Hawaiʻi – Sustainability
Sustainability is an issue for Hawaiʻi that cuts across political lines and can actually be a source of agreement for a great many citizens of Hawaiʻi.
Sustainability is an issue for Hawaiʻi that cuts across political lines and can actually be a source of agreement for a great many citizens of Hawaiʻi.
Global initiatives to move away from CO2 emissions while requiring most action by the U.S., are oftentimes self-defeating and do not adequately address legitimate concerns. Despite numerous efforts made toward improvements in the U.S., other countries, such as China, are bigger and bigger sources of emissions and have little intent on sustainment. We must be held to the same standards across the globe.
There are, of course, a growing number of issues that play into sustainability, and it is important that in each case, we must seriously examine the worthiness of proposals and look deeply into all the ramifications of proposed solutions. It is simply not good enough to pronounce allegiance to proposals that merely make some groups feel better about themselves. Proposals must be tested and prove themselves.
The U.S. is a major consumer of resources, but we are also the biggest contributors to cleaner air, water and overall environment. Both things can be acknowledged at the same time. We are also the obvious leaders in innovation when it comes to developing new energy technologies.
Hawaiʻi is a special place with cultural traditions that has long included sustainable living: aloha ‘āina and mālama ʻāina—Caring for and stewarding the land. Everything we do going forward can meet the needs of Hawaiʻi and our country without causing us to lose our traditions here and our economic force for good for the world. These two visions are not mutually exclusive.
A significant factor in sustainment is that we must ensure that business and entrepreneurship can continue to thrive — people with jobs feel a strong connection to their communities and work to bring together fellow citizens to sustain and care for the land in Hawaiʻi.
There is no single solution to problems and most often not even good solutions can come immediately. Energy, for example, comes from multiple sources. While today we get 60 percent of our energy from oil and gas, we know that we must keep improving ways to reduce the effects of the use of fossil fuels. In the long-term, we likely will find and implement ways to expand the viability of cleaner sources.
Moving forward, other forms of energy have to prove themselves to be feasible, plentiful, and long-lasting. Eventually the market will be there for alternatives. It is not enough to simply have ideas and decide to block and eliminate current, proven technologies for the sake of ideological purity.
Practical people who understand that progress takes time and that government agencies are rarely the source of the necessary innovation and invention, can come to reasonable decisions on state (and federal) legislation and government rules and regulations.
Innovation and invention come from our great entrepreneurs, scientists, and business leaders, not from Washington.
As governor, I want to aid those great minds, mostly by removing artificial and ideological roadblocks. It is incumbent on the citizens of Hawaiʻi to help implement measures to sustain our great state, while ensuring we do not immobilize or destroy our economy.
ALOHA,
Gary Cordery is a candidate for Governor of Hawaii.
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