No wrongdoing ADVERTISING No wrongdoing Regarding “Bridge mistake”: This letter to the editor, Feb. 24 … is 100 percent inaccurate. No new concrete has been demolished. Old concrete on the old bridge is being demolished. Concrete for the temporary bridge
No wrongdoing
Regarding “Bridge mistake”: This letter to the editor, Feb. 24 … is 100 percent inaccurate.
No new concrete has been demolished. Old concrete on the old bridge is being demolished. Concrete for the temporary bridge has been poured and remains in place.
Hope this enlightens Mr. Legge. Any suggestion of any wrongdoing is 100 percent erroneous.
Leona Kamoku
Hilo
Phantom savings
The application filed with the Public Utilities Commission for approval of the merger of Hawaii Electric Industries into NextEra Energy states that consumer rates for electricity would not be raised for four years. There is also a promise of savings amounting to $60 million for consumers.
Since there is no promise of lower rates, I could not understand how we would be saving money. But now Constance Lau, the highly paid head of HEI, has been kind enough to explain this anomaly: the projected savings are actually fictitious; they are what consumers would have spent if the rates had been raised by some unspecified amount, with the approval of the PUC, of course.
Folks, this really ridiculous! After the merger, the new Hawaii electric utility may well install new renewables and lower its own cost of generating electricity, but there will be no incentive to lower consumer rates. Why mess with the lovely cash cow as it exists now?
I applaud the move by Hawaii Island Energy Cooperative to intervene in the merger with the intention of splitting out HELCO from this affair and convert it to a publicly owned cooperative that is run for the benefit of the public, and not for the benefit of investors and overpaid administrators.
This island has the potential of becoming completely energy independent after developing the enormous geothermal resource and adding more solar and wind projects. Let’s get on with it!
Adrienne S. Dey
Hilo
Track inmates
Escapes committed by prisoners on work furloughs (failure to return, bolting from guards during court appearances, hospital visits, etc.) … and sometimes hours or days spent by authorities searching for these escapees, could greatly be minimized by placing wrist or ankle tracking devices, which will lock into place during times when inmates are escorted or supervised in a public environment.
This GPS-like system is used in a number states across the U.S. and quickly locates those who have escaped. No matter how low or high risk an inmate is, all should have these devices when in pubic.
Rick LaMontagne
Volcano
