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Cali is on its last leg as far as water, they have a mean drought going on.. what if Hawaii runs out of water? On Oahu they keep building, but do they think about water??
Quote:
A drought is moving through the Pacific Islands, brought
by one of the strongest El Niño events since record keeping began 60 years ago. It started in the southwest Pacific, where it has brought famine to Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu. It is expected to reach the South Pacific, tropi- cal West Pacific, and Hawaiian Islands between December 2015 and May 2016, potentially affecting 4.7 million people.
Cali is on its last leg as far as water, they have a mean drought going on.. what if Hawaii runs out of water? On Oahu they keep building, but do they think about water??
Yes, a drought has definitely hit Hawaii this winter, due to El Nino conditions.
Thankfully, the droughts are usually temporary, at least for the windward sides, which typically receive high rainfall amounts. However, most residents live on the dry-and getting drier- leeward sides.
So,the problem is delivering the water from the East side aquifers to the West sides.
To answer your question, water is a secondary thought, but "they" do think about it. For instance, on Maui it's been determined that the primary aquifer (Iao) is being drawn at a rate that is double its recharge rate. So, obviously it will one day dry out unless new wells are brought on line.
I think Hawaii will continue to have enough water, provided expensive new infrastructure is developed.
Of course, if the average American wasn't such an incredible waster of water, simple conservation might work.
But you know that's not gonna happen!
I personally am a believer that islands have a limited, sustainable carrying capacity. Meaning, an island can only sustain a certain amount of population. Hawaii has already far surpassed it's carrying capacity for food supply. And I feel it is nearing it's sustainable capacity for water.
At some point, the island will either need to find a way to get more supply, or find a way to decrease demand ... possibly through conservation, but I really believe the island needs to start considering possible means to limit population expansion on the islands.
I really believe the island needs to start considering possible means to limit population expansion on the islands.
Agreed but will never happen. As (younger) society begins to shift towards more of an entitlement mentality and entitlement political ideology, affordable and plentiful housing will take precedence over sustainability. People will demand cheap homes and they will get it. We will end up building out West and Central Oahu until we're surpassing a population base of greater than 1.3M.
Cheap is a relative term. But people in the future will get more and more homes that are reduced in cost partially by subsidies that taxpayers will be responsible for. So what I am saying is taxpayers will reduce the cost of homes here by more and more over time making homes "affordable" for the locals that are being forced to move to the mainland.
It's called socialism. And it's (eventually) coming to America.
Water is ridiculously cheap on Oahu, if there is true concern, raise the price. It's practically free.
Regarding population, while Hawaii had fairly robust growth the past 25 years, it is in the process of slowing to 1% or less per year, far below the US national average.
Water is ridiculously cheap on Oahu, if there is true concern, raise the price. It's practically free.
Regarding population, while Hawaii had fairly robust growth the past 25 years, it is in the process of slowing to 1% or less per year, far below the US national average.
Yes, water is practically free as long as you're not flushing it into a drain somewhere. Typical water/sewer bill is ~$160/mo for a typical house nowadays. So our sewer infrastructure cost makes up the difference.
For now... but we will blow 1% growth out of the water once Koa Ridge and Hoopili complete their first phases of construction in a couple years time.
For now... but we will blow 1% growth out of the water once Koa Ridge and Hoopili complete their first phases of construction in a couple years time.
The future population projections already take that into account. 1% or less growth per year projected the next 10 years - below the US state by state averages.
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