Airport is significant stop for rail route
Rail mass transit needs significant destinations to be a success (
"Rail route to go via Salt Lake," Star-Bulletin, Feb. 22). For Honolulu that means the airport, the University of Hawaii-Manoa campus and Waikiki. I urge the mayor to provide leadership over politics, and I urge the City Council to look at transit projects around the world for guidance. Do not cut out the airport, the one destination that everyone will want to use and the one that will make the line a success right from the beginning.
Al Beeman
Hilo
How noisy will rail be in residential areas?
The City Council amended Mayor Mufi Hannemann's proposal, which had routed the first leg of the mass transit system from Kapolei to Ala Moana Center via Pearl Harbor and the airport. The Council decided to nix Pearl Harbor and the airport and instead take the fixed guideway through Salt Lake.
This is good news because I live in Foster Village, off Salt Lake Boulevard, and this area is densely populated.
What concerns me right now is the technology. Whether it's rail or bus, will there be a lot of noise shooting by residences located along the fixed guideway? The subways in New York City are extremely noisy because the trains run on tracks. Will there be noise and vibrations from a monorail in Honolulu?
Glenda Chung Hinchey
Honolulu
'Lost' worth viewing -- unless it leaves Hawaii
It saddens me that people are so quick to dump "Lost" (
Letters, Feb. 21). While I, too, have been somewhat disappointed in the recent storylines and direction the show has taken, I can still appreciate the writing and production of a show of such magnitude. Many shows struggle to maintain their content and viewership following a super-successful first season. To me, just the simple fact that the show is based here and has helped our economy is reason enough to stay loyal despite a couple of mediocre storylines.
I still watch "Lost," and will continue to do so. The only things that might make me turn it off? Killing Sawyer or leaving Hawaii.
Stefanie Sakamoto
Nuuanu
Fireworks are not Hawaiian tradition
Michael McCreary's
Feb. 20 letter about fireworks did not make a bit of sense. First of all, fireworks were never a tradition to the real Hawaiians. Fireworks came here from the Orient and then became a blown-out, dangerous and uncontrollable hazard.
The fireworks on New Year's Eve here have caused numerous casualties and fires throughout the years. If you don't believe it, ask a fireman or policeman.
If you think your freedom is being violated, what about the children and many other people who have asthma and other breathing problems? Don't they have the right to breathe clean air instead of having the stink and polluted air from the fireworks shoved in their lungs?
As a retailer of fireworks, the only thing McCreary is worried about is making a buck on this insanity. If lawmakers have the courage to ban fireworks, they will bring back paradise to our islands.
Eugene Cordero
Pearl City
Maui biodiesel plant will be Earth-friendly
William R. Bailey (
Letters, Feb. 22) raises legitimate concern about the effect of increased use of biodiesel from palm oil on rainforests and the creatures living in them.
At Hawaiian Electric Company and BlueEarth, we believe that doing the right thing also means doing it the right way. From the start, HECO and BlueEarth committed to developing a policy that will require that we do not accept biofuels from sources that are harming the environment.
Our goal in building a biodiesel refining plant on Maui is not only to reduce Hawaii's dependence on fossil fuels and limit our impact on global warming, but to encourage locally grown agricultural energy crops.
HECO takes no profit on fuel and will take no profit from this biodiesel enterprise. All profits from HECO's part in the partnership will go to a biofuels public trust fund to support research to find the most efficient, environmentally benign plants to grow here and encourage production of Hawaii-grown energy feedstock.
The first step in this process, subject to needed approvals from the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission, is to build a plant that will help drive this movement.
Landis Maez
Co-managing partner
BlueEarth Biofuels LLC
Mike May
President and CEO
Hawaiian Electric Company