Nearly half of the water wells servicing the North Kona community remain offline, the Department of Water Supply said Tuesday.
The Department of Water Supply has 14 deep wells that provide water to the North Kona area, which spans from Makalei to about Honalo, and six remain offline, Deputy Director Kawika Uyehara told the Board of Water Supply. The department has provided a monthly update to board members since 2017 when numerous wells were inoperable prompting a nearly yearlong 25% water restriction in North Kona.
Repairs to one of those six down wells is nearing completion, Uyehara said. The Kahaluu well has its pump and motor installed and has been purged and chlorinated for operation.
“We’re going to run some water quality tests this week and hopefully we can have it ready to use early May,” he said.
The other five wells that remain down are Kalaoa, Palani, Waiaha, Keahuolu and Makalei, he said.
At the Kalaoa well, the contractor is expecting to start installation during the first week of May, with testing of the system taking place by mid-month.
Equipment to repair the Palani well should be on island during the first week of May and the contractor expects to begin installation shortly thereafter.
Delays to repairs to the Keahuolu have cropped up after the contractor found an issue with the new pump and motor while preparing it for installation. Uyehara said to maintain the unit’s warranty, the contractor and manufacturer decided to ship another motor to the island. It’s currently expected to arrive on island in mid-May with installation occurring thereafter.
No timeframe was given for getting the Makalei well online.
“We continue to work with the developer to get their repair project out to bid,” Uyehara said.
Work on the Waiaha well is held up due to a “litigative hold,” Uyehara said but didn’t provide additional details. The well has been offline for several years after a cable snapped during a botched extraction at the site in 2017 summer by Derrick’s Well Drilling and Pump Services leaving the pump and motor within.
According to board minutes, the matter has been on “litigative hold” since late November 2018. After stating during the Oct. 23, 2018, meeting that bidding would begin for installation of the pump and motor at Waiaha once results of a borehole project were known. A month later, on Nov. 27, 2018, Uyehara told the board that on Nov. 26, 2018, the department “received a letter from the contractor’s attorney. Because of the potential for litigation, the department will not provide further comment at this time.”
The last bidding opportunity related to Waiaha dates to 2018 when the county sought bids for well rehabilitation and redevelopment; aquifer pump testing; and borehole alignment survey. According to board minutes, no bids were received.
The last bid awarded for the project dates to 2018 for the borehole survey.
The Department of Water Supply declined to provide an update or comment on the matter. A check of court records turned up no active litigation for the Department of Water Supply, the contractor or its agent.