UH involvement in undersea cable survey a good idea
By Jay Fidell
Under last year's Clean Energy Agreement, DBEDT has taken charge of the development of an undersea power line to carry 400 megawatts among four islands.
This cable will provide O'ahu with wind and solar energy from new renewable projects by David Murdock on Lana'i and First Wind on Maui and Moloka'i. It could go a long way toward reaching the goal of 70 percent renewables by 2030.
Using federal money, DBEDT is paying $1.5 million to the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at UH to survey alternative cable routes and provide data for the forthcoming EIS.
The survey opens the way to a project that could change the face of energy in Hawai'i, and the stakes are huge.
SOEST HANDY
Although the ultimate contractor might have done this survey, along the lines of the "options" analysis done for rail by Parsons Brinckerhoff, given what we've learned from rail, SOEST, as a neutral party, might be a better choice.
SOEST already knows what's down there — it's been mapping the area for years. And SOEST has the equipment and research connections to take its data to a much finer resolution using cutting-edge sonar and video.
That considered, DBEDT did not hire SOEST through the state procurement process but treated it as a government agency under a sole source "intergovernmental services" contract.
The cable will be high voltage and nine inches wide. There aren't many such cables. Those in Long Island and Europe are in shallow water. In Hawaiian waters, this is a more challenging project and SOEST hopes to get it off to a good start.
HOW WE FIND OUT
SOEST will take its 223-foot research vessel, R/V Ka'imikai-o-Kanaloa ("Heavenly Searcher of the Seas"), on three trips — one 10-day trip for bathymetric depth measurement, one for videotaping (going on now), then one for coring samples. There is a scientific staff of 20, plus a crew of 13.
They use an underwater sonar scanning vehicle which trails one kilometer behind the ship. They also use other underwater devices, with thrusters and lights, to take video and get samples from the bottom.
SOEST will finish this field work this month and will deliver the data processing and reports to DBEDT in August. Based on this data, DBEDT will issue an RFP later this summer for an EIS and management of the larger project to follow.
OPEN QUESTIONS
ONE STEP FOR HAWAI'I
All in all, this survey is a grand project for SOEST and the kind of due diligence that thrills the imagination. Graduate and undergraduate students are on the team and it's very exciting for them. They and the faculty are delighted to be involved.
You've got to admire SOEST for being flexible and confident enough to jump in on a project like this. They have the science, the equipment and the people. They're doing it not only for the money, but also to make a contribution.
Although larger commercial contractors will probably take over in the next step, to build our tech industry we should include SOEST and other local tech providers whenever possible.
