An Environmental Impact Statement Preparation Notice has been filed for the proposed development of a new Central Maui Wastewater Reclamation Facility and onsite Soil Aquifer Treatment basin in Waikapū.

A public scoping meeting will be held Aug. 16, 2023 at 6 p.m. Waikapū Community Center, and a 30-day public review and comment period on the document has begun. Comments are due by Aug. 22, 2023, and should be sent to the accepting authority, with a copy sent to the consultant. (Contact information is posted below):

• Accepting Authority: County of Maui, Department of Environmental Management, 2200 Main Street, Suite 610, Wailuku, Hawaiʻi 96793. Contact: Juan Rivera, P.E., Capital Improvements Projects Program Manager, Phone: 808-270-7268
• Consultant: Munekiyo Hiraga, 305 High Street, Suite 104, Wailuku, Hawai‘i 96793. Contact: Yukino Uchiyama, AICP, Senior Associate, Phone: 808-983-1233, email: CentralMauiWWRF@munekiyohiraga.com

The project is planned on approximately 14.9 acres of former agricultural lands between the Honoapi‘ilani Highway and Kūihelani Highway as well as related offsite infrastructure improvements.

Offsite improvements consist of:

• A wastewater pump station near the existing master-planned Kehalani community;
• A sewage pipeline from the Kehalani Wastewater Pump Station to the Wastewater Reclamation Facility;
• Portions of sewage pipeline and R-1 recycled water transmission line that connect the Wastewater Reclamation Facility and the future Waikapū Country Town development; and
• A Wastewater Reclamation Facility access road.

The proposed Wastewater Reclamation Facility will service existing and planned developments throughout the Waikapū/Wailuku area, as well as State of Hawai‘i projects in Pūlehunui.

According to the EISPN, implementation of this new Wastewater Reclamation Facility will reduce wastewater flows currently being handled by the Wailuku-Kahului Wastewater Reclamation Facility, the main wastewater treatment facility servicing the Central Maui region.

The proposed development of a Wastewater Reclamation Facility and related improvements involving use of County lands and County/State funds and a Community Plan Amendment are triggers for compliance with environmental review requirements. 

Due to the scale and potential impacts of the proposed Central Maui Wastewater Reclamation Facility Project, the Department of Environmental Management has determined that an Environmental Impact Statement should be prepared. In addition, the use of federal funds may be pursued for the proposed project.

The Wastewater Reclamation Facility and Soil Aquifer Treatment basin project site is located on lands designated: “Agricultural” by the State Land Use Commission; “Agriculture” use in the Wailuku-Kahului Community Plan; and “Agricultural” district by the County of Maui. Development of the Wastewater Reclamation Facility and Soil Aquifer Treatment basin project will require: a State Land Use Commission District Boundary Amendment; Community Plan Amendment; and Change of Zoning approvals.

A Cultural Impact Assessment study for the project area will be prepared as part of the environmental review process. A copy of the Cultural Impact Assessment report will be included and its findings will be discussed in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

The proposed project will be developed over a multi-phased time horizon, according to the EIS Preparation Notice. A project phasing plan and estimated project construction cost will be presented in the Draft EIS.

*Maui Now’s Wendy Osher contributed to this report.