Molokai Dispatch -- November 19, 2014

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NOVEMBER 19, 2014 - VOLUME 30, ISSUE 46

The

Molokai Dispatch T H E I S L A N D ’S N E W S S O U R C E S I N C E 1985

Judge Orders Hold on GE Enforcement

Halawa Bay From Above

By Catherine Cluett | Editor-In-Chief

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the Commission to change the agricultural label so that the school wouldn’t have to obtain multiple building permits. The proposed science building will span 4,500 square feet and include two labs with eight total stations, each of which will accommodate up to four students, according to the DOE’s Draft Environmental Assessment, which details the project and its potential impacts on the surrounding community. The building will also feature environmentally friendly aspects such as rooftop solar panels and a nearby rain harvest tank.

federal judge in Honolulu has ordered a temporary hold on enforcement of the moratorium on genetically engineered crops passed by Maui County voters on Nov. 4. Last week, Monsanto and other parties filed a lawsuit against the County of Maui, challenging the moratorium. Judge Barry Kurren granted Monsanto and other plaintiffs in the suit a temporary injunction until Dec. 5. The county stated last week it was preparing to enforce the moratorium pending the Election Officer ’s certification of election results, but the judge’s injunction will put a hold on enforcement until further court action. Injunction is a court order for a party to do, or refrain from doing, specific acts. In this case, it refers to preventing the County of Maui from carrying out enforcement of the GE ordinance. Monsanto and other businesses operating on Molokai, including Mycogen, Friendly Isle Auto Parts, Molokai Chamber of Commerce, Makoa Trucking and Hikiola Cooperative, filed the suit against the County of Maui last Thursday. The lawsuit stated that the moratorium will cause “immediate and traumatic harm to the local economy, and to many individuals who rely on GE crops to support themselves and their families.” It also cites irreparable harm to the seed companies, which have invested millions of dollars in facilities on Maui and Molokai.

Science Labs Continued pg. 2

Lawsuit Continued pg. 2

Molokai photographer Mickey Pauole captured this shot of Halawa Bay from about 85 feet with a remote-controlled helicopter.

MHS One Step Closer to Science Labs By Colleen Uechi | Staff Writer

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lowly but surely, Molokai High School (MHS) is making its way toward the science building of school officials’ dreams. Since MHS split from the middle school a decade ago, students have been using classrooms that lack the amenities of a standard high school science lab. Without multiple gas- and water-equipped lab stations, students often have to gather around computers or even a single table to observe experiments. In early 2013, the DOE and school officials began designing a new science building to change all that, and last Wednesday, project planners met another project goal.

The Molokai Planning Commission approved Department of Education (DOE) requests to change land and zoning designations on the area of school property where the DOE wants to build a brand new science facility. The application will now require the approval of the Maui County Council, according to DOE Facility Planner Brenda Lowrey. “It’s kind of like a feeling of relief,” said MHS Principal Stan Hao. “Finally we get some movement on that so our students can have that lab that they really need.” The science building’s proposed location originally overlapped urban and agricultural designated areas. The DOE asked

Molokai Honors Its Veterans

THIS WEEK’S

Dispatch

By Colleen Uechi | Staff Writer

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olokai is far quieter and slower than a battlefield abroad, but for the island’s war veterans, the Friendly Isle is exactly where they want to be. “I’m glad to be home,” said Army veteran Samuel Makaiwi, who served in Iraq. On Nov. 11, residents and veterans gathered in Kaunakakai’s Memorial Park to honor those who dedicated their lives to defending the country. The ceremony included the singing of the national and state anthems, speeches and short musical performances. Maui County Councilmember Stacy Helm Crivello thanked the veterans and the families for their service and sacrifices. Like the biblical prophet Isaiah, she said, veterans, too, responded unselfishly to a call to serve. “When our nation was attacked more than 70 years ago and again just a few years ago, Lady Liberty cried out in her pain and anguish, ‘Whom shall I send?’” Crivello said. “… And you responded.” Organizers set up 18 American flags in remembrance of the 18 Molokai soldiers

Heroes Among Us: Samuel Makaiwi Photo by Colleen Uechi

who were lost in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. Molokai resident David Nanod, a veteran of the Army and National Guard, read these 18 names as Makaiwi rang a bell for each. Doves were released at the end of the service. Molokai resident Lazlo Toth, a Navy veteran who served in Vietnam and Guam, said for him Veteran’s Day is not about himself but more about his father Robert Toth, a

former Marine who spent his 19th birthday at Iwo Jima. “I do it in honor of him,” said the younger Toth. “What I did was insignificant [in comparison].” According to Makaiwi, joint commander of Molokai Veterans Caring for Veterans and Molokai’s Veterans of Foreign Wars post, there are approximately 400 veterans on island.

MHS One Step Closer to Science Labs Pg. 2

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The

Molokai Dispatch

P.O. Box 482219 Kaunakakai, HI 96748

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Ardis Farris Molokai Born & Raised


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