A kanaka — an indigenous person of Hawai‘i — has urged the federal and state government to investigate conditions that led to what he says has been the sudden depletion of water in parts of the Moloa‘a Stream on the
A kanaka — an indigenous person of Hawai‘i — has urged the federal and state government to investigate conditions that led to what he says has been the sudden depletion of water in parts of the Moloa‘a Stream on the Eastside of Kaua‘i.
‘O‘opu, a fish found only in Hawai‘i and which is sacred to Hawaiians, began dying Tuesday when the water dropped to two feet and less in his lo‘i or pond in the stream by his home, Mark Boiser said yesterday in front of the State Building in Lihu‘e.
In addition, ‘opae, or shrimp, have died due to the lack of sufficient water in the stream.
Fourteen other lo‘i or ponds in the stream also have had a dramatic drop in water, resulting in the death of more stream life, he said.
“I don’t care how the state, county or federal government does it,” said Boiser, who was accompanied by other concerned kanaka, Butch and Roland Durant of Kapaia. “The stream needs to get the water back now. Not tomorrow.”
Although drought conditions in the state triggered a federal disaster declaration in July, providing low-interest federal loans to affected farmers and ranchers in Hawai‘i, the situation in Moloa‘a is not tied to any drought, Boiser said.
Generations of Boisers have lived in the area for nearly 1,000 years, and “never has the stream gone dry,” he said.
The water level in the stream from Kuhio Highway to the ocean was normal until Tuesday, he said.
Boiser said he has contacted the federal government, Gov. Linda Lingle’s office, Sen. Gary Hooser, the state Attorney General’s office and the state Department of Land and Natural Resources.
Hooser said he spoke with Boiser on Wednesday, contacted the DLNR to begin a probe and plans to visit the site in a few days after tending to other government matters.
“I notified the appropriate agencies and asked them to move as quickly as possible,” Hooser said yesterday.
Boiser said he plans to meet with government representatives on Friday, but Dana Viola, a special assistant to Attorney General Mark Bennett, said no agency representatives will be sent to it.
“We are aware of the issue. We are looking into the matter, but we are not sending a representative to the meeting,” she said from her office in Honolulu late Thursday afternoon,
Laurie Yoshida, Lingle’s liaison on Kaua‘i, was not immediately available for comment Thursday.
Boiser said the Moloa‘a Stream starts above the Kaloko and Ka‘apuni streams in the mountains and runs downstream two miles to the ocean. The stream draws its water from an underground well by the two streams.
Boiser said only the part of the stream from the highway down to the ocean has lost sizable amounts of water.
He said water has been “sucked away” from the stream by underground wells on properties in and around Moloa‘a that are owned by large landowners and developers.
“The wells at these projects have sucked the stream dry,” he said.
Dan Hempy, a Kaua‘i attorney who showed interest in the incident, said he has contacted the Kaua‘i Coalition for Responsible Development to lobby government for help.
Concerned about overdevelopment on Kaua‘i, the group formed this summer with the goal of limiting the building of new tourist accommodations and to curb the proliferation of agricultural subdivisions, which draw drinking water from wells.
The group, which includes as members the Sierra Club, Hawai‘i and the Thousand Friends of Kaua‘i, also would take up environmental issues.
Hempy, who said the situation appalled him, blamed development for the incident. “A stream is more important than a developer’s hedge,” he said.
To try to replenish water in his lo‘i to preserve stream life, Boiser said he has been pumping water from his house into it.
The ‘o‘opu were a food source to ancient Hawaiians and were used in religious ceremonies.
• Lester Chang, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 225) or lchang@kauaipubco.com.
