Initial OK given to reopening of wells
September 17, 2011 MAUI NEWS
Excerpts in gray are from an article By CHRIS HAMILTON – Staff Writer (chamilton@mauinews.com)
WAILUKU – Maui County Council members voted 6-3 Friday to give initial approval for the Department of Water Supply to reopen its Hamakuapoko wells, despite ongoing concerns that the water is contaminated by agricultural chemicals.
The council’s action needs passage on second reading and Mayor Alan Arakawa’s signature before it would reverse the council’s closure of the well, under public pressure, in 2006 because of alarm about water contaminants.
The bill approved by council members Friday would allow water from the two Hamakuapoko wells to benefit agricultural uses and be tapped for public consumption only during droughts and as a backup to the water department’s existing systems.
Water Resources Committee Chairman Mike Victorino said the aim of reopening the wells is to use them as a backup. The county can then convert the separate Pookela wells for full-time use and start taking hundreds of names off the Upcountry water meter waiting list, he said.
Council Members Bob Carroll, Don Couch and Elle Cochran voted against the measure, while Victorino, Danny Mateo, Mike White, Joe Pontanilla, Riki Hokama and Gladys Baisa voted in favor.
…Taylor told council members that the administration of Mayor Alan Arakawa supports reopening the wells. He also reminded the audience that “all water in this country is treated.”
…”These wells are safe,” Taylor said, while some in the audience jeered him under their breath.
Couch and Carroll voted no, not because they supported the citizens who objected to drinking tainted water, but because they wanted unrestricted use of the water.
Couch advocated unrestricted use of the water, maintaining it’s safe. “I was in the administration (as an executive assistant to the mayor) when this came up, and we could not find any evidence that this (water) was bad,” he said.
Elle Cochran tried once again to add an amendment that would send the treated Hamakuapoko well water to HC&S sugarcane fields in trade for untainted surface water. The other Councilmembers voted it down.
Maui Tomorrow
There are several problems with Hamakuapoko Well water.
Dave Taylor of the Water Department has convinced most of the County Council that very small amounts of endocrine-disrupting chemicals such as DBCP, TCP etc that will be left in the water after filtering are harmless to human health.
Prof. Theo Colburn, who wrote “Our Stolen Future” about his research on trace amounts of these chemicals on fetal sexual development would most likely disagree.
Both Don Couch and Robert Carroll voted no because they wanted the Hamakuapoko well water used ALL THE TIME – not just in emergencies.
Elle Cochran is the only one who stood up for the people of Haiku, Makawao, Kula, and Pukalani and voted a flat no on repealing the ban on using Hamakuapoko water for human consumption.
You can read more on endocrine disrupters at http://www.ourstolenfuture.org/
Bruce Allen
I’m totally confused , having testified at the meeting and then watching the vote on AKAKU TV at 5;30. I heard Cochran, Baisa,Couch and Carrol all say NO. I also heard Carrol ask if this would help Upcountry meters. The reply was NO. So can someone clarify this please? We seem to be decieved on so many levels. One, the belief that this was a final vote.Two,what they were voting on and Three, Who in the hell is Taylor to say anything and not provide proof. That man was not even in the room for most of the day to hear evidence! Please post on your FB site as well. We want to take action but without clear facts we cannot.
Maui Tomorrow
It is not real clear on why the County Council suddenly decided to overturn the ordinance prohibiting human use of Hamakuapoko well water. We’ll give you all the information we get as we get it.