Ala Wai Canal might be shut for meeting

The state Land Board will decide this week whether to temporarily close the Ala Wai Canal from the Ala Moana Boulevard bridge to the Kalakaua Avenue bridge for security reasons during the IUCN World Conservation Congress in September.

About 10,000 dignitaries and government officials are expected to attend the event, which will be held Sept. 1-10 at the Hawai‘i Convention Center. IUCN stands for the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

The Board of Land and Natural Resources will take up the proposal to close the canal at its regular meeting Thursday.

The state Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement has asked for the closure.

“This event will generate worldwide media attention and numerous Heads of State, Ministerial and Cabinet Level officials and other dignitaries are expected to attend,” division Enforcement Chief Thomas Friel said in a statement.

The bridges at Ala Moana Boulevard and Kalakaua Avenue are closest to the convention center.

During the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference in Honolulu in November 2011, the Coast Guard established security zones that included the entire Ala Wai Canal.

The Department of Land and Natural Resources, working with state harbor police, would be responsible for the canal’s security and would use vessels and floating booms to accomplish the task.

Explosive found at beach is destroyed

Navy explosive ordnance disposal personnel destroyed a projectile found in 5 feet of water about 20 yards offshore of Makua Beach in Waianae on Saturday.

According to a Navy spokeswoman, the projectile, confirmed to be an explosive round, appeared to have been in the water for “a very long time.”

The object was successfully destroyed where it was at about 5 p.m., sending up white plumes of water. Police were there to maintain public safety.

Lava tube system forming at Puu Oo

A lava flow on the east slope of Puu Oo is developing a tube system but has not advanced significantly since the breakout began May 24.

Scientists at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory last week released new video and photos of the two new lava flows on the northeast and east slopes of Puu Oo.

The photos and video show a skylight over the lava tube and the lava flowing in the system and coming out farther down the slope. The hole above the tube is about 20 feet wide, scientists said.

Since the new flows began, the crater flow in Puu Oo has subsided by about 33 feet, scientists said.

The flows have been spreading but have not moved significantly down the slope. Scientists said they are “primarily resurfacing areas they had already covered.”

Scientists also showed photos of a “hornito,” a tower of lava spatter that formed over a vent on the northeast of Puu Oo crater. Small gobs of spatter and Pele’s hair were seen around the spatter cone.

The flows are still far from populated areas and do not pose a threat.

Eroding beaches find some help

WAILUKU >> Offshore sand could help deter beach erosion in West Maui.

The county Planning Department has been working with consultant Moffatt & Nichol since February on a study that resulted in the discovery of 300,000 cubic yards of sand off Kahana Bay in April, the Maui News reported.

“We have samples of it, and even our consultants were quite surprised and very happy,” said James Buika, the county’s lead coastal resources and shoreline planner. “It’s long stretches of high-quality sand with no coral around.”

It’s a long process to get the sand to shore, said Tara Owns, coastal processes and hazards specialist for the University of Hawaii Sea Grant Program. Research, planning and permitting could take five years with costs estimated between $15 million and $20 million.

Officials are working on an environmental impact statement for the plan.

“We’re exploring our options, including a combination of funding to minimize the costs for condo owners,” Owens said. “It’s really turned everybody’s thinking around. We can promote this vision for Kahana Bay that is attainable in the very near-term future.”

Owners of condominiums and resorts in the area have spent thousands over the years to protect their properties.

El Nino brought high tides and strong swells this year that contributed to the disappearing coastline and affected properties.

Scott Brothers Construction owner Worthy Clay Scott said last month that the situation is a crisis.

Thousands of sandbags are lined up on the beach outside Valley Isle Resort.