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The Maui Fire Debris Removal Program provides comprehensive debris removal, hazard tree removal, and environmental cleanup services to property owners at no out-of-pocket cost.
A Federal Emergency Management Agency ((FEMA)-certified EPA team removes household hazardous waste and other toxic materials. Phase 1 occurs after the fire is contained and the FEMA Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) is complete. No Right of Entry Permits is required from property owners during this phase.
Local, state and federal officials will coordinate to conduct fire-related debris removal from the properties elected to participate in the County’s Wildfire Debris Removal program. A Right-of-Entry Form (coming soon) must be signed by the property owner. A variety of community outreach efforts will be deployed to get the word out and encourage enrollment.
In coordination with the County of Maui and the State of Hawai‘i, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has assigned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to survey, remove, and dispose of household hazardous waste from properties affected by the wildfires in Lāhainā, Kula, and Olinda on Maui.
Phase 1 work will include:
To the extent necessary, the County or State will adopt an urgency ordinance (or similar vehicle) to codify the requirement for fire debris removal and authorize both the Phase 2 Debris Removal Program and the Alternate Debris Removal Program. The ordinance will establish cleanup standards for the Alternate Debris Removal Program and provide sufficient legal authority for the County or State to abate fire debris from non-compliant parcels through a judicial or quasi-judicial process with reasonable due process.
Announcements will be made via various communication methods. These will include:
The burn area is hazardous. For safety, property re-entry may be coordinated after Phase 1 Environmental Clean-up is completed and before Phase 2 Debris Clean-up takes place. FEMA will be offering Re-entry Kits to protect those wanting access to impacted properties. The Hawai‘i Department of Health advises avoiding the burn area until it is cleared of hazardous waste and structural ash. Learn more.
For questions: call the Maui Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) at 808-270-7285.
Fire debris is hazardous to human health. If allowed to return to your property, avoid exposure to fire debris and use personal protective equipment including respirators to reduce health risks. Learn more.
There’s a number of steps that will occur during the debris removal process (Phase 2). These include:
Until further notice, residents in these areas of Lahaina and Kula should only use bottled water or potable water provided from tankers for things like drinking, brushing teeth, ice-making, and food preparation.
For potable water, please bring large water containers, at least 5-gallon capacity, to:
Residentsin impacted areas are not able to treat the water in any way to make it safe toconsume, with contaminants possibly having entered the water system.
A new, interactive map depicting the precise location of the Unsafe Water Advisory is now available at bit.ly/mauiwateradvisory. Residents can type in their address to see if their property is located within the affected area.
To aid the public in better understanding the test results, the following information was provided by the Department of Water Supply:
Detection Limit: refers to a minimum concentration of an analyte that can be measured above the instrument background noise.
What is instrument background noise? Instruments have detectors that convert any target analyte entering the detector into an electrical signal that can be measured. Using a calibration curve, this signal can be converted into a concentration. Instrument noise is due to the normal, random generation of electrical signal from sources other than the target analyte. Some causes are radiation, magnetic fields, loose connections or static. They have nothing to do with the specific sample being analyzed.
What is an MCL? The maximum concentration level or (MCL) is the maximum concentration of a chemical that is allowed in public drinking water systems. The MCL is established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
What is μg/L? The symbol μg = microgram. One microgram is one millionth of a gram and one thousandth of a milligram. So if the MCL reads 2 μg/L that is 2 micrograms per liter. It is also referred to as parts per billion (ppb).
For more news from the Department of Water Supply:
Maui Nui Strong is a program of the County of Maui Office of Economic Development that connects our residents, businesses, and visitors to useful information about Maui County, our diverse islands, and a variety of resources that help to promote thriving and vibrant communities.
