Losing North Kohala’s Irrigation System Was ‘Catastrophic.’ Will It Ever Be Fixed?
The Kohala Ditch was built in the early 1900s to water sugarcane fields, then it fed ranches and small farmers’ operations. But it has languished since breaking in 2021.
The 26-mile Kohala Ditch has been a vital artery for Big Island鈥檚 agricultural system since it was built more than 120 years ago, delivering millions of gallons of water to North Kohala farms and ranches on a daily basis.
But April will mark three years since the irrigation system鈥檚 water last fed crops after a 2021 rockfall apparently destroyed one of its flumes. Ranchers and farmers have since had to use county water instead, an added expense that Hawi farmer Jeff Allen says has been 鈥渃atastrophic鈥 to business.
There’s been considerable debate over how to best ensure water access for the community since 2021, resulting in the state allocating $10 million for its repair last year. But work has yet to begin and the funding remains locked up, raising community concerns that the ditch will languish.
One concern has been the expense of restoring the ditch, given it cost $8 million to fix it following earthquakes in 2006, and that $10 million may not be enough to repair it this time. Potential alternatives like digging out a series of wells have been suggested.
But for residents like Allen, who farms 32 acres in Hawi, the ditch鈥檚 health is directly related to the region鈥檚 agricultural future. And wells are too expensive, Allen said.
鈥淚f we don’t get the ditch back there won鈥檛 be any farming in North Kohala at all,鈥 Allen said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 black and white.鈥
It is a sentiment shared by others in the agricultural community, which has shrunk since the ditch broke.
When the ditch was functioning, Allen paid about $150 per month for water to irrigate his turf grasses and nursery. That bill increased tenfold when he switched to county water, Allen said, costing up to $1,500 monthly.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just got to the point where we just try and keep things alive,鈥 Allen said.
Even Flow
The dirt-lined irrigation system flows miles west from Honokane Nui Valley to south of Hawi, across rugged terrain and through flumes, reservoirs and 57 tunnels that stretch 16 miles alone. It was designed to be able to transport 70 million gallons per day.
It is one of several large irrigation systems left by sugar plantations, infrastructure many say is irreplaceable and fundamentally important for the state to increase local food production.
When the irrigation system was severed during the 2006 Kiholo Bay earthquake, $8 million was cobbled together from public and private sources, including the federal government.
The was formed in 2019 to manage the ditch.
It became a destination, attracting tourists who would float in kayaks down the irrigation system, with the proceeds helping to maintain the system.
The ditch and surrounding land鈥檚 ownership is a patchwork of state and private entities, such as Kamehameha Schools and Meadow Gold Dairies, which purchased a large stake in the ditch and surrounding parcels from Surety Kohala Corp. last year.
The 2006 funding injection was a rare case of government investing in private business, but it was a recognition of the ditch’s value to the public, North Hawaii island Rep. David Tarnas says. It’s something that happened again last year.
The $10 million that was earmarked in 2023 had strong support, including from Gov. Josh Green, a former Kohala Hospital emergency room physician.
The funding will be used by the co-op, but the state delayed releasing it while the co-op came into compliance with state regulations.
The current legislative session has also delayed the process, according to Sen. Tim Richards, a generational Kohala rancher who has taken the lead on the project.
Richards said he is “not too worried” about the $10 million being released by the governor. He said his priority is that the cooperative鈥檚 board is fully crewed and in 鈥渄ecision-making mode鈥 when the funding is released so the entire community can benefit.
“I am not doing any decision-making,鈥 Richards said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 not why I did this. I did this so we can actually do something for agriculture.鈥
Resurrecting the ditch will require cooperation from every resident and landowner who has a piece of the ditch on their land, Co-Op President Kirk Eubank says.
The largest landowners are Peter Evanovich, the , Meadow Gold and Kamehameha Schools, which owns the valley from where the water is sourced.
“Right now that water is going into the ocean. To divert that water back into the ditch, a new lease would have to be made,” Eubank, a turf farmer, said.
Leases and easements, between the landowners and the co-op, will need to be made. Landowners will also dictate the volume of water available to those further down the line. But the landowners appear willing to share their water but “just how much, we don’t know,” Eubank said.
Rebuilding the ditch and getting the landowners to work together could be difficult, Tarnas said.
“I would like it to happen but I’m just skeptical that all these easements and rights of way can be worked out,” he said.
There are also concerns that smaller farmers may not get equitable access to the system’s water. The ditch co-op had close to 50 users.
Meadow Gold’s dairy was one of the largest users at the time, which is why its chief executive, Bahman Sadeghi, purchased a major stake in the system and surrounding lands last year.
The outfit is eager to have it online as soon as possible but he said it’s “important that this is not a for-profit project.”
“Being a farmer myself, I can definitely appreciate it’s all about the cost of water,” Sadeghi said.
Ditch Or Pit?
There are fears the ditch will become a money pit for state funds, requiring upkeep on a regular basis. Surety Kohala said the cost to fix the ditch in 2006 was unaffordable, leading to government investment.
A storm damaged the ditch again in 2014, and lawmakers mulled purchasing the ditch a year later.
A failed resolution, introduced by Hawaii island Sen. Lorraine Inouye, said maintaining the ditch was a “major undertaking, and ensuring its long-term viability is an equally daunting task.”
The flume that broke in 2021 sat among rockslide-prone cliffs stretching up to 1,500 feet tall, which have posed an issue to water delivery since the system was built.
Richards has proposed replacing that section with an underground pipeline to syphon the water and keep the system gravity-fed while protecting it from rockslides.
In the meantime, since 2021, some farms have closed and others have invested heavily in their own wells. A network of new and repurposed wells has also been floated, though that would be similarly expensive, farmers say.
Richards said he has spoken to Hawaii’s congressional delegates about future-proofing the irrigation system, beyond restoring the flume, to ensure it is more efficient.
But even the $10 million to fix the flume and restore the ditch “will not be enough,” Eubank said.
Eubank has cut his own farm’s production in half since 2021 due to paying county water rates in the meantime. He and many in the community urgently want to see the flow of water rebooted, whether that is with the plantation infrastructure or a pipeline.
“There are a lot of things that aren’t happening,” Eubank said. “There are a lot of things being talked about.”
“Hawaii Grown” is funded in part by grants from the Stupski Foundation, Ulupono Fund at the Hawaii Community Foundation and the Frost Family Foundation.
