CONDITIONAL REACTIVATION OF NAVY ʻAIEA HĀLAWA SHAFT WILL INCREASE RESILIENCE OF NAVY WATER SYSTEM

HONOLULU — The Hawaiʻi Department of Health (DOH) has conditionally approved the reactivation of the Navy’s ʻAiea Hālawa Shaft as a water source for the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam Public Water System. With robust treatment and monitoring protocols in place, reactivation of the shaft will enhance system reliability by supplementing the existing water supply and providing a critical source of potable water.

Regulatory agencies had raised concerns about the Navy’s previous reliance on a single water source, the Waiawa Shaft, highlighting potential vulnerabilities in the overall resilience of the system, which serves approximately 93,000 users.

DOH carefully considered the Navy’s reactivation request and required it to meet several conditions before the ʻAiea Hālawa Shaft could be reactivated as a drinking water source. Requirements included:

• Installation of granular activated carbon treatment, ion exchange treatment and disinfection systems to treat water from the ʻAiea Hālawa Shaft. The system also has several sampling taps to allow for ongoing testing. These treatment systems are similar to those required for other public water sources on Oʻahu.
• Testing for more than 50 contaminants, including PFAS and total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH), was completed to provide assurance that contaminants were not detected at levels that would exceed applicable regulatory standards.
• Demonstration that the treatment systems could effectively remove PFAS. Following the June 2024 detection of PFAS at the Navy’s ʻAiea Hālawa Shaft, DOH required the Navy to demonstrate that its treatment systems could effectively remove PFAS.

The Navy must follow federal and state laws for the operation of public water systems. In addition, DOH will require the Navy to report any conditions that could contaminate the source within 24 hours.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has also released a drinking water report concluding that the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam Public Water System has been free of fuel contamination and in compliance with federal and state drinking water regulations since 2022.

The Navy’s ʻAiea Hālawa Shaft is approximately two miles away from the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility and should not be confused with the Navy’s Red Hill Shaft, or the Honolulu Board of Water Supply’s Hālawa Shaft. The low rate at which water is expected to be used from the Navy’s ʻAiea Hālawa Shaft, along with other conditions, makes it unlikely that reactivation of the shaft will impact underground contamination around the Red Hill facility. There is a geologic barrier in the Hālawa Stream Valley between the Red Hill facility and the Navy ʻAiea Hālawa Shaft. Additionally, DOH’s Emergency Order requires the Navy to continue pumping from the Navy’s Red Hill Shaft to minimize potential contaminant migration. Following reactivation, DOH will continue to closely monitor groundwater data.

As part of its conditional approval, the Navy must notify its customers and DOH at least 10 days in advance of reactivating the ʻAiea Hālawa Shaft. DOH reserves the right to suspend or revoke its conditional approval if it finds that any condition or requirement is not being satisfied or determines that a threat to public health exists because of factors that may arise in the future.

Please click here to view DOH’s conditional approval letter.

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