Honolulu gas prices slip to just below $4

The average price of regular gasoline dropped below $4 a gallon in Honolulu over the weekend, but the neighbor islands are not seeing the same price drop.

The average price of a gallon of gas in Honolulu was $3.996 a gallon Sunday, slightly lower than Saturday’s price of $3.998. Gas sold for $4.016 last week on average and $4.088 last month in Honolulu.

The highest prices are on Maui, where gas in Wailuku is $4.43 a gallon for regular. Hilo’s average price is $4.3006 a gallon, up from $4.29 last week.

The statewide average price is $4.14 a gallon, roughly the same as last week. Last month’s statewide average was $4.20.

Nationwide the average price of a gallon of gas dropped nearly 5 cents over the past two weeks. The Lundberg Survey of fuel prices released Sunday puts the average price of a gallon of regular at $3.38.

Of the cities surveyed, Albuquerque, N.M., had the nation’s lowest average price for gas at $2.96, and San Francisco had the highest at $3.78.

Ewa Makai upgraded to gold LEED rating

A West Oahu middle school is Hawaii’s first school to receive the U.S. Green Building Council’s second-highest certification.

Education officials said Friday that Ewa Makai Middle School achieved "gold" certification for its sustainable construction, design and operation.

The school opened to students in January. It originally had "silver" certification under Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design guidelines. But the U.S. Green Building Council later determined the school had enough points to move up to gold status, second to platinum.

The school’s environmentally friendly features include an air-conditioning system that follows the council’s guidelines and energy-efficient lighting. Hawaii Department of Education officials say the school has the potential to save up to $22,000 annually in utility costs.

Paniolo Hall of Fame adds 10 members

Ten cowboys were inducted into the Paniolo Hall of Fame Saturday.

The ceremony took place at the Hawaii Cattlemen’s Council annual convention at the Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel. The Paniolo Hall of Fame was initiated 12 years ago to recognize individuals statewide who have contributed to keeping Hawaii’s paniolo heritage alive.

The inductees are A. Hartwell Carter, Donald DeSilva, Gary Rapozo and Richard K.P. Smart of Parker Ranch; Dee Gibson of Koko Head Dairy, Oahu, and Wailua Ranch, Kauai; Peter Kama Sr. of Kahua Ranch, Oahu; Naluahine Kaopua of Thomas White Ranch, Hawaii island; Clarence Medeiros Sr. of Magoon Ranch and CM Ranch, Hawaii island; Harry "Pono" von Holt of Ponoholo Ranch, Hawaii island; and Louis von Tempsky of Ulupalakua and Haleakala ranches, Maui.

Hoku Ke‘a telescope plans move forward

The Hoku Ke‘a telescope atop Mauna Kea could be operational by next summer, its director told the Hawaii Tribune-Herald.

Josh Walawender, an associate professor of physics and astronomy, has completed an evaluation of the 36-inch telescope and has developed a plan to make it useful for scientific observation.

"Our goal, given our current funding status, is to try to have basic operations in the middle of next year," Walawender said Thursday. "So sometime next summer."

Still to be done, said Walawender, are repairs to a leaking dome and the dome drive system; tests and repairs to mirrors; and rebuilding the control system. He said the University of Hawaii at Hilo is kicking in $100,000 for the fixes.

UH-Hilo received a grant from the National Science Foundation in 2002 to commission the telescope, but it wasn’t installed until spring 2010.

Walawender was hired in April to tackle the trouble.

Kauai votes on aquarium fish trade ban

The Kauai County Council voted unanimously to ask the 2012 Legislature to ban the aquarium fish trade, worth an estimated $1.2 million a year.

The vote Wednesday came after testimony from several experts, the Garden Island newspaper reports.

"When the state opened the door to this trade in 1953, policies reflected the view that the ocean is a stable and endless resource," said Renee Umberger, director of For the Fishes, a coral reef restoration project. "The ocean today tells a different story."

Umberger estimated that more than 3,800 fish are taken from Hawaii’s reefs per day, with 40 percent of them dying in transport and most of the rest dead within a year.