Report Title:

Waimanalo Flood Mitigation

RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, the Kailua reservoir, the Waimanalo and Inaoli streams, and other bodies of water in the Waimanalo area have caused serious damage to property in the past and threaten to cause further damage to property in the future; and

WHEREAS, pollution, resulting from periodic flooding, combined with continuous agricultural and urban runoff has had serious negative consequences on the watershed's water quality and water ecology, not only in the freshwater streams of Waimanalo, but also for the whole marine ecology of Waimanalo Bay; and

WHEREAS, this non-point source pollution includes chemical compounds from pesticides and herbicides applied upstream, pollution from mishandled household and industrial hazardous waste products, and silt and sediment runoff from poorly managed stream-beds and surrounding flood-plain areas; and

WHEREAS, the 1996-1998 Water Body Assessment conducted by the Department of Health's Environmental Planning Office identified Waimanalo Stream as suffering from "severe impairment" of water quality and as one of Hawaii's four most seriously polluted bodies of water; and

WHEREAS, the safety of our citizens and the protection of their property, as well as the purity and pristine ecology of Waimanalo's watershed and waters, are assets of the highest importance which this Legislature is bound to protect; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-First Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2001, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Department of Land and Natural Resources is requested to convene a task force to advise the Department in the development of a master plan to encompass the entire Waimanalo Watershed ("Watershed Task Force"); and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Watershed Task Force include, within the scope of its purview, recommendations to improve the overall water quality within the entire Waimanalo watershed area including, but not limited to, appropriate hydrological assessments, relevant topographical analysis, and the impact of agriculture, development, and urbanization on Waimanalo's streams and Bay; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Watershed Task Force address issues of stream-bed and flood-plain management and make recommendations for measures to mitigate silt and sedimentation in runoff; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Watershed Task Force examine sources of point and non-point source pollution in the Waimanalo Watershed including, but not limited to, chemical runoff and household and industrial hazardous waste, and make recommendations to eliminate these pollution sources from the flow of water into Waimanalo's streams and bay; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Watershed Task Force include in its membership representation from the Waimanalo agricultural, business/industrial, and residential communities, all federal, state, and city departments and entities, and all other public and private entities that touch upon in any way whatsoever the Waimanalo Watershed, including its mountains, streams, bay, agriculture, residential, and commercial areas; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Watershed Task Force specifically consist of, but not be limited to, the following entities and organizations:

(2) The Chair of the Board of Agriculture, or

(12) A representative from the Waimanalo Health Center;

(14) The Chair of the Kailua Bay Advisory Counsel, or

designate;

and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Land and Natural Resources incorporate the findings and recommendations of the Watershed Task Force within a master plan to be titled "The Comprehensive Watershed Master Plan for the Waimanalo Watershed" (Master Plan), and that the Department submit the Master Plan to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2002; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chair of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, Chair of the Board of Agriculture, Director of Health, Director of Transportation, Chair of the Hawaiian Homes Commission, the Adjutant General, Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu, Manager of the Honolulu Board of Water Supply, Waimanalo Neighborhood Board, Waimanalo Homestead Association, Waimanalo Agriculture Association, Waimanalo Health Center, Waimanalo Ahupuaa Watershed Council, Kailua Bay Advisory Counsel, and any federal agency represented on the task force.