Posted on: Thursday, October 14, 2004

EDITORIAL
Hideto Kono message resonates even today

Elegant, competent and forward-looking. These qualities described Hideto Kono, who died this week at 82. Kono was someone who could have been successful in almost any endeavor, but chose to spend a good part of his adult life in Hawai'i in public service.

Kono began his public service in 1959, when he helped lead the enormous task of reorganizing the territorial government into a state entity.

He served as director of the Department of Planning and Economic Development under Gov. George Ariyoshi, and became the key player in the long-range planning effort that was central to Ariyoshi's administration.

One of Kono's chief legacies — and the one we should be paying attention to today — was his leadership in the drive to wean Hawai'i from its dependency on fossil fuel.

This was during the oil crisis of the 1970s, when it became clear that the Islands were particularly vulnerable due to our dependence on imported oil. During this period, the state launched a variety of initiatives, including wind and geothermal energy and the ocean-thermal experiment at Keahole on the Big Island.

It is interesting that while Keahole remains an important player due to the wide variety of economic uses its cold, deep-ocean waters provide, the idea of using it to produce energy has taken a back seat.

It would be a fitting memorial to Kono if the state revived its interest in alternative energy now, before the next oil crisis makes such efforts an imperative.

True, some important steps have been taken, including an initiative to mandate the use of ethanol in fuel supplies, and both the state and private industry have supported hydrogen fuel-cell research.

But the sense of urgency the state felt back in the 1970s, when Kono was at the helm, seems to be missing.

Kono and others laid important groundwork in making Hawai'i less dependent on oil. It is time to complete that legacy.