For many of us, water simply flows from a faucet, and we think little about it beyond this point of contact. We have lost a sense of respect for the wild river, for the complex workings of a wetland, for the intricate web of life that water supports. - Sandra Postel Our ideals, laws and customs should be based on the proposition that each generation, in turn, becomes the custodian rather than the absolute owner of our resources and each generation has the obligation to pass this inheritance on to the future. - Charles A. Lindbergh

1. The WAILUKU-KAHULUI WASTEWATER RECLAMATION FACILITY is located
on the north coastline of Maui approximately 0.5-miles east of Kahului Harbor and 1.0-miles
west of Kahului Airport, at 281 AMALA PLACE and lies within in the Limited subzone of
the Conservation District.
A drainage canal with Mauoni Pond beyond is to the west; the roadway, AMALA PLACE is
to the south with KANAHA POND WILDLIFE SANCTUARY across the road. The
ocean/beach is to the north and is part of Kanaha Beach Park, a narrow beach that extends
eastward to Paia that is interrupted by numerous man-made groins.
[T]he wastewater reclamation facility provides secondary treatment of sewage and features an
activated sludge biological treatment process, secondary clarification, and filtration. The
principle solids treatment and handling processes are aerobic digestion and centrifuge
dewatering. The final effluent is disposed of primarily via 8 gravity injection wells. The
balance of the effluent is recycled for plant use, irrigation and dust control.
Conservation District Use Application (CDUA) MA-3688 Wailuku-Kahului Wastewater Reclamation Facility's
Shoreline Protection Extension April 25, 2014
<https://files.hawaii.gov/dlnr/meeting/submittals/140425/K-2.pdf>
___________________________________________
KANAHĀ POND
Images of Old Hawai`i
By Peter T. Young, August 23, 2021
<http://imagesofoldhawaii.com/kanaha-pond/>
[Extract]
Since the turn of the twentieth century, the pond has functioned primarily as a waterfowl and
shorebird sanctuary.
Before the Second World War, Kanahā Pond was owned by the Hawaiian Commercial and
Sugar Company. During the War, the HC&S donated the land, which included Kanahā Pond,
to the US Navy.
In 1951 the Hawaiian government formally designated the pond as a bird refuge. The pond is
home to two endangered species – the Hawaiian Stilt and the Hawaiian Coot, as well as
providing sanctuary to many migrant shorebirds and waterfowl.
In 1959 the state legislature appropriated funds to improve the habitat and the Maui County
government appointed a Citizens Advisory Committee.

2. More funding was obtained, and in 1961 the state legislature made long-term plans which
included bird-feeding stations, observation areas and a picnic area, as well as an experimental
dredging to try to eliminate the offensive odor, which manifested itself during the summer
months.
Due to the continued destruction of many of Hawai`i's wetland areas Kanahā Pond was
designated a registered natural landmark in late 1971 by the Department of the Interior, one of
only two such sites registered at the time.
Kanahā Pond provides one of the most important waterbird habitat in Hawai`i. It is one of the
few remaining brackish-water ecosystems, providing refuge for both resident and migratory
bird populations.
The pond and surrounding area are within the Kahului Airport jurisdiction. DOT has set the
land aside for public recreation and wildlife purposes. Even though it is habitat for local and
migratory birds (not the best of neighbors of airports,) since 1973, DOT and FAA have
allowed construction of protective moats and nesting places, improvement of observation
shelters and occasional dredging. Today, the pond provides opportunities to see Hawaiian
Stilts and Hawaiian Coots and other waterbirds from a small concrete observation area, which
is located just off from the parking lot.
________________________________________
KANAHĀ POND
WATER REPLENISHMENT - WETLAND RESTORATION
The KPWS [Kanaha Pond Wildlife Sanctuary] consists of a series of brackish ponds and
associated wetlands on 23 acres of land located within the isthmus area of Maui between the
town of Kahului and the main airport. [Clarification Supplied]
Fish ponds in this area were constructed during the rule of King Kapiiohookalani over two
hundred years ago for the purpose of raising fish for consumption. It is reported that the water
quality in the ponds was good as a result of the natural springs that continuously fed the
ponds and overflowed through an open ditch to Kahului Harbor.
When Kahului Harbor was dredged around 1910, a portion of Kanaha Pond in the vicinity of
the junction of Kahului's Main Street and Haleakala Highway was filled with material
dredged from the harbor. During the partial filling of the pond, the existing overflow drainage
ditch was replaced with a new channel, with control gates and an outfall to the ocean.
The U.S. Navy also altered the land within KPWS considerably during construction of the
Naval Air Station Kahului (NASKA) in the 1940s. During and after World War II, numerous
munitions bunkers and fill based access roadways were constructed within the KPWS. As a
result of these activities, the northeastern portion of the original pond was filled between 1930
and 1954. In addition to the physical alteration of the ponds during construction of Kahului
Harbor and NASKA, the A&B and airport drainage culverts were constructed along the east
and west sides of KPWS in the 1970s and 1980s. These large concrete drainage culverts divert
storm water runoff, keeping it from entering the ponds and consequently changing the overall
amount of water recharge to and circulation within the ponds.
Kanaha Pond Wildlife Sanctuary Ecosystem Restoration Project Review Plan, Island Of Maui, Hawaii
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Honolulu District, November 19, 2012
<https://www.poh.usace.army.mil/Portals/10/docs/projectreviewplans/Maui_KanahaPond_ReviewPlan.pdf>

3. WASTEWATER EFFLUENT
FOR RENEWAL OF PHYSICAL HABITAT AND STREAMS
Many arid and semiarid regions around the world are struggling to meet urban water demands
that are increasing as a result of development, population growth, and climate change. As
water requirements increase and stream flows decrease in water-stressed regions, urban
streams are progressively becoming dependent on waste-water effluent to maintain base flows.
In such cases, whether by design or circumstance, aquatic habitats are being supported in
places where only severely diminished ecosystems would exist if not for wastewater-effluent
discharges.
Calera Creek, a coastal stream in Pacifica, California, south of San Francisco, is the site of a
stream improvement project in which municipal wastewater effluent was used to enhance the
physical habitat, and which now imparts various environmental and social benefits (Halaburka
et al. 2013). The noteworthy feature of this project was the replacement of the traditional
ocean discharge of the wastewater by a release of tertiary-treated effluent, which included
nutrient removal, sand filtration, and ultraviolet disinfection at a location 1 km upstream in
order to restore 4 ha of wetland and about 20 ha of stream bank and buffer areas (Figure 5).
The project resulted in the return of the lower stream channel of Calera Creek, which was
formerly channelized and diverted from its historical path because of rock quarrying activity.
Calera Creek, on the north-central California coast, is an example of wastewater effluent
used for successful renewal of physical habitats and streams. By foregoing an ocean
discharge in favor of inland discharge, the wastewater re-created a lost habitat and
renewed wetlands, stream beds, and buffer areas.
The restoration of Calera Creek converted an intermittent stream into a perennial one, elevated
the water temperature due to the wastewater discharge, and caused the flow to come in
unnatural diurnal pulses as a result of the batch processes at the treatment plant (Halaburka et
al. 2013). Still, the highly degraded stream condition and habitat destruction prior to the
stream renewal project presented an opportunity to re-create lost habitat for the endangered
San Francisco garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia) and the threatened California red-
legged frog (Rana draytonii). The planting of native vegetation and addition of wastewater
effluent to the creek during the dry season resulted in higher habitat quality in terms of almost
every physical metric measured (eg in-stream cover, flow velocity, riparian zone width, and
dissolved oxygen concentrations). Biologically, benthic macroinvertebrates increased in
abundance, probably because of the transition from intermittent flows to permanence, and
mosquito populations were reduced (mainly due to flow changes and elimination of breeding
pools; Halaburka et al. 2013).

4. In addition to newly created habitat, a walk/bike path now runs alongside the creek, providing
substantial recreational and educational value to the local community. Analyses indicated that
the benefits of the inland-discharge scenario exceeded the increase in associated costs by $1.8
million, with recreational and aesthetic amenities generating the largest portion of the
difference in value.
At the time the Calera Creek restoration project was being designed, the decision to proceed
with inland discharge was based largely on economic considerations. The Pacifica City
Council considered the trade-offs between the cost of additional treatment for recycled water
(nutrient removal, sand filtration, and ultraviolet disinfection) and wetland creation versus the
cost of constructing a replacement offshore discharge pipeline and conventional wastewater
treatment for BOD and TSS control. None of the features that are valued today in terms of
preservation of rare and endangered species, creation of freshwater and wildlife habitat, or
contact and non-contact recreation (RWQCB 2006) were explicitly considered in economic
terms during the original project planning phase (Bischel et al. 2013; Halaburka et al. 2013). If
these additional factors had been taken into account, the decision to invest in inland discharge
most likely would have been even more widely supported.
Wastewater-effluent-dominated streams as ecosystem-management tools in a drier climate
By Richard G Luthy, David L Sedlak, Megan H Plumlee, David Austin and Vincent H Resh
Ecological Society of America, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. November 1, 2015
<https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1890/150038>
______________________________________
THE JOURNEY HAS JUST BEGUN
There Are Many Miles Yet To Go
Hawai`i has been utilizing reclaimed water for a little over 20 years. Prior to the water
reclamation program, treated wastewater was simply dumped into the ocean.
However, Hawai`i water systems began feeling pressure from the large influx of Japanese
tourists in the 1970's and 1980's, whom led to an increase in the development of resorts and
golf courses throughout Hawai`i. Both resorts and golf courses require a large amount of
water resources, so a search was conducted for nonpotable (not for human consumption) water
sources that would be used to supply their water needs. In the 1990's, Hawai`i's Department of
Health decided that there needed to be better guidance on how to utilize and manage
reclaimed water, and later released the “Guidelines for the treatment and Use of Reclaimed
Water” in November of 1993.
Reclaimed water, or recycled water, is wastewater that is treated in a way that it is suitable for
uses such as agriculture, landscape irrigation, industrial processes, toilet flushing, or possibly
groundwater recharge. The water is treated depending on its planned use. For instance, water
is treated less when its intended use is irrigation, but is further treated when its intended use is
sink water. So far, there has been no record of human health issues resulting from contact with
recycled water that has been properly treated. There are three (3) classes of recycled water: R-
1, R-2, and R-3. R-1 water includes the highest quality of recycled water, which has been both
filtered and disinfected. R-2 water has gone through secondary treatment and is disinfected,
but greater restrictions on its use than R-1 water. R-3 water is the lowest quality recycled
water. It has gone through secondary treatment, but is not disinfected, and therefore has the
most limited use.

5. WATER REUSE is important because it saves water, energy, and money. By reusing water,
we are reducing the amount of freshwater we draw up from our aquifers for nonpotable
reasons. Drawing up of this water requires a lot of energy and money as freshwater sources
are depleted and become more difficult to extract.
Freshwater aquifers take a long time to replenish, and it is imperative that we have enough to
fulfill the freshwater needs for people who live in, and visit, Hawai`i.
WATER REUSE HAS MANY ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS as well, such as: creating
a more dependable water supply; decreasing the need to divert water from ecosystems;
reducing the discharge of wastewater that leads to water pollution; and it can HELP TO
CREATE OR ENHANCE WETLANDS AND RIPARIAN HABITATS.
Infrastructure for water reuse requires a high initial investment, but monetary benefits and
returns may be realized in the future.
State of Hawai`i, Department of Health Water Quality Plan 2019
<https://health.hawaii.gov/water/files/2019/03/FINAL-DOH-Water-Quality-Plan-2019.pdf>
[Extract; Emphasis and Clarification Supplied]
________________________________________
PARCHED KANAHA POND
The Maui News, September 15, 2021
<https://www.mauinews.com/news/local-news/2021/09/parched-kanaha-pond/>
With much of its pond bottom exposed and cracking Kanaha Pond Wildlife Sanctuary
wetlands look ghostly white Saturday morning
Normally the state Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and
Wildlife uses a pump to increase the water in the pond during dry periods, a spokesman said.
But currently the pump is broken a new one was ordered months ago. The vendor indicated
that the pump will arrive in about three weeks, the spokesman added.