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Residents and others seeking peace and beauty are frustrated by the site of trash along a section of Pe\u02bbahi Road in Ha\u02bbik\u016b. (Erin Nolan\/Civil Beat\/2025)<\/p>\nA stretch of the scenic Maui road has become a dumping ground. Little has been done to deter the illegal activity.<\/p>\n
Pe\u02bbahi Road in Ha\u02bbik\u016b is lined by towering trees, brightly colored flowers and lush, tropical greenery. For years, Mauricio Lopez has enjoyed riding his bike or motorcycle down the winding street, pausing at the bridge near Kaupakalua Reservoir to take in the way that sunlight filters through the forest canopy overhead.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe leaves almost glitter or shimmer in the sunlight,\u201d\u00a0 said Lopez, who has lived on Maui for about 30 years and operates a small farm in Ha\u02bbik\u016b. \u201cWhen it\u2019s sprinkling \u2014 and there will often be this drizzle as you drive through \u2014 it\u2019s a magical light effect. It\u2019s almost indescribable.\u201d<\/p>\n
But just a few hundred feet away, a stretch of the roadway has become a dumping ground for litter and hazardous waste. On occasion, entire vehicles have been left on the road\u2019s shoulder and set ablaze, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I see that, the first thing I feel is sadness,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cThe second is anger.\u201d<\/p>\n
Residents and others seeking peace and beauty are frustrated by the site of trash along a section of Pe\u02bbahi Road in Ha\u02bbik\u016b. (Erin Nolan\/Civil Beat\/2025)<\/p>\n
Last week, leaky auto parts, piles of old tires, rusted beer cans and discarded gasoline jugs and canisters were scattered in muddy puddles and stood out in what appeared to be an otherwise pristine rainforest.<\/p>\n
A sign that Lopez said was posted among the debris by a particularly fed-up local warned would-be litterbugs that video cameras were surveilling the area and those caught dumping illegally could face hefty fines and even criminal charges.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sign is really effective!\u201d a cyclist shouted as he sped past the site, where a Civil Beat reporter was photographing mounds of rubbish.<\/p>\n
Illegal dumping is a statewide problem<\/a> as people try to flout disposal costs or just seek convenience. But compared to some other unofficial junkyards, the site of rubbish along the scenic Pe\u02bbahi Road has touched a nerve for locals and others who appreciate the area\u2019s natural beauty.<\/p>\n The junk is more than just an eyesore, Lopez said. It is a health hazard to the local families who regularly walk, bike or jog along the scenic street. Contaminants from discarded batteries, paint cans and vehicle parts also end up in local reservoirs and streams that lead to the world-famous Jaws surf break, which he said threaten the entire watershed.<\/p>\n Government officials have struggled for years to end the illegal dumping<\/a> and reduce the number of derelict vehicles abandoned <\/a>on Maui and across the state.<\/p>\n It is a longstanding issue without a clear-cut solution, Lopez acknowledged, but Ha\u02bbik\u016b residents have repeatedly raised their concerns about hazardous waste disposed of on Pe\u02bbahi Road\u2019s shoulder with the county government, the police and the agriculture company that owns the abutting property. It does not appear that any of those parties have attempted to properly clean the area or deter people from continuing to use it as a make-shift dump, he said.<\/p>\n While Pe\u02bbahi Road is maintained by the Maui County Department of Public Works, the land on either side of the street is privately owned by East Maui Irrigation Co., which is owned and operated by Mahi Pono.\u00a0<\/p>\n The farming company has long been aware of the situation, said Mark Vaught, Mahi Pono\u2019s vice president of water resources and infrastructure.<\/p>\n In response to requests for an interview from Civil Beat, the company sent a statement attributed to Vaught.<\/p>\n \u201cAs farmers with large agricultural areas, we are also frustrated with ongoing illegal dumping in our community,\u201d he said in the emailed statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n The littering \u201cprimarily occurs within the County\u2019s right of way,\u201d Vaught said, but the company has been working closely with county officials \u201cto post signage and explore additional solutions to help deter this activity.\u201d He added that a Mahi Pono security team is also monitoring the area, and he encouraged anyone who witnesses illegal dumping on Pe\u02bbahi Road or anywhere else on the island to report the act to the Maui Police Department.<\/p>\n Vaught said any clean-up efforts would be overseen by the county.<\/p>\n The Maui County Department of Public Works \u201croutinely responds to clean up illegal dumping in the county right of way,\u201d and anyone can report abandoned vehicles or other trash that has been improperly disposed of at SeeClickFix<\/a> or COM Connect<\/a>, according to a statement from the department that was provided by county spokeswoman Lila Lawrence. It added that \u201cenforcement of illegal dumping\u201d is handled by the police.<\/p>\n The county clears trash and dumped material from the location roughly once a month when debris accumulates to the point that it obstructs the roadway, Lopez said, but little is done to ensure contaminants are completely removed.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a beautiful place, and it changes,\u201d he said, describing how trash and waste builds up between clean-up efforts. \u201cIt\u2019s like a chameleon \u2013 it goes from beautiful and shining to heartbreaking all within a month. Just like the moon, it seems to have its bright full moons and its dark new moons.\u201d<\/p>\n Lopez would like the county to put pressure on Mahi Pono to address the situation by threatening to fine the company every time the county has to send a team out to clear private property.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cMahi Pono could allocate more resources to engineering a solution, something like physical or perhaps psychological barriers, if necessary, to impede people unloading,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n \u201cOr perhaps if they realize that stopping these people is almost impossible, they could provide dumpsters, and then the dumpsters are painted with beautiful murals,\u2019 he added, \u201cso that those who insist on continuing to do that have a proper place to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n Who is Responsible?<\/p>\n While illegal dumping on Pe\u02bbahi Road occurs both on private property owned by Mahi Pono and within the county\u2019s right of way, the official county website notes that the Department of Public Works\u2019 Highway Division is responsible for picking up litter and maintaining road shoulders<\/a>.<\/p>\n Michael Kinores, the Highway Division\u2019s chief of field operations and maintenance: Michael.Kinores@co.maui.hi.us<\/p>\n Jordan Molina, the director of the Department of Public Works: public.works@mauicounty.gov<\/a> or (808) 270-7845<\/p>\n People can also report abandoned vehicles or illegal dumping online at SeeClickFix<\/a> or COM Connect<\/a>. <\/p>\n Civil Beat\u2019s coverage of Maui County is supported in part by a grant from the Nuestro Futuro Foundation.<\/p>\n Sign up for our FREE morning newsletter and face each day more informed.<\/p>\n Sign Up<\/p>\n \n Sorry. That’s an invalid e-mail.\n <\/p>\n \n Thanks! We’ll send you a confirmation e-mail shortly.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A stretch of the scenic Maui road has become a dumping ground. Little has been done to deter…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":35235,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[192,79],"class_list":["post-35234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-environment","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35234","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35234"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35234\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35235"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/IMG_0999-683x1024.jpg\")
Authorities have largely been foiled in efforts to stop people from illegal dumping. (Erin Nolan\/Civil Beat\/2025)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/IMG_0994-1-1024x683.jpg\")
Batteries, auto parts, paint cans, gasoline jugs and other hazardous waste are often dumped on the roadside. (Erin Nolan\/Civil Beat\/2025)<\/p>\n![\"Civil](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1753322412_339_logo10.png\"){kind=logo}
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