O'AHU RESIDENTS CLEARLY DON'T GET IT ON IMPACT

It is blatantly clear that O'ahu residents have no understanding of the effect the Superferry will have on the Neighbor Islands.

If they did, they would understand the reasons for the majority of support on the Neighbor Islands for an environmental assessment or, better still, an environmental impact statement.

The view on O'ahu has been distorted by the hype generated by the Lingle administration and Superferry. If O'ahu residents removed their rose-colored glasses and got to the truth of the Stryker brigade, traffic, failing infrastructure, invasive species, depletion of our limited resources, etc., they would see things differently.

Unfortunately, Oahuans have been deceived and have fallen victim to one of the biggest con games the Lingle administration has ever produced. We on the Neighbor Islands know all too well how things really work on O'ahu. Your need to support big business at the expense of what Neighbor Islanders demand is disturbing. And your spin on the truth and the facts is laughable to all of us here.

RECYCLING

SIERRA CLUB SHOULD SUPPORT CURBSIDE PLAN

It's nice to have the head of the Sierra Club, Jeff Mikulina, endorsing the city's new curbside recycling plans, but next time can you spare us the unnecessary and unwarranted sniping?

Mikulina's claim that the city has previously passed up the chance to have a private local recycler pay $400,000 for the "privilege" of providing curbside recycling is false. The proposal was without substance, the company unlicensed to perform and rejection was automatic and highly publicized, not "inexplicably canceled" by Mayor Hannemann, as Jeff would like us to believe.

Jeremy Harris' aborted pilot project in Mililani and the premature distribution of blue bins was an ill-thought-out-hurry-up attempt at the end of his administration. The existing UPW contract precluded the hiring of a private party for trash (or recyclables) curbside pick-up. That plan was a non-starter legally, and the avoidable false start again cost the taxpayers.

Now that the mayor has a well-thought-out curbside program ready to launch, he needs and appreciates the support of the community and the Sierra Club.

We don't need the pontificating from "theoreticians" like Jeff Mikulina, who lack any real knowledge about running city operations and have a history of ignoring the wishes of the public and wise use of their tax money.

CRIME

CAN HAWAI'I STILL CALL ITSELF THE ALOHA STATE?

My dad is the pastor of a local church that is able to offer a place here for those who are burnt out to come to and enjoy paradise.

Last week we welcomed a pastor and his family who came to take a very well-deserved vacation. On Thursday, they went to the beach and stopped for dinner at Ala Moana.

They parked their car only to come back and find it had been broken into and a backpack containing all their important documents, wallet, cash, digital camera, etc. had been stolen.

This happened in a high-traffic area not known for crime. Yet despite the high visibility, the thief managed to have enough time to pick out only the valuable things.

It has saddened me to look around and feel that we have lost a lot of our aloha spirit in recent years. Incidents such as this only serve to further that belief.

What has the state of aloha come to if a family that has burned itself out helping others cannot experience some aloha here because of the greed of a few?

Can we still call ourselves the aloha state?

WAIALUA-KAIAKA BAY

CORPS OF ENGINEERS WANTS WATERSHED STUDY

The Advertiser's Sept. 19 story "North Shore residents urge flood prevention," did not completely explain the Army Corps of Engineers' role in the proposed Waialua-Kaiaka Bay Watershed Project.

At the request of, and in cooperation with, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, the corps would like to do a comprehensive study of the Waialua-Kaiaka Bay watershed, provided that federal funds become available.

The proposed reconnaissance study, estimated at $300,000, would be conducted by the corps for DLNR.

Identification of problems and potential remedial actions would provide the momentum for improvements, further economic development and conservation of ecosystems. The findings would identify both the best road ahead and the roles of the various agencies involved.

A subsequent feasibility study would look into the problems in more detail and come up with alternative solutions and costs that will help our state partners address solutions to water resource problems (flooding and ecosystem degradation, water conservation and supply).

We hope that this will lead to a potential Corps of Engineers role in actual construction work down the road in order to safeguard residents of the community and their property.

GABBARD

DEMOCRATS' WELCOME WAS DISCOURAGING

One of the most discouraging displays I've seen in years was the lineup to greet Mike Gabbard as he turned Democrat. There was Colleen Hanabusa, Mike McCartney, and a big hug from Dan Akaka.

I have voted Democrat for 52 years, but never again here in Hawai'i. Not even for Neil or Mazie.

TRASH

O'AHU SHOULD CONSIDER PLASMA ARC TECHNOLOGY

Before the City Council and mayor move ahead with shipping O'ahu's garbage off to the Mainland or building new landfills, they should check out St. Lucie County in Florida, where officials are finalizing plans for the world's largest plasma arc waste disposal plant.

It's reported that Geoplasma Inc. will build and operate a $425 million facility that uses a 10,000-degree Fahrenheit arc of electric plasma to flash 3,000 tons of rubbish a day into hot gas and slag, netting enough surplus electrical energy to power 40,000 homes. The obsidian-like slag can be used as building blocks, pavement or insulation.

Besides using the daily collection and commercial disposal of trash to fuel the plant, operators plan to mine the county's existing landfill of another 1,000 tons a day.

It seems the perfect solution for O'ahu, which has already had a couple of modest tries at the plasma arc technology dating back to the 1990s. Perhaps the Neighbor Islands could barge their rubbish to O'ahu.

Higher energy, transportation and land costs as well as growing environmental concerns have driven rapid advancements and interest worldwide in the technology that amounts to a controlled steady bolt of lightning that transforms waste into its basic elements — primarily carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen. This is not the same as the H-power plant that burns the rubbish.

So, who pays for this? In Florida, Geoplasma picks up the tab, recovering its investment costs with the sale of the excess electricity.