Does anyone else have any questions for Bobby Command to take to Pohakuloa officials next week?
Contact Bobby ASAP at: bcommand@co.hawaii.hi.us



Aloha Shannon:

My name is Bobby Command and I am the mayor's executive assistant in West
Hawaii. We've spoken before when I worked at West Hawaii Today. The mayor
appreciates your email as well as all the other emails that were sent to
him regarding military activities at Pohakuloa.

I am scheduled to meet with Pohakuloa officials next week and I will
compile all the questions sent in the numerous emails and present them to
the officials. Please give me a few days to compile my notes before I get
back to all of you, and forgive me as I sent them out en masse as there

are many concerns. Should you have any questions feel free to email me at
bcommand@co.hawaii.hi.us

Sincerely


Bobby Command

Aloha Bobby!
Glad you are there and loving your new job; you were ready for a new challenge. Congratulations! Perfect timing!

I do have a couple of additional questions re: Pohakuloa.
I have a friend who has lived in South Kona for 30 years who tested themselves for depleted uranium at the same lab, (Hartwell) that the British Government used. The test, using a mass spectrometer - that measures the different ceramic molecules of uranium isotopes - was used... and the test came back positive. ($700)

This test doesn't "count". because this person grew up next to a large army base on the mainland. The results said, this person had been exposed to depleted uranium - either a lot, long ago.. or a little, recently.

My question is: because the test is so inexpensive, why not test a few directly downwind, life long residents - now? The county really needs to get to the bottom of this quickly and calm residents fears. Many documented articles have been written about DU traveling on the wind. IF this is happening, we have a right to know.

We need "independent" human tests, now; then we will know just what the heck is going on. .... In two weeks.

Big Mahalo to you and Mayor Billy for staying on top of this very serious issue, residents have been beyond patient waiting for some straight answers.

Shannon



> Aloha Mayor Kenoi and Council members,
>
> Did the State Health Dept. ever fix the Kona air monitor?
>
> The idea of "averaging" results is not the way to monitor Pohakuloa air.
> When the DU issue first came up, the health dept. sent someone to test air
> at PTA. They monitored for a short time in several areas then raced to the
> Honolulu Advertiser to say, "everything was fine"; Residents don't believe
> this.
>
> I was present at Pohakuloa as were some of you, on May 29th 2007.
> Residents
> had brought their own monitors to the mountain and we all watched the read
> outs stay below background levels for over an hour and a half. We watched
> as
> the wind picked up dust off of PTA and blow directly over all of us;
> radiation monitors then zoomed to 75 counts per minute. We were all
> horrified.
>
> I saw with my own eyes. There is no way that you can get correct radiation
> readings from monitoring for a few minutes unless you are very lucky; it
> all
> depends on which way the wind is blowing. The only way we will ever know
> what's really going on is to have continuous, independent monitoring.
>
> PTA soil samples were done over two years ago; where are the results? Will
> we have to sue to see the data, like many other communities have had to
> do?
>
> You will hear from Col. Killian that "everything is fine"; that's his job
> and he does it well, just as those before him said there was no residual
> radiation from Hiroshima; that nuclear tests in the South Pacific were
> harmless, (tell that to the Marshallese now living here who can't go home
> because their islands are contaminated forever and the 400,000 atomic
> workers now collecting disability checks).
>
> Continuing on through the years of similar people in Col. Kilian's
> position
> who said Agent Orange as "not a problem" and that military personnel who
> were harmed were "just crazy", and now, on to the battle of Gulf War
> Syndrome victims.
>
> Our military has a long history of lying, stalling, and cover ups, to
> cover
> their own butts and to prevent payment from those they have harmed
> including
> a multitude of American citizens.
>
> I and many other Hawai'i residents don't believe a word that Col. Killian
> has to say, and neither should you.
> Its up to all of you to protect this island and not bury your heads in the
> sand. Its time to call in the EPA to get some real results.
>
> Kona has the highest cancer rate in the state. Why? The state of Hawai'i
> has
> a minimum of 824 contaminated military sites. Communities across the
> country
> are howling for clean up funds and we better get on that list quick.
>
> Mahalo,
> Shannon
>
> Additional Questions:
> Why do military officials say there is no danger from the DU (depleted
> uranium) at Pohakuloa, with so many questions left unanswered?
>
> Dr. Pang, a former Army doctor and consultant to the World Health
> Organization, recommends air sampling that can detect intermittent spikes
> in
> airborne DU. So why is the Army is just taking averages? That's like
> saying
> the temperature is 75 degrees average, when it's 100 degrees by day, and
> 50
> degrees by night.
>
> What type of air testing is recommended for airborne
> DU from penetrators? Is this type being done at Pohakuloa?
>
> Why is a Sierra Club consultant saying there may be 2000 spotting rounds
> at
> Pohakuloa alone, while the Army says there are only 714 in the whole
> state?
>
> Is anyone searching for hazardous DU and/or radioactivity from sources
> other
> than the spotting rounds?
>
> Is anyone reviewing records for other forgotten hazards, including
> classified records, and records from non-Army users of Pohakuloa? (Air
> Force, Marines, National Guard, Navy)
>
> What action has the Army taken on the two County DU resolutions passed six
> months ago?