Hawaii First Water

Navy will comply with state order to remove fuel from Red Hill

January, Hawaii Public Radio | By Associated Press,
Sophia McCullough

The U.S. Navy will comply with Hawaiʻi’s order to remove fuel from a massive underground storage tank facility near Pearl Harbor blamed for contaminating drinking water, officials said Tuesday.

The Navy is making preparations to defuel the facility, Rear Adm. Blake Converse said during a U.S. House Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness hearing.

“The Navy caused this problem. We own it and we’re going to fix it,” Converse told members of Congress. “Nothing is more important than the health, safety and wellbeing of our families, our military residents, our neighbors and the communities that we call home.”

For the full story link here…

 

How The Red Hill Fuel System Has Threatened Oahu’s Drinking Water For Decades

12 December, Civil Beat, Christina Jedra: (Comment: This is a good historical summary of the Red Hill history) As Oahu residents reel from the news that military families’ drinking water was contaminated with petroleum, and that water for the broader community is also at risk, scrutiny of the nearby Navy’s fuel facility is intensifying.

But the crisis is not a surprise to many residents, officials and local environmental advocates. For years, they’ve considered Red Hill an inevitable environmental and public health disaster.

“My fear was that something terrible would happen before people wake up and this comes to their attention,” Ernie Lau, chief engineer of the Honolulu Board of Water Supply, said this week.

Board of Water Supply Ernest Lau points to areas near the Navy's 20 fuel tanks below Red Hill by the black dot looking things below his left hand during EPA teleconferenced meeting with the BWS board. 28 june 2016
Honolulu Board of Water Supply’s Chief Engineer Ernie Lau, pictured in 2016, has warned of the dangers of the Red Hill fuel facility for years. Cory Lum/Civil Beat/2016

The military said it caught wind of the emergency over Thanksgiving weekend as complaints rolled in from military housing residents saying that their water smelled of fuel and that their families and pets were falling ill. After initially dismissing concerns, the Navy later acknowledged that the Red Hill well that services that community was contaminated.

Red Hill

Civil Beat has been reporting on the leaking tanks, water contamination and political debate over Red Hill since 2014. Read our coverage here. Click on “full archive” for the complete list of stories.

State health officials announced on Friday that the Navy’s water system contained levels of gasoline and diesel range hydrocarbons as much as 350 times higher than state standards for safe drinking water.

The cause of the problem is still under investigation, but the suspected source is the Navy’s World War II-era Red Hill fuel facility located uphill from the affected military communities.

A link to the full story is here

Navy ‘confident’ that it’s found source of fuel leak into water system, but lawmakers are skeptical

10 December HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Samples collected by the state Health Department earlier this month at the Navy’s Red Hill water shaft found petroleum levels 66 to 350 times higher than the limits considered safe for drinking water, the state announced Friday.

The results were the latest worrisome development in the contaminated water crisis, which has left dozens sick, displaced at least 3,000 families and prevented thousands more from using their tap water.

Meanwhile, Navy officials said during a legislative briefing Friday they believe they’ve found the source of the contamination ― a spill on Nov. 20 at a fire suppression system downhill from Red Hill and not the underground fuel tanks that have been the source of a number of leaks in recent years.

“The Navy is responsible for this crisis,” Adm. Samuel Paparo, commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet, told lawmakers. “We are taking ownership and we are going to fix it.”

At the briefing, U.S. Pacific Fleet Deputy Commander Blake Converse said Navy tests have confirmed the petroleum in the Red Hill shaft is jet fuel from a relatively new spill.

He said they believe “with a high degree of confidence” that the contamination is from the Nov. 20 spill of jet fuel from a fire suppression drain line in the tunnel downhill of the Red Hill bulk fuel storage tanks. The Navy has said that 14,000 gallons of fuel and water were released in that incident.

Eight days after the spill, military families first started reporting a bad smell and taste in the water. Some said it made them sick, and the Health Department has gotten 600 complaints so far.

Converse stressed they don’t think the fuel is from the underground Red Hill fuel tanks.

In response to those claims, lawmakers expressed skepticism, saying they wanted confirmation about the source of the fuel from the state Health Department and EPA.

The state Health Department says the cause of the leak remains under investigation.

“The Navy, frankly, lately hasn’t given us a lot of reason to trust them so I think we all feel that we want an independent agency to come in and verify,” said House Environment Chair Nicole Lowen.

For the rest of the story

Hawaii governor joins call to suspend Red Hill fuel storage operation

6 December, HONOLULU (Tribune News Service) Peter Boylan — Gov. David Ige and Hawaii’s congressional delegation on Sunday called for the Navy to suspend its Red Hill fuel storage operation until its drinking water contamination crisis is handled.

The Navy on Thursday said recent testing of its Red Hill well detected the presence of petroleum contaminants. Hundreds of military and nonmilitary users of the Navy’s water system last week complained of a strong fuel odor in the water, including some who reported feeling ill or having pets who became sick after drinking water.

Ige and U.S. Sens. Brian Schatz and Mazie Hirono, and Reps. Ed Case and Kai Kahele, all Democrats, released a joint statement calling for the Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro, who is in Hawaii for the 80th anniversary of the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, to suspend Red Hill operations in the aftermath of the contamination of drinking water at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and surrounding areas.

“Test results confirming contamination of drinking water … show that the Navy is not effectively operating the World War II-era facility and protecting the health and safety of the people of Hawaii. We are calling for the Navy to immediately suspend operations at Red Hill while they confront and remedy this crisis,“ the joint statement said.

Del Toro did not respond to Honolulu Star-Advertiser requests for comment on the joint statement. Also, Rear Adm. Timothy J. Kott, commander of Navy Region Hawaii, was not available for an interview Sunday night, according to a spokeswoman.

During a town hall meeting about the Navy’s response to the crisis, held Sunday at the Hokulani Community Center, Del Toro declined to answer questions from the Star-Advertiser about the future of the Red Hill storage facility. “I’m here to listen,“ he told the Star-Advertiser.

Starting in, water samples taken by the Navy from its Red Hill drinking water well and tested at a commercial facility showed petroleum contamination, the Star-Advertiser reported Sunday. Petroleum also showed up in Red Hill drinking water samples in August and September. The Navy shut down the Red Hill water shaft on Nov. 28 as Department of Defense families began reporting the smell of fuel coming from their tap water, chemical odors, bad tastes, and a strange sheen.

Since suspension of use of the shaft, many residents said they developed skin rashes, nausea, headaches and vomiting. Others reported pets falling sick.

On Sunday, Capt. Erik Spitzer, commander of Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, issued a public apology, acknowledging that the Navy was wrong about the water being safe for drinking or bathing. Spitzer also apologized for a notice issued to military housing residents on Nov. 29 that indicated the water was safe. “My staff and I are drinking the water on base this morning, and many of my team live in housing and drink and use the water as well,“ said Spitzer in the notice.

To see the rest of the article…

Fearing Contamination, Honolulu Has Slowed Pumping At A Well Near Red Hill

Civil Beat, Christina Jedra, December 1 2021, As officials wait for answers about the source of petroleum contamination in the water near Red Hill, the Honolulu Board of Water Supply is pumping water from one of its wells, the Halawa shaft, at half the rate it normally does as a “precautionary measure,” the agency said on Wednesday.

The water board typically pumps 10 million gallons per day from the Halawa shaft, which provides water to over 400,000 people from Moanalua to Hawaii Kai – over 20% of the water for the area.

As of Wednesday, it was pumping at a rate of 5 million gallons per day.

The move shows that the island agency in charge of delivering clean water to metropolitan Honolulu and beyond is taking seriously the possibility that the island’s drinking water could be at risk.

“Right now, it almost looks like a disaster unfolding before our eyes,” Board of Water Supply Chief Engineer Ernie Lau said.

The Board of Water Supply slowed its pumping amid reports that military housing residents are being sickened by water that smells like fuel and after the Navy stopped pumping at its own Red Hill shaft on Sunday.

On Wednesday, the Hawaii Department of Health announced that preliminary testing detected petroleum in a water sample from Red Hill Elementary School but said details and the source of the problem are still under investigation.

Without the announcement of an official cause, residents have wondered whether their symptoms are connected to a 14,000-gallon spill of fuel and water from a pipeline a quarter-mile downhill from the Red Hill fuel facility on Nov. 20. The World War II-era fuel farm is made up of 20 massive tanks and a system of pipelines, and the Red Hill water shaft is located a half-mile away.

For the rest of the story from Civil Beat see it here

 

The Red Hill shaft, which provides water to the military communities pictured in the lower left section of this map, is located a half mile from the Red Hill fuel tanks. The Halawa shaft is just westward across the valley.

Kahele Tells Navy That Red Hill Is ‘Crisis Of Astronomical Proportions’

Civil Beat, Nick Grube, December, (LK Comment:  State of Hawaii water officials have raised their concerns about the Red Hill Fuel tanks and their slow leaks for decades, but the Navy has downplayed the problems and has been slow in remediating the issue) WASHINGTON — Hawaii Rep. Kai Kahele demanded answers from a top Navy official Thursday about petroleum contamination in the drinking water at Red Hill on Oahu.

Kahele asked Vice Admiral Rick Williamson, who was testifying before the House Armed Services Committee, about how the Navy planned to respond to the crisis, which so far has resulted in almost 100,000 people being told not to drink tap water while federal, state and county officials scramble to respond.

“The Navy is currently experiencing a crisis of astronomical proportions in Hawaii,” Kahele said. “People are getting sick, animals are getting sick and our military families need answers. The island of Oahu needs answers.”

See the rest of the article here

(Big Island) Council eyes state support for wastewater issues

October, MICHAEL BRESTOVANSKY Hawaii Tribune-Herald:  The County Council is urging the state to seek solutions for the mounting wastewater problems on Hawaii Island.

A resolution discussed at Wednesday’s council meeting would urge the state legislature to set funding for wastewater management projects around the state as one of its legislative goals next year.

Hamakua Council-woman Heather Kimball, who introduced the resolution and waived its prior reading at committee, said the county is facing very expensive and necessary wastewater projects that it cannot finance alone, and called for the state to develop possible systems that could support those projects in cooperation with the county.

“We need $1 billion for facilities improvement, another $1 billion for cesspool conversion,” Kimball said, citing estimates from the county Department of Environmental Management. “Are we going to put that on the taxpayers?”

The day before, at a meeting of the Regenerative Agriculture, Water, Energy and Environmental Management Committee, Environmental Management Director Ramzi Mansour said the county is facing the monumental challenge of converting the bulk of the county’s housing developments away from cesspool systems. But because there are only about 15,000 users of the county’s sewer service, the department isn’t receiving enough fees to fund such a conversion.

Furthermore, Mansour said, 86% of all equipment at the Hilo Wastewater Treatment Plant needs to be either replaced or repaired. Similarly, 65% of the equipment at Kula‘imano Wastewater Treatment Plant is failing, as is 72% of the equipment at the plant in Papaikou.

See the rest of article at https://www.westhawaiitoday.com/2021/10/21/hawaii-news/council-eyes-state-support-for-wastewater-issues/

 

10/21/21-PARTICIPATE IN “IMAGINE A DAY WITHOUT WATER”

(October 2021) (DLNR/Honolulu) – Imagine a Day Without Water, on Oct. 21 is a day to pause and reflect on the value of water in our daily lives. COVID-19 and the climate crisis have underscored the critical role that natural and man-made water systems play in our communities. They protect our health and safeguard the environment. DLNR is partnering with the Honolulu Board of Water Supply for this nationwide awareness event.

Not having water is a reality for many people. Across Hawai‘i, some families still lack access to reliable and safe drinking water. They eagerly await the next rainstorm so they can collect and filter the water that falls on their rooftops. During periods of prolonged drought, their only options are filling containers at remote stations or paying high prices to have water delivered to their home. “Some rural communities in Hawai‘i actually live without water security,” explained Commission on Water Resource Management (CWRM) Deputy Kaleo Manuel. “Streams continue to be diverted that impact instream biota and traditional and customary rights, water rates are increasing on private and public water systems, and some families have to make real decisions about whether to pay for electricity or water .”

 

To see more of article see. https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/blog/2021/10/15/nr21-181/

NEW HAWAII STORMWATER UTILITY SPARKS STATE EXEMPTION DEBATE

(August 2021) By Justin Jacques, Water Environment Federation.  On the Hawaiian island of Oahu, efforts have been underway since 2015 to establish a stormwater utility that would charge each of the island’s property owners a monthly fee based on the amount of impervious area their land contains. The decision would provide Honolulu and its neighboring municipalities with a new, dedicated funding source for projects that aim to discourage flooding, protect local water quality, and enhance climate change resilience.

Randall Wakumoto, civil engineer for the City and County of Honolulu Department of Facility Maintenance (DFM), explained during a July 15 Water Environment Federation (WEF; Alexandria, Virginia) Stormwater Institute webcast that although the new utility would address “one of the biggest threats to the island’s sustainability and resilience,” the proposition of a new fee has faced considerable opposition. For example, in February 2021, members of the Hawaii House of Representatives introduced a bill that would exempt all state-owned properties from any fees imposed by the new utility.

Proponents of the exemption described in written testimonials that state-owned properties, particularly airports and harbors owned by the Hawaii Department of Transportation (HDOT), are already subject to an array of regulatory requirements for stormwater management and that an additional fee based on impervious space would be unnecessarily burdensome. Detractors, however, argued that exempting state-owned properties would place additional financial stress on Oahu’s residents, whose taxes currently make up roughly 75% of the City and County of Honolulu’s stormwater management budget. Financial documents from an advisory group driving the utility’s establishment state that residential properties own 85% of the island’s parcels, but only about 44% of its impervious area.

“The bill eventually died and was not passed during this year’s legislative session,” Wakumoto said. “However, it did shed some light on the subject of how a stormwater utility would affect various state properties, and what alternatives could be considered to allow for a working relationship to exist between the county and the state government.”

For the rest of the article…

How Water In Hawaii Became A Matter Of Public Trust

(September) By Chad Blair in Civil Beat.  Article XI, Section I of the Hawaii Constitution states that, for the benefit of all generations, the state and its political subdivisions shall conserve and protect all of its natural resources, including water.

Water along with land, air, minerals and energy sources are held in public trust, a major outcome of the 1978 Constitutional Convention.

And yet, in spite of this bedrock principle, battles over water rights continue through the present day, most recently and prominently seen in East Maui, where taro farmers and environmental groups have tangled with large developers and land owners for decades over diversion of stream water.

A new book, “Water and Power in West Maui,” written by Jonathan Scheuer, long active in helping groups manage environmental conflict and preserve resources, and Bianca Isaki, an attorney and director for the North Beach-West Maui Benefit Fund, reminds us that struggles over controlling access to fresh water are hardly limited to East Maui.

It’s a statewide issue, and it is fundamentally about “perpetuation of political and economic power and privilege,” as a blurb for the book accurately states.

See the rest of the article in Civil Beat here…