What we don´t know...

We need to investigate the wildfires, what is really going on?

In a relatively short period of time, Kānaka Maoli have seen their forests, wetlands, and planting fields dry up. Yet until the illegal overthrow in 1893, the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi boasted an abundant, self-sufficient land management system (the Ahupua‘a model) that guaranteed food and water for all. Private property didn’t exist; rather the lands and waters were held in a public trust for the benefit of all. In contrast to today, Lāhainā was once the capital of the Hawaiian Kingdom during the 1800s. Known as the “Venice of the Pacific,” Lāhainā featured canals and fishponds. The royal palace in Lāhainā was surrounded on all sides by water.

The water management situation on Maui has gotten so bad of late that the state’s water commission was forced to step in. Last June, the commission voted to manage all water in the Lāhainā area, establishing a designation process by which residents would have to apply for water allocations. This process, in theory, would “level” the playing field, by having all users—from billionaire land owners and hotels, to Native Hawaiians preserving traditional and customary practices—apply for access to their share of water. All water users in West Maui, where Lāhainā is located, were compelled to submit lengthy water use permit applications in order to have a chance at securing water access. These applications were due on August 6th. The fires that devastated Lāhainā began between August 7th and 8th.

from: https://lakotalaw.org/news/2023-09-01/lahaina-was-burning-long-before-the-fire?

Main Website for Maui County: https://www.mauicounty.gov/Archive.aspx?AMID=121

Here are the minutes from the Commision June 15 meeting:

https://www.mauicounty.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/30240

Here is the June Department of Water Reports:

https://www.mauicounty.gov/DocumentCenter/View/141875/41-Dept-Reports

The July Agenda Notice is posted , but not the July Meeting Minutes

The August 15 Meeting was canceled, so I was only able to find information up to June 2023