Water supply and drought in Hawaii will be discussed during a visit next week by the top official with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, a federal agency that promotes water quality and conservation in the Western states. Feds to assess
local water needsBureau of Reclamation officials
will meet with isle water experts
and tour isle water facilitiesBy Diana Leone
dleone@starbulletin.comCommissioner John Keys III will meet with the governor and the Hawaii congressional delegation, as well as with the Hawaii Drought Council and county government and water boards.
Keys also will make field trips to the Honolulu Board of Water Supply's Halawa Shaft, to the East Maui Irrigation ditch system, a Kihei water reclamation facility and Amfac ditches on Kauai.
Hawaii became qualified as the 18th reclamation state in 2000 after a bill by U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, adding it to the list was approved.
Listing as a reclamation state allows Hawaii to get help from the agency, which provided technical assistance to develop the first phase of a Hawaii Drought Plan in 2001, said Linnel Nishioka, deputy director of the state Water Commission.
The drought plan coordinates the efforts of federal, state and county agencies to address drought concerns by looking at water supply, fire suppression, and agricultural and environmental needs before a drought strikes, Nishioka said.
This year, the Bureau of Reclamation is providing $50,000 to the Water Commission for water conservation planning and $300,000 in federal matching funds to the state Department of Agriculture to prepare a study on water resources.
In 2001 the bureau provided $210,000 in emergency drought relief for Oahu, Molokai and the Big Island.
The Bureau of Reclamation, one of eight agencies of the U.S. Department of Interior, is the largest wholesale water supplier in the United States, operating 348 reservoirs in Western states that provide water for agriculture and municipal uses, electricity generation, flood control, recreation, and fish and wildlife.