EPA, Matson reach settlement on molasses spill, Zuckerberg takes to Facebook to dispute Kauai stories, Innocence Project takes on Dana Ireland murder case, last sugar company equipment draw interested buyers, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Molasses spill in Honolulu Harbor, KHON2 screenshot

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a settlement today with Matson Terminals Inc. for the company’s 1,400-ton molasses spill in Honolulu Harbor in 2013. Associated Press.

Honolulu-based Matson Inc. has agreed to pay a civil penalty of $725,000 to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over federal Clean Water Act violations relating to a molasses spill in Honolulu Harbor in 2013. This follows a July 2015, settlement, in which Matson (NYSE: MATX) paid $15.4 million to the state of Hawaii over the spill. Pacific Business News.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a settlement Thursday with the company responsible for a 1,400-ton molasses spill in Honolulu Harbor in 2013. Associated Press.

The state has offered public school teachers an annual 1 percent lump-sum bonus that the teachers union called an unacceptable and “paltry” offer in an internal email sent to members Thursday night. Star-Advertiser.

House Finance Chairwoman Sylvia Luke is demanding that state financial and computer experts investigate a massive $59 million project to replace the computer systems in the state Tax Department, saying components of the new system don’t work properly. Star-Advertiser.

More than half of the doctors in Hawaii will reach the retirement age of 65 within the next decade, according to a new report submitted Thursday to the state Legislature.  Tribune-Herald.

Faced with the anti-regulatory zeal of the incoming Trump administration, members of Hawaii’s all-Democratic congressional delegation are finding themselves in the difficult position of choosing when to fight and when to retreat. Civil Beat.

Hawaii taxpayers are on the hook for almost $200,000 for lost dentures at a hospital, missing property at a prison, potholes damaging vehicles and a school ceiling falling on a student, among dozens of other small claims over the past year. Civil Beat.

Prison officials told state legislators Thursday that about 15 percent of their pre-trial inmates are homeless. But advocates and lawmakers immediately disputed that figure as too low. Hawaii News Now.

Included in President Barack Obama's Thursday clemency list were three Hawaii inmates who had been convicted of meth-related offenses: Thaddeas Kulani Thomas Hall, of Waipahu; Alfred William Kemfort, of Maui; and Allan Aquino Lafuente, of Kapolei. Civil Beat.

Hawaii’s unemployment rate declined for the fifth straight month and hit 2.9 percent in December, the lowest level since September 2007, according to data released today by the state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. Star-Advertiser.

The Hawaiʻi State Department of Labor & Industrial Relations today announced that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for December was 2.9 percent, compared to 3.0 percent in November. Maui Now.

The Hawaii Venture Capital Association announced the finalists in 12 categories honoring local entrepreneurs. Pacific Business News.

Oahu

Iolani School announced Thursday that it will build a high school dormitory to foster global connections for its students and will expand its elementary school with new classrooms, science labs and music studios. Star-Advertiser.

Iolani School expansion forces nearby residents to move out. Hawaii News  Now.

A church is prohibiting gay and transgender couples from attending its annual Sweethearts Banquet at the federally owned Hale Koa Hotel, even though state law bans discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in public venues. Civil Beat.

Another Oahu rail official has left the project. Diane Arakaki resigned and departed as the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation’s chief financial officer on Dec. 15, according to the rail agency’s latest monthly status report. Arakaki was HART’s CFO for more than four years. Star-Advertiser.

Why One Police Commissioner Wanted To Fire The Chief. Commissioner Loretta Sheehan was outvoted by the other commissioners but presented them with a detailed plan for moving to fire the chief. Civil Beat.

The date is set for Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha's retirement. The police commission will now turn its attention to hiring his replacement. KITV4.

Hawaii

The Hawaii Innocence Project filed a motion this week to take another look at the Dana Ireland murder case. KHON2.


With uncertainty over the nation’s health care system, the president and chief operating officer of the state’s largest insurer said he’s keeping an eye on how policy changes could affect coverage in Hawaii. West Hawaii Today.

Construction crews this week began work on new acceleration and deceleration lanes at the entrance to the University of Hawaii at Hilo’s Agricultural Farm Laboratory, located near mile marker 6 on Highway 11..Tribune-Herald


Maui

It was standing room only for the more than 250 people at the Maui Beach Hotel on Wednesday who crammed into a hotel ballroom to try and fetch a good deal on Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Co.’s red pickup trucks, small farming equipment, machine shop items and even microscopes and scales. Maui News.

The state Land Use Commission unanimously approved the final environmental statement for the 1,433-unit, residential mixed-use Waikapu Country Town project Wednesday, after residents spoke highly of both the project and developer Mike Atherton. Maui News.

Kauai

A new Hawaii law dealing with land ownership that went into effect on Jan. 1 was likely the reason why Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg filed the “quiet title” actions on his 700 acres of Kauai oceanfront land just before the start of 2017, a Honolulu real estate attorney tells Pacific Business News.

The CEO and head of Facebook says eight lawsuits involving about a dozen parcels of kuleana land on his 700-acre property are to identify owners and compensate them adequately. Garden Island.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed — for the first time — what he plans to do with his roughly 700 acres of undeveloped oceanfront land he purchased a few years ago on the Hawaiian Island of Kauai. Pacific Business News.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg used his own social media platform today to explain his effort in court to acquire several small pieces of land on Kauai from Hawaii families. Star-Advertiser.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg issued a response to the "misleading stories" going around about his plans in Hawaii. KITV

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is in a legal battle and wants to clear things up. KHON2.

$11M preparing for tech bids lost, state seeks broadband help, construction to grow 9.4%, Hawaiian Electric catching up on PV applications, Kauai space launch delayed, Chinese tourists drive visitor stats, more government and politics news from all the Hawaiian Islands

Computer e-waste recycling, courtesy Damon Tucker

After the state spent more than $11 million developing a request for proposals for new computer technology to make government more efficient, the Ige administration is now scrapping the solicitation but promises the money has not been wasted. Star-Advertiser.

A panel of experts at the Hawaii Venture Capital Association luncheon on Thursday discussed the state’s need for broadband, which actions are needed to make it a reality and ways that higher bandwidth can be used. Pacific Business News.

Construction spending is forecast to rise 9.4 percent this year to $7.6 billion, the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization said. Star-Advertiser.

The construction industry isn’t growing as quickly as economists had expected. That’s according to a new report by the University of Hawai‘i Economic Research Organization. Despite a surge of activity on Oahu, the annual forecast says residential building permits actually fell last year. Hawaii Public Radio.

Visitor arrivals to Hawai‘i rose slightly last month, up a little more than 2% compared to a year earlier. Visitor spending fell by a little more than 4%. One group with higher numbers: the Chinese. Hawaii Public Radio.

A plan to allow tourists who are ripped off during their Hawaii vacations to testify against the suspects by way of videoconferencing was rejected by state lawmakers this week, and it appears the idea is dead for the year. Star-Advertiser.

The push to allow for medical marijuana dispensaries in Hawaii — some 15 years after state leaders permitted medical use of the drug — continues to advance through the Legislature, with key lawmakers in support saying they hope to give the state's nearly 13,000 medical pot patients access to such outlets by early 2016. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaiian Electric Industries CEO Connie Lau made it clear during her closing speech Thursday at the Maui Energy Conference that the company will continue to pursue liquefied natural gas as a “bridge fuel.” Civil Beat.

Hawaiian Electric Co. said Thursday it has approved all rooftop solar applications on Maui and Hawaii island waiting since at least October for the go-ahead. Star-Advertiser.

The Nominating Committee to the State Commission on Water Resource Management will meet Tuesday to review personnel applications and select nominees to fill one position on the State Commission on Water Resource Management. Hawaii Independent.

State taxpayers will pay $418,500 to settle three cases of wrongful terminations of public school employees. Hawaii News Now.

Oahu

Seeking public input, city aims to lock away prime Oahu farmland. More than 56,000 acres is eyed for inclusion on a map that puts limits on urban development. Star-Advertiser.

The state fears the little fire ant infestation in Waimanalo could get worse. That’s because a group of people have been going in and out of the area that’s infested with the ants. On Friday, the state attorney general’s office will file a temporary restraining order against the group, hoping a judge orders them off the property. KHON2.

City considers fencing Kapalama Canal to move out homeless. Hawaii News Now.

Hawaii

While the June 27 lava flow is not dead, the downgrading of the threat from Kilauea volcano Wednesday could provide the Federal Emergency Management Agency with a closing date for the disaster. If that occurs, FEMA spokeswoman Kelly Hudson said the agency would continue to process requests for disaster relief funds but could limit reimbursement to expenses that occurred before March 25. Tribune-Herald.

Hawaii County Fire Department operations in West Hawaii are not being jeopardized by recent turmoil in the office that resulted in two battalion chiefs being put on paid leave, a top-ranking Fire Department official said this week. West Hawaii Today.

As the site preparation for the construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope gets underway, the opposition to the $1.3 billion observatory has taken to Mauna Kea. Big Island Video News.

Several dozen demonstrators assembled Thursday along Mauna Kea Access Road, where organizers say protesters plan to camp out indefinitely in hopes of halting work atop Mauna Kea on what is expected to be the world's largest telescope. Star-Advertiser.

As cars tear up and down residential streets and along roadways in Kona, those who live closest to the lead-footed driving are increasingly calling on the county to erect speed humps to rein drivers in. West Hawaii Today.

Maui

The state is threatening to seize several private boats in Lahaina over a lease dispute. Hawaii News Now.

Having Maui County glean 100 percent of its energy needs from renewable energy sources has long been a vision for Mayor Alan Arakawa, but achieving that goal will take time and technological advances, utility officials said Wednesday. Maui News.

Maui County plans to replace its streetlights with more efficient LED lighting, following other counties in Hawaii, including Honolulu and Kauai. Pacific Business News.

Maui County is Hawaii's healthiest county with its active residents and many opportunities for exercise, according to a study released Wednesday by a national health foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. Maui News.

Kauai

The University of Hawaii's first space launch has been delayed three times since 2013, with liftoff of the low-cost, small-satellite delivery system pushed back from January to the fall due to technology and timing issues, officials said. Star-Advertiser.

Traffic congestion. U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz wants to hit it head on, not only for Hawaii’s sake, but all other states that are faced with similar challenges. Garden Island.

Kauai District Engineer Ray McCormick of the Hawaii Department of Transportation will be the featured speaker at the Wailua-Kapaa Neighborhood Association’s meeting at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Kapaa Library. The talk is free and open to the public. Garden Island.