With $2 million in state funding approved, a project to drill a new deep monitor well (DMW) in Waimea is getting underway.
This is part of a Commission on Water Resource Management ongoing effort to monitor the health of aquifers statewide.
Data collected from DMWs allows for essential observation of long-term changes in the thickness of an aquifer’s freshwater lens. This provides an indicator of drought conditions and expected impacts on groundwater supplies. Aquifers provide most of the clean drinking water in Hawaii.
CWRM Deputy Director Kaleo Manuel said, “Climate change will impact water security in this region and the other areas throughout the state that are severely impacted by drought and susceptible to wildfires. This monitoring well will help add another data set to inform both current and long-term management of water resources.”
The current CWRM Deep Monitor Well network has limited geographic coverage with only 13 wells around the state.
There isn’t a DMW in the Waimea area and the new well is expected to help water managers ensure sustainable drinking water supplies.
Katie Roth, the CWRM hydrologic planning program manager, explained, “Given concerns about development, the loss of native forests, and other impacts to the sustainable yield in the Waimea area, a DMW is needed to help us observe and assess current and long-term aquifer conditions and changes in water availability. This is critical to ensuring sustainability of groundwater resources.”
According to state Sen. Lorraine Inouye, the Waimea area “ has needed a new deep monitor well for quite some time.”
“Improving the state’s groundwater resource monitoring capability is crucial to ensure that we can reliably track the health of our aquifers,” she said. “Projects, such as the Waimea DMW will go a long way in tracking and protecting Waimea’s groundwater resources.”
State Rep. David Tarnas said the well will fill “a significant data gap.”
“With this new deep monitoring well, the water managers … can gather the necessary information to be able to manage the use of this aquifer and ensure a sustainable drinking water supply.”
The project is scheduled to start in March 2023, with engineers working on planning and permitting. Design of the Waimea DMW is expected to be completed by June of next year, with construction targeted for completion in June 2024.
