{"id":38163,"date":"2023-12-11T08:00:54","date_gmt":"2023-12-11T12:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fondriest.com\/news\/?p=38163"},"modified":"2025-05-07T08:37:36","modified_gmt":"2025-05-07T12:37:36","slug":"maui-scientists-offer-water-quality-testing-in-wake-of-wildfires","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fondriest.com\/news\/maui-scientists-offer-water-quality-testing-in-wake-of-wildfires.htm","title":{"rendered":"Maui Scientists Offer Water Quality Testing in Wake of Wildfires"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On August 8th, 2023, news broke of wildfires ravaging the island of Maui, Hawai\u2019i. In the following days, news of <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/how-did-maui-fire-start-cause-lahaina-hawaii-wildfire\/#:~:text=The%20Lahaina%20wildfire%20was%20one,27\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">four separate fires<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> broke. Wildfires raged in the historic Lahaina village on the western side of Maui to those that burned in the mountainous region in the center of the island.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After weeks of battling and finally containing the fires, the residents of Maui were faced with the arduous task of rebuilding their communities. One priority was ensuring that people impacted by the fires had access to safe drinking water, as the blazes had damaged pipes carrying water to residential and urban areas. Many of these underground water carriers are plastic, and the heat from the fires melted pipes, potentially introducing harmful gasses and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into drinking water systems.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #808080;\"><b>Community Outreach by the University of Hawai\u2019i<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the wake of the devastation to communities in Maui, state and local governments rushed to set up plans to ensure the continued safety of those living in affected areas. However, official outreach was limited with the scramble to devise a response.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThere&#8217;s no playbook, and so the Department of Water Supply, which is just a water utility responsible for delivering clean water, was the one trying to figure out what their response to this unprecedented disaster was going to be,\u201d says Chris Shuler, a hydrologist at the University of Hawai\u2019i (UHM) Water Resources Research Center (WRCC) who is based out of Maui. \u201cThey didn&#8217;t really have the time for public outreach. So we tried to step in and help fill that role.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shuler and his colleagues at UHM set up a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wrrc.hawaii.edu\/maui-post-fire-community-water-info-hub\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">hub online<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to serve as a base point for residents concerned about the safety of their drinking water. Though not associated with the Department of Water Supply (DWS) or Hawai\u2019i Department of Health (DOH), the hub acts as a place to provide information and answer questions from impacted communities.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Moreover, residents can use the website to request water quality sampling tests on their property, which will be carried out by community members hired by UHM.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe actually go to their houses [\u2026] We hired three employees who are community members themselves and live in or very near the burned areas,\u201d Shuler says. \u201cThey are taking water samples as a kind of part-time employment and their contribution to the project and their contribution to their neighborhoods.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_38171\" style=\"width: 950px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-38171\" class=\"size-full wp-image-38171\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fondriest.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_image2-1_ForWeb-1.jpg\" alt=\"Water samples taken from residences on Maui were sent to a University of Hawai\u2019i lab on the Island of O\u2019ahu, where university employees analyzed the results. \" width=\"940\" height=\"940\" srcset=\"https:\/\/news.fondriest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_image2-1_ForWeb-1.jpg 940w, https:\/\/news.fondriest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_image2-1_ForWeb-1-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/news.fondriest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_image2-1_ForWeb-1-600x600.jpg 600w, https:\/\/news.fondriest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_image2-1_ForWeb-1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/news.fondriest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_image2-1_ForWeb-1-768x768.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 940px) 100vw, 940px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-38171\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Water samples taken from residences on Maui were sent to a University of Hawai\u2019i lab on the Island of O\u2019ahu, where university employees analyzed the results. (Credit: Chris Shuler)<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Using gas chromatography-mass spectrometers (GCMS), scientists at UHM are able to detect and quantify the level of VOCs in water samples. Samples are sent to a lab at UHM on the island of O\u2019ahu, where results are then emailed to homeowners and posted online for community members to see VOC levels around the island.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These samples are not meant to show whether water is safe to drink but are rather used as non-regulatory screening looking for contaminants. According to the WRCC, \u201c[The results] <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">will produce research quality, screening-level data that can be used by homeowners, DOH, and DWS to target regulatory level testing and produce data that can expand our understanding of our water quality at a community level.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Between letting residents know what\u2019s in their drinking water to providing baseline data to DOH and DWS, Shuler has no doubts about the importance of his and the WRCC\u2019s work.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhat we&#8217;re doing is really an outreach and informational service,\u201d Shuler says. \u201cWe&#8217;re not determining the safety of people&#8217;s water because we&#8217;re not a regulatory agency [\u2026] But what we&#8217;re doing is, you know, it&#8217;s to provide information and outreach for people who are interested.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The WRCC modeled its community outreach in Maui after their response to the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.epa.gov\/red-hill\/drinking-water-incident-response-joint-base-pearl-harbor-hickam-honolulu-hawaii-november#:~:text=Additional%20Resources-,About%20the%20Incident,the%20U.S.%20Navy%20water%20system\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Red Hill water contamination incident<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> on the island of O\u2019ahu in late 2021, where petroleum from a fuel storage facility began leaking into the island&#8217;s aquifer.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shuler explains that UHM employees on O\u2019ahu set up a similar response to the one currently happening on Maui, where they responded to residents who were concerned about the safety of their water, with tests still being done two years after the incident.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cOur hope is to be able to do this, to be funded to do this, until the need for it and the demand for it is no longer there,\u201d Shuler says.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_38170\" style=\"width: 950px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-38170\" class=\"size-full wp-image-38170\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fondriest.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_51F91C12-3EEB-4137-96C8-854C331291F2-2_ForWeb-1.jpg\" alt=\"Samples are labeled and kept track of, as the results are uploaded to a community hub online for Maui residents to use. \" width=\"940\" height=\"943\" srcset=\"https:\/\/news.fondriest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_51F91C12-3EEB-4137-96C8-854C331291F2-2_ForWeb-1.jpg 940w, https:\/\/news.fondriest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_51F91C12-3EEB-4137-96C8-854C331291F2-2_ForWeb-1-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/news.fondriest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_51F91C12-3EEB-4137-96C8-854C331291F2-2_ForWeb-1-600x602.jpg 600w, https:\/\/news.fondriest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_51F91C12-3EEB-4137-96C8-854C331291F2-2_ForWeb-1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/news.fondriest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_51F91C12-3EEB-4137-96C8-854C331291F2-2_ForWeb-1-768x770.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 940px) 100vw, 940px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-38170\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Samples are labeled and kept track of, as the results are uploaded to a community hub online for Maui residents to use. (Credit: Chris Shuler)<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Response from residents of Maui<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With all of the strategic and regulatory support coming from state and government agencies in response to the wildfires, Shuler sees that the communities of Maui appreciate his and his colleagues&#8217; work on the ground in impacted communities.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThe fact that we&#8217;re able to take the time to go door-to-door and to actually be in neighborhoods talking to people and directly connecting with people one-on-one allows us to really connect with folks and build trust,\u201d Shuler says. \u201c[We want to get] the best available, scientifically rigorous, educated information that we can provide them.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The outreach and education from the WRCC are not just for local residents but are also being used to inform the world of what is truly happening in Maui. Shuler has conducted interviews with TV stations, local newspapers, and international publications to spread the word on how the communities of Maui are responding to the devastation they have faced.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Footage of the wildfires destroying ecosystems and buildings was shared across the internet, but the struggles of residents to return to safe daily lives and the help provided by other community members are often unseen. During the months of work to rebuild communities damaged by the fires, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shuler has observed and appreciated the response from those who live on Maui and beyond.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThis water testing thing was really just, you know, our way of standing up to help when it was needed. We happen to be water scientists, so that&#8217;s what made sense for us to do,\u201d Shuler says. \u201cThat was a way that we could contribute, and I feel like everybody across the whole island kind of felt a responsibility to help however they could.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The people of Hawai&#8217;i deeply value their land, water, and history. Yet, in the wake of this catastrophe, a combination of scientific research and testing, dedicated citizens, and a sense of community came together to push past adversity. Safe drinking water is essential to humanity, and it was partly through the work of water scientists at UHM that the communities of Maui can start the long process of feeling better about the water they rely on.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On August 8th, 2023, news broke of wildfires ravaging the island of Maui, Hawai\u2019i. In the following days, news of four separate fires broke. Wildfires raged in the historic Lahaina village on the western side of Maui to those that burned in the mountainous region in the center of the island. After weeks of battling [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":48,"featured_media":38169,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,5,7,8,510],"tags":[166,1078,2495,2494,1551],"class_list":["post-38163","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-earth-atmosphere","category-featured-articles","category-news","category-newsfeed","category-water-quality","tag-drinking-water","tag-hawaii","tag-maui","tag-university-of-hawaii","tag-wildfires"],"remote_post_permalink":false,"remote_post_featured_image":false,"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Maui Scientists Offer Water Quality Testing in Wake of Wildfires<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"After the devastating Maui wildfires, scientists lead an outreach campaign informing residents about the safety of their drinking water.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fondriest.com\/news\/maui-scientists-offer-water-quality-testing-in-wake-of-wildfires.htm\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Maui Scientists Offer Water Quality Testing in Wake of Wildfires\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"After the devastating Maui wildfires, scientists lead an outreach campaign informing residents about the safety of their drinking water.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.fondriest.com\/news\/maui-scientists-offer-water-quality-testing-in-wake-of-wildfires.htm\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Environmental Monitor\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-12-11T12:00:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-05-07T12:37:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.fondriest.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Shuler_IMG_4281-3_ForWeb.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"940\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"705\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Sam Norton\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Sam Norton\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.fondriest.com\\\/news\\\/maui-scientists-offer-water-quality-testing-in-wake-of-wildfires.htm#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.fondriest.com\\\/news\\\/maui-scientists-offer-water-quality-testing-in-wake-of-wildfires.htm\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Sam Norton\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.fondriest.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8b594a2654ef33b01e98456d99a980ef\"},\"headline\":\"Maui Scientists Offer Water Quality Testing in Wake of Wildfires\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-12-11T12:00:54+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-07T12:37:36+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.fondriest.com\\\/news\\\/maui-scientists-offer-water-quality-testing-in-wake-of-wildfires.htm\"},\"wordCount\":1159,\"commentCount\":2,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.fondriest.com\\\/news\\\/maui-scientists-offer-water-quality-testing-in-wake-of-wildfires.htm#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/news.fondriest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/12\\\/Shuler_IMG_4281-3_ForWeb.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"drinking water\",\"Hawaii\",\"Maui\",\"University of Hawai\u02bbi\",\"wildfires\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Earth &amp; 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(Credit: Chris Shuler)\"},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.fondriest.com\\\/news\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.fondriest.com\\\/news\\\/\",\"name\":\"Environmental Monitor\",\"description\":\"Application and technology news for environmental professionals\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.fondriest.com\\\/news\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.fondriest.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8b594a2654ef33b01e98456d99a980ef\",\"name\":\"Sam Norton\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/63c7b190e7810222738222317750e61e11d8136e77a72177d22306d6fc15c86f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/63c7b190e7810222738222317750e61e11d8136e77a72177d22306d6fc15c86f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/63c7b190e7810222738222317750e61e11d8136e77a72177d22306d6fc15c86f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Sam Norton\"},\"description\":\"Sam Norton is an Environmental Journalist for Fondriest Environmental. He began freelancing with\u00a0Fondriest in 2023 before moving\u00a0into his current position in 2025, and enjoys learning about environmental research across the country. As a journalist, he writes articles for the Environmental Monitor, FishSens, and Lake Scientist magazines, creates video content, and works on social media. He graduated from Miami University with a degree in Biology, an Environmental Science co-major, and a Journalism minor. 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