Washington, D.C. - The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources has favorably reported legislation introduced by U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii) authorizing three water reclamation projects in the State of Hawaii. The legislation, the Hawaii Water Resources Act of 2003, authorizes federal participation in the design, planning, and construction of three water reclamation projects on Oahu, Hawaii, and Maui.
The first project, the Kalaeloa Desalination Facility in Kalaeloa, will provide reliable potable water through resource diversification to meet existing and future demands, particularly in the Ewa area of Oahu where water demands are outpacing the availability of drinking water. The new desalination facility to be built would desalinate five million gallons per day. The second project, the Kealakehe Demonstration Wetlands Project in North Kona, will maximize the reuse potential of effluent currently being discharged into a temporary disposal sump from the Kealakehe Wastewater Treatment Plant by constructing subsurface and open surface wetlands to reduce the concentration of suspended solids in the effluent. The third project, the West Maui Recycled Water Distribution System Expansion in Lahaina, will reduce the use of potable water by extending the County of Maui's main recycled water pipeline. Extension of the recycled water distribution system for commercial irrigation will reduce the use of potable water for irrigation.
"A 2003 General Accounting Office report warned that Hawaii could experience water shortages over the next decade," Akaka noted. "Recent admonitions from the Board of Water Supply of possible water restrictions this summer and the continued concern of county governments on the neighbor islands over the growing scarcity of fresh and potable water supplies underscore the necessity that Hawaii begin working on water reclamation projects."
As introduced, the bill also would have increased funding authorized for the federal share of activities under P.L. 106-566, the Hawaii Water Resources Act of 2000, legislation that Senator Akaka authored in 1999 directing the Bureau of Reclamation to survey irrigation and water delivery systems in Hawaii. This provision became law in 2003 as part of P.L. 108-137, the FY 2004 Energy and Water Appropriations Act, which increased the authorization to $2 million for the Bureau of Reclamation to undertake a comprehensive study of Hawaii's irrigation and water delivery systems.
The 2000 law instructs the Bureau to identify new opportunities for reclamation and reuse of water and wastewater for agriculture and non-agricultural purposes. It also includes Hawaii in the Bureau of Reclamation's wastewater reclamation program and extends drought relief programs to Hawaii.
