There will be a community meeting about the water situation this Thursday, 8/24/2023 – 6:30 to 8:00 pm, at the Kula Community Center. UH scientists and DWS staff will be there. Please see this LINK for more information.
Author: Aimee Schriber (page 2)
August 21, 2023
Unsafe Water Advisory for Lahaina Water System as of August 21 Unsafe Water Advisory for Upper Kula Water System as of August 21
How long will the advisory last?
Maui DWS has to be absolutely sure that the water is safe to drink before lifting the Do-Not-Use advisories. They began testing as soon as possible and will likely need to test each of their sampling locations multiple times before…
Can UH Mānoa and Maui College test for these contaminants?
Yes, the University of Hawaiʻi Water Resources Research Center (UH-WRRC) is partnering with teams at UH Maui College to set up a home tap-water sampling program, which will provide free non-regulatory water quality testing to residents in affected areas. Please…
Is the county and state testing for these contaminants?
Yes, the Department of Water Supply (DWS) in conjunction with the Hawaiʻi Department of Health is conducting regulatory testing to understand if the water system is safe or not. However, this process takes time. We appreciate your patience as we…
What are the main contaminants to worry about, and can I test for them myself?
The most reliable data we have comes from research carried out on similar major urban-wildfire incidents, like the Camp Fire in California. In previous studies of wildfires, the harmful substances detected in water systems typically belong to two groups: Volatile…
What are ways water can become contaminated from urban-wildfires?
Wildfires have the potential to harm drinking water systems, building plumbing, catchment systems, and private drinking water wells, rendering them unsafe. Chemical contamination can happen both from smoke, ash, and foreign matter directly entering the water system at breaks, as…
August 19, 2023:
UH-WRRC, including Dr. Whelton, met with residents and took additional VOC and SVOC samples in the Upper Kula water system area.
August 19, 2023:
UH-WRRC met with the DWS Director John Stufflebean to share information and learn about the water department’s response to the fires.
August 17, 2023:
With the support of UH-WRRC, Dr. Andrew Whelton from Purdue University traveled to Oʻahu and gave a special seminar on The Importance of Scientific Support in Protecting Health and Recovery After Urban-Wildfires. A recording of the seminar can be found…