Commission on Water Resource Management

Gov. Josh Green appointed him to serve on the commission last October. However, the decision drew criticism and legal action from water rights activists, who accused the governor of not properly following the process to select a new commissioner.

Changes could be coming to the state Commission on Water Resource Management, including some meant to address political conflicts of interest in managing and protecting Hawaiʻi’s water.

Earthjustice is suing Gov. Josh Green over appointing V.R. Hinano Rodrigues to the state Commission on Water Resource Management. Earthjustice said that since Green restarted the selection process, Rodrigues has been holding his position unlawfully.

The new head of the state Commission on Water Resource Management could be looking for steeper penalties for water code violations and quicker responses to water emergencies.

The state Commission on Water Resource Management just approved an Oʻahu-specific plan to guide water use until 2040. It's part of an ongoing update to the larger, statewide Hawaiʻi Water Plan that hasn’t been changed in about 25 years.

Ciara Kahahane said some of her priorities include improving water resource monitoring and building community trust. She said Hawaiʻi's most important water issue is climate change-driven water shortages.

Gov. Josh Green has appointed Ciara Kahahane to be the commission’s second-in-command to state Department of Land and Natural Resources Chair Dawn Chang.

Disagreement between the two chambers centers on concerns raised by the state attorney general’s office that the amendment to include the Water Commission is not relevant to the original bill.

Nearly two dozen students from Hawaiian immersion schools on Maui have traveled to the state Capitol multiple times this legislative session with a simple message. The high court’s unanimous decision found the state attorney general's office made false statements to try to exploit the Maui wildfires to advance its own interests.

The Commission on Water Resource Management is revisiting the amount of water it allows to be diverted from streams in Waikoloa on Hawaiʻi Island. HPR's Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi has the story.