Kaua‘i’s Nawiliwili Stream ranked nation’s most frequently polluted beach

LIHU‘E — Across the U.S. and beyond, Kaua‘i is number one at dumping number two.

Kalapaki Bay’s Nawiliwili Stream is the most consistently overpolluted beach tested by national environmental group Surfrider Foundation, according to the group’s annual report on water quality.

Throughout 2022, the organization collected more than 9,000 water samples from 496 beaches, streams and surf sites across all 50 U.S. states, as well as Puerto Rico, Costa Rica and Canada’s Vancouver Island. At each site, researchers tested waters for the enterococcus bacterium, a federally recognized indicator of fecal presence in water.

Of the organization’s 10 highest priority beaches noted in their 2022 Clean Water Report, Nawiliwili Stream is the only site in which every test showed bacteria rates exceeding state health standards. Even worse, the report notes the stream hasn’t tested within state standards since 2016.

The site is well-known as a recreational spot for families on Kaua‘i, exposing the island’s keiki to potentially dangerous pathogens.

“That little stream is a really popular place for kids to sit and play, like a wading pool at the end of the stream,” said Gordon LaBedz, co-founder of Surfrider Foundation and chair of Surfrider Kaua‘i. “It’s like a kiddie pool.”

Hanama‘ulu Beach was also listed in the report as a priority site with an 88 percent high bactera rate in 2022, making Kaua‘i the only region to appear more than once on the list.

When asked why the island’s waters so consistently come up polluted in Surfrider’s tests, LaBedz’s answer was simple.

“It’s cesspools — there’s just no question about it,” he said.

While some of Kaua‘i’s water pollution is a result of surface runoff, much of it comes from the island’s 14,000 cesspools. Beneath the surface, rainwater percolates through the ground, pulling human and chemical waste from the cesspools and into the island’s rivers, streams and beaches.

Both Nawiliwili and Hanama‘ulu streams travel through Lihu‘e before opening into Kalapaki and Hanama‘ulu bays, respectively, allowing them to pick up the town’s sewage before dropping it off at the beach.

“That’s a big urban center with very little sewage treatment,” LaBedz said.

For years, Surfrider Kaua‘i has tried convincing the state Department of Health to place signs at chronically polluted waters around the island, in an effort to raise awareness of the pollutants.

“(Beachgoers) should be aware of which waters are chronically polluted,” said Surfrider Kaua‘i senior scientist Carl Berg. “Which means the Department of Health should put up signs, and then they should make a choice of whether they want to swim in polluted water or not.”

These efforts have found some success — the department has installed signage at both Hanama‘ulu Beach and county parks off of Hanalei River. Surfrider itself has received authorization to post signs at Moloa‘a Stream.

However, regarding potential signage at Nawiliwili Stream, LaBedz told The Garden Island he’s received considerable pushback from the department, the county, and even nearby hotels.

“The hotel doesn’t want it, the state doesn’t want it and the county doesn’t want it,” he said. “So, they basically ignore us and just shine us on. It’s been very, very frustrating.”

LaBedz continued, suggesting the groups in opposition might be concerned over how adding contamination signs could impact tourism.

“When something is bad for business, you shouldn’t hide it — you should correct the problem,” he added.

Above all, the organization is urging both the state and county to treat the issue at its roots.

“The big thing is, we really have to support the rapid conversion of cesspools to something else,” Berg said. “Surfrider and I personally am way behind it, because that’s probably the cause of these really high counts.”

In an effort to limit fecal and chemical pollution, the state Legislature passed what is now Act 125 in 2017, which requires all 88,000 of Hawai‘i’s cesspools to be replaced by 2050. At least three bills to incentivize such upgrades were introduced this year, including moving the deadline to 2040, creating a tax credit for cesspool upgrades and establishing a pilot program for expanding sewage systems — but all ultimately died in committee.

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Jackson Healy, reporter, can be reached at 808-647-4966 or jhealy@thegardenisland.com.