Does Maui Have a Water Problem?

Does Maui Have a Water Problem? 

The Hawaiian Islands occupy a unique position on Planet Earth and are subject to distinct, sometimes extreme, weather patterns. Here in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, 2,300 miles from California, Hawaii exists because of a fixed volcanic hot spot in the ocean (a deep plume of magma under the slowly moving Pacific Plate) that has been flowing for millions of years and is currently creating the Big Island.

It's a miracle that life exists in Hawaii and living here in Hawaii, at least in my humble opinion, is also miraculous.

Amazingly, Hawaii Island, the largest of the chain, is still growing from its active volcanoes, while the rest of the main Hawaiian Islands, Maui, Oahu, Kauai, Lanai, Molokai, and Niihau, are all shrinking. This volcanic activity has been happening for so long that there are even islands that have risen and completely eroded back into the ocean. Kauai is currently the oldest island and is believed to be about 5 million years old! 

Hawaii, while forged in the fire of its volcanoes, is nourished and able to sustain life through abundant rainfall. Generally speaking, this rainfall is seasonal, and amounts can vary significantly across different parts of the islands due to the state's wide variety of microclimates. In recent years, longer drought periods and extreme weather events have highlighted our reliance on our precious resource of water.

In this article, I'm going to explore the myriad water-related issues we have been facing on Maui and what is being done now to address these issues over the coming years.

Hawaii Has Unique Microclimates and Often Unpredictable Weather Patterns

Wai is the Hawaiian word for water, and many areas on Maui have 'Wai' in their names. Wailuku, which means 'destroying water', is an apt name, as the Wailuku River, which runs through the I'ao Valley, is prone to flooding and can carry large boulders.

Wailea, one of Maui's best resort areas with calm waters and beautiful beaches, means 'pleasing waters'. Many other places on Maui have water in their name, such as Waikapu, Wai'napanapa, Waiakoa, and many more. 

Microclimates and Water in Hawaii

Hawaii has 10 distinct microclimates, including desert climates like Kihei and Wailea, and polar climates with snow and freezing temperatures at the top of Mauna Kea on the Big Island.  

While parts of Maui and other Hawaiian Islands have experienced prolonged periods of drought in recent years, we also receive an immense amount of rain, particularly in the mountains. 

As we recently saw with the intense flooding throughout the state, we are occasionally subject to extreme weather events where areas can receive more rain in a week than they might receive in the next year. Here are some examples of the yearly average rainfalls:

• Kihei, Maui: 10-15 inches
• Ka’anapali, Maui: 23-28 inches
• Hana, Maui: 70-80 inches
• Waialua, Oahu: 29 inches
• Waikoloa, Big Island: 30 inches
• Hanalei, Kauai: 73 inches

The rainiest place in Hawaii is actually on Maui, in an area known as the ‘Big Bog’ on East Maui, which receives an average of 31.6 ft of rain per year at 5,400 ft of elevation. 

According to Pao-Shin Chu, a professor of meteorology at UH Manoa, “The east side of Maui is aligned in a northwest-southwest direction, in a way almost perpendicular to the prevailing northeast-east trade winds”. This causes an orographic rainfall effect as approaching cumulus cloud clusters rise, producing cooling, saturation, clouds, and rain. 

2026 Flooding Brings Spotlight Back to Water Management on Maui

In the historic flooding in March of 2026, areas of Upcountry Maui received upwards of 40 plus inches of rain in the span of a few days, and the Northshore of Oahu received 12 inches in one day a week after getting 25 inches of rain, which led to the evacuation of Haleiwa and Waialua due to the concerns that the Wahiawa dam could completely fail. 

North Kihei on Maui is notorious for flooding during these heavy rain events, as ongoing drainage issues and wetland mismanagement leave the area prone to flooding and extreme mudflow. Up to 4ft of mud was on South Kihei Road after the floods!  

Every time this happens, solutions are discussed, fingers are pointed, and nothing gets done to resolve the issue. However, the wetlands of Kihei hold the key to how water is supposed to move through the area. 

With over 1 billion in estimated damages, mainly for Oahu, from the recent flood, how can Hawaii look forward in its planning and strategies to reduce the impacts of future weather events and properly retain rainfall to expand public access to water?

Maui’s Aging Water Infrastructure and History of Abuse By Corporate Agriculture

While we can’t expect to avoid damage from extreme weather events, we can be better prepared for them. Hawaii’s aging infrastructure issues have been apparent for many years, and responsible parties have not been held properly accountable.  

Large agricultural corporations like Dole, Alexander & Baldwin, and GMO giant Monsanto (rebranded recently by Bayer) have a history of abusing Hawaiian lands and their water rights for almost 2 centuries. The widespread flooding from the 2026 Kona Low storm on Oahu's north shore was directly related to the Dole-owned Wahiawa Dam's deterioration. Dole has avoided making repairs to the dam for over 5 decades and has evaded fines and mandatory repairs since 2009. 

The history of growing pineapple and sugar in Hawaii is a dark history, and the stories they don’t often tell on the farm tours are stories of rampant use of known toxic, even illegal pesticides and herbicides, along with human rights violations, including labor exploitation, forced child labor, and trafficking. 

On Maui, Alexander and Baldwin has operated agriculture in Central Maui and controlled a massive water source with failing infrastructure, East Maui Irrigation, until just recently. 

Recent Agribusiness Activity Seen to Improve Conditions

Fortunately, Mahi Pono now manages and operates agricultural operations in Central Maui, and it has also taken over ownership of East Maui Irrigation, which consists of 50 miles of tunnels and 24 miles of ditches that carry water from East Maui to Central Maui for its agricultural operations there. They have diversified the types of agriculture grown in Central Maui and are helping Maui reduce its reliance on outside food sources.

Alexander and Baldwin sold its 41,000 acres in Central Maui in 2018 to Mahi Pono and has been divesting its agricultural business while becoming a commercial real estate giant in Hawaii. They recently sold the entire business to a larger real estate investment firm, Blackstone (not to be confused with BlackRock). 

Water Availability Has Been Contributing to Maui's Housing Struggles

The entities that manage Maui's water infrastructure certainly need to be held to a higher standard of stewardship, and it should be recognized that their aging infrastructure is also contributing to our current housing crisis. 

Recently, Pulelehua, a much-needed new housing development on West Maui, was prevented from moving forward due to insufficient water availability. Kahana, the area where Pulelehua is planned, sits below the slopes of the West Maui Mountains, which receive an average of 386 inches of rain per year, 580 million gallons a day. 

The most recent reports on daily water demand on West Maui cite that our maximum production capacity is currently 7.17 million gallons per day. 

Waikapu Country Town is another large development near Wailuku that has been crawling through the approval process for decades, and many other housing projects need water to proceed. If sufficient access to water becomes a priority at the planning level, we can make a serious impact on our housing challenges. 

Water Mismanagement Leading to Lost Revenue For Businesses, Residents, and Maui County

West Maui water infrastructure issues have also recently been in the news, especially in Kapalua, where the Plantation Golf Course was unable to host its annual PGA Tour event, resulting in over $50 million in lost revenue for the island due to water shortages from its provider, Maui Land & Pineapple.

TY Management, the owners of the Plantation Course, took MLP to court, where MLP was fined 140k for streamflow violations and for failing to complete ordered repairs. TY Management is now offering 40M to purchase and repair the aging water infrastructure, then turn it over to the County. 

Maui County Council Bans New Swimming Pool Construction on West Maui

Maui County recently passed Ordinance 5930 that placed an interim ban on permits for new pool construction on West Maui until 2031. Many say it was a short-sighted and performative move unless the county’s real goal was to hurt the businesses of local pool companies and home contractors.

There have also been several new water conservation rules that have recently been implemented on Maui that seek to further reduce water use.  These relate more to how hotels operate their linen programs and landscaping water uses, 

The move to restrict pool construction will not have any measurable impact on water availability or current usage, but maybe stricter rules for hotels will. Maui has been experiencing longer droughts, and these measures may help while Maui works to expand its capacity to capture, retain, and efficiently distribute the water we do have. 

Plans to Expand Water Availability on Maui

Upcountry Maui is known for its shortage of water meters and a lengthy backlog of roughly 1,400 applicants seeking approximately 3,500 meters. Residents in Makawao and Haiku have enough rainfall to support a water catchment as an alternative to a county water meter; however, customers in Pukalani and Kula will not receive enough rainfall each year to support a catchment and will need public water or a private well. 

When buying land or agriculturally zoned properties on Maui, it's particularly important to know if the property has a water meter or will use a well or catchment for water. 

Upcountry Water Service relies on a series of wells and reservoirs, and plans are in place to repair a filter at the Kamaole treatment plant. This will add 1.5M gallons per day. There are also plans to build two new reservoirs for the fiscal year 2028, but that will require federal funding and is not guaranteed.

West Maui Water Planning

In November of 2025, the County announced that it is exploring a desalination plant on West Maui and has appropriated 15.5 million to improve the reliability of the water supply for West Maui. The estimated costs of the plant could exceed 50 million, and it doesn’t seem as economically feasible as simply adding more retention basins and repairing existing infrastructure.  

Kimo Landgraf, deputy director of the Maui County Dept of Water Supply, has indicated that the county is also working on a new 100-million-gallon reservoir. With the recent addition of the Kahana Well, which will add nearly 1 million gallons a day to the available supply, it does appear that better water security is in West Maui’s future.

The Good News Looking Forward

Given the recent developments and planned improvements, Maui is on its way to expanding water availability and improving management of our most vital resource on the island.

While the Hawaiian Islands can be a place of extreme weather, they are also a place of extreme beauty, peace, and serenity for those who love life here and visiting here. We have the resources to support everyone who lives here, along with our tourism economy that financially supports our local population; we just need to develop and manage our water resources intelligently. 

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