Month: July 2024

The State of Hawaii Department of Transportation, Highways Maui District, is pleased to recognize and celebrate three Marriott properties in Wailea for receiving the No Ka Oi Highway Hui Award. This award highlights their outstanding contributions to the Adopt-A-Highway program, and we applaud their valuable service.

The Wailea Beach Resort, Residence Inn, and AC Hotel in Wailea have been working together for several years to care for a section of Piilani Highway between mileposts 5.5 and 7.5, organizing quarterly cleanup events and coordinating with team members across their properties. Since 2018, employees of the three properties have devoted hundreds of volunteer hours to Maui’s Adopt-A-Highway public service program and collectively removed more than 450 bags of trash.

“We really appreciate being recognized for our efforts – we all live here, this is our ʻāina, so we all want to take care of it,” said Nani Kaina, director of services, Wailea Beach Resort. “We show up each quarter to the highway clean up, not just to check the box and say we do community service and fulfill Marriott’s serve 360 goal, but because we care about our community and we want others to see we care,” said Donjon Baclig, dual chief engineer at AC Hotel and Residence Inn. “We want to keep the highways clean so our visitors see that we care about our environment and that they should too.”

Mahalo to Marriott Hotels – Wailea for their devoted participation in the Adopt-A-Highway program, reflecting their deep-seated dedication to both the community and environmental preservation! 

Check out their feature in Maui Now here.

In July, Stormwater Maui had the opportunity to be water quality mentors for a UHMC Upward Bound team for their student-led project-based learning assignment. Our presenters discussed the movement of water within an ahupua’a and how stormwater runoff can carry pollutants into surface water bodies. We highlighted common stormwater pollutants such as oil, chemicals, fertilizer, pesticides, and sediment, discussing their typical sources and the impact of large quantities of these pollutants on receiving water bodies.

This session provided students with a unique perspective on how land-based activities contribute to water pollution and encouraged solution-based thinking to prevent contaminated runoff from entering streams and the ocean. Additionally, Stormwater Maui conducted Outfall Site Inspections at Paia Bay and Kahului Harbor, where students learned how to complete our outfall inspection checklist and record visual observations.

Students gained insight into our daily work and the efforts of HDOT Highways to mitigate potential stormwater pollution. They also explored the challenges of stormwater management and designed a prototype to address these issues. Using supplies from our AASHTO STEM Outreach Solutions Environmental Module, students examined water flow and filtration methods, employing different filter fabrics to target various pollutants.

This hands-on experience not only educated students about stormwater pollution but also encouraged them to think innovatively about safeguarding our water resources. HDOT Highways Maui District values the opportunity to support the growth of future leaders and environmental stewards.