While most might assume that Hawaii’s 80,000-plus cesspools are mostly in rural areas, they also exist in some of the wealthiest Oahu neighborhoods.

Think Black Point, the exclusive Diamond Head enclave known for luxury homes, along with beachfront Kailua and all along the North Shore’s prime surfing spots.

The new, online Hawaii Cesspool Prioritization Tool, launched by the University of Hawaii Sea Grant College Program, in collaboration with the state Health Department, shows a detailed, interactive map of where the state’s highest-priority cesspools are to help plan conversions.

Under Act 125, enacted in 2017, all cesspools in Hawaii must be upgraded, converted or connected to a sewer before 2050.

Cesspools — basically, shallow, underground holes used for the disposal of untreated human waste — potentially release disease-causing pathogens and nitrates into oceans, streams and groundwater, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, in a state that relies on groundwater for more than 90% of its drinking water.

On the map, cesspools are listed by priority based on 15 risk factors, with those in red designated as Priority 1, meaning they pose the greatest contamination hazard, while Priority 2 poses significant hazard and Priority 3, pronounced hazard.

Priority 1 cesspools have the greatest potential to affect human health and the environment, and are directly adjacent to sensitive natural resources such as coral reefs or drinking water aquifers.

Most Priority 1 cesspools belong to single-family homes along the coastline, including the rural stretch of Oahu’s Windward side including Kahaluu, and from Hauula to Kahuku, but are also found all along the North Shore’s prime surfing spots, from Sunset Beach Park down to Haleiwa.

There are also pockets of Priority 1 cesspools in Kailua, Waimanalo, Ewa Beach, Makaha, Mokuleia and Waialua.

This comes as no surprise to Arleen Velasco, co- coordinator of the Surfrider Foundation’s Blue Water Task Force, a volunteer water quality monitoring program.

Since 2018, volunteers have tested ocean waters near popular beaches, surf spots and stream mouths for enterococci, a fecal indicator, to raise awareness of local pollution problems.

They test in areas that the state Department of Health does not necessarily cover, as well as during brown- water advisories, in an effort to address gaps in data.

The approximately 25 sites that volunteers test include Black Point East and Cromwell’s Beach by the Doris Duke Shangri La estate.

Velasco said these Oahu sites have had consistently high levels of enterococci, which are often near cesspools, and that Black Point is no exception.

“That’s an area with a lot of cesspools,” she said. “I don’t understand why that’s not a high priority.”

In the Blue Water Task Force’s 2022 water quality report, the Surfrider Foundation found the highest percentage of bacteria levels from samples taken at seven sites including Heeia Stream, Kaupuni Stream in Waianae, Hakipuu Boat Ramp, “Chocolates” at Haleiwa Beach Park, Waiahole Beach Park, Kuliouou Stream and Kahaluu.

Most were among top spots of concern in 2021 and, so far this year, appear to remain so, according to Velasco.

The task force chose sites such as Kahaluu characterized by high concentrations of coastal cesspools, noting that Oahu has an estimated 11,000 cesspools that discharge about 7.5 million gallons of untreated sewage per day.

But it recently added sites in Pokai Bay on the Leeward side due to community complaints about getting sick after swimming there.

Surfrider has found 75% of samples from the mouth of Kaupuni Stream, which feeds into Pokai Bay and is surrounded by cesspools, exceeded state health standards.

Stuart Coleman, executive director of the nonprofit Wastewater Alternatives and Innovations, or WAI, said many homes on Diamond Head Road near the popular Makalei Beach Park are on cesspools, while others have upgraded only in the past decade.

These are multimillion- dollar homes, he said, where one would think homeowners could afford to convert their cesspools — and yet it does not necessarily happen.

There needs to be more urgency, according to Coleman, who was formerly with Surfrider and co-founded WAI to address cesspool issues in Hawaii.

Cesspool bills failed

Coleman was part of a volunteer cesspool conversion working group within DOH that met over four years to publish a comprehensive report for the 2023 session of the state Legislature, as required by Act 170.

Some 83,000 cesspools discharge an estimated 50 million gallons of raw sewage into groundwater and surface waters across the state daily, according to the report. The highest number of Priority 1 cesspools are on Hawaii island, followed by Oahu, Kauai and Maui.

Based on the report’s recommendations, he said, at least 10 bills to address cesspools were introduced this past session — and not a single one made it.

Among them was Senate Bill 426, which would have moved up timelines and required Priority 1 cesspools be upgraded, converted or connected before 2035 and that Priority 2 cesspools do so by 2040. The bill never got to conference committee.

To meet the 2050 deadline, Coleman estimates the state needs to convert more than 3,200 cesspools a year.

“Right now we’re converting probably, maybe 200 to 250 max,” he said.

House Bill 180, which had broad support from various agencies, proposed creating a cesspool conversion section within DOH’s wastewater branch, with funds for four additional full-time positions. But the bill was deferred in committee.

The comprehensive House Bill 1396, establishing a county cesspool pilot program as well as cesspool section within the DOH and an income tax credit, among other initiatives, made it the furthest but also died.

“The state has kicked this down the road for decades,” Coleman said. “We have the highest number of cesspools per capita in the country, and we were the last to ban them by 3-1/2 decades.”

But urgency is growing, as data shows bacteria levels continue to persist in recreational waters near cesspools, he said. Additionally, the impacts of climate change will only exacerbate the problem as rising seas result in erosion and higher groundwater tables.

Heavy rain and storms can pull sewage out to sea, and almost always prompt brown-water advisories for local beaches. The higher the water table, the more likely cesspool effluent is to mix with it and flow into the ocean.

The fecal matter that ends up in ocean waters is harmful not only to human health, but to coral reefs, which offer protection during major storm events.

Financial hurdles

The largest hurdle for most homeowners, said Coleman, is the upfront cost of converting cesspools, which is mostly in the $30,000 to $40,000 range. The costs are higher in Hawaii because parts need to be shipped here.

Based on an affordability analysis in the final report, 97% of homeowners would be financially burdened by cesspool conversion costs.

In March, DOH launched a pilot cesspool grant program resulting from a bill passed in 2022 that WAI advocated for.

The program had a total of $5 million and offered up to $20,000 in reimbursements to help low- and moderate-income property owners convert their Priority 1 or 2 cesspools or connect to an available sewage system.

It opened up on March 15, according to DOH, and ran out within three days of accepting applications. DOH has a waitlist, which so far has 142 applicants on it.

The final report to the state Legislature noted that undertaking a massive infrastructure project covering more than 80,000 cesspools would require planning across numerous stakeholders and governmental institutions.

More financial incentives for cesspool conversions are needed, the report said, including grants, tax credits and loans.

Federal funding opportunities are currently available to address wastewater systems during a specific window of time, according to Coleman, requiring additional personnel to apply for them.

“If we don’t take advantage of it, we will lose out,” he said.

CESSPOOLS IN HAWAII

>> Hawaii has approximately 83,000 cesspools that discharge an estimated 50 million gallons of raw sewage into groundwater and surface waters every day (as of 2022).

>> Total cost of cesspool conversions is estimated at more than $2 billion.

>> About 37% of Priority 1 cesspools are on Hawaii island, 35% on Oahu, 21% on Kauai, 7% on Maui.

Source: Final Report, Cesspool Conversion Working Group

RESOURCES

>> Find an interactive map and other resources on cesspool conversion at hawaiicesspooltool.org.

>> Find homeowners’ resources on cesspools at waicleanwater.org/pottyportal.