More fees to come?
More fees to come?
NextEra Energy Inc. once stated in a newspaper article that it would not increase the “base” electrical rates for four years, saving customers $60 million. With 450,000 customers in the state, that’s only an average of $33 a year.
Who’s to say NextEra wouldn’t just increase fees or other surcharges on other parts of your bill, to make up the those savings?
Felix Tengan
Hilo
TMT ‘a bust’
This is an open letter to Ms. Stephanie Nagata, University of Hawaii; editors; and the people of Hawaii: The U.S. Soil and Water Conservation Act of 1935 allows for states to form local soil and water conservation districts to “take positive action to collectively protect our nation’s soil and water resources.” So says the Mauna Kea Soil and Water Conservation District website.
The site also states the district is active in areas such as watershed planning, flood prevention, polluted runoff control and wildlife habitat preservation.
Yet, the Thirty Meter Telescope project moves forward in spite of the fact that the 8-acre, 18-story high project simply does not comply with the state government’s OWN conditions. The state made the rules; the state surely ought to comply with the rules.
The Thirty Meter Telescope project moves forward in spite of the fact the project is being contested in court. The Thirty Meter Telescope project moves forward even though the sublease expires in 2033, just 11 years after the project is planned to be complete. What then? It’s dismantled? In what (wasteful) universe does that even make sense??
What will this project do to our watershed? What will chemical spills and human waste generated at the summit do to our aquifer?
This project is a boon to University of Hawaii’s coffers, but a bust for the rest of us.
Kris Bordessa
Ahualoa
Power outages
So, the local pols are trying to make political hay out of the proposed HECO buyout. Of course our rates will rise when more levels of bureaucracy are added.
On the other hand, we might get more reliable service from a management who knows how to produce and distribute power.
On a recent Saturday, we had about eight brief power interruptions, each one causing computers and digital clocks to need resetting. This seems to be a fairly regular occurrence.
I’ve lived in many places and visited many more and have NEVER seen such unreliable electric service. And this while we pay the highest rates in the nation!
Richard Amacher
Hilo