Jan 26, 2007 Haleiwa, HI
Chamber Obtains Federal Grant to Fix North Shore’s Aging Irrigation Systems
By Susan Matsushima

In April of last year, the Chamber obtained a $400,000 grant to administer and monitor federal funds that come from the Department of Defense through Natick and the United States Department of Agriculture CSREES and the Biosystems Technology Program to repair aging irrigation infrastructure on the North Shore. Irrigation systems left by the Waialua Sugar Company are more than 100 years old and in need of repair.

The project involves two phases. The first was to repair the Helemano Siphon that carries water from Lake Wilson to growers above Haleiwa. The siphon is a large irrigation pipe that brings water over the Helemano Gulch. It broke in April of 2005 and left farmers without water until its repair in July of 2006. Crop production stopped during that time. The repair was critical to making agriculture viable on the North Shore.

The siphon repair moved quickly, with successful flow of water to many farmers on the Opaeula ridge. The four million gallons per day flow is visible from Kamehameha Highway and expansion of production by farmers on the Helemano and Opaeula ridges has been significant. Farmers have now invested in new plantings for longer termed crops with the assurance of a steady source of water.

The second phase of the repairs will be to water systems benefiting a consortium of Mokuleia farmers who farm 900 acres. They will be matching the federal funds on a $1 to $1 basis. The consistent flow of water will increase productivity and bring more economic development in agriculture by these farmers.

The proposed irrigation system improvements would serve as a back-up water source to the irrigation network of Lake Wilson in case of a catastrophic failure. For example, if a main siphon in the Lake Wilson system was to fail (as evidenced by the Helemano Siphon failure), growers would have no other irrigation alternative. Since a siphon repair would take months, crop failures would be imminent. The subsequent loss of income would be devastating for many growers and jobs and livelihoods would be dramatically affected.

Additionally, there is potential with the pump improvements to provide potable water transfer which could enable local growers the option of vegetable production. This is currently not allowed due to R-2 (nonpotable) irrigation water from Lake Wilson. The project is scheduled to be completed by July, 2007.

This project, facilitated by the Chamber, is a significant accomplishment and a giant step toward “keeping the country country.”