Thursday, October 11, 2018
Annual
Waimea
Fall Festival
is Saturday
• • •
ISLAND BEAT
● A10
‘It’s been tough’
Lava, Hurricane Lane dent isle’s renewable energy portfolio,
Internet
PUNA COMMUNITY MEDICAL CENTER
but offi cials vow to get it back on track
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 28 1:00-7:00pm • DOORS OPEN @ 12:45pm NANI MAUI GARDENS, HILO
MUSIC, FUN
& FOOD!
6TH ANNUAL
EAST HAWAII
JAZZ & BLUES
FESTIVAL
$60 advance
$75 VIP
or $75 at the door
Contact: (808) 964-5764
(808) 961-6851
www.HawaiiIslandVeterans.org
Proceeds to benefi t the Hawaii Island Veterans a 501(c)(3) not for profi t organization.
Index
Big Isle history B4
Classified B6
Comics B5
Commentary A6
Issue No. 284
20 Pages in
2 Sections
Today’s
weather
Page A2
Community A8
Crossword B4
Cryptoquote B4
Dear Abby B4
Horoscope B4
Island Beat A10
Letters A6
Nation A4
Obituaries A2
Sports B1
State A3
Surf Report A2
Visit us on the Web at:
www.hawaiitribune-herald.com
Health clinic
teams up with
Ka‘u Hospital
By MICHAEL
BRESTOVANSKY
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Puna Community
Medical Center in Pahoa
became a division of
Ka‘u Hospital earlier
this month in an effort
to improve medical
services in the area.
Steve Sparks, president
of the Puna
Community Medical
Center Foundation
Board of Directors, said
the agreement will allow
the center to provide
improved and expanded
medical services to
the Puna community.
“It’s something that
was really needed in
Puna,” Sparks said,
explaining that the
partnership with Ka‘u
Hospital — which now
owns and operates
PCMC — will allow for
outpatient services and
primary care previously
unavailable at the center,
as well as basic quality
of-life improvements.
“We won’t have to
close for lunch anymore,”
Sparks said.
The new partnership
was initiated by
PCMC in the hope of
eventually being classified
as a Rural Health
Clinic, which allows
for, among other things,
improved reimbursement
rates for Medicare and
Medicaid services.
However, PCMC
could not meet federal
requirements for such
a designation without
the resources of
Hawaii Health Systems
Corp., which operates
Ka‘u Hospital and
Hilo Medical Center.
Sparks said PCMC
originally intended
to partner with Hilo
Medical Center, but
the relative proximity
of the two facilities
would have interfered
with the Puna center’s
classification as a Rural
Health Clinic. However,
Sparks acknowledged
that the distance
between Puna and Hilo
is still prohibitive for
Puna residents seeking
treatment in Hilo.
Sparks said Hilo
Medical Center helped
set up the partnership
with Ka‘u Hospital and
purchased properties
HOLLYN JOHNSON/Tribune-Herald file photo
Passengers disembark from a Blue Hawaiian helicopter at Hilo
International Airport.
By STEPHANIE SALMONS
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
A new committee that
aims to address noise created
by tour helicopters will
meet for the first time today.
State Department of
Transportation spokesman
Tim Sakahara confirmed
by email that the department
is facilitating the
first roundtable discussion
regarding helicopter
operations today in Hilo,
but added the meeting is
not open to the public.
“Unfortunately, there
have been threats of violence
and death made to
members of the Hawaii
Helicopter Association that
have been reported to law
enforcement authorities,”
Sakahara said. “Threats of
violence are against the law
and are counterproductive
to finding a resolution.
“The roundtable discussions
are invitation only
until further notice.”
The meeting comes after
the DOT’s Airports Division
hosted a community forum
Officials: Partnership will allow
expansion of medical services
Helicopter noise panel to meet
Critic of DOT-facilitated committee calls it ‘a smokescreen’
See NOISE Page A7
See CLINIC Page A7
HOLLYN JOHNSON/Tribune-Herald
Warren Lee of Hu Honua Bioenergy, Jay Igancio of Hawaii Electric Light Co. and Mike Kaleikini of
Puna Geothermal Ventures sit down for a talk story presentation Wednesday about Hawaii Island’s
energy future. The presentation was part of a Hawaii Island Chamber of Commerce luncheon at ‘Imiloa
Astronomy Center in Hilo.
By NANCY COOK LAUER
West Hawaii Today
Hawaii Island’s renewable
energy portfolio took a hit from
a series of natural disasters this
year, losing geothermal and
hydroelectric power sources.
But Mike Kaleikini, senior
director for Ormat Technology
Inc.’s Puna Geothermal Venture,
and Jay Ignacio, president of
Hawaii Electric Light Co.,
vow to put things back on
track as soon as they’re able.
Kaleikini and Ignacio,
along with Warren Lee, president
of Hu Honua Bioenergy
LLC, sat down Wednesday
for a luncheon talk story session
with the Hawaii Island
Chamber of Commerce.
“In terms of renewable energy,
we’re kind of taking a step
back from where we were in
2018,” Ignacio said, adding
that the island’s renewable mix
now accounts for 25 percent
to 30 percent of utility sales.
The island, with a mix of
geothermal, solar, wind and
hydroelectricity, last year had
the highest renewable percentage
in the state at 57 percent. That
means less than half of total utility
sales came from fossil fuels.
In comparison, the state
average last year was 27.7
percent, according to the state
Public Utilities Commission.
See ENERGY Page A9
/www.HawaiiIslandVeterans.org
/www.hawaiitribune-herald.com