HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.R. NO.

208

TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

 

requesting the legislative reference bureau to investigate alternative energy systems to power water pumps in the waikolu tunnel of the molokai irrigation system.

 

 

 


     WHEREAS, the Molokai Irrigation System provides water to  over 2,000 acres of crops at any given time and is the lifeblood of the Molokai farming community; and

 

     WHEREAS, water used in the Molokai Irrigation System is carried through a five-mile tunnel that runs from Waikolu Valley on the north side of the island to the south side of the island where it travels through pipes for five miles into the 1.2-billion-gallon reservoir below Kualapuu town; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Molokai Irrigation System depends on five electrical pumps to extract irrigation water from Waikolu Valley and send it through the Waikolu Tunnel; and

 

     WHEREAS, only two of the five pumps can be operated at one time due to exorbitant energy costs; and

 

     WHEREAS, the electricity rates charged on the island of Molokai are some of the highest in the nation, and the Molokai Irrigation System is the single largest user of electricity on the island; and

 

     WHEREAS, over 95 percent of the cost of operating the Molokai Irrigation System is spent on electricity, estimated at between $35,000 and $45,000 per month; and

 

     WHEREAS, electricity rate increases are being proposed by Maui Electric Company Ltd., due to the high cost of oil; and


     WHEREAS, the Molokai Irrigation System could be more efficient if it were to use a combination of alternative energy systems and electricity, and decrease the amount of electricity that would need to be purchased as a result; and

 

     WHEREAS, Molokai farmers would stand to increase their returns if the Molokai Irrigation System were more efficient and water were less costly; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2007, that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to investigate and make recommendations on the feasibility, cost-benefits, and other issues of using an alternative energy system to power water pumps in the Molokai Irrigation System through the Waikolu Tunnel; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to submit a written report to the Legislature no later than 20 days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2008; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the director of the Legislative Reference Bureau.

 

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Molokai Irrigation System; Waikolu Tunnel; Alternative Energy