HONOLULU (KHON2) — Losing the Sentry Tournament is just one impact of the drought and water issues in West Maui. But for many, the bigger concern is how residents are being affected day to day.
There are families who live off-grid in Honokohau in West Maui. Their lives depend on their access to water.
“I’m here today because the kupaa of Honokohau and people across Maui are pissed, disgusted, sad,” said Karyn Kanekoa, Honokohau resident. “Our water situation is desperate and things have only gotten worse.”
Many residents in that area, and their supporters, voiced their displeasure to the Commission on Water Resource Management at an informational hearing on Tuesday. The land where the water comes from is owned by Maui Land & Pineapple. But water distribution is regulated, so MLP follows guidelines set by the Commission.
“I think it does require us to look at these extreme situations to find long-term solutions to make sure that we have water security and stability for users for generations to come,” said Race Randle, Maui Land & Pineapple CEO.
And because that part of West Maui falls under a management area, anyone who uses water from the streams needs to get permission. That permitting process is long and tedious.
“Because you guys no understand the pain and the struggles we go through, you guys come up with little jokes about the salinecy levels,” said Kekai Kekahi, Honokohau resident. “And so when you cook food, no need put too much salt. But that’s offensive to us. That’s how I know you guys are disconnected to the realities in Lahaina.”
“I think now we recognize this is a holistic issue and it affects everybody,” said Dawn Chang, Commission on Water Resource Management Chair. “And how we can address that, it can be best addressed if we’re all working together in some fashion.”
“Action is what’s needed here,” said Mahesh Cleveland, an attorney with Earthjustice. “We’ve been talking a lot. For years and things have only gotten worse, I mean in terms of just water supply.”
Officials say West Maui is going through a drought with rainfall totals half as much as in years past. And MLP is accused of not maintaining critical infrastructure to keep rivers flowing and properly storing excess water.
“I do wanna say I appreciate them and know that we are, we hear them,” said Randle. “We’re doing what we can and we’ll continue to take that feedback to find ways of improving communications, and other things that can be done to provide as much stability as we possibly can.”