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The Honolulu Board of Water Supply is reminding Oahu restaurants of a 30-year-old rule that prohibits automatically serving water to customers.
In effect since 1992, the rule says that water service in restaurants should be provided only upon request. Failure to comply may result in a $50 fine for each violation.
“We want to remind Oahu restaurants to serve water only upon request, and to help further everyone’s efforts to preserve and protect our precious water resources,” BWS Chief Engineer Ernest Lau said in a news release. “An eight-ounce glass of water requires an additional 16 ounces of water to wash and rinse the glass, and often the glass is left untouched.”
The Board of Water Supply is asking customers to cut water use by 10% due to the shutdown of three water sources following the Navy’s Red Hill fuel leak.
The agency has been able to adjust by pumping additional water sources to help compensate. However, officials warn that continuing to do so could eventually affect water quality of those sources, so the BWS needs to reduce overall water demand.
Table tent cards for restaurants to remind their staff and customers about the rule are available from the agency. To report a rule violation or request the cards, contact the BWS’s Communications Office at 808-748-5041 or email contactus@hbws.org.
