Eatery, park sewer line fix costs $1.3M
The landlord of a Kauai restaurant and the restaurant’s owner have paid more than $1.3 million to connect the establishment and nearby public beach park restrooms to a sewer line.
Brennecke’s Beach Broiler also paid a fine of more than $47,000 for using two large cesspools long after they were supposed to close, the Environmental Protection Agency announced Tuesday.
EPA officials commended owner Bob French for linking the Poipu Beach Park restrooms to the sewer at a cost of $500,000.
"We appreciate the initiative taken by Brennecke’s to provide beachgoers with improved wastewater treatment at the Poipu Beach Park," Jared Blumenfeld, the EPA’s regional administrator, said in a statement.
EPA regulations required existing large cesspools to close in 2005. But French said it took years to obtain easements, conduct an environmental study and build a 1,200-foot line to a sewer pipe.
Hilo students see astronauts
Students at Waiakea Intermediate School in Hilo viewed live video of astronauts aboard the International Space Station on Thursday as part of the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program.
More than 9,500 students nationwide participated in the downlink with space station commander Sunita Williams and flight engineer Kevin Ford, the Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported.
The event was hosted by the U.S. Department of Education and the National Center for Earth and Space Science Education.
NASA Associate Administrator Leland Melvin, a two-time shuttle astronaut, encouraged students to study science, technology, engineering and math.
"You are the scientists, engineers and astronauts of tomorrow," Melvin said. "America’s future of scientific research and space exploration is in your hands."
Axis deer saved off Maui beach
WAILEA, Maui » Beachgoers, resort workers and a lifeguard sprang into action when they saw an axis deer struggling off Wailea Beach.
Video of the Oct. 28 rescue posted by KITV shows the group working to save the animal after it plunged into the ocean.
Michael Boyer of the Four Seasons Resort Maui said the deer sprinted directly into the ocean.
By the time the group had herded it back to shore, it was too exhausted to stand.
The deer was taken back to the woods, where Boyer says it stared at its rescuers, "almost like a thank-you."
The invasive deer have been a problem in the islands for decades.