Posted on November 28, 2017
By Brenton Awa, KITV
It’s a project years in the making that’s set to open late next year.
“It’s terrific, it’s long overdue,” Joshua Ekau, a Nanakuli resident said.
The Department of Land and Natural resources is proposing to dredge the entire length of the Ala Wai Canal from the Kapahulu Library to the Ala Moana Boulevard Overpass.
“I think it’ll be perfect for the people of this island who use this for fishing for paddling,” Ekau said.
The DLNR also aiming to dredge the Manoa Palolo Drainage Canal that runs along Iolani School and dumps into the Ala Wai.
The reason like many already know, the canal is full of debris.
“You look up and down, you can see rubbish sticking out,” Rob Lee, a Kailua resident said.
The DLNR wants to remove silt and sediments that have built up over the years.
In its final environmental impact statement released this week, the DLNR says the cleanup is needed because of health and safety concerns to both the public and marine life.
The removal would restore the canal’s water holding capacity during floods.
“I remember once paddling in here and a co paddler stuck his paddle in the water during a stroke and came out with a syringe stuck right in his paddle,” Lee said.
The DNLR’s report also calls for maintenance of the canal’s walls, sidewalks and stairs.
One of the proposed methods to remove the sediment is by barge.
According the DLNR, the potential dump sites include a disposal site at Reef Runway or other approved state land disposal sites or landfills.
Source: KITV
