The Navy has begun the process of flushing water from its Red Hill Shaft in an attempt to restore it as a source of drinking water for military communities. Navy officials detailed the process to state legislators at a briefing Monday.
The Navy is drawing water from its Red Hill Shaft, which has been shut down as a water source for military communities since late November, and running it through carbon filters before discharging it into the Halawa Stream.
At the legislative briefing, Navy officials told lawmakers that an agreement has been reached with the University of Hawaiʻi to conduct water sampling of the Halawa Stream, as well as the Pearl Harbor estuary into which it empties.
"We’ll do this twice a week at five to seven sites upstream and downstream of the discharge point, including in the estuary, characterizing any visible impacts to birds or fish or other aquatic biota," said Travis Hilton with Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command Pacific.
The Navy is also looking into whether it can reuse the water instead of discharging it.
Officials are exploring the possibility that companies in the Halawa Industrial Park area may be able to use the non-potable water.
If not, the Navy says it could be used for irrigation, or to recharge the aquifer. It expects to know more about how it can reuse the water within two weeks.
The Navy says the timeline for flushing operations at the Red Hill Shaft depends on how quickly it is able to remove the contaminants, but the carbon in the filters is expected to last about two months before requiring replacement.
Ernest "Ernie" Lau, manager and chief engineer of the Honolulu Board of Water Supply, was asked whether the cleanup efforts at the Red Hill Shaft make it more likely for pumping to restart at three BWS water sources – the Halawa Shaft, and Halawa and Aiea wells — that were shut down as a precautionary measure after fuel was discovered in the Navy’s distribution system.
Lau says there are too many questions to restart operations at this time.
"And the simple reason is that what we’ve seen experienced by the poor Navy families and workers on the base is something we cannot allow to occur with our broader, larger Honolulu water system and our Aiea and Halawa water systems," Lau said.
Lau told lawmakers if they do not reactivate the three water sources, Oʻahu could experience shortages and rationing this summer.
