Agricultural Water Use and Development Plan
The Department of Agriculture (DOA) is responsible for the preparation of the Agricultural Water Use and Development Plan (AWUDP). With the closure of large sugarcane plantations in the 1990’s, the State Legislature enacted Act 101, Session Laws of Hawaii 1998, mandating an Agricultural Water Use and Development Plan.
The major objective of the AWUDP is to develop a long-range management plan that assesses state and private agricultural water use, supply and irrigation water systems. The plan is intended to be a master irrigation inventory plan which identifies system rehabilitation needs and prioritizes system repair. In addition, the Commission’s Statewide Framework for Updating the Hawaii Water Plan includes the following recommendations for the AWUDP:
- Based on existing statewide agricultural land uses, assess the existing agricultural water irrigation needs of each of the counties.
- Based on long-term agricultural crop development plans, develop a range of future agricultural irrigation water needs for each of the counties, including projected agricultural water demands of the DHHL.
- Based on the information from the WRPP and the “master irrigation inventory plan,” identify existing sources for irrigation water and assess any shortfalls or excess capacities in existing irrigation systems.
- Identify options for development of additional and alternative irrigation water sources.
- Identify options for conserving irrigation water and/or managing the uses to reduce the total irrigation water demand.
- Develop strategies encompassing both demand management and resource development options.
Agricultural lands are extensive and can require significant quantities of water to maintain productivity. The AWUDP is intended to promote the agricultural self-sufficiency of the State and protect this important State resource.
2019 Agricultural Water Use and Development Plan Update
The Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture has completed an update of the plan and the Commission staff will be holding public hearings to receive public input on the document. The Agricultural Water Use and Development Plan Update can be download here.
Information on the public hearings and how you can provide comments on the document can be found on the Public Hearing Notice (State of Hawai‘i, Update to the Agricultural Water Use and Development Plan, dated August 4, 2020).
- View November 18, 2020 Public Hearing recording on Vimeo
- View November 19, 2020 Public Hearing recording on Vimeo
Download Document by Sections
- 2019 AWUDP Main Report (18.6 MB)
- AWUDP Appendix A, Maps 1 to 16 (10.1 MB)
- AWUDP Appendix A, Maps 17 to 45 (18.2 MB)
- AWUDP Appendix A, Maps 46 to 83 (18.6 MB)
- AWUDP Appendix A, Maps 84 to 125 (11.3 MB)
- AWUDP Appendices B to E (7.1 MB)
- AWUDP Appendix F, Maps 1 to 6 (20.2 MB)
- AWUDP Appendix F, Maps 7 to 11 (22.0 MB)