life of the lands

By Henry Curtis The day after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 the Navy declared martial law on Kaho`olawe. Residents were forced to leave.  The Navy used Kaho‘olawe as a target ranch from 1941 through 1990.  The Navy assaulted the island with napalm, mock atomic warheads, bombs and rockets. “ From 1942-1943, American submarine commanders tested torpedoes by firing them at the shoreline cliffs at Kanapou. Additional torpedoes were test-fired from 1943 to the 1960’s, ” according to the   Parsons-UXB Joint Venture Final Summary   (2004).  The Report noted that the   "’Sailor Hat’ tests were conducted on Kaho`olawe. Three tests of 500 tons of TNT each were detonated to simulate the blast effects of nuclear weapons on shipboard weapon systems .” Many of the unexploded warheads targeted for land landed in the ocean. In 1969 protests ensued when a five-hundred-pound bomb was found over seven miles across the channel on Maui pasture land leased to then Maui ...

By Henry Curtis In the spring of 1995 the Honolulu Star-Bulletin ran three Special Sections over a three week period covering four decades of Hawaii.  In the March 14, 1995 Special Section the paper wrote an article, “ Key leaders left mark on the state during Hawaii’s growth years .” “ The effect a person can have on a place is immeasurable. Here are the 10 people or organizations who, from 1965 to 1975, helped make Hawaii what it is today .” Those honorable mentioned but not making the list were such notables as Henry Kaiser, Frank Fasi, William S. Richardson court, Myron B. Thompson, Robert Oshiro and George Ariyoshi. Their list of key players contained 6 individuals -- John Burns, Tom Gill, George Helm, Dan Inouye, Patsy Mink and Ah Quon McElrath; and 4 organizations -- Land Use Commission, Bishop Estate, Unions and Life of the Land. Life of the Land was founded in February 1970 and named in September 1970.  Life of the Land made the top ten list even though the organizati...

By Henry Curtis Life of the Land played a significant role on-Department of Defense created Technical Review Committees (TRC) and Congressionally-approved Restoration Advisory Boards (RAB). These entities were created as an interface between the military and civilian populations regarding overseeing efforts to clean up past acts of contamination. The military went looking for contamination while the State and Counties minimized problems on non-military land.  The military was willing to test cutting edge cleanup methods. Life of the Land served on the Army’s Schofield TRC, the Navy’s Pearl Harbor RAB, and the Air Force’s Hickam RAB (LOL’s Henry Curtis served as the community co-chair from 1996-2005) and the Air Force’s Central Oahu RAB (which included Kahuku, Kaena, Kauai, Wake Island and the Pacific). On most of these boards Life of the Land was the lone environmental voice. The State of Hawai`i and the U.S. EPA were more interested in covering up the problem. Ironically, the UH M...

By Henry Curtis The modern air conditioner was developed in the early 1800s but became popular in the 1950s and 1960s. During the 1950s and 1960s consumers were urged to increase their use of electricity.  Live Better Electrically (LBE) was launched in March 1956. The industry-wide campaign was supported by 180 electrical manufacturers and 300 electric utilities. The Southwest Museum of Engineering, Communications and Computation has posted a   historical document   with historical advertisements.  “ The campaign got then-actor Ronald Reagan, the popular host of ‘General Electric Theater,’ to take his television audience on a series of tours of his and wife Nancy's all-electric   Pacific Palisades   home.” “In October 1957, LBE launched the "Medallion Homes" campaign, which sought to sell 20,000 all-electric homes nationwide by 1958, 100,000 by 1960 and 970,000 by 1970 .” The electric industry took off. Profits soared. Rates were low. Regulators did little....

By Henry Curtis A major Village Park health cluster became apparent in the 1990s.  Kids were born healthy. Mothers of first graders noticed that something was wrong. There were significant health issues and some kids had open heart surgery. Village Park is an area of just under one square mile where 9600 people live. The population includes roughly one quarter of Waipahu.  The 2000 census indicated that the community was 58% Asian and 21% multi-racial. Whites accounted for 9% of the population.  The southern boundary is the H1. At the western edge is Kunia Road, which becomes Fort Weaver Road as it goes under the H1 heading towards Eva Beach. There were a large number of possible culprits as to why kids were getting sick.  The reinforced underground concrete weapon bunkers of Lualualei Waikele lay just mauka of the community. The Navy could neither confirm nor deny whether nuclear weapons were stored there.  Residents could occasionally hear underground noises f...

By Henry Curtis The Hawaiian Constitution and the laws of Hawai`i are for the most part geographically bounded by the borders of the State of Hawai`i.  That is to say, the government can not impose its authority beyond its borders.  There are exceptions.  The treatment of convicted people who are exported to out-of-state private prisons are still the kuleana of the state government. Similarly, the government could ban imported goods produce by slave labor. A decade ago Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) proposed building a new power plant in Campbell Industrial park to be powered by imported palm oil. At the time Malaysia and Indonesia produced 88% of the palm oil in the world, and accounted for 91% of the world's trade in palm oil. The  lead story  in the December 5, 2006 edition of the Wall Street Journal was eye-opening.  '' Among the world's most fabled islands, Borneo --which is divided between Indonesian and Malaysia --is considered by environmentalists...

By Henry Curtis The widest and deepest utility fight in Hawai`i was the proposal by Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) proposal to build the Kamoku-Pukele 138 kilovolt (kV) Transmission Line.  HECO sought to build a high voltage transmission line on Wa`ahila Ridge, to connect a transmission substation near Iolani with one in the mauka section of Palolo. The fight lasted three decades and profoundly changed laws, rules and attitudes. The size of the conflict is reflected by the number of individuals and groups opposing the project, the sheer volume of documents generated and the number of legislative, executive and judicial bodies weighing in on the proposal. HECO gave the project twelve different names. Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) file an application with the Public Utilities Commission on June 1, 1973 requesting the right to spend funds to construction a 138-kV Transmission Line between the Kamoku and Pukele Substations. “ The request filed by Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. on...