Hawaiʻi’s water resources are vital to sustaining life as we know it in our islands. The Water Commission has the critical task of upholding Hawaiʻi water laws, and protecting and managing our precious wai for present and future generations. With the increasing impacts of the climate crisis, and after generations of corporate monopolization and military contamination, proper water management—prioritizing time-tested, culturally-grounded water management practices and the needs of present and future generations—is more important than ever.
One of the seven seats on the Water Commission is reserved for an individual with substantial experience or expertise in traditional Hawaiian water resource management. This loea, or highly skilled practitioner, seat is vital to ensuring the Commission upholds Hawaiian rights under the Water Code and public trust, and has a critical cultural perspective of the vital importance of wai - to our community; culture; food security, ʻāina including our watersheds, aquifers, estuaries and reefs; and our future generations. Currently, this seat is vacant, having been formerly filled by Neil Hannahs, whose term ended in June 2024.
In anticipation of Commissioner Hannahs’ term ending, a nomination committee was formed, which provided Governor Green with a list of qualified nominees back in February 2024. Instead of proceeding with one of these nominees, three of which we know have strong experience in traditional Hawaiian resource management, the governor sat on the list for five months. Despite widespread calls urging him to make a selection, he is now seeking to restart the nominations process from the beginning without explanation or legal authority to do so.
Hawaiʻi's waters continue to be impacted by a long legacy of corporate monopolization and military contamination. In the last few years, we have seen devastation to Hawaiʻi’s wai and ʻāina as a result of the mismanagement and neglect of our water resources, and the public trust, including the tragic Maui fires and the poisoning of 93,000 people by the Red Hill fuel facility. The loea seat is absolutely critical to healing these harms and ensuring that our precious wai is no longer treated as an expendable commodity, but as a public trust to be protected, stewarded, and conserved, not just for ourselves, but for generations yet unborn.
Join us, and many others, in urging Governor Green to fill the loea seat quickly, with a qualified individual with true experience or expertise in Native Hawaiian water management. Proper water management now is crucial to securing a resilient water future for generations to come. Ola i ka wai!