Ala Wai Canal - Water Quality Issues

Water Quality Issues

Being an artificial waterway, the canal has very low flow rate, and little to no natural organisms to filter and clean the water. In addition, some storm drains in the Honolulu neighborhoods of Waikīkī, Kapahulu, Mānoa, and Moʻiliʻili empty into the canal. Because of this, signs are posted along the Ala Wai warning users not to swim in the water or eat the tilapia caught from the canal. Garbage and debris can sometimes be seen in the canal. Despite the water quality issues, the canal remains a popular area for some forms of aquatic recreation, with canoe paddling teams practicing along the length of the canal.

In March 2006, heavy thunderstorms and rains overwhelmed the sewers around the Ala Wai Canal, causing a pressurized sewage line to break. Days later, and after the spill was made public, then Mayor Mufi Hannemann decided to divert nearly 48 million US gallons (180,000 m3) of untreated sewage into the Ala Wai Canal in an attempt to avoid having the sewage back up into hotels and residences. This diversion caused partial overflowing of the canal in some areas, and the sewage then tainted Waikiki and nearby beaches. The beaches near the Ala Wai Canal, including beaches in the Waikiki and Ala Moana districts were closed temporarily due to health concerns. In the weeks after the incident, beaches were eventually reopened, and it took several months before the Ala Wai Canal was determined to be safe and free from major health concerns. One person died from septic shock after falling in to the Ala Wai Harbor near the mouth of the canal, with his death being attributed by some to the higher levels of bacteria present after the flood.