Maui County Launches New Online Atlas for Shoreline Access

Shoreline Access Map courtesy County of Maui.

The County has launched a new website with a map viewer to provide an online atlas of more than 200 public access locations and their features.

“This is a terrific tool for the public to enjoy our coastal resources and use our public beach accesses throughout the County,” Mayor Michael Victorino said. “It was a great collaborative effort to bring this to fruition, and I thank everyone involved in launching this site.”

The website and map viewer can be accessed at www.mauishorelineaccess.net. The website and viewer are compatible with computers, smartphones and other devices.

The viewer can be queried to find locations or features of interest, such as sites that are within 15 miles or nearer, or sites that have a sandy beach, or a site’s amenities such as restrooms. For most sites, the viewer also features 360-degree photos of both the access point and the shoreline area, along with a depiction of the access path.

“Ensuring public shoreline access is a major objective of Hawaii’s coastal zone management program, and this new tool improves our support of that goal,” says Justine Nihipali, Planning Program Manager for the Hawaii Coastal Zone Management Program.

The website also includes links to supporting information, including weather, surf reports, water quality, public access rights, and Aha Moku land management and stewardship principles.

This shoreline access information is provided for all regions of Maui, Molokai and Lanai. The website is also intended to provide a baseline for the management of shoreline access.

The website was developed by the County’s Planning Department, Information Technology Services Division, and the University of Hawaii Sea Grant Program, after consulting with members of Maui’s Aha Moku and after the completion of an updated survey and inventory of coastal access locations by Aptim Environmental and Infrastructure Inc. The survey, inventory, and website development was funded by a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration through the Hawaii Office of Planning Coastal Zone Management Program.

Mākena Landing. File photo by Wendy Osher.