The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced this week it will provide $50 million to Hawaiʻi for upgrades to drinking water and other clean water infrastructure projects.
The news came as close to a thousand water experts gathered at the Hawai’i Convention Center for the Pacific Water Conference.
The Conversation spoke with Stuart Coleman, the head of WAI, or Wastewater Alternatives and Innovations. He said Hawaiʻi's wastewater system needs an overhaul.
One major problem is cesspools near shorelines. Coleman said that's bad news for reef health.
"People say, 'Oh, you know, what's the problem with cesspools, really, we've had them for decades, no problems.' Well, if you look at places like Māʻalaea on Maui, or Puakō on the Big Island, their reef cover has gone from 70% to 80% 50 years ago, to less than 8% now," Coleman said.
"That's a massive decline. So even with the big funding that we have to do coral reef restoration, some of the people leading this, Dr. Greg Asner, say some of those coral reefs are so degraded that we can't even rebuild on them."
Coleman said Hawaiʻi’s reef systems provide critical protection against storm surges and flooding.
Act 125 mandates all Hawaiʻi cesspools be upgraded by 2050 to comply with EPA requirements.
This interview aired on The Conversation on Feb. 21, 2024. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1.
