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We've gone from monitoring 41 to 33 sites!

9/14/2020

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As of August 2020, Hui O Ka Wai Ola has gone from monitoring 41 to 33 sites! After looking closely at the data our volunteers have gathered since June 2016, the Technical Committee recommended eight sites to “pause” and one site to discontinue for one or more of the following reasons: we have a good understanding of their water quality dynamics, these sites have little to no pollution or fluctuation, no management is currently underway for contributing land based pollution, and/or no permanent funding is available to continue monitoring these sites. The Committee also added one site, Kahekili Two, which is north of the previously monitored Kahekili Beach Park site and is closer to the influence of the Lahaina Wastewater Treatment facility.

Sites currently paused are:
  1. Olowalu Point
  2. Ukumehame Park
  3. Sugar Beach
  4. Mai Poina Park
  5. Palauea Beach
  6. Po'olenalena Park (Chang's)
  7. Mākena Landing
  8. One'uli Beach
Sites recently discontinued are:
  1. Pāpalaua Park
Sites recently added are:
  1. Kahekili Two

With fewer sites to monitor, we have moved from 4 survey teams in West Maui and 4 teams in South Maui to 3 teams on each side. The teams are currently monitoring the following sites  every three weeks year-round
WEST MAUI
North Ridge to Reef

​​South Ridge to Reef

​​Polanui
Honolua Bay
Napili Bay
505 Front St.
Oneloa Beach
Pōhaku Park
Kauaula Rd. (Lindsey Hale)
Kapalua Bay
Kā'anapali Shores
Lāhaina Town
Ka'opala Bay
Kahekili Two
Olowalu Shorefront
Kahana Village
Hanaka'ō'ō Park (Canoe Beach)
Camp Olowalu
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Wahikuli Park
​Pāpalaua Pali
SOUTH MAUI
​North Kīhei

​Kama'ole

​Wailea
Ma'alaea Harbor
Kalepolepo Park
Kilohana Dr.
Ma'alaea Condos
Waipuilani Park
Keawakapu Beach
Haycraft Park
Kīhei South (W. Lipoa St.)
Ulua Park
Keālia Pond
Kalama Park
Maluaka Beach
Kīhei Canoe Club
Cove Park
'Āhihi-Kīna'u North
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​'Āhihi-Kīna'u South
Part of this shift to monitor fewer sites allows the Hui to expand our efforts into some other water quality research, such as source detection, including limu nitrogen isotope testing, and working with partners to delve deeper into some of the pollution “hot spots” our data has helped identify. More on this to come!
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Research Report: Changes in Water Quality During a 12 Hour Period at Two Maui Beaches

5/27/2020

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To better understand how tide change influences water quality, a group of Hui O Ka Wai Ola Team Leaders spent a full day in December 2019 (approximately 12 hours) measuring water quality parameters hourly at Cove Park in South Maui and Hanaka‘ō‘ō Park (Canoe Beach) in West Maui – a deviation from the Hui’s usual practice of monitoring 41 sites once every three weeks only in the morning.
 
During this one day study, as well as with our regular ocean water quality monitoring year-round, we measure nutrient levels. Nutrients, including nitrogen and phosphorus, can indicate pollution from wastewater, run-off from agriculture, landscaping and/or golf courses. Once in the ocean, these nutrients can lead to an overgrowth of algae. Algae, particularly invasive species, quickly out-compete corals for sunlight and overrun large tracts of living reef.
 
Nutrient values can vary a lot over the course of a tide cycle -- low nutrient levels at high tide and higher nutrient levels at low tide. Sites with higher nutrient levels acquire these nutrients via ground water that comes into the ocean as underground "springs.”
 
The fact that there is fresh water coming in from underground springs over the course of a day is shown by the change in salinity readings. This explains the ever-shifting levels that we see from the data we collect once every three weeks at each site.
 
During our one day experiment we took 4 nutrient samples, with the first sample at high tide and the last sample near low tide.  The accompanying chart (Figure 1) shows how salinity decreases as the tide goes out and the fresh water from underground springs comes in, while the nitrate levels increase as the amount of fresh water increases. 
 
Our ongoing Hui O Ka Wai Ola water quality sampling program was designed to catch a variety of tide states so that we can understand not only the average level of nutrients but also the range of nutrient levels each site exhibits. 
 
Another interesting observation is that other parameters vary during the day as well -- temperature rises as the sun comes up and heats the top layer of water and then starts to decrease as the sun goes down or if clouds come over (Figure 2). During our one-day experiment, temperatures varied over 2 degrees centigrade during the course of the day.
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Figure 1. Salinity decreases and nitrate levels increase as the tide goes out and the fresh water from underground springs comes in at Cove Park.
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Figure 2. Temperature variations at Hanaka‘ō‘ō Park over 12 hours
With our ongoing water quality monitoring, we are careful that we measure this parameter at each site at approximately the same time of day every time we sample so that seasonal temperature variations can be distinguished from diurnal variations. 
 
Finally, dissolved oxygen (DO) and pH levels also vary across the course of a day. Dissolved oxygen is needed for aquatic plants and animals to survive. Corals are very sensitive to changes in ocean chemistry, including increased ocean water acidity (which results in a drop in pH levels).
 
During our 12 hour study, we found that in Cove Park and Hanaka‘ō‘ō Park these diurnal variations are not as obvious because of the influx of fresh ground water as the tide is going out which also affects levels of pH and DO. In general, pH and DO are at their lowest levels just as the sun rises due to the fact that photosynthesis has not been taking place overnight. CO2 levels rise at night as marine organisms respire, taking in oxygen and producing CO2. There is no photosynthesis at night so as CO2 levels rise, the water becomes more acidic and pH levels drop. Dissolved oxygen also drops because of a lack of photosynthesis that generates oxygen as a bi-product. Once the sun begins to rise, photosynthesis begins again, and the pH and DO levels rise.
​
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Water quality monitoring  during COVID-19

5/11/2020

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As of Monday, May 4, a small group of Hui O Ka Wai Ola staff members are monitoring coastal water quality at all 41 of our leeward Maui sample sites every three weeks. Sampling has been on hold since March 16 due to safety concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, permission was recently granted from Maui County officials for our group to continue this essential work.
 
Working in teams of two, the Hui’s Project Manager and Team Leaders are following strict guidelines to maintain a six-foot distance from each other, wearing face masks and sanitizing while collecting and processing samples.
 
We are grateful to be monitoring at this unprecedented time when island activity is at an all-time low. We hope to learn if the decrease in visitors and changes in behavior may impact coastal water quality.
 
We plan to maintain this monitoring protocol for the next two months and hope to get our amazing volunteers back in the field as soon as it is safe to do so.
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Project Manager, James Strickland III, and Team Leader, Tiara Stark, collect coastal water quality samples in Kīhei while following strict COVID-19 protocols. Photos: Tiara Stark
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Maui Preparatory School Students Participate in Water Quality Testing Program

2/3/2020

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Our ocean water quality testing program, Hui O Ka Wai Ola, is made possible through the dedication of more than 35 adult volunteers who monitor water quality at 41 local beaches every three weeks.

And now, we're excited to report a new water quality monitoring partnership with students from Maui Preparatory Academy, reports James Strickland, Project Manager for Hui O Ka Wai Ola. 

Eight middle school students are conducting turbidity sampling in Napili Bay as part of their Project Based Learning program.  Based on student input, they have sectioned off the bay into four 250 foot increments and are sampling each of the four sites at two depths (2 feet and 6 feet).

We're grateful for these students and their dedication to monitoring ocean water quality, as a step toward achieving cleaner ocean water for Maui's coastlines. ​
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Maui Preparatory Academy students Bishop Worth, Carter Bozich, Caroline Martin and Mayson Miles help monitor ocean water quality at Napili Bay through the Hui O Ka Wai Ola ocean water quality monitoring program.
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Watch the Hui's West Maui Data Presentation!

8/2/2019

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Members of Hui O Ka Wai Ola took a deep dive into West Maui's water quality data during a free public presentation at Lahainaluna High School on July 30, 2019. You can watch the Akakū recording here!
Photo credit: Dakota Grossman
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Hui On The Radio....

7/2/2019

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You can listen to Tova Callender, Alana Yurkanin, and James Strickland of Hui O Ka Wai Ola share about South Maui water quality findings on KAOI's July 2 radio show on station 96.7. Mahalo Don Couch and Jack Gist for a great conversation!  Listen here.
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Our Coastal Water Quality Report is here!!!

5/31/2019

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Click on the Report Photo to access Hui O Ka Wai Ola's Coastal Water Quality Report (2016 to 2018)! This report shares our mission, methods, findings, next steps, and most importantly, our thanks for all the ways the Maui community, donors, and funders have helped bring our partnership this far. We are seeing some compelling findings that will help address sources of pollution and poor water quality along Maui's coastline so the quality of life for people and nature may improve and persist. Want to learn more? Check out our report!
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Hui O Ka Wai Ola is the 
Recipient of Funds Raised at September Meeting of 
“100+ Women Who Care – Maui”

10/12/2018

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Michelle Griffoul, a volunteer with the Hui O Ka Wai Ola water quality testing program and board member of Maui Nui Marine Resource Council, beams after learning that the water quality testing program would receive the donations collected at the September meeting of  100+ Women Who Care - Maui. ​
Hui O Ka Wai Ola was awarded $12,500 in funds raised at the September 2018 meeting of “100+ Women Who Care – Maui,” a group that holds quarterly meetings to raise funds for local nonprofits, charities and causes.  

According to the 100+ Women Who Care – Maui website, the group’s members meet four times each year, with each meeting lasting one hour. Each member (and their guest) brings a check for $100 or more. Any member can nominate local charities, non-profits, or worthy causes, whose names are put into a hat. Three names are drawn at random. The group then votes by secret ballot to choose one of the organizations or causes to support, with a collective donation that typically amounts to $10,000 or more. 

Michelle Griffoul, a member of 100+ Women Who Care – Maui and a board member of Maui Nui Marine Resource Council, nominated the organization’s Hui O Ka Wai Ola (Association of Living Waters) ocean water quality testing program. She spoke from the heart about her firsthand experience as a volunteer with this innovative monitoring program, which works with dozens of local volunteers to regularly test ocean water quality at 39 locations along the south and west coastlines of Maui. 

The members voted by secret ballot and selected Maui Nui Marine Resource Council as the recipient of the funds raised at the meeting. 

“We’re grateful to all of the community-minded women in this group who chose to support our Hui O Ka Wai Ola water quality testing program,” says Robin Newbold, MNMRC co-founder and chair. “Maui Nui Marine Resource Council is proud to be a co-manager of this unique program and we are grateful for all in our community who make it possible. Clean ocean water is essential for healthy coral reefs. It’s also important to visitors and residents who enjoy swimming, snorkeling, diving, paddling, fishing and surfing along Maui’s coasts,” said Newbold. “Our ocean water quality testing program and the data it generates is critical in our work for clean ocean water for Maui.”  



To learn more about 100 Women Who Care – Maui, please visit https://100womenwhocaremaui.org
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Watch a Hui O Ka Wai Ola Webinar hosted by the Reef Resilience Network!

6/29/2018

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A recording is available from the June 20th Reef Resilience Webinar hosting the good work of Hui O Ka Wai Ola! Check it out at: http://www.reefresilience.org/upcoming-citizen-science-to-improve-hawaii-water-quality/
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Update to Hui O Ka Wai Ola and DOH sample sites!

6/25/2018

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The Hawai'i Department of Health (DOH) has monitored 18 Tier 1 sites weekly for basic water quality parameters and bacteria since the end of 2017. Some of these sites have also been monitored by Hui O Ka Wai Ola, who collected additional nutrient data (nitrogen and phosphorus compounds) along with turbidity and other basic physical parameters. DOH is now collecting all of the parameters that Hui O Ka Wai Ola collects and more (Enterococcus, Clostridium and Chlorophyll A) at these 18 DOH Tier 1 sites!
This allows Hui O Ka Wai Ola to discontinue monitoring at the following 8 DOH Tier 1 sites, since our efforts are no longer needed:
  • Launiupoko Beach Park
  • Airport (Kahekili) Beach
  • DT Fleming Beach Park
  • Mile Marker 14
  • Kama'ole Beach I
  • Kama'ole Beach III
  • Wailea Beach
  • Mākena Beach Shoreline
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Volunteer Jim collecting a sample at Launiupoko. Photo: Bruce Forrester
The Hui can now look to adopt additional sites elsewhere, or utilize this excess effort to expand our program in other ways. You can see updates to our monitoring locations on our Data Page. The Hui will continue to  monitor two Tier 1 sites to use as Quality Assurance for our nutrient data, but this will only be for a short time until we determine that our results are in line with DOH results:
  • Hanaka'ō'ō (Canoe Beach)
  • Cove Park
Kudos to the DOH for almost doubling the number of Tier 1 sites on Maui from 10 to 18 in the last year. The addition of nutrient parameters to the Tier 1 sites is incredibly beneficial for all the environmental work being done on the island of Maui by watershed partnerships. This incredible effort and dedication to gathering comprehensive and quality assured data for Maui's beach goers and marine life by the DOH is greatly appreciated! To view DOH's data, please visit: cwb.doh.hawaii.gov/CleanWaterBranch/WaterQualityData/default.aspx.  ​
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  • Home
  • The Team
  • Data
  • Learn More
    • What is clean water?
    • Announcements
    • Gallery
    • Media
    • More Efforts
  • Hui +
  • Join us!