WAILUKU - The state Commission on Water Resource Management is asking users of the four streams that make up Na Wai Eha in Central Maui to apply for a permit by April 30 if they want to continue diverting surface water.
About a year ago, commission members designated Na Wai Eha a surface water management area in an attempt to quell decades-old squabbles and lawsuits over who deserves access to the the Waihee, Waiehu, Iao and Waikapu streams. The water fight often pitted the county, sugar growers and other large-scale agriculture operators against taro farmers, residents and environmentalists.
The new Na Wai Eha surface water management area designation is an attempt to set interim instream flow standards, or to put more water in the streams to help support small farms and make the streams healthier for fish and flora.
No one is allowed any longer to divert water from the four streams without a water resources management area permit.
However, permits are not required for individual users who draw on the water for domestic use, users of the county water system or people who have rainwater catchment systems in place.
The commission will assume that those who do not apply for surface water diversion permits have abandoned their use. If they want water, they will be required to apply for a surface water use permit as a new user and will be subject to the availability of surface water as determined by the number of existing permits and the amount of water flowing in streams.
Applications are available at the state Department of Land and Natural Resources Commission on Water Resource Management in the Kalanimoku Building, Room 227, 1151 Punchbowl St., Honolulu 96813.
The application can also be downloaded from the Web site at hawaii.gov/dlnr/cwrm/resources_permits.htm.
For more information, call (808) 587-0234 or toll free from Maui at 984-2400, ext. 70234.
