Bill to plant 1M trees each year in Hawaii moves to Senate
HONOLULU — A million trees could be planted in Hawaii each year under a proposed program to increase the number of non-invasive trees in the state.
The state Legislature is considering backing the tree-planting project started by University of Hawaii geography professor Camilo Mora to offset carbon emissions, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported.
The Carbon Neutrality Resources initiative is responsible for planting thousands of trees in Hawaii. The most recent project involved 2,000 volunteers planting 11,000 trees in December, Mora said, adding that he hopes to increase to 100,000 this year and plant a million in 2021.
The bill would place the state Department of Land and Natural Resources in charge of a program to plant a million native trees statewide each year. It was approved by the Senate Tuesday and passed its first reading in the House on Thursday.
Democratic state Sen. Donovan Dela Cruz introduced the bill, adding that trees could provide shade, combat invasive species and restore the state’s ecosystem.
“There’s so many reasons why that makes sense, and the more we can plant native trees so that we can perpetuate our own indigenous ecosystems, that help keeps Hawaii unique,” Dela Cruz said.
Mora has worked with the tree-planting project for five years and has cautioned lawmakers that proper planning is crucial to the success of the program. Leaders would need to do their research to be successful, including determining where the trees would grow and what types of species to plant, he said.
Dela Cruz met with former Democratic Gov. Neil Abercrombie, who praised his method for being simple, cost-effective and attractive to the public.
“You get in fights over windmills, and you get in arguments about tax relief for solar and electric cars are too expensive, and here all along there’s a proposition that says, ‘No, we can take youth groups, senior groups, volunteers and a little paid staff and we can actually reduce the carbon footprint in the state,’” Abercrombie said.
Hawaiian Airlines to suspend some Japan trips amid outbreak
HONOLULU — Hawaiian Airlines has announced it will suspend some flights to Japan later this month amid travel fears in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Flights to Tokyo’s Haneda Airport that operate three times a week between Kona International Airport and four times a week between Honolulu’s Daniel K. Inouye International Airport will temporarily stop, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported.
The changes go into effect March 28 and will extend through April 29, the start of Golden Week, a normally high travel period for visitors from Japan, company officials said. Golden Week is a series of national holidays in Japan that take place within one week at the end of April to the beginning of May each year.
“Japan is a vitally important market for our airline, and we have been looking forward to launching our third nonstop flight between Honolulu and Haneda,” Hawaiian Airlines CEO Peter Ingram said in a statement. “Unfortunately, the spread of COVID-19 beyond Asia has diminished near-term global travel demand.”
Currently, the airline operates 42 weekly flights between Hawaii and Japan, but the new schedule will reduce operations to 35 weekly flights between the two countries, Hawaii News Now reported. The airline has already suspended some travel to South Korea.
Hawaiian Airlines has offered to assist any travelers impacted by the changes by providing re-accommodations on alternative flights or refunds.
The changes are not expected to affect Hawaiian Airlines’ plans to launch an additional daily nonstop service between Honolulu and Haneda, which was announced in November, company officials said.
From wire sources
