Kapa‘a man ‘farming’ sun, wind

LIHU‘E — A Kapa‘a farmer has found an ingenuous way of keeping his fish moving, and it’s not water but wind.

An 85-foot-tall wind turbine, rising above fruit-bearing trees, provides clean, renewable energy to the pumps in the fish tanks at Honua Home ‘Aina Organics.

“As a modern-day farmer, I believe in farming the sun and the wind,” Peter Spakowski said.

On a “good 90-day” period, he said his farm produces about 700 golden tilapia. The water-circulation pumps on both 350-gallon tanks have to be functioning 24 hours a day, which can put quite a spike in an electric bill.

“It can cover 10 to 15 percent of our energy needs. On an exceptionally windy month, it can cover as much as 45 percent of it,” Spakowski said.

“We’ve got a lot of slopes and ridges, our topography is radical,” said the farmer, explaining how challenging it is to farm his 2.5 acres of land on Ka‘apuni Road.

But perhaps more “radical” than the topography of his land is the impressive variety of produce the 55-year-old farmer yields from it.

The county Planning Department calls Spakowski’s farm an “intensive diversified agriculture production.”

Besides tilapia, the farm produces banana, ‘awa, taro, lychee, mango, avocado, jackfruit, tangerines, oranges, mountain apple, longan, calamansy, ‘ulu, ceyote, tomatoes, lettuce, sitaw (Oriental long bean), amtalaya (bittermelon), Swiss chard, watercress, kale, kangkong, string beans, parsley, thyme, basil, rosemary, oregano, chamomile, lavender, bamboo shoots, coconuts, sweet potatoes and eggs.

Spakowski also grows bamboo, koa and milo trees, although only the bamboo is used for lumber.

“We believe in growing native trees,” he said.

Spakowski said all of his produce is sold locally. The farmer said his decisions consider seven generations to follow.

“I would like to feel from my heart that my descendants will look back one day and say I was thoughtful as a steward of the land, like a good mother or father would be.”

The farm is not yet organic certified, but Spakowski said he’s working toward it.

He has owned the land for 12 years, and said he does not use chemicals. The key, he says, is not working your will on the land, instead, working with it, “going with the nature, with a light footprint, working with the water, the earth and the sun in harmony.”

Spakowski said he’s interested in doing a “modern-day ahupua‘a, an integrated form of aquaculture, agricultural farming and composting.”

A “chicken-tractor” helps fertilize the fruit trees on the farm. But no, there’s no tractor driven or powered by chickens. Spakowski utilizes a movable chicken coup. The droppings fall through the bottom of the coup and fertilize the ground where the “tractor” parks.

The farmer’s effort to comply with Kaua‘i General Plan guidelines for renewable energy almost came at a price, since he has been operating the turbine without a permit for almost four years.

A drive-by inspection revealed it, and when Spakowski approached the Planning Department he was told the structure was 30 feet taller than the height permitted.

Trees on his and his neighbors’ properties top 60 feet to 70 feet, according to the department’s report. In order to be able to catch wind efficiently, the turbine has to rise above the tree tops.

The commission Tuesday issued Spakowski a variance permit under the condition that he’ll be using the turbine as represented in the application, and will comply with noise levels. The commission can revise and revoke the permit if conditions are not met.

The commission also raised concerns that the turbine may affect Newell’s shearwaters, which are deemed threatened and hence under the protection of the federal Endangered Species Act.

The permit says that violation of any governmental agency laws regarding the Endangered Species Act may be grounds for permit revocation.

Contact Spakowski at honuahomeaina@hawaiiantel.net or 823-0231 for more information.

• Léo Azambuja, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) or lazambuja@kauaipubco.com.