Hawai'i briefs
Advertiser Staff and News Services
HONOLULU
Ala Wai waste on the agenda
A legislative bill to pay for a pilot bioremediation facility for material dredged from the Ala Wai Canal and other waterways will be discussed at the Kalihi-Palama Neighborhood Board at 7 p.m. today in the Kapalama Elementary School cafeteria.
The bill seeks $1.75 million to design and build the facility. The amount would be matched by federal money.
Kalihi residents are worried that dredged materials from the Ala Wai will pollute public beaches on Sand Island after being dumped offshore.
The board will also try to fill two vacancies.
Anti-tobacco grants offered
REAL, the Hawai'i Youth Movement Against Tobacco Use, is seeking applications for $10,000 grants to support community or school-based anti-tobacco projects.
The REAL Community Grant Program will award at least 10 grants. Only group projects that involve youth in decision-making roles will be considered.
The program aims to support existing or new youth groups that focus on at least one of the following areas: tobacco use prevention; exposing the tobacco industry's tactics and effects; prevention of second-hand smoke; and tobacco cessation.
The program is paid for with money the state is receiving as part of its settlement with the tobacco industry.
Applications for grants must be received by 5 p.m. Feb. 28. For application forms or more information, call REAL project director Mary Jane Ahrendes at 441-8194. The application form also can be downloaded at www.crch.org/real.
WINDWARD
Kane'ohe drain improvements
The city is proposing improvements to the Kokoka- hi Place drainage system in Kane'ohe to reduce flooding problems.
The changes include new drain inlets and a drain line extending from the Kokokahi Place cul-de-sac to Malulani Street and a new box drain and a parallel box drain onto the YWCA property below Kane'ohe Bay Drive.
A draft environmental assessment has been filed with the Office of Environmental Quality Control. The finding shows that the project should have no significant impact on the environment.
A management plan to control soil erosion will be developed, however, because the steep terrain poses the potential for loss of soil along the alignment from the cul-de-sac, said the OEQC bulletin.
The entire project is estimated to cost $633,000 and to last six months.
The public has until March 11 to comment. Call Albert Miyashiro with the city at 527-5155 or consultant Robert Purdie Jr. at 524-0355.
EAST HONOLULU
'Othello' show for children
The Honolulu Theatre for Youth will perform "Othello" at 6:30 p.m. tomorrow at the Hawai'i Kai Public Library at the ground floor meeting room.
The special performance is paid for by a grant from the Friends of the Library of Hawai'i. Admission is free.
The performance is aimed at children 10 years old and up.
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
'Opihi picker still missing
MALIKO, Maui — A daylong search off the Ha'iku coast yesterday failed to locate an 'opihi picker who was last seen Monday morning.
The 35-year-old man, whose name has not been released, was reported missing yesterday morning. His car was still parked at Maliko Bay and an 'opihi knife and several loose 'opihi were found on the rocks, but there was no sign of the man, said Department of Fire Control assistant chief Greg Chong Kee. He said the surf conditions had not been particularly rough.
Big Island fire investigated
Big Island fire investigators were looking into the cause of a fire that destroyed a Kaumana home near Hilo on Monday afternoon.
The firefighters responded to the 1:06 p.m. alarm at 1329 Country Club Drive and found the structure in flames. The home was described as a 20-by-20-foot structure with no electrical power.
Fire officials said the home was at the end of Country Club Drive and inaccessible to fire engines. A smaller brush truck was needed to fight the fire, but by the time it arrived the building's roof had already collapsed.
The fire was brought under control at 1:30 and extinguished at 2 p.m. No one was home at the time of the fire and there were no reports of injuries.
Damage was estimated at $35,000.
