders and the riddling process begins.
Over several weeks of periodic turning and tapping of the bottle, the yeast residue slowly moves toward the cap.  (The video shows the riddling process.)
Now it’s time to disgorge the residue.  The bottles are set upside down in a freezing brine solution to freeze the yeast sediment and form a “plug” near the cap.  The bottles are turned upright, the cap is removed and the trapped gas shoots the frozen plug (with the spent yeast) out of the bottle.
Some extra sparkling wine tops off the bottle and a cork is added to seal the bottle.
The cork seal keeps the carbon dioxide in the sparkling wine (the wire cage over the cork prevents any possible premature decorking from the high pressure contained in the bottle.)
Chill your sparkling wine prior to serving.
To remove the cork, keep the cork pointed in a safe direction and remove the foil around the cork and wire cage (keep a thumb on the cork, just in case.)
With the cage removed, hold the cork in one hand (usually under a towel) and the base of the bottle in the other.
Turn the bottle, not the cork, slowly and gently.  You want the cork to ease off with a soft “whoof” (with the cork in your hand,) not with a “pop” – and the cork sailing across the room.
Usually, a tall, thin sparkling wine glass is best to extend the life of the bubbles in the wine (the flat, broad glass allows the gas to escape faster.)

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Tsunami in Hawai‘i

Today – March 11 – is the first anniversary of the Japan earthquake and subsequent tsunami.
               
A tsunami is a series of ocean waves generated by sudden displacements in the sea floor, landslides or volcanic activity.  In the deep ocean, the tsunami wave may only be a few inches high.  The tsunami wave may come gently ashore or may increase in height to become a fast moving wall of turbulent water several meters high.
In Hawaii, tsunamis have accounted for more lost lives than the total of all other local disasters.  In the 20th century, an estimated 221 people have been killed by tsunamis.  Most of these deaths occurred on the Big Island during the tsunamis of 1946 and 1960, two of the largest tsunamis to strike in the Pacific.
Here is a brief summary of some recent tsunami and their impacts in Hawai‘i:
1946
The tsunami of 1946 was generated by a magnitude 7.1 earthquake in the Aleutian Islands.  This tsunami struck the Big Island of Hawaii on April 1st.  The tsunami flooded the downtown area of Hilo killing 159 people and causing more than $26-million in damages.
1952
On November 4, 1952 a tsunami was generated by a magnitude 8.2 earthquake on the Kamchatka Peninsula in the USSR.  In Hawaii, property damage from these waves was estimated at $800,000-$1,000,000 (1952 dollars); no lives were lost.  The waves beached boats, caused houses to collide, destroyed piers, scoured beaches and moved road pavement.
1957
On March 9, 1957 a tsunami was generated by a magnitude 8.3 earthquake in the Aleutian Islands.  It generated a 24-foot tsunami that did great damage on Adak Island, especially to the fuel and oil docks.  The Hawaiian Islands incurred about $5,000,000 of damage in 1957 dollars.  The highest wave in Hawaii was 12-feet.
1960
The tsunami of May 23, 1960 was generated by a magnitude 8.3 earthquake in Chile.  The 35-foot tsunami struck Hilo, Hawaii causing severe damage.  61-deaths were recorded and $23-million in damage occurred.  In the area of maximum destruction, only buildings of reinforced concrete or structural steel and a few others sheltered by these buildings, remained standing – and even these were generally gutted.  Frame buildings were either crushed or floated nearly to the limits of the flooding.
1975
On November 29, 1975, an earthquake occurred off the coast of the Big Island of Hawaii.  When the quake-generated tsunami struck, 32 campers were at Halape Beach Park.  The sound of falling rocks from a nearby cliff, along with earth movement caused the campers to flee toward the ocean.  They were then forced back to the cliff by rising ocean waters.  The first wave was 5-feet high, but the second wave was 26-feet high and carried the unfortunate campers into a ditch near the base of the cliff, where they remained until the ordeal ended.  Two campers died and 19 suffered injuries.
2011
An earthquake measured at 9.0 magnitude, the sixth biggest since 1900, struck Japan on March 11, 2011.  The first tsunami waves reached Kaua‘i shortly after 3 a.m. and took about 30 minutes to sweep through the island chain.  Waves above 6-feet were recorded at Kahului on Maui and 3-feet at Haleiwa on the north shore of Oahu.  Lost homes, sunken boats, Kona Village Resort damage, and damaged piers and roads caused tsunami damage into the tens of millions of dollars; no one was killed or injured during the tsunami.
I have added some photos of tsunami impacts in Hawai‘i for several of the prior events (1946 – 2011) to a folder of like name in my Facebook Photos section.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Peter-T-Young/1332665638