Environment

‘Don’t Make It Worse’: Kīhei Cleans Up, Braces For More Rain Sean Hower/Civil Beat/2026

‘Don’t Make It Worse’: Kīhei Cleans Up, Braces For More Rain

Residents and business owners are still dealing with March flood damage as Maui readies for the next storm.

A Last-Minute Miracle For A Bill To Help Hawaiʻi Convert Cesspools Courtesy: Surfrider Foundation

A Last-Minute Miracle For A Bill To Help Hawaiʻi Convert Cesspools

The bill would create a new low-interest loan program to help eliminate some of the 80,000 cesspools leaking millions of gallons of sewage into Hawaiʻi’s nearshore waters daily.

Palm-Killing Beetle Found On Molokaʻi For First Time, Rediscovered On Maui Kevin Fujii/Civil Beat/2024

Palm-Killing Beetle Found On Molokaʻi For First Time, Rediscovered On Maui

The beetle has become emblematic of the state’s decades-long struggle to contain and mitigate the impacts of invasive species throughout the islands.

Toxic Mud? North Shore Flooding Likely Diluted Pesticide Risk Kevin Fujii/Civil Beat/2026

Toxic Mud? North Shore Flooding Likely Diluted Pesticide Risk

Residents are worried the mess they are wading through is contaminated by chemicals sprayed on farms upstream. Test results are pending.

Hawaiʻi Banned Plastic Foam Food Containers. Are Bodyboards Next? Kevin Fujii/Civil Beat/2026

Hawaiʻi Banned Plastic Foam Food Containers. Are Bodyboards Next?

Critics say cheap boards harm the ocean and give people a false sense of safety.

Maui Mental Health Providers Face Stress And Uncertainty About State Jobs Sean Hower/Civil Beat/2026

Maui Mental Health Providers Face Stress And Uncertainty About State Jobs

Staff at a state-run clinic serving wildfire survivors in Hawai‘i have waited months for permanent jobs. Instead, they got another temporary contract.

This Seabird Has Adapted To Life In Honolulu’s Concrete Jungle Cory Lum/Civil Beat/2022

This Seabird Has Adapted To Life In Honolulu’s Concrete Jungle

Scientists aren’t sure why the birds are thriving in Honolulu, but their population has grown significantly on Oʻahu in the last decade.

North Shore Flood Will Add A Month’s Worth Of Debris To Landfill Craig Fujii/Civil Beat/2026

North Shore Flood Will Add A Month’s Worth Of Debris To Landfill

The city has limited options when it comes to disposing tons of refuse from the flash floods that roared through the North Shore last month.

Neglected North Shore Plantation Waterways Fueled Damaging Floods Satellite image ©2026 Vantor

Neglected North Shore Plantation Waterways Fueled Damaging Floods

Sugar and pineapple acreage was sold off over the years, divided into hundreds of smaller plots for farming and housing. After the deluge, everyone is pointing fingers.

Lahaina Wastewater Plant Spilled 200,000 Gallons. Why Did People Still Swim? Erin Nolan/Civil Beat/2026

Lahaina Wastewater Plant Spilled 200,000 Gallons. Why Did People Still Swim?

Several people at nearby beaches said they did not know that backwash had overflowed from the Lahaina Wastewater Reclamation Facility days earlier.