Ask the Mayor: Is Maui’s Water Safe to Drink?

Mayor Alan Arakawa answers some of the questions submitted to his staff.

Submit your own questions about County of Maui programs, services, operations or policies to Mayor Alan Arakawa at [email protected], (808) 270-7855 or mail them to 200 S. High St., 9th Floor, Wailuku, HI 96793.

Questions submitted will be considered for inclusion in the “Ask the Mayor” column.

Aloha Mayor,

Q: My questions are: 1) Is the county’s water supply safe to drink? 2) Do Upcountry cesspools effect the county’s water supply? 3) If so, how does the water department make our water safe to consume? 4) Is water that is maybe contaminated or doesn’t meet federal standards treated at the water treatment plants at KĪhei, Lahaina, Kahului? 5) If so, how does the water Upcountry get treated?

A: First of all, all of the county water that we process is SAFE TO DRINK and meets or exceeds all state and federal standards. Upcountry cesspools have not affected our wells or sources. Also you should note that Maui has a lot of surface water, and so there’s no way cesspools can affect those surface sources of water at all. Here is a comprehensive list for you:

Our Upcountry systems gets it water from 3 water systems:

Upper Kula is mostly surface water from the Waikamoi rain forest.
Lower Kula is a mix of surface water from the Wailoa ditch, the Makawao rain forest and ground water from Pookela well.
Makawao is also a mix of sources from surface water from the Piiholo treatment plant (Makawao rain forest) and ground water wells at Haiku, Kaupakalua and Pookela.

Central Maui gets water from Wailuku, Waihee and North Waihee and feeds that water to the Paia/Kuau area.