Update on Wailua Diversion

SUBHEAD: Meeting Thursday 12/14 from 11:00am-1:00pm at the Kapaa Neighborhood Center.

By Bridget Hammerquist on 12 December 2017 in Island Breath -
(http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2017/12/update-on-wailua-diversions.html)


Image above: Two hikers at the Blue Hole walk across the concrete diversion (at left) of the North Fork of the Wailua Rivere diversion lets only overflow water into the natural channel of the river (at right). From (https://yosemitenews.info/forum/read.php?1,64439,64449).

[IB Publisher's note: The day with article was first published KIUC announced they were changing policy on the North Fork diversion of the Wailua River. See content of email we received.]

KIUC Board's Action on to Wailua River Diversions Līhu'e, Kaua'i, HI - 12/12/17 - The Kauaʻi Island Utility Cooperative Board today authorized KIUC President and Chief Executive Officer David Bissell to make changes to the ditch system to return water to the North Fork of the Wailuā River at the Blue Hole and Waikoko diversions. This action will ensure that water is flowing immediately downstream of the diversions. The board also authorized the commencement of engineering design for permanent diversion modifications to ensure continuous stream flow for aquatic habitat. Construction will take place upon approval from the appropriate regulatory agencies. Additionally, approval was granted to install additional gauging stations to increase data collection and understanding of the hydrology of the system. "The hydros have been producing energy on Kauaʻi for more than 100 years and represent an important piece of KIUC's renewable portfolio and will help us reach the State's mandate of 100 percent renewables by 2045," said KIUC Board Chair Allan Smith. On December 8, the State Board of Land and Natural Resources met and approved the holdover of a revocable permit for water use at the Blue Hole Diversion, which contribute 1.5 megawatts of energy to the island's renewable portfolio.

Image above: Boulders are scattered across the diversion at the head of the North Fork of the Wailua River due to heavy winter rains. Note the diversion channel is all but blocked (at left) and the natural flow of the water is in the original river bed (at right). From (https://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/2017/12/11/kiuc-receives-approval-for-holdover-of-hydro.html).

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IB Publisher's note: On Friday 7 December 2017 the Hawaii State Board of Land & Natural Resources (BLNR) met on Kauai to consider the  renewal of a revocable water-diversion permit for Kauai Island Utility Cooperative’s (KIUC) hydroelectric plants that utilize water from Mt. Waialeale.

The water diversions have been criticized as illegal.  The Kiai Wai O Waialeale coalition, along with community groups Friends of Mahaulepu, HAPA and the Sierra Club, said KIUC and Grove Farm are illegally using 30 million gallons or more of water per day for the hydroelectric plants, and on days when there’s no rain, the streams are dry.

The BLNR approved the KIUC request.

Their will be a debriefing of the BLNR meeting Thursday 12/14 from 11:00am-1:00pm at the Kapaa Neighborhood Center.

WHAT:
Debriefing on BLNR decision in favor of KIUC and Gloves Farms to continue diverting Wailua River forks.

WHEN:
Thursday December 14th from 11:00am to 1:00pm

WHERE:
Kapaa Neighborhood Center
4491 Kou Street Kapaa, HI 96746

Summary of BLNR Meeting
Friday was an exciting day and I have to say that we did shine a bright light on a big issue that has received little public coverage. For those who may not have seen the news coverage of the Board meeting, here are a couple links to TV and newspaper coverage.

http://www.thegardenisland.com/2017/12/09/hawaii-news/kiuc-wins-water-fight/

http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/story/37029649/land-board-approves-permit-to-continue-diverting-waialeale-waters-for-hydropower

For those who want to listen to the meeting Friday, here is a link to download the audio recording of Friday's BLNR meeting:

https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/15e8a4fc-0d4b-4223-8c90-a96c83b92c04

My big take away/summary is:

1. The Board was arbitrary when it denied the request for a contested case hearing.
2. The denial gives us the right to go directly to the State Environmental Court.

Based on the facts and illuminating power points presented, Kiai Wai O Waialeale may be well positioned now to file a State Court lawsuit against KIUC on the merits of BLNR's renewal of the Waikoko and Blue Hole/North Fork Wailua diversion permits while simultaneously suing Grove Farm for its 4 100% base flow stream diversions (Iliiliula, Iole, Waiaka and Waiahi) in violation of the following water use law.

The testimony offered by KIUC established that Grove Farm is also taking 100% of the base flow from four streams fed by Mt Waialeale which waters are mixed into the waters from Waikoko and Blue Hole, diversions on State land.

Grove Farm has no permits to divert those streams and should have permits because the water is no longer used to grow sugar and pursuant to Hawaii State Supreme Court decisions, when the purpose for the diversion ends, the diversions have to be taken down and stream flow restored as mandated by Hawaii's Constitution.

Most importantly, DLNR staff and KIUC admitted the water use at issue is consumptive, because the waters diverted are never returned to their stream of origin. If you read the statute below, it doesn't appear that BLNR has any authority to approve, permit or lease State waters when the use is consumptive.

§171-58 Minerals and water rights.
(a) Except as provided in this section the right to any mineral or surface or ground water shall not be included in any lease, agreement, or sale, this right being reserved to the State; provided that the board may make provisions in the lease, agreement, or sale, for the payment of just compensation to the surface owner for improvements taken as a condition precedent to the exercise by the State of any reserved rights to enter, sever, and remove minerals or to capture, divert, or impound water.(c)(3)

After a certain land or water use has been authorized by the board subsequent to public hearings and conservation district use application and environmental impact statement approvals, water used in nonpolluting ways, for non-consumptive purposes because it is returned to the same stream or other body of water from which it was drawn, and essentially not affecting the volume and quality of water or biota in the stream or other body of water, may also be leased by the board with the prior approval of the governor and the prior authorization of the legislature by concurrent resolution.

When you read the statute, Grove Farm's diversions are illegal. Grove Farm is directing water through KIUC's hydro plants and in return, KIUC releases that water back to Grove Farm and also adds the water from its State land diversions.

Not only did we have 3 solid votes against RP renewal, with each no vote the voting board member spoke directly to KIUC's CEO, David Bissel, and told KIUC to:

1. Complete their environmental studies (171.58 call for an EIS... did not understand why attorney's like Chris Yuen were speaking in terms of an EA when the statutory requirement is clear that any authorized use of State water can be permitted only "subsequent to" the acceptance of an EIS),
   
2. Restore uninterpreted stream flow as soon as possible and
   
3.  Meet with DHHL staff asap to achieve water distribution for its beneficiaries. One of the yes votes, from Chris Yuen, also made it sound like he wouldn't support them if they were not substantially along in the process by this time next year.

The other aspect that I didn't understand was why Suzanne Case did not recuse herself once it was clear that water from four Grove Farm stream diversions (IliIliula, Iole, Waiaka and Waiahi) mixes with the KIUC diversions and all runs through KIUC's power plant before being delivered to Grove Farm's infrastructure: the upper Lihue ditch (which is piped), the lower Lihue ditch and the Wailua South Fork that is 100% diverted by Grove Farm into the Hanamauulu ditch. 

Those four diversions were not part of the RP but the water from them is being used by the permittee and in return the permittee supports distribution back to Grove Farm. If you read 171.58, I can't find anything that exempts Grove Farm from a permit for their use of waters of the State. It is not right that Grove Farm directs this water to their surface water treatment plant before selling it to the County.

They claim they're charging for the delivery of water which is certainly splitting hairs because their charge is a fixed annual fee for 3 mgd.BLNR's arbitrary and capricious denial of the request for a contested case hearing, is a huge gift because we may now advance an Environmental State Court claim, having had our administrative remedy curtailed and having been deprived of due process. So rather than having the cost of an administrative hearing, I think we get to go right to State Court.

Note: Bridget Hammerquist is President of Friends of Maha’ulepu
P.O. Box: 1654
Koloa, HI 96756
friendsofmahaulepu.org
(808)742-1037

See also:
Ea O Ka Aina: Waialeale Water Lease 7/18/17
Ea O Ka Aina: Kauai's Hydro Battle 7/31/11
Ea O Ka Aina: Notice of Objection 6/3/11
Ea O Ka Aina: Special KIUC/FERC Meeting 5/28/11
Island Breath: Kauai Water Diversion - as a way of life 4/9/04

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Kokee & Kekaha Ditch Systems

SUBHEAD: The diversion of water from its normal course from the Alakai Swamp through the Waimea River.

By Juan Wilson on 29 April 2015 for Island Breath -
(http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2015/04/kokee-kekaha-ditch-systems.html)


Image above: View from Waimea Canyon Lookout. In the distance and to the upper left is the Alakai Swamp. In the forefront is Wahane Valley in the Puu Ka Pele Forest reserve. Much of the stream water in the lower valleys is diverted from flowing through the Waimea Canyon. The water is used to power the Mauka Hydroelectric Station before traveling on through the Kekaha Ditch System. Photo by Juan Wilson.

Yesterday, the 28th of April 2015, the Commission on Water Resource Management (CWRM) of the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) met on Kauai for the first time. It was a long day for its members who were committed to several events from morning and into the night. These included planned  site visits to several locations on the Kokee and Kekaha Ditch Irrigation Systems.

I attended three events between 9:30am until 4:30pm. There was a gathering of interested parties and an orientation at the Waimea Neighborhood Center. Then there were site visits to seven points long the ditch systems to get an understanding of the systems.

The CWRM conducted a site visits to several locations on the Kokee and Kekaha Ditch Irrigation Systems in connection with the complaint against waste in the Waimea River and its tributaries filed by then Earthjustice law offices on behalf of Poai Wai Ola organization and the est Kauai Watershed Alliance.

The purpose of the site visits were to give interested parties a better understanding of the system. The Kokee and Kekaha Ditches are interlinked at a number of points that create a more complicated network than I knew.

http://www.islandbreath.org/2015Year/04/150429ditchmapbig.jpg
Image above: Detail of handout map of Kekaha and Kokee Ditch System. Click to see it all larger.

SITE VISITS SITE # 1 Waimea Neighborhood Center 9:45 am A short briefing by Kekaha Agriculture Association (KAA) on the Kokee and Kekaha Ditch Systems. SITE # 2 Waimea Canyon Lookout 10:30 am Heading north on Kokee Road (Hwy 550), Turn right ~0.3 miles after mile marker 10 Waimea Watershed with view of Waipoo Falls (Kokee Stream). Flow in Kokee Stream is augmented by water returned from Kokee Ditch downstream of Kawaikoi, Waiakoali, and Kauaikinana Stream Diversions. SITE # 3 Puu Lua Reservoir 11:00 am Heading north on Kokee Road (Hwy 550), turn left at mile marker 12 Water from Kokee Ditch flows into Puu Lua Reservoir, which is located downstream of the sluice gate to Kauhao Gulch. The reservoir is maintained below 60 feet due to dam safety regulations and is used by the Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR) for sport fishing (trout are raised and released). Outflow from the reservoir continues towards the Puu Moe Divide. SITE # 4 Puu Moe Ditch Divide 12:30 pm Heading south on Kokee Road (Hwy 550), ~0.4 miles after mile marker 10 Kokee Ditch downstream of Puu Lua Reservoir. Water is divided between the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) lessees and the Kokee Ditch towards Kitano Reservoir. SITE # 5 Black Pipe Siphon Viewpoint 1:15 pm Heading south on Waimea Canyon Drive (Hwy 550), (See map) ~0.6 miles after mile marker 4 The Kekaha Ditch siphon conveys water from the eastern side of the valley to the western side. The siphon is located below the Mauka Hydropower Plant. Water continues in the Kekaha Ditch to the diversion point for the Menehune Ditch and on to the Mana Plain. SITE # 6 End of Kokee Ditch 1:45 pm Heading south on Waimea Canyon Drive (Hwy 550), ~0.1 miles after mile marker 3 Water exiting Kokee Ditch flows downslope into Kekaha Ditch. SITE # 7 Kekaha Ditch Crossing at Hwy 550 2:15 pm Heading south on Waimea Canyon Drive (Hwy 550), ~0.7 miles after mile marker 2 Kekaha Ditch downstream of Menehune Ditch withdrawal and before inflow from Kokee Ditch. SITE # 8 Waimea Neighborhood Center 3:00 pm Commission on Water Resource Management of the DLNR hears testimony from public on subjects from the Kokee and Kekaha Ditch Systems to need for water and homesteading on DHHL managed land to reach Kauai food self reliance.

One thing was clear from the presentation of Kekaha Agriculture Association representatives and the hydrologist hired by the Commission on Water Resource Management to survey the existing system - They saw the system with a mechanistic view. They read ditch flow in Millions of Gallons per Day (MGD) and siphon pipes as 48" diameter. They did not see the valleys, streams, and the plants, birds, fish and insects in them as a continuous living entity. Continuity in the living biosphere is a necessary condition for health and stability.

Many local westside people spoke eloquently on these issues. There were many influential people from Kauai and from the state as well as "stakeholders". The people were clear. Let them live on the land. Let the water be used by local people to farm, and feed people.  

My impression was that the members of the public that spoke were surprised by the warmth and sympathetic responses by the members that were present from the Commission on Water Resource Management: Chair Suzanne Case, Denise Antolini, Kamana Beamer, Jonathan Starr, and Michael Buck.

The questions the Earthjustice case has raised are related to the diversion of water from its normal course from the Alakai Swamp that on its own followed the natural terrain and into the Waimea River. These diversions were created in the early 20th century by plantation companies to grow sugar on the Mana Plain and the hilltops above it. These diversions have took tens of millions of gallons per day for almost a hundred years.

In my opinion, by taking the water out of a stream (along with fish, insects, plants) putting them through a ditch and a steel tubed syphon and running them through a hydroelectric generator creates a discontinuity in the fabic of life. There are many spots in many streams where the water does not run when it is "needed" by the KAA and its "customers". Those spots are where the biosphere breaks down.

Where Do We Go
By the early 21st century the sugarcane operations that demanded that water no longer existed. But the diversions continued. The biggest users are associated with Kekaha Agriculture Association (KAA) the Hawaii Agribusiness Development Corporation (ADC). Those users include the GMO chemical corporations BASF and Syngenta as well as Sunrise Capital that operates the Kauai Shrimp Farm. These corporations want a continued flow of the diverted water in the existing systems.

Other major players are looking for access to diverted water as well. KIUC wants access to Puu Opae Reservoir (now inactive). The plan would be to use the diverted water to drive a hydroelectric generator at night to provide electricity.

It is ironic that the users of water on the Mana plain feel they need the ditch systems. Before the Mana Plain was filled in by the sugarcane interests it was an extensive wetlands with swamps and ponds fed from the valleys above that extended to the top of the islands. Ditches were cut into the wetlands to carry the water away. To this day pumps are used to carry water to the ocean so as to control the level of water on the GMO fields. That pumping is done now "for free" by the US military to keep the Pacific Missile Range Facility dry and secure.

I believe in engineering the flow of water to slow its course through the island. It's a primary principle of permaculture. Never more than a small percentage of a stream should be taken from its natural course. The engineering of the sugarcane companies was to take all the water they could use (and more) and only let the overflow of their dams reach the the stream again.

I'd rather see the Mana Plain wetlands restored to their state before the 20th century. I'd rather see the current ditch system greatly reduced in scope and not allowed to create complete discontinuity in stream flows.

Global warming will bring water problems to Kauai. Even a few degrees of temperature rise will raise the altitude of rain forming clouds. Scientists at the University of Hawaii havce calculated that only a few hundred feet increase in cloud elevation will have a significant impact on Waialeale's ability to catch the rain. As it is, rain gauge measures their have been diminishing for decades. Global Waring are also making the Trade Winds less reliable and increasingly making El Nino and La Nina events more chaotic.

Bottom line: We have to prioritize how we use water on Kauai. Growing local food and providing for our people comes first. Fuck the corporations. And that is how the law is written that the Commission on Water Resource Management must follow.

Priority 1) Appurtenant rights of land that were cultivated in kalo(taro).
Priority 2) Hawaiian rights of traditional and customary practices.
Priority 3) Riparian rights protect people who live along the banks of rivers or streams. Priority 4) Correlative rights of those who own land overlying a ground water source.

See inset below for details.

HAWAIIAN WATER RIGHTS From (www.law.hawaii.edu) Today, Hawaii’s Constitution and Water Code recognize specific rights to ground and surface water, including appurtenant, riparian, Native Hawaiian, and correlative rights. To better understand how the Constitution and Code were designed to operate,it is important to have a basic understanding of these rights. 1. Appurtenant Rights Appurtenant rights appertain or attach to parcels of land that were cultivated, usually in the traditional staple kalo, at the time of the Mähele of 1848. Hawaii law recognizes that such land retained rights to the amount of water necessary to continue to cultivate crops. Although some kuleana land has appurtenant rights, land need not have been awarded as a kuleana to retain such rights. See, e.g., Haw. Rev. Stat. § 174C-101(d) (recognizing the “appurtenant water rights of kuleana and taro lands”). Because appurtenant rights attach to the land and not to any individual, they can be exercised by property owners irrespective of race or ethnic background. Appurtenant rights have the highest level of protection under Hawaii law and, as mentioned earlier, are a public trust purpose. For example, Hawaii’s Constitution recognizes that the Water Commission “shall set overall water conservation, quality and use policies”; but clarifies that any such priorities shall “assur[e] appurtenant rights[.]” Haw. Const. art. XI, § 7. The Water Code also recognizes the primacy of appurtenant rights: “Appurtenant rights are preserved. Nothing in this part shall be construed to deny the exercise of an appurtenant right by the holder thereof at any time. A permit for water use based on an existing appurtenant right shall be issued upon application.” Haw. Rev. Stat. § 174C-63. Despite these strong protections, the Water Commission has never inventoried or forecasted the amount of water necessary to supply existing or future appurtenant rights. See Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 174C-31(c), (d). Although the Water Commission’s jurisdiction to make determinations of appurtenant rights was made explicit in 2002, at the time of this primer’s publication, the Commission has yet to issue a formal declaration of any appurtenant rights, even though individuals have applied for such determinations. Given the lack of action on the Water Commission’s part, appurtenant right holders have had difficulty protecting their interests. This has been complicated by the Hawai‘i Supreme Court’s ruling that appurtenant rights may be severed if attempts are made to transfer or reserve these rights. See Reppun v. Board of Water Supply, 65 Haw. 531, 552, 656 P.2d 57, 71 (1982). Such reservations or transfers were and remain commonplace in deeds conveying property; thus, some appurtenant rights have been extinguished. 2. Native Hawaiian Rights Given Hawaii’s unique history and background principles of property law, our laws recognize and protect traditional and customary Native Hawaiian rights and practices. “The State reaffirms and shall protect all rights, customarily and traditionally exercised for subsistence, cultural and religious purposes and possessed by ahupua‘a tenants who are descendants of native Hawaiians who inhabited the Hawaiian Islands prior to 1778, subject to the right of the State to regulate such rights.” Haw. Const. art. XII, § 7. In addition to that constitutional mandate, the Water Code includes specific provisions respecting and upholding the rights of Känaka Maoli, which recognize that the “traditional and customary rights of ahupua‘a tenants who are descendants of native Hawaiians who inhabited the Hawaiian Islands prior to 1778 shall not be abridged or denied by this chapter.” Haw. Rev. Stat. § 174C-101(c). The Code makes clear that such rights include, but are not limited to, the cultivation of kalo on one’s own kuleana, as well as the right to gather various resources for subsistence, cultural, and religious purposes, including: hïhïwai (or wï); ‘opae; ‘oopu; limu; thatch; ti leaf; aho cord; and medicinal plants. Haw. Rev. Stat. § 174C-101(c). Similar to the treatment of appurtenant rights, the Code specifically provides that the “traditional and customary rights assured in this section, shall not be diminished or extinguished by a failure to apply for or to receive a permit under this chapter.” Haw. Rev. Stat. § 174C-101(d). The Code also recognizes and upholds rights conferred by “the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended, and by chapters 167 and 168, relating to the Molokai Irrigation System.” Haw. Rev. Stat. § 174C-101(a). Moreover, the Code directs the Commission to “incorporate and protect adequate reserves of water for current and foreseeable development and use of Hawaiian home lands as set forth in section 221 of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act.” Haw. Rev. Stat. § 174C-101(a). Comparable to the treatment of appurtenant rights, both traditional and customary Native Hawaiian rights and reservations for the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands are public trust purposes. Despite that status, the Water Commission has yet to forecast the amount of water needed to supply existing and future traditional and customary rights as well as the existing and future needs of the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, frustrating the ability of those with such rights to effectively exercise them. See Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 174C-31(c), (d); -101(a). As a result, the strong protections intended for these rights remain largely on paper and unenforced on the ground in the community. 3. Riparian Rights In Latin, ripa means river bank. Riparian rights protect the interests of people who live along the banks of rivers or streams to the reasonable use of water from that stream or river on the riparian land. Those rights are subject to other rights of equal or greater value, such as appurtenant, traditional and customary Native Hawaiian, other riparian rights, or reservations for the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands. Hawaii’s Constitution protects existing riparian uses. Haw. Const. art. XI, § 7. Due to the Water Code’s establishment of Water Management Areas as described in Part II(F), below, Hawaii has a bifurcated system of rights. In non-designated areas, the common law controls and anyone with riparian land retains riparian rights. Once an area has been “designated,” however, only existing riparian uses, as opposed to unexercised riparian rights, continue to retain preferential status. See Haw. Const. art. XI, § 7. Although riparian landowners who are not currently using water from the adjacent stream may apply for a permit, they will not receive any special preference if they seek to use that water on riparian land. Existing riparian uses, on the other hand, retain such a preference. In Reppun v. Board of Water Supply, the Hawaii Supreme Court ruled that riparian rights cannot be severed from riparian land. 65 Haw. 531, 550, 656 P.2d 57, 70 (1982). Efforts to sever or transfer such rights, which usually occur as part of a deed of sale, are ineffective. Reppun, 65 Haw. at 550, 656 P.2d at 70. This means that even if you have riparian land and the deed conveying the property reserves or transfers ripari rights or water rights in general, your land will still retain those rights unless the geographic region is designated a Water Management Area. 4. Correlative Rights Similar to the riparian right to surface water, correlative rights protect the interests of individuals who own land overlying a ground water source or aquifer. This land has rights that correlate to the water below it. Like riparian rights, Hawaii’s Constitution protects existing correlative uses, as opposed to inchoate correlative rights. This means that correlative rights are protected in non-designated areas, but only existing correlative uses receive priority in designated Ground Water Management Areas. Moreover, correlative rights are subject to the reasonable-use doctrine, which means that in times of a water shortage each use with correlative rights has a share to a reasonable amount of water as long as the correlative use does not injure the rights or interests of other correlative right holders. Hawaii courts first recognized correlative rights in City Mill Co. v. Honolulu Sewer & Water Comm’n, 30 Haw. 912 (1929). The Hawaii Supreme Court later clarified the current correlative rights rule in the context of the State Water Code in Waiahole I, 94 Hawaii 97, 9 P.3d 409. 5. Other Water Rights During the Hawaiian Kingdom and Territorial period, various court decisions created a range of rights, such as konohiki (or surplus) and prescriptive water rights. Those rights no longer exist under the current regulatory regime, and the range of rights now available are outlined and defined in the Water Code.

See also:
Ea O Ka Aina: The Mana Mirage 8/3013
Mana means supernatural and dry in Hawaiian and these visitors to Kauai in 1847 found magic there.

Ea O Ka Aina: The Golden Plain 8/27/13
Your guide uses his paddle to pole you into the marshy water of the Mana Plain as the canoe rocks.

Ea O Ka Aina: Eroding Kauai 3/16/13
These two areas were the largest Hawaiian wetland systems - Mana Plain and Pearl Harbor
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Super Bowl from Hell

SUBHEAD: January 31st 2015 the Patriots vs Seahawks matchup will be the Super Bowl from Hell.  .

By Jim Buzinski on 28 December 2014 for Outsports.com -
(http://www.outsports.com/2014/12/28/7459623/patriots-seahawks-matchup-super-bowl-from-hell-tom-brady-richard-sherman)


Image above: Tom Brady, the Patriot's quarterback celebrates. Photo by Stew Milne. From original article.

If the the seedings hold in the NFL playoffs, the Super Bowl will be my greatest nightmare -- New England vs. Seattle -- the two teams I hate the most. The worst part is that one of them would have to win. Update: Hell is upon us. It will be Seattle vs. New England. This is the matchup for the  February 1st 2015 Super Bowl.

I will be rooting for a giant meteor to strike Earth shortly before the 6:30 p.m. Eastern kickoff. I will be blown to bits, of course, along with every other human being, so that's the downside. The upside is that the Patriots and Seahawks will be deprived of a Super Bowl title. There are always tradeoffs in life.

The Patriots have been the NFL's Evil Empire since 2003 (I liked their 2001 team since it had a Cinderella vibe). They are led by Bill Belichick, the fashion disaster, signal-stealing swinger, which makes them easy to hate. He's also the best coach in the NFL by a mile, which only intensifies the hate.

Their quarterback is Tom Brady, who has become a whiny little twit. He's a sore winner and sore loser. When the Patriots win, he's high-fiving, head-butting and spiking the ball like a rookie scoring his first TD, not a veteran with three rings. And when he loses, he's dropping F-bombs at his defense and acting like a spoiled brat. He's not "fiery" or "competitive," just an annoying jerk.

Brady is not the same QB he once was, but he doesn't have to be. He has the best tight end in football in Rob Gronkowski (the one Patriot I actually like), a shutdown defense and wonderful special teams. Brady's job these days is to put together a couple of drives and not screw things up. For that, he has announcers slobbering over him like he's the 2007 Brady, not a guy near the end of his career and lucky to be with the right team.

Seattle is new to the "being totally annoying" game but they learn fast. Their coach is Pete Carroll, who fled USC one step ahead of the NCAA posse, earning the Trojans major sanctions while he landed a cushy gig in Seattle. This is the same guy who this summer lectured holdout running back Marshawn Lynch on honoring his contact. Gall is not Carroll's short suit.


Image above: Richard Sherman, the Seahawks's cornerback celebrates. From (http://www.jsonline.com/sports/nfl-needs-more-rants-like-richard-shermans-b99190370z1-241752861.html).

The Seahawks version of Tom Brady in the insufferable category is cornerback Richard Sherman, who for some reason has carved out a reputation as an articulate voice of a new generation of players. In fact, he's little more than a boorish loudmouth who loves denigrating opponents. Unfortunately, he's also the best cornerback in football, so no one has yet been able to shut him up.

Those are your two favorites to meet in the Super Bowl -- I might have to watch the Puppy Bowl instead (http://www.animalplanet.com/tv-shows/puppy-bowl/).


Image above: Shot of the live action coverage of the 2014 Puppy Bowl produced by Animal Planet. From (http://espn.go.com/espn/photos/gallery/_/id/10297513/image/6/adopt-pup-puppy-bowl-2014).

See also:
Ea O Ka Aina: Screaming id - No Brains - No Honor 2/6/12
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Two Maui streams reach the sea

SUBHEAD: The flow returns to two streams on Maui that have been diverted for more than 150 years.

By Isaac Moriwake on 13 October 2014 for Earth Justice -
(http://earthjustice.org/blog/2014-october/turning-the-tide-of-history-for-maui-s-four-great-waters)


Image above: A Maui resident enjoys the flow of ʻĪao Stream for the first time in his life. From original article.

Today, flow will return to two streams on Maui that have been diverted for more than 150 years.

This restoration of Wailuku River (also known as ʻĪao Stream) and Waikapū Stream is a result of an ongoing Earthjustice campaign on behalf of Maui community groups Hui o Nā Wai ʻEhā and Maui Tomorrow Foundation to restore instream flows to Nā Wai ʻEhā—“The Four Great Waters” of Waiheʻe, Waiehu, Wailuku, and Waikapū.

It was here in Wailuku and Waikapū that the first sugar plantations on Maui began draining the streams more than 150 years ago. In a sense, today’s restoration of flow brings us full circle to where the private diversions of stream flows and deprivation of Native Hawaiian communities and stream, wetland, and nearshore ecosystems began.

Wailuku River, the second largest river on Maui (Waiheʻe River is the largest) and one of the ten largest in the state, flows through ʻĪao Valley and the Wailuku region, a cultural and historical epicenter of the island. Waikapū Stream flows through the neighboring Waikapū region and is the primary freshwater source for the Keālia Pond National Wildlife Refuge and Māʻalaea Bay.

We began this legal action over 10 years ago, in June 2004. Together with our long-time ally, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, we took the case all the way to the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court, which ruled in our favor in August 2012.

Under a settlement approved by the state Commission on Water Resources Management in April 2014, the two companies diverting these waters, Wailuku Water Company and Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar, agreed to restore up to 10 million gallons per day (mgd) to Wailuku River and 2.9 mgd to Waikapū Stream. The settlement also maintained the restoration of 10 mgd and 2.5 mgd to Waiheʻe River and Waiehu Stream, respectively, which the Commission initially ordered in 2010.

Our work to rectify 150 years of injustice is far from over. In addition to releasing water, the diverters still must modify their diversion structures to ensure passage of native stream life. We are also engaged in ongoing proceedings to regulate uses of Nā Wai ʻEhā stream water via permitting, which will further increase accountability over stream diversions.

Nonetheless, today we can take a moment to celebrate this hard-won and long-awaited victory. All four waters of Nā Wai ʻEhā are now flowing for the first time since the 19th century.

Over years of dedicated effort, many people helped to make this moment a reality. This moment is a tribute to them and their commitment and belief in justice, which turned the tide of history for Maui’s Four Great Waters.


Video above: After 150 Years - Water Returns to Maui Streams. From (http://youtu.be/tz9YQ0bRg1o).


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Waimea River running dry

SUBHEAD: Water diversion has made Waimea River is so choked with silt that it often no longer reaches the ocean.

By Staff on 20 September 2013 for Earth Justice -
(http://earthjustice.org/features/campaigns/grand-canyon-of-the-pacific-running-dry)


Image above: looking upstream on the Waimea River - now a river in name only. From orignal article.


Native Hawaiians living on the rural southwestern shore of Kauai, home of Waimea Canyon, are witnessing the biggest water grab in the history of their island. Now they're fighting to put a stop to it, by petitioning the state with the help of Earthjustice.

For decades, residents on the west side of Kauai have watched the water level drop in Waimea River, the region's biggest and most important natural river system.

John Aʻana, a 58-year-old taro farmer, used to take his son swimming in the Waimea River. They would jump from a swinging bridge into a swimming hole 15 feet deep. Now, the water depth is less than a foot.

"For a long time we've known there's something wrong with this picture," says Aana, who helped found a local group called Poʻai Wai Ola to restore the Waimea River as a public trust for future generations.
Starting in the 1920s, industrial sugar barons massively diverted the Waimea River to water their sugarcane, one of the thirstiest crops on earth. The crops consumed 50 million gallons per day, enough water to fill 75 Olympic-size swimming pools. But the plantation era in Waimea ended in 2001. Today, only a fraction of the fields are planted with corn and other crops, which sip water instead of gulping it.

Yet bizarrely, corporate water users continue to divert nearly as much water as before without using it. And rather than remove the system of dams and ditches that have nearly sucked the river dry, the state Agribusiness Development Corporation has been rebuilding it.

Where does all the excess river water go? Earthjustice attorneys David Henkin and Isaac Moriwake investigated a tip from Poai Wai Ola and were shocked to find freshwater being dumped over cliffs and flung into dry gullies.

Someone has gone to great lengths to avoid replenishing the Waimea River, says Henkin. "They have virtually no use for this water. There's no justification for continuing to keep the tap running like this," he says.

In late July of 2013, Earthjustice filed a legal petition on behalf of Poai Wai Ola, asking the state Commission on Water Resource Management to set higher base flow levels in the Waimea River. The petition may forestall moreintensive legal proceedings if the ADC acts swiftly to cut back on the excessive diversions and stops dumping water, says Henkin.

Hawaii law enshrines water resources as a protected public trust. That includes protections for Native Hawaiian traditional practices and for wildlife, both of which depend on a healthy watershed.

Today, the Waimea River is so choked with silt that it often no longer reaches the ocean; contractors must open the sandbars at the river mouth with excavators. Slimy pools of algae stagnate in the sun. ʻOʻopu, a native freshwater fish once plentiful in the river, are now scarce.

Locals like Aʻana suspect the state is hoarding the water for development schemes like hydropower projects, or growing houses instead of sugarcane. "The cycle is broken," he says.

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