Conditions were perfect as Maui Surfrider volunteers and community members joined hands out on the water for this past weekend’s Paddle Out for Clean Water held in Lahaina, Maui. This event was dedicated to the love of our oceans and was the perfect opportunity to remember why we fight for it every day. The fun continued at Hula Grill who graciously supplied participants with food and beverages to support our community and all of our efforts. Lots of fun photos from the day can be viewed on the Maui Chapter's website.
The paddle out was held about a mile down the beach from where injected wastewater from the Lahaina Wastewater Reclamation Facility seeps into the Pacific Ocean. Hosted by Surfrider Foundation Maui, Sierra Club Maui, Hawaii Wildlife Fund and West Maui Preservation Association, this event was a great opportunity to celebrate the Maui County Council’s recent decision to settle the Lahaina Injection Wells Case and to find sustainable, long-term solutions to protect Maui’s reefs. This decision came after hundreds of people, including local students, submitted testimony and filled the County Council chambers to ask Maui County to fix the pollution problems and stop litigating for the right to pollute.
These community voices were joined by over 16,000 people nationwide who signed similarly-targeted petitions because this case is not only about protecting water quality in Maui, but it’s also about defending the Clean Water Act and its ability to protect our waterways from pollution, regardless of where you live across the United States. Learn more about these grassroots efforts and the County Council’s decision here.
But we’re not at the finish line yet.
Surfrider Foundation supporters and clean water advocates nationwide: Help us seal the deal by sending an email to Maui County Mayor Victorino asking him to listen to the County Council and the will of the people and complete the settlement process. Take action here.
If you live on Maui - Show up!
Join Surfrider Maui and our local partners and come to the County Building in Wailuku at 9am this Friday, October 18th. The County Council will be considering a resolution to hire an independent attorney to represent the Council in the ongoing county “charter crisis” over whether Corporation Counsel and the Mayor can stonewall the Council’s decision to settle. Show your support for the council members who already decided to settle this case, and tell the remaining council members that the only way to achieve a fair resolution to this dispute is for the Council to have its own, independent lawyer. For more details on how to effectively show your support of County Council's decision to settle and to insist on a fair process for sorting out the County government’s crisis, visit the Maui Chapter’s website.
Photos by Ryan Brewer