HAIKU, Maui » State water commissioners are reducing the amount of water diverted from eight streams in east Maui to maintain flows and provide more for taro farming and wildlife.

Yesterday's decision affects eight of 27 streams in east Maui and could have major statewide impact on the amount of stream water diverted by ditch systems along most of the state's 376 streams to users who don't live or operate along them.

“;These 27 streams are going to determine how we proceed not just here but statewide,”; said Ken Kawahara, deputy director of the state Commission on Water Resource Management. “;It's a shift to have healthy streams, rather than further degradation.”;

A number of groups relying on water from a ditch system operated by East Maui Irrigation are worried that the decision could cut the amount of water they get in the future.

East Maui delivers an average of 165 million gallons a day to major outside users, including Maui County, Kula farmers, ranchers, Maui Land & Pineapple Co. Inc., and Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Co., the largest and soon to be the last sugar-producing plantation in the state.

Officials at Hawaiian Commercial, a subsidiary of Alexander & Baldwin Inc., said the commission staff had not done an economic impact analysis on how outside users might be impacted by reducing the amount of diverted water.

Stephen Holaday, Alexander & Baldwin's president of agribusiness, said the commission must come to a timely decision on the remaining 19 streams.

“;Pending a decision on all 27 petitioned streams, HC&S is in a regulatory state of suspension, making it very difficult and very risky to plan for its future,”; he said.

William Kennison, Maui division director of the ILWU, said if Hawaiian Commercial went out of business like so many other sugar plantations in the state, the impact would be devastating, especially to its 800 workers.

Honoupo taro grower Lyn Scott, urging the commission to release more stream water, said the lack of adequate stream flow has hurt her native Hawaiian family economically and culturally.

“;We're being injured,”; she said. “;We cannot have our way of life, our sustenance, our culture.”;

Commission Chairwoman Laura Thielen said the decision focused on the constitutional mandate of maintaining sustainable stream life and traditional taro farming first, then determining the amount of water to divert for outside purposes.

The commission in 1988 adopted stream flow standards based on the “;status quo,”; or no change in the diversions, pending studies.

A lack of funding has contributed to a delay in completing the studies, commission staff said.

She said she wasn't sure how long it would take to get stream flows to the level ordered by the commission and the work at the streams might take a while if approval was required by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Native Hawaiian Legal Corp. attorney Alan Murakami, representing some east Maui taro growers who petitioned for more stream flow, said the decision was “;groundbreaking stuff”; but he's not totally happy.

Murakami said his clients filed the petition to amend the stream flow seven years ago and the commission was supposed to spend 180 days before taking action.

“;What they plan to do over the next year is what should have been done over the past seven,”; he said.