Letters for Friday, April 18, 2014

• Lifeguards needed on Kauai’s beaches • Ocean safety critical on island • Lengthening school year a bad idea • Island School deserved credit • No fan of smart meters • Recycling can keep waste from landfills • Pesticides play role in

Editor’s note: The following letters were submitted by students in Philip Steinbacher’s eighth-grade English class at Island School as part of a writing project.

Lifeguards needed on Kauai’s beaches

I’m writing in response to the letter of Jan. 27, regarding to HB 1607 and SB 2116.

Not long ago, in the late afternoon, an older tourist man was saved by lifeguard Makana Weiss at Kee Beach. On that late Wednesday afternoon, there was an “Extreme high surf warning for North and West Kauai,” so if no lifeguards were on duty, Kauai would have had their first drowning of the year. But one thing is even more surprising to me: the fact that the law (Act 170), which allows the county to have lifeguards at a state beach (because it exempts the county from liability), will end on June 30 unless HB 1607 and SB 2116 are passed. Now I hope that HB 1607 and SB 2116 will be passed because I would want to feel safe and worry free at a beautiful beach on Kauai.

I am hoping to encourage people to think about those bills and would like you to spread the word in any respectful way possible.

Kira Smith

Ocean safety critical on island

I am writing in reply to the article of Jan. 27, concerning lifeguard services.

I’ve known about the deadly drownings for four years and last year, there were 17 drownings. The lives of our friends and people depend on a decision to provide lifeguard services. The decision is rather easy to resolve, in my opinion. My opinion is to say yes and supply lifeguard services to every beach surrounded by water.

Why? First, if we have a reputation as an island that can’t save visitors from drowning, not that we are, then we wouldn’t have that many visitors coming to our island.

Second, like Mayor Carvalho said, ocean safety is very essential to all of us, and we need more safety to protect more precious lives.

Act 170 is also vital to us and agreeing with the Legislature — it should be made permanent. It wouldn’t hurt any other counties because it causes no worry of responsibility. If it does expire in June, I hope we still have lifeguard coverage over at Kee Beach. Kee Beach is a beach that should always be guarded because of the amount of drownings and possible drownings.

I encourage people to look out for others when they go swimming. Always be aware of the currents and weather. To make me even happier, become a lifeguard yourself.

Micah Asuncion

Lengthening school year a bad idea

I’m writing in response to the article of Jan. 27, regarding “Hawaii senator proposes longer school year.”

I feel that it isn’t a good idea to pass this bill and add two weeks onto the pubic school year because doing so will most likely add to the already stressful school lives that students have. I can say from experience that adding more school time doesn’t increase a student’s concentration or productivity. In fact, it makes students more eager to leave and do something else. If teachers or heads of schools want to increase the performance of students, perhaps they can create some after school academic clubs for students as an alternative to making the school years longer. Having more school days also decreases the time for students’ social lives, something that is important to have at this point in life. It most likely wouldn’t be worth the money to pay the teachers and maintenance to keep schools running.

Please do not pass the bill. Keep the school years short.

Sierra Jonas

Island School deserved credit

This letter is in response to the article on Jan. 22, in respect to the 2014 Kauai Regional Science Olympiad Competition.

First, I want to say thank you to the newspaper for even covering the event. It was really nice to read something positive about our schools in the newspaper, and it’s important to celebrate and acknowledge student success. I’m an eighth-grade girl from Island School and was part of one of their two teams.

The issue that I have with this article is that although it is very positive and well written, the large majority of the article is on Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School and Waimea Canyon Middle School. The picture is also a picture of two Waimea students. Island School isn’t even named until the last sentence, despite us winning first place in nine out of 11 events, and our individual teams earning enough points to win first and second place. The article, at first glance, makes it look like Waimea or Chiefess won. Don’t get me wrong, I am extremely happy that the article was written and that Chiefess and Waimea got recognition and were celebrated.

I don’t mean to take away from Chiefess’ and Waimea’s achievements, but I wish that Island School could have gotten a little more credit than they did. Chiefess and Waimea worked really hard and put in lots of time to do the Science Olympiad, but so did Island School. I know that I would be incredibly grateful if Island School got more recognition than one sentence the next time around. If this is a true journalistic article, it needs to spread the true story and be written with an unbiased view. Thank you again for covering the Science Olympiad competition and congratulations to Chiefess and Waimea middle schools.

Emily Sullivan

No fan of smart meters

I’m writing in response to the letter of Jan. 23, regarding “Apollo Kauai supports smart meter yes vote.”

I disagree with Luke Evslin from Apollo Kauai that we should be voting “yes” for KIUC’s new smart meter. The smart meter may be less work for KIUC and help provide renewable energy in the future, but the smart meter also gives off a lot of radiation. Too much exposure to radiation can be harmful — scientists have proven that too much can cause cancer and/or cause tumors later.

If you care about your health, I suggest you say no to smart meters. What’s more important, your life or money? Paying a little extra to not have a smart meter is smarter than having to pay a lot to get a tumor removed from your head.

I’m hoping to encourage people to steer away from KIUC’s smart meter while they still have the chance. Money can’t buy lives, so choose wisely.

Kyle Leibow

Recycling can keep waste from landfills

I am writing in response to the article of Jan. 26, regarding “County Proposes Recycling Laws.”

The Kekaha landfill is almost at its capacity and will eventually have to be closed. Last year, a total of 77,500 tons of trash was put into this landfill. If we dispose that much trash this year that could be recycled, then we are in trouble. Fear not, for Kauai has a plan.

Most materials that can be recycled, but often aren’t, are paper, cardboard, scrap metal and green waste. Since it is so easy to recycle and would really benefit the island and ourselves, the county is proposing two recycling laws. The two key points of these laws are recycling and waste diversion. The first law would require businesses to create recycling programs that would divert and capture certain recyclables. The second law would require construction and demolition businesses to redirect 95 percent of certain recyclable materials during their job. This is focused mostly on businesses because the county estimates that 55 percent of Kauai’s waste is caused by businesses.

It is believed that, if we put these two regulations together, we would get rid of an annual 12,000 tons of waste per year. Currently, these proposals are being looked over by the County Council, and if they pass, they would be enforced starting Jan. 1.

I am hoping to encourage people to sign petitions and help pass these laws. I believe it will benefit our island and save money as well. It’s important for everyone to be aware.

Haley Sharp

Pesticides play role in our health

I am writing to follow up on and in response to Dr. Lee Evslin’s letter of Jan. 28.

Even though I am young and still not of voting age, I agree with Dr. Evslin’s view on pesticides and think that it is important, especially for children, to live in a healthy and safe environment. I am still learning about this world and what roles each and every one of us plays in the ecological community, but from my personal experiences, I have gathered that we do need to take care of our land, our water, and our people. I have known too many people who have suffered from cancer, and while there may be no scientific proof that connects these things, I do believe it plays a role.

While swimming in one of Kauai’s estuaries, two other girls and myself simultaneously contracted a mysterious form of contact dermatitis that perplexed doctors, and again, while there may be no proof that it is linked to pesticides, we do know how easily this could be true. Pesticides from golf courses or just from people’s lawns can easily flow into our rivers and streams and could, perhaps, damage our ecosystem. I also believe that it is just common sense to have a buffer around waterways and schools.

I hope this letter has inspired you to take action or at least heightened your awareness of this debate, and maybe, we can change for the better.

Aliana Ho

Welcome tourists, Kauai needs them

I’m writing this in response to the letter of Jan. 23, regarding “Not so happy fairy tale.”

I agree strongly with Mrs. Sheffield. Way to show aloha to yet another innocent tourist. I think that Kauai should really be more respectful and kind to the people paying all this money to enjoy a loving vacation on our islands. Tourism helps Hawaii’s economy a lot! So, if all these people from around the world see that Kauai is known as the “Theft Island,” people won’t want to come here — I know I wouldn’t.

If this keeps up and people stop visiting our islands, our economy will go down, which can leave many people jobless. For example, hotel staff might be laid off or small local businesses could shut down due to slower business.

We want Kauai to be known as the Garden Isle, not a place to go and get your stuff stolen. Also for the tourist, please make sure you really hide your personal items. I think that if enough people want to help and reduce the number of thefts and robberies… spread the word! We locals want to make Kauai as warm and welcoming as possible.

Bianca Colagreco

Label could prevent service dog disputes

I’m writing in response to an article posted on Jan. 28, regarding “Rules of Service.”

As I read the article, I conjured a solution to Ms. Tereza Kristall’s concern about being questioned about her service dog. I believe that needing to label a service animal, even if it’s something as small as a tag on the collar, will greatly reduce the hassle of having your service animal accompany you into public buildings. I am aware that in order to park in a handicap spot, you need to label your car as property of a handicapped person or there will be consequences. I don’t find there to be a considerable difference between labeling that you’re handicapped for parking reasons and labeling that you’re handicapped for your service animal to be allowed into buildings and etc. I understand that a reason for not labeling is so that there isn’t any judging happening because of your disability, yet the label doesn’t need to be visible to the general public.

If people were to label their service animals, it would also help to reduce fraud. For instance, if you walk into a building with your dog that says “No Animals,” you could easily say that it was a service dog. There are only two questions the Americans with Disabilities Act allows for the staff of the building to ask. Other than that, they would have to accommodate you because of ADA rules. Even if your animal wasn’t a legitimate service animal, they wouldn’t know because you are not allowed to ask for documentation regarding the animal.

I hope to encourage people to look into this issue and make it easier for those who need service animals to be accompanied by them. I believe it will make life easier for all of us.

Summer Mead

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