This year of the Earth Pig is, so far, a busy one. We see masses of blooms on many trees: mango and summer pea (ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi: peh-uh, for "pear" aka avocado), jacaranda in Kona ʻĀkau, the startling gold trees in Hilo, previously mentioned bright orange African tulips in windward gulches, etc etc etc.
If you recall, last time I mentioned our drought. So much for "midst". Soon thereafter we had seven or so inches of rain up here, and rains over Hawaiʻi nei have continued. Yesterday, driving home from Hōlualoa on Māmalahoa, the "ma uka road" from Kailua to Waimea, I wondered at the fog and low clouds caught in ʻōhiʻa and lama near the Scenic Point on the 1800 flow. Different...
Different and equally amazing I think, is the map released by USGS HVO folks a few days ago:
2018 LERZ Flow Thickness Map
Volume of collapse at Kaluapele and pele erupted in Keahialaka are estimated at .8 cubic kilometers each, more or less. In perhaps more familiar terms, 1,046,360,480 cubic yards.
Thatʻs a Billion + cubic yards.
And I must say something (again) about reopening roadways in the region. The Lava Hazard Zone has not changed because the eruption ended. The area is still in Hazard Zones 1 and 2, the most hazardous.
There are people whose homes and farms remain lavalocked. Two sections of Hwy 132 are buried: about 1.5 miles closest to the "Y" near Lava Tree State Park, and about 1.6 miles as it passes Waiapele (Kapoho Crater). Total buried is about 3 miles.
Iʻve spent far too much time during the last several weeks talking to folks in our County Government. People who work for us. People in the Mayorʻs office, an informal hallway chat with the Mayor, Council people, the staff of Council people, Public Works people, construction people, geologists, Planning Department people, Department of Research and Development people...lots of people. I wanted to know why hasnʻt work started on even a basic, temporary, gravel road to allow access for residents.
It all boils down to "Harry Said Gotta Wait Six Months". Again, there is absolutely no physical basis, fact, or reason that a temporary route(s) canʻt be opened. The eruption is over. The "Six Month" claim, as explained by the Mayor to me, is because in 1990, when lava was inundating Kalapana, HVO scientists told him to "Wait Six Months" before repaving streets and roadways. Of course back then Kīlauea was still erupting. And erupted for another 28 years. Why repave or fix, when pele may well come again?
The eruption is over, and has been since September. There is no reason or need to wait six months.
But still might be hot, but might get lava tubes, but get big cracks, but stay dangerous, but gotta make LIDAR, but gotta bore holes, but gotta survey, but gotta reach consensus, but gotta make Section 106 compliance, but you donʻt understand, but but but....
And meantime, residents are in limbo, not knowing when.
TryLook:
A tidy new road from the "Y" to the Puna Geothermal Venture property. Up over the levee, across large māwae (fissures or cracks), across the bed of the channel, up the other bank, and home. Didnʻt hear of any incidents of bulldozers falling into holes or sinking into hot lava, or....nothing. They made the road. And this is just ma kai of Fissure 8.
And The County made road over three fingers of pele to allow access to Pohoiki. That road opened on December 6, 2018:
Someone in a position to know said Oh. Easy. Can do ʻum right now. Money isnʻt an issue, hazards arenʻt issues, we just GPS the route and go.
Why we gotta wait? Oh. Gotta meet. Gotta talk to stake holders. Gotta gotta gotta.
If someone in the County would only issue a bulletpoint statement saying clearly and succinctly WHY gotta wait, Iʻm open to learning. But it seems that all this is the usual governmental bureaucratic shibai. Itʻs so much easier to say No. No can. Gotta meet. Gotta wait. No. Nope. ʻAʻole. My head like explode... They seem to forget, as do we sometimes, that They Work for Us.
From our friend Mick Kalber: TryLook new roads made by residents:
As always, with aloha,
BobbyC
maniniowali@gmail.com
BobbyC
maniniowali@gmail.com
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