Mayor Kusaka’s ideas about being prudent regarding the acquisition of Kaua’i Electric by Kaua’i County or the co-op are justified. If it were not for a few individuals, such as Ray Chuan, Walter Lewis and Michael Edwards, to offer their
Mayor Kusaka’s ideas about being prudent regarding the acquisition of Kaua’i
Electric by Kaua’i County or the co-op are justified.
If it were not for a
few individuals, such as Ray Chuan, Walter Lewis and Michael Edwards, to offer
their views in spite of being called nawsayers, we may have paid $100 million
over book price for Kau’i Electric. There was a lot of money spent on public
relations trying to convince everyone that the buyout was a great deal. Many
people, including myself, were initially in favor of owning our own utility
company and having a voice in our energy future. These individuals are to be
thanked for their thankless efforts to help guide and inform the masses and
encourage the Public Utilities Commission to make the proper decisions. The
commission is paid and appointed to make the proper decisions for the public.
I believe the same prudence and caution should be used to justify the
building of the new diesel Naptha plant above Hanama’ulu. I think an energy
decision of this magnitude should not be rushed, either.
In my last
article to the Forum on Nov. 29, I wrote that energy coasts would soar in the
next 10 years due to limited oil reserve. Most recently, energy bills on the
islands have spiked and can be directly related to rising oil costs. It has
been reported that Hawai’i has been able to avoid the problems that utility
companies in California are having because of a little known decision made 30
years ago by the Public Utilities Commission that allows the utility companies
to pass oil cost hikes on to the customers without any approvals. How
convenient. This situation, however, encourages the burning of oil because
there is no risk by the utility. There is no incentive for Kaua’i Electric to
explore alternative and risky renewable resources when they are guaranteed
their profit when they burn oil.
Mayor Kusaka’s dream that our rates would
go down if we bought Kaua’i Electric, I believe, is far-fetched. Our total
reliance on burning oil for our energy, as well as the plan to build another
diesel plant, dooms our fate for any future rate reductions. There is no cap on
the oil prices the electric companies can pass on to customers. The building of
the new diesel plant that will continue our total dependence on oil deserves
the same caution and prudence that the mayor recommends regarding the buyout.
The Kaua’i Renewable Energy Coalition plans to meet on Jan. 9 to plan its
agenda and formulate a plan to use Kauai’s abundant resources to fuel its
future energy needs. Call 332-8890 for more information.
PAUL
LUCAS
Lawa’i