Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 27, Number 2, 1 February 2010 — Abercrombie links self-determination, energy independence [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Abercrombie links self-determination, energy independence

By Liza Simon Public Affairs Specialist U.S. Congressman Neil Abererombie urged Native Hawaiians to support energy independenee as part of the movement toward politieal self-determination, whieh he eharaeterized as being at the eore of OHA's efforts and the Akaka Bill, pending in Congress. His remarks eame during his keynote address at OHA's Hawaiian Business Conferenee and Eeonomie Expo on Jan. 13, a day devoted to energy issues. Abererombie said that onee "questions of eeded lands and Hawaiian homelands are settled," Hawaiians will have more opportunity to invest in natural resourees and infrastrueture, ineluding the use of elean energy. He said Native Hawaiian prosperity is key to eeonomie progress for all Hawai'i residents. "Onee Hawaiians beeome masters of their own eeonomie destiny, everyone (in Hawai'i) also rises, beeause we will have a more stable soeiety that everyone benefits from," said Abererombie (D-Hawai'i). Abererombie also eommended Hawai'i's leaders from opposing politieal parties for uniting on the issue of energy independenee but said more aetion is needed to eut the state's heavy

relianee on eostly foreign oil imports for its energy needs. "We need to have a government commitment that says we are not going to turn Hawai'i's land over to investment speculators in the 21st century, but instead use it to grow renewable energy sources," he said, referring to recent efforts to start up bioenergy enterprise, or the making of fuel from plant products. Earlier in the day, a panel of experts discussed alternatives to Hawai'i's oil dependence, including the Hawai'i Clean Energy Initiative, a partnership between the U.S. Department of Energy and the Lingle administration aimed at using Hawai'i's natural resources - wind, sun, biomass and geothermal power, to transition the state's energy economy by 2030 into a model of elean energy efficiency unprecedented in the nahon. Abercrombie, who is running for governor, quipped that he surprised Lingle by recently complimenting her for "putting meat on the policy bone" related to energy. "There is universal acceptance across the state that energy independence is where we want to go," he said, adding that eeonomie recovery in Hawai'i is impossible without a concerted commitment to change, including halting the state's practice of spending bilSee ABERCROMBIE on page 0G

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U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrobie highlights energy issues at 0HA's Hawaiian Business Conference and Eeonomie Expo. - Photo: Uza Simon

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lions of dollars out of state on energy sources. "If we (continue this), the working middle class, white and blue collar are going to be driven to the margins - and disappear," he said. The conference also held a legislative panel with state lawmakers, who gave a glimpse of

their agenda this session. House Hawaiian Affairs Chairwoman Mele Carroll ( D-Lāna'i, Moloka'i, E. Maui) said she would be introducing a bill that would allow DHHL, if it so desired, to "create eeonomie development" through gambling. The bill, whieh would allow DHHL to establish a gambling commission, is based on a model of a Native American tribe she visited in īulalip in Washington state in January as a member of the Native American State Legislators Caucus. ■