HONOLULU – The Hawaii State Department of Health (DOH) issued a notice of violation and order against the Maui Land & Pineapple Company, Inc. (ML&P) for 15 wastewater effluent violations from the Haliimaile waste stabilization ponds on Maui. The company has been ordered to pay a penalty of $230,000 and construct a new wastewater treatment plant.
The wastewater treatment plant is comprised of two unlined waste stabilization ponds and three disposal leach fields, the DOH said in a press release Wednesday. The plant serves approximately 173 single-family homes in Haliimaile town, the Haliimaile General Store and Maui Pines Baseyard.
“The treatment plant has been unable to comply with state requirements that prevent serious damage to our environment and protect our coastal waters and drinking water,” said Sina Pruder, chief of the Wastewater Branch of DOH. “The department will continue to work with Maui Land & Pineapple to develop alternative wastewater treatment options to serve the community without compromising our precious natural resources.”
On April 14, 2016, DOH conducted an operation and maintenance inspection of the Haliimaile waste stabilization ponds and an informal notice of violation was issued to ML&P for 12 effluent violations occurring from May 2015 to February 2016. At that time, ML&P was ordered to correct the violations and no fines or penalties were imposed. DOH conducted another O&M inspection on June 26, 2018, and found the wastewater treatment plant continued to have effluent exceedances from June 2017 to May 2018 with 15 violations.
ML&P may request a hearing to contest their alleged violations and penalties.