Haleakala National Park Kipahulu toilet project

I don't know enough myself about the technical aspects of this issue to judge the potential danger this project poses, but some friends have done a lot of research on it and some people in the community are very concerned about it, so I wanted to share it here so folks can be aware...

KIPAHULU, HALEAKALA NATIONAL PARK

Background: There has been an upgrade planned for the toilets at the National Park in Kipahulu Maui Hawaii for many years now, since it was proven almost twenty years ago that small composting toilets will not work in a high use area. The composting toilets were overwhelmed by a factor of over a hundred, and have essentially become a health and safety hazard. The smell of raw sewage has been an embarassment to the Park. To solve this problem, expert designers were hired to design a system that would solve the obvious problems. Their solution involved the Park drilling a well into the aquifer to produce the water that will carry the sewage out of the toilets (and out of sight and smell). The problem is that there will be long term impairment to the subsurface ecology; and eventually contamination of ground water and the ocean from diluted sewage during extreme rains. Extreme rain happens in this area often. It is at the bottom of a rainforest, and channels the watershed runoff of thousands of acres. There are times the runoff water passes through several inches deep in all parts of the land in question. (Rains similar to what the entire State recently experienced.)

More after the jump...

In reference to the toilet project at the Pools of Oheo ("Seven Sacred Pools"), the current plan does not address the issues listed below, and actually just discounts the magnitude of the long term consequences.   A septic system the size of a large hotel will be installed in an area that is supposedly so special it is a crime to even move a rock without archaeological clearance.

Sec.1 THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE ORGANIC ACT of Aug, 1916 states in part: " to provide in such manner and by such means as will leave (the Park) UNIMPAIRED FOR THE ENJOYMENT OF FUTURE GENERATIONS." There is going to be long term pollution. That is an impairment for future generations.

Here are the real issues, as we and many others see it. There is considerable prior correspondence with the National Park concerning this.

1. The most important point is that there will be hundreds of thousands of gallons of pristine well water used to flush solid waste and urine into a septic system. How this water is disposed of is the entire problem.

2. There will be THOUSANDS OF CUBIC YARDS of material moved from the subsurface areas to make the ditches and "constructed wetlands" ( which is another name for a large pit full of gravel, covered with weeds that supposedly magically purifies liquid flowing through it) that are used to reinject the infected water into the subsurface ground areas.

3.  Ample historical evidence exists regarding sludge buildup in these type systems over years of heavy use. Also, there is evidence of problems caused in the long term regarding leaks in the liners of these systems.

4. Evidence exists concerning very long term pathogen survival in sludge contained in the bottom of these constructed wetlands after they have become too plugged up to work anymore. The EPA has ample files regarding pathogen survival for GENERATIONS after sludge pits are abandonded.

5. Many residents out here feel that the National Park is taking Sacred Land and ruining it by making it a toilet. We all know the major reason for stopping at the Pools for a large number of tourists is to use the toilet. That is understandable. The problem is what to do with it. There are other answers than using hundreds of thousands of gallons of pristine well water to dispose of this solid human waste. Furthermore, the visitor experience is not impacted much by coming to Kipahulu; there are rivers and waterfalls elsewhere. The Kipahulu Park should be designated a wilderness area.

6. There is ample evidence to indicate the distinct possibility of groundwater pollution of the aquifer, stream, and ocean from this project.

7. This system is planned to be installed in the very bottom, lowest point in the watershed area of the southwestern side of Oheo. When large rains happen, all the runoff for miles above is channelled right into the area where this sludge water is being disposed of. The net effect is that these pathogens will be diluted, and carried much further than any of the supposed "expert engineers" have calculated. Those of the community that have lived through the many floods that have hit this area consider this a fact that anyone can see.

8. Last, but maybe most important to everyone's enjoyment of Oheo is that people want to use the toilet without being sickened by the odor and uncleanliness of poorly maintained and designed septic systems. There are other methods in use in ships, submarines, airplanes, and properly designed village composting systems all over the world. The use of a lot of water as the one way to dilute and move this waste without touching it is shortsighted; as well as abhorrent to Hawaiian culture, which reveres the Wai Ola O Kane (the God's Living Water). The intended method of disposal of this water is THE problem. We feel that other alternatives should be used in this very special place, because massive evidence compiled by THE UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY indicates an absolute probability of long term groundwater contamination.

This issue has not been addressed properly, and we predict that in a very few years after this project is completed, many of these points will regretfully become evident . The National Park should be an example of the absolute right way to do things.....at least as far as is humanly possible. This toilet project is an example of an attempt at the easy way out, and it is going to be a very expensive mess in the long run. The area in front of the campground will look like the construction zone the size of a Walmart while this project is underway.....in an area the week before, you could be arrested for moving a rock? Thousands of square feet of rubber liner will be in the soil forever. Thousands of square feet of soil will be dug up many feet deep in an area that has been scene to many battles with possible mass graves.

The project has not started, there is time to redesign a system that is compatible with the ecology of Kipahulu and respectful of Hawaiian cultural values.

Thank you,

Richard Kinser
Judy Seal Kinser
skyco @ aloha.net

Posted: Tue - April 11, 2006 at 06:40 PM

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Haleakala National Park Kipahulu toilet project

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