Service seeks Volcano park business plans

The National Park Service is accepting proposals for managing the Volcano House concessions within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

The park service awards concessions to businesses to operate a hotel, restaurants and a store within park grounds.

Most of the facilities are at the historic Volcano House overlooking the caldera at the summit of Kilauea volcano.

Volcano House dates to 1846 and is Hawaii's oldest continually operated hotel.

The park service said last week that all proposals are due by March 16.

They should be sent to the park service's concession program manager for the Pacific West Region in Oakland, Calif.

Hawaii is No. 2 for pricey gas

The AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report finds Hawaii with the second highest gasoline prices in the country.

It says the state's average price of $3.34 for a gallon of regular yesterday was up seven cents from last week. According to the report, only Alaska had a higher average price of $3.39.

The price here is 89 cents higher than last year at this time, when the average cost of a gallon of regular was $2.49.

The average price in Honolulu was $3.24, down a penny from last week.

In Hilo on Hawaii island, the price was four cents lower at $3.42. And in Wailuku on Maui, it was about the same at $3.73 per gallon. Kauai is not included in the AAA report.

Malfunction delays missile testing

A missile test at the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai was postponed Friday after a malfunction in the target missile.

The missile was launched from a C-17 aircraft when it malfunctioned but the target's rocket motor didn't ignite, a Missile Defense Agency news release said.

An interceptor missile was supposed to shoot down the target, but was not launched, the release said.

An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the rocket malfunction.

10 years in prison for copper thief

An Oahu man at the center of a copper theft ring has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Friday's sentencing for Joseph Tano on criminal conspiracy to commit theft and money laundering charges came after a plea agreement.

Authorities have said that the thieves stole about 72,000 pounds of wiring from light poles along the H-1 and H-2.

Two other key members of the ring were sentenced earlier to 10 years each.

Mayor to D.C. for rail, reception

Mayor Mufi Hannemann is headed to Washington, D.C., for meetings on Oahu's rail transit project and to attend a reception at the White House, the city said in a news release.

Hannemann is also scheduled to meet tomorrow with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.

He is also going to a White House holiday reception hosted by President Barack Obama. The mayor will return Tuesday.

Study finds undersea power routes

A new study has found placement of undersea electrical transmission cables between Oahu, Maui, Molokai and Lanai is physically possible.

The state contracted with the University of Hawaii's School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology to conduct the Interisland Cable Project Ocean Floor Survey.

The cable is an integral part of a proposed interisland wind project. It would transmit up to 400 megawatts of renewable electricity generated from wind farms on Molokai and Lanai to Oahu and potentially to Maui.

The Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism said last week that the survey of the ocean floor was conducted to identify possible cable routes. It says the survey indicates several viable routes could be used.