How to prevent wild fires.

[redpoint5]

Bring the cane fields back? Would it be more cost effective to provide the subsidies required to make it worthwhile?

[JSH]

Originally Posted by redpoint5

Bring the cane fields back? Would it be more cost effective to provide the subsidies required to make it worthwhile?

Besides the political issue with provided subsidies to incredibly wealthy landowners - I doubt that would be the cheapest solution. The owner of the mill (Alexander & Baldwin) exited the agriculture business. They have converted into a publicly traded Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT). They sold their 42,000 Acres of farmland to Mahi Pono which is a new agriculture company.

To me it would make the most sense to use that land to raise livestock or grow crops that people actually eat. Hawaii imports 90% of their food. Mahi Pono is doing this but the going is slow. They are only farming or grazing 1/2 the land that they own and that is happening in the wetter central part of the Island


As it stands today land owners like Mahi Pono aren't required to do anything to mitigate wildfire danger and they don't in the areas they aren't farming.

[redpoint5]

Tangent thought, but I always wonder why people (my wife) have gardens or chickens when I can purchase 1.5 dozen eggs for $2, get any vegetable any time of year, and a gallon of milk for ~$2.50.

Then I visit Safeway in Maui and a gallon of milk is $9. Most unpackaged foods are 3x the cost. I'd garden like crazy, keep hens and graze cows if I lived in Hawaii. The growing seasons is all the time. I'd have solar and batteries and be "off-grid", and the payback period would be super quick, because electricity is the most expensive in the nation.

Whenever I visit Hawaii, I feel like I've gone back in time about a decade, as if they are where the rest of the country was 10 years ago.

[JSH]

Originally Posted by redpoint5

Tangent thought, but I always wonder why people (my wife) have gardens or chickens when I can purchase 1.5 dozen eggs for $2, get any vegetable any time of year, and a gallon of milk for ~$2.50.

Then I visit Safeway in Maui and a gallon of milk is $9. Most unpackaged foods are 3x the cost. I'd garden like crazy, keep hens and graze cows if I lived in Hawaii. The growing seasons is all the time. I'd have solar and batteries and be "off-grid", and the payback period would be super quick, because electricity is the most expensive in the nation.

Whenever I visit Hawaii, I feel like I've gone back in time about a decade, as if they are where the rest of the country was 10 years ago.

Plan to spend about $100K an acre for undeveloped land out away from cities

https://www.land.com/property/8.68-a...waii/17628872/

Here is some landlocked dry desolate scrub land without road access for $20K an acre

https://www.land.com/property/40.73-...waii/17642841/

[freebeard]

I'd have solar and batteries and be "off-grid", and the payback period would be super quick, because electricity is the most expensive in the nation.

..... until the downed power lines burn your offgrid facility to the ground.

[redpoint5]

Originally Posted by JSH

Plan to spend about $100K an acre for undeveloped land out away from cities

Oh, I'd never purchase in Hawaii as a residence, just saying if I was born there and grandfathered into land; garden like mad. I'd go stir crazy being confined to such small spaces, such high prices, no seasons to speak of, and taking 2hrs to drive 45 miles.

The Big Island is probably the best value of all the islands.

I'd consider a vacation rental in Kauai or Maui.

[freebeard]

Were I to be in a situation with some choice, it would be a moorage and oscillating water column.

A diet of kelp and fish.

[redpoint5]

Originally Posted by freebeard

A diet of kelp and fish.

I had that for dinner last night. Don't have to live on the sea to have that diet.

[Piotrsko]

For dried kelp and froze fish all you need is an Asian market which were plentiful back 50 years ago. Typical huge pissing contest with the land owners about (stolen) water rights

[freebeard]

https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Local_food
Local food - Wikipedia
Local food (or locavore) movements aim to connect food producers and consumers in the same geographic region, to develop more self-reliant and resilient food networks; improve local economies; or to affect the health, environment, community, or society of a particular place.

That's like living on wheat and beef on an island. The tidal power from the oscillating water column OTOH....