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and the golf courses that use that recycled water. So it’s not rocket science, but we feel it’s <br />important to state it as part of the process so that water we are creating does not get wasted. <br />Commissioner Robinson asked whether the legislation has to happen before the project gets <br />started, before the funding is there. Your first motion is tohave a policy change in the County, <br />but does that need to happen before the changes take place,or can they be independent of <br />each other? As for the second part of the motion, the funding for the Department, we should <br />consider seeking federal grants for this project from EPA for sustainable water infrastructure, so <br />that there isn’t an immediate stop because that’s a huge cost to their $38 million budget. So if <br />there was funding, does the legislation need to change first, or can it run independent of <br />getting this done? <br /> <br />Vice Chair Gaffney proposed them happening simultaneously because it is a chicken-and-egg <br />situation. One cannot happen without the other. Certainly there is going to be an expense <br />involved, but one of the amazing things about where we are right now in history is there is <br />about to be massive amounts of federal money available. So it goes without saying and <br />certainly our Council people and the Mayor are already looking at that source. So we have a <br />huge opportunity to accomplish this important environmental thing at a point where there is <br />federal money available to do just this. The bottom line also is that what we are creating is a <br />system that pays for itself. We sell this water, we don’t give it away. And there is demand for <br />this water because if somebody is watering agolf courseor a large playground area that is part <br />of the housing area, if they can get water for half what it costs them for fresh water, they are <br />going to take the recycled water because it is less expensive. So we are creating system that <br />pays for itself. And there are examples in Hawaii of systems paying for themselves on Oahu. <br />And Maui is in the process of solving the problem that they went to the Supreme Court for by <br />creating a system of recycled water and a distribution system for that. He doesn’t see a reason <br />not to request that the Council move forward with something like this without talking about <br />where the money is going to come from. That’s not really our kuleana, that’s the Council’s <br />kuleana. <br /> <br />Commissioner McIntosh was wondering about the second part of the motion that talked about <br />identifying the leaks for the salt that is coming in. He thought the County was working toward <br />remedying that situation, and that it was just going to take time to do that. <br /> <br />Vice Chair Gaffney said the County is working to remedy the situation in the sewer pipes that <br />they own, but there has long been a suspicion that the laterals that feed from private property <br />– that would be hotels and larger developments that collect all of their water and move that <br />into the system – that some of those laterals may also be producing infiltration. And the County <br />does not have the right to inspect those laterals. For the most part they are privately owned <br />and on private property. And they do not have the right to charge those private property <br />owners, or to force those private property owners to make the repairs so that infiltration is <br />effectively stopped. That is why the second point is included in the motion. It’s to add to DEM’s <br />tools to stop this infiltration. And this kind of law is already on the books in Maui County and <br />21 <br /> <br /> <br />