Request for Testimony on Geothermal bill SB 2663
Aloha Peace ohana,
Below is an email from Bob Petricci of Puna Pono Alliance requesting testimony in support of SB 2663. Below his email is testimony I sent in. Please send in testimony and pass the word. Mahalo.
Jim Albertini
—
Jim Albertini Malu ‘Aina Center For Non-violent Education & Action P.O. Box 489 Ola’a (Kurtistown) Hawai’i 96760 Phone 808-966-7622 Email ja@malu-aina.org www.malu-aina.org
This year’s geothermal legislation needs your help now, one last time. Please send an email (see below) and ask your friends to do the same. The immediate need for these emails ends this week (please do not send emails after April 26th.) You may use our online form to send your email:www.punapono.com/sb.php
Representatives Chris Lee and Cindy Evans along with their committees on Energy and Environmental Protection and Water and Land made appropriate changes to Senate Bill 2663 (now referred to as SB2663 SD2 HD2.) They not only cleaned up the Senate version of the bill, but they also provided for contested cases in geothermal permitting and a ban on fracking (with a sunset of 10 years.) Representative Sylvia Luke and her Finance committee then also approved the favorably amended legislation.
On Friday, April 25th, SB2663 SD2 HD2 will be considered by a conference committee (where Chris, Cindy, Sylvia and Cynthia Thielen will confer with Senators Malama Solomon, Donovan Dela Cruz, Mike Gabbard, Brickwood Galuteria and Sam Slom for decision making only, with no public testimony.) Puna Pono Alliance is supporting a campaign of email messages to the conference committee members. Here is a sample email message:
__________________________________________________
Thank you for your concern and support for a community that lives near Hawai`i’s only geothermal development. We appreciate how the House has provided for contested cases in geothermal permitting and a ban on fracking as amendments to Senate Bill 2663. These House changes, along with other improvements in language and intent, make Senate Bill 2663 an initiative I support. As members of the House and Senate confer on the bill, I ask that you please keep contested cases and the ban on fracking as essential elements of the bill. Without both of these elements, I feel that the bill would not be worthwhile.
__________________________________________________
Bob’s email:
Please freely edit the above draft text for your email. Here are the email addresses of the conference committee members::
You also may use our online form to send your testimony by email –www.punapono.com/sb.php —
Thanks very much for your help,
Bob
My testimony:
Aloha Legislators,
As a 34 year resident of Puna on the Big Island I have long been
concerned about geothermal issues. Thank you for your concern and
support for a community that lives near Hawai`i’s only geothermal
development. We appreciate how the House has provided for contested
cases in geothermal permitting and a ban on fracking as amendments to
Senate Bill 2663. These House changes, along with other improvements in
language and intent, make Senate Bill 2663 an initiative supported by
Puna Pono Alliance which is a grassroots community group I support. As
members of the House and Senate confer on the bill, I ask that you
please keep contested cases and the ban on fracking as essential
elements of the bill. Without both of these elements, I feel that the
bill would not be worthwhile.
I do want to add that personally I stand with the Pele Defense Fund
in strong opposition to all geothermal as a violation of Native
Hawaiian religious beliefs that Pele is a deity and drilling into Pele
is sacrilegious and a desecration of the Hawaiian religion equal to the
desecration of drilling for oil in the Vatican, the Temple mount in
Jerusalem or the sacred sites of Mecca. How have we come to this? Have
we no longer any shame? Where is our aloha and respect for Hawaii’s
native religious practitioners?
Mahalo for your consideration.
Jim Albertini
