12-27-2014, 03:13 PM
The first place on this island I lived was mauka Honaunau: crica 2002. The vog up there was so bad, I came down with two severe lung infections in less than a year -- I had to quit my job and move! Since then I've worked quite a bit in Kaumana, but have never experienced the extreme vog conditions I experienced in the Kealakekua region, even on a bad day. I sympathize with those who are sensitive to the vog and the secondary infections that can and do occur. The sad fact is there are some places that get it worse than others and some people who shouldn't expose themselves or their families.
Back home in New Mexico we had a smelter that emitted a similar range of gasses. The life expectancy for someone living around the stacks was 56 years! Do you think Kennecott/lawmakers were more interested with the health of the residents of a dusty company town or the economic health of the corporation/state? In the late seventies Mitsubishi took over; installed scrubbers and a meteorological station. The scrubbers helped a bit, but they timed the emissions so the plume blew south across open land and down into Chihuahua. Here, in what is arguably the most impoverished region in the state, there is a balance of concern between financial and physical health: the electrical needs of the Oahu/Maui megalopolis, combined with the financial considerations of corporate giants vs. the quality of life of folks in Lower Puna. I've drawn my conclusions and you are free to draw your own.
Un Mojado Sin Licencia
Back home in New Mexico we had a smelter that emitted a similar range of gasses. The life expectancy for someone living around the stacks was 56 years! Do you think Kennecott/lawmakers were more interested with the health of the residents of a dusty company town or the economic health of the corporation/state? In the late seventies Mitsubishi took over; installed scrubbers and a meteorological station. The scrubbers helped a bit, but they timed the emissions so the plume blew south across open land and down into Chihuahua. Here, in what is arguably the most impoverished region in the state, there is a balance of concern between financial and physical health: the electrical needs of the Oahu/Maui megalopolis, combined with the financial considerations of corporate giants vs. the quality of life of folks in Lower Puna. I've drawn my conclusions and you are free to draw your own.
Un Mojado Sin Licencia
Un Mojado Sin Licencia