Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The Northern Mariana Islands' delegate to the US Congress wants the territory to receive half of any federal revenue generated from potential seabed mining around the islands.

The US has recently invited bidders for seabed mining licenses in American Samoa, and will soon do the same for the CNMI.

A keen Republican supporter of President Trump, but a critic of his critical minerals agenda, Kimberlyn King-Hinds said a 50/50 split of the licensing revenue from mining companies is only fair.

She said it would be too difficult to lobby against seabed mining in the area altogether, but with a lack of science, there are dangers that ought to be addressed.

It comes as the US considers issuing up to six mineral leases east and west of the Marianas, with the Western area coming within 54 miles of Saipan.

(RNZ Pacific)

LALA VICTIM IDENTIFIED

Search crew in Nāʻālehu on the Big Island found the body of a 93-year-old woman in a field Monday afternoon in what is the first fatality attributed to Hurricane Lala.

She was identified by the Hawai‘i Police Department on Tuesday as May Doi, who was last seen Friday at a residence on Maia Street.

The woman had been reported missing, according to temporary Hawaiʻi County Fire Chief Daniel Volpe, and search crews had been looking for her. Green said her body was discovered as state and county officials visited the area to inspect the damage the hurricane has done to Kaʻū communities.

Police Chief Reed Mahuna said foul play is not suspected. “We don’t believe it is anything other than a result of the disaster at this time, but we will investigate it fully to make sure that that’s the case,” he said.

(Hawaii News Now)

FIJI ELECTIONS

Fiji now has 11 political parties registered to contest the upcoming general elections.

The Fiji Sun says Fiji's Registrar of Political Parties, Ana Mataiciwa, approved the registration of the Liberation of Fiji Party (LFP) this week.

Mataiciwa says the LFP, registered under the Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding and Disclosures) Act 2013, had met all legal requirements.

Fiji Liberation Party join a list of new parties launched over the last 24 months, including One Nation, NeXTGEN Alliance Party, People First, Kingdom Unite All Peoples Party and We Unite Fiji Party.

Fiji's elections are expected to be held by February next year.

(RNZ PACIFIC)

SITES RE-OPEN AFTER LALA 

Nine emergency water distribution and electronic device charging sites have opened across Hawaiʻi Island to support residents recovering from Hurricane Lala.

The sites opened Monday afternoon and will remain active while supplies last.

The distribution effort is designed to provide immediate relief to communities facing utility outages and resource shortages following the storm.

In addition to receiving water, residents are utilizing the sites to charge essential electronics. Volcano resident Cole Kirby said he had been running his car engine to charge his phone before learning about the station at the Cooper Center.

“I’ve been using my vehicle to charge my phone, just running the motor and then using the alternator and the battery to charge my phone,” Kirby said. “But it’s pretty inefficient as far as fuel and battery for your vehicle battery is concerned. So when I saw on Facebook that we have battery charging over here at the Cooper Center, I was excited.”

The relief effort is being coordinated by the Vibrant Hawaiʻi Resilience Hubs, the County of Hawaiʻi, and numerous community partners, including KTA Super Stores, The Food Basket, and The Salvation Army.

(Hawaii News Now)

TUVALU LEADERS MEETING

Tuvalu's Prime Minister Feleti Teo has invited Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to attend the Pre-COP31 Leaders' Event in Tuvalu in October.

The invitation came during Teo's courtesy meeting in Funafuti with Japan's Ambassador to Fiji, with accreditation to Tuvalu, Hiroshi Tajima, in Funafuti.

The meeting focused on strengthening bilateral cooperation and discussions on climate change, regional cooperation, peace and security, and other areas of mutual interest.

Teo said he'd welcome direct participation between Japan and Pacific leaders on climate change, resilience and climate finance

(RNZ Pacific)