The Ala Wai flood control project plans continue, but another concern about the waterway won’t be solved by flood walls: fouled water in the canal. The Army Corps of Engineers’ flood control plan doesn’t address water quality or environmental remediation in the Ala Wai watershed; that responsibility falls to the city and state.

“The Ala Wai is one of the most polluted waterways in the United States,” Waikiki Improvement Association president Rick Egged said Monday, in an interview with the Star-Advertiser. “As a community, we just cannot allow that to continue.” For an overview of efforts to clean up the watershed, go to 808ne.ws/AlaWaiCollab.