MUSIC Researcher Evaluates Water Allocation Dispute in Hawaii

Na Wai Eha means “the four great waters of Maui,” this area was historically one of the largest native Hawaiian population centers in the Hawaiian Islands. It also supported some of the most productive taro farming (taro was a staple of the Hawaiian diet). However, in the middle of the nineteenth century, Western settlers diverted streams to irrigate sugarcane plantations. Although sugarcane and subsequent pineapple cultivation is phasing out of Hawaii due to changes in the regional economy, water has not returned to the streams. Instead, new residential and tourist development on Maui also demand water. In addition, concerned citizens are pursuing legal actions against the state in order to restore water to the streams to support habitat for native flora and fauna and traditional and customary Native Hawaiian practices.

The purpose of my trip was to assess the water conflicts first-hand through conversations with state and county policy makers, planners, hydrologists, attorneys, and concerned citizens. I wanted to understand whether the situation might benefit from a joint fact finding (JFF) process in which stakeholders and decision makers together could frame the questions requiring additional scientific analysis and agree on the necessary level of certainty that these studies must achieve. In addition to elaborating on their interests and clarifying facets of Hawaiian water law, stakeholders explained their past experiences with collaborative processes and discussed the potential advantages and disadvantages associated with JFF. I concluded that a JFF process could be beneficial if the state was willing to convene the process; representatives of all stakeholders directly involved in the process were willing to participate; and local mediators were trained to facilitate the process. At present, the MUSIC program and the University of Hawaii are considering leading a workshop on JFF in order to build capacity for this process in Hawaii. The trip provided valuable experiences and insights that I could not have gained from assessing the situation thousands of miles away.