Project Overview
The Ala Wai Canal Project is a
multi-purpose project being undertaken by the US Army Corps of Engineers
(COE) and the State of Hawaii Department
of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR).
This project incorporates flood hazard reduction and
ecosystem restoration for the Ala Wai watershed on the island of Oahu.
Background
Surface water bodies of the Ala Wai Watershed are characterized by
significant environmental degradation, including heavy sedimentation, poor
water quality, lack of habitat for native species, and prevalence of alien
species. Additionally, there exists a high potential for flood damage to
the densely populated and economically important areas of Waikīkī, McCully,
and Mō‘ili‘ili.
Approximately
1,746 structures exist within the designated 100-year flood plain.
Proposed actions are intended to protect Waikīkī and the surrounding areas
from the 100-year storm event and to restore degraded watersheds to a more
natural condition.
Project Purpose
The goals of the Ala Wai Canal Project are to:
-
Protect
Waikīkī and the surrounding areas from the 100-year flood event
-
Improve the
migratory pathway for native amphidromous species
-
Reduce
sediment buildup in the streams and Ala Wai Canal
-
Enhance the
physical quality of existing aquatic habitat for native species.
To achieve
these goals, various actions have been investigated and compiled into a set
of flood hazard reduction and ecosystem restoration
alternatives. Each set of alternatives will be discussed separately,
but all were developed to consider the dual purposes of this project.
To
accommodate the overarching missions of the project sponsors, as well as
other members of the project team that may be interested in becoming partial
sponsors in the future, the AWCP considered additional guidelines when
designing its alternatives:
