A company owned by a Japanese billionaire has put forth a plan to solve West Maui water troubles in part by improving and conveying a private delivery system to public ownership at no taxpayer expense.<\/p>\n
The plan, presented by
\nTY Management Corp. to the state Commission on Water Resource Management on Tuesday, intends to benefit Maui County, financially struggling Maui Land &Pineapple Co., a state agriculture development agency, Native Hawaiian taro farmers, other small farmers, Kapalua homeowners and TY.<\/p>\n
TY\u2019s plan involves improving a century-old MLP surface water ditch system, adding reservoir capacity and building a pipeline between Kapalua and Lahaina for the county to deliver treated wastewater to Kapalua for irrigation in return for fresh groundwater for county use.<\/p>\n
TY, which operates two Kapalua Resort golf courses and is owned by Tadashi
\nYanai, estimates that its plan could cost more than
\n$30 million and can be implemented over the next two to four years to cure shortages of water that have plagued Honokohau Valley taro farmers and residents, TY and other Kapalua users.<\/p>\n
But the plan also contains one hugely contentious element \u2014 transitory use of groundwater to irrigate the golf courses at times when current permitted use of diverted water from Honokohau Stream into the ditch system isn\u2019t available due to supply constraints.<\/p>\n
TY representatives described their plan to the commission as an informational briefing that represented the first public presentation of the proposal after sharing at least parts with some community members, the county and the state Agribusiness Development Corp.<\/p>\n
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One commissioner,
\nWayne Katayama, whose
\nexperience includes serving on the ADC board and executive positions at sugarcane and coffee plantation companies on Hawaii island and Kauai, expressed optimism about the plan.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you can do this,\u201d he said, \u201cI think it would be a monumental shift in water management there.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, several West Maui residents at the meeting derided the plan as an
\neffort to buy approval for interim use of groundwater to irrigate TY\u2019s two golf courses that shut down last year due to water shortages and led to the cancellation of a prestigious PGA tournament slated for last month worth an estimated $50 million to Maui\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n
Maui County also appears to be on a different track
\nfor using more treated wastewater for irrigation, and warned that West Maui\u2019s sustainable groundwater yield is close to maximization from existing and planned wells not including two proposed by TY.<\/p>\n
Yanai, who is chair and CEO of Japan-based Fast
\nRetailing Co. and its major fashion brand subsidiary Uniqlo, bought the Kapalua golf courses from MLP in 2009 and 2010 for a combined $74 million.<\/p>\n
Kenji Yui, general manager of TY, presented the plan to the seven-member commission, which regulates fresh surface water statewide in addition to groundwater in West Maui, where severe drought is a chronic issue and private water companies dominate distribution.<\/p>\n
Under one piece of TY\u2019s plan, an affiliate of a global nonprofit organization would acquire MLP\u2019s 7-mile ditch system and use TY funding to make repairs and add reservoir storage capacity. Then the improved system, which delivers stream water for
\nirrigation to Honokohau taro farmers and Kapalua users including TY, would be turned over to ADC to own and operate with priority distributions for traditional and customary practices.<\/p>\n
In addition, TY proposes acquiring 10 or more acres of farmland in Kapalua and transferring it to ADC for
\nthe agency to establish an agricultural park.<\/p>\n
Ben Kudo, a local attorney representing TY, told commissioners that ADC is excited about participating.<\/p>\n
Jayson Watts, ADC board chair, said in a statement Wednesday that many details would need to be worked out between TY and MLP but that ADC is committed to supporting water systems for agriculture use and will work with all parties for the best possible outcome for Hawaii.<\/p>\n
The nonprofit intermediary would be Peace Winds America, which helped provide relief assistance to
\nsurvivors of the 2023 Maui wildfires that killed 102 people and destroyed most of Lahaina.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope we can be part of an innovative and bold solution that\u2019s sustainable here, and one that really helps the entire community,\u201d Jim Gannon, the organization\u2019s CEO, told the commission.<\/p>\n
A second piece of TY\u2019s plan involves the company building a pipeline between Kapalua and Lahaina to receive treated wastewater from the county for golf course irrigation in exchange for delivering fresh water from two planned new TY wells to the county. This pipeline would be paid for by TY, given to the county and free up surface water for other users.<\/p>\n
\u201cLow stream flow does not have to become a water
\ncrisis as was seen last year,\u201d Yui told the commission. \u201cOur proposed solution will ensure that in the future there is water for the
\ncommunity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Public comments on TY\u2019s plan during Tuesday\u2019s meeting ranged from rebuke to guarded skepticism largely over using groundwater for golf course irrigation.<\/p>\n
Honokohau resident Kalei Kauhane was the first to offer public testimony, and unleashed a tirade filled with expletives directed mostly at commissioners but also at a TY representative.<\/p>\n
\u201cBrah,\u201d Kauhane said. \u201cA\u2018ole pono (not right). This no can.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kauhane said TY unsuccessfully offered community members $1.5 million, and he suggested the company was trying to buy commissioner support.<\/p>\n
Karyn Kanekoa, a Honokohau taro farmer, said she appreciated TY proposing a solution to the water issue. But she also questioned whether the company was trying to fund a cure as a way to secure use of groundwater for golf course irrigation, at least for an interim period, over community
\nobjections and a pending formal challenge.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to believe that they mean well and want to help,\u201d she told commissioners. \u201cBut given everything, I hope you understand my skepticism.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kudo told commissioners that trust does need to be built with the community, and said TY\u2019s proposal that includes ensuring more water for taro farmers is part of building such trust.<\/p>\n
Still, some community members oppose any trade-offs involving water, a public trust resource regulated by the commission.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe audacity is crazy,\u201d said a University of Hawaii at Manoa student who was displaced by the Lahaina fire and did not sign in to testify. \u201cWe will never be on your guys\u2019 side.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alfred Medeiros from Oahu also heavily criticized TY\u2019s plan and quipped, \u201cGreat pitch, but I know a car salesman when I see one.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mahesh Cleveland, an attorney with the environmental law firm Earthjustice, expressed a mixed view on the proposal along with some doubt.<\/p>\n
\u201cI really appreciate TY\u2019s optimism about what they can pull off,\u201d he told commissioners. \u201cBut I think it\u2019s a lot of, sort of aspirational, talk without a lot of reality to back it up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cleveland praised part of TY\u2019s plan to use treated wastewater, some of which the county has historically injected into the ground, prompting Earthjustice litigation. But he also questioned whether the proposal is aimed at getting around an Earthjustice challenge to TY\u2019s groundwater use for golf course irrigation.<\/p>\n
Dawn Chang, director of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, in August confirmed in writing to MLP as ditch owner that use of groundwater for irrigation is an allowed temporary substitute for surface water during low stream flow periods.<\/p>\n
In November, Earthjustice asked for Chang\u2019s determination to be rescinded as unilateral, unlawful, and unfair to other area community members dealing with water shortages. The firm also asked the commission to take action on the issue.<\/p>\n
On Tuesday, commissioners advised by a state deputy attorney general decided they couldn\u2019t act on Earthjustice\u2019s request because it wasn\u2019t on the agenda.<\/p>\n
Perhaps the biggest impediment to TY\u2019s proposal is Maui County. Kimo Landgraf, deputy director of the county Department of Water Supply, said county officials are negotiating to acquire MLP\u2019s ditch system and the county has its own plan to dramatically increase water reservoir capacity.<\/p>\n
Landgraf also told commissioners that the county has plans to expand delivery of recycled wastewater for irrigation use in places closer to Lahaina, and that the area aquifer may not be able to sustainably supply withdrawals from existing and planned wells not including the two proposed by TY.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A company owned by a Japanese billionaire has put forth a plan to solve West Maui water troubles…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":492289,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[6813,192,79],"class_list":["post-492288","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-editors","tag-environment","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/492288","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=492288"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/492288\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/492289"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=492288"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=492288"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=492288"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}