Abraham “Snake” Ahi rides the waves when the waves are up and dives when the water is calm, looking for octopuses and shells. The lifelong Lahaina, Hawaii resident spends so much time in the ocean that his wife jokes that he needs to get his gills wet.
But recently, Ahi returned to his home island of Maui after the deadliest wildfires in the U.S. in 100 years destroyed more than 2,000 buildings and left behind mountains of toxic rubble in August. I’m worried that the water I’m facing isn’t safe. He worries that runoff could carry pollutants into the ocean, where they could enter corals, seaweed and the food chain.
“With all this going on, you don’t even know if you can eat the fish or not,” Ahi said.
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Scientists say no large-scale urban fire has ever occurred next to a coral reef anywhere in the world, and the Maui wildfires may have been caused by chemicals and metals from burned plastic, lead paint, and lithium-ion batteries. He said that he is using this as an opportunity to study how this phenomenon occurs. This can affect delicate coral reef ecosystems.
The research is already underway off the coast of Maui and will ultimately impact residents, tourists and coastal communities around the world as climate change increases the likelihood of extreme weather events like those that caused wildfires. It could be useful in providing information to tropical communities.
A bill introduced in the state Legislature would provide long-term funding for water quality monitoring in hopes of providing answers for residents whose lives are inextricably tied to the ocean.
Tova Callender of the citizen science group Hui O Ka Wai Ola tests the turbidity of water in a sample taken at Mara Pier in Lahaina, Hawaii on February 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Mengshin Hayashi)
For now, state officials are urging the public to limit exposure to the ocean and seafood until scientists understand what’s getting in through the food chain.
“I know a lot of people keep asking, ‘Is the water safe? Is it safe to go out? Is it safe to fish and eat fish?'” said Maui Land. said Russell Sparks, an aquatic biologist with the Department of Natural Resources. “We just want to drive home the message that we know it’s frustrating, but if people can be patient. We’ve never encountered anything like this.”
Coral reefs are so important to a healthy ocean that they are sometimes referred to as the “rainforests of the sea.” These are composed of stony corals. Stony corals are hard skeletons formed by thousands of individual living coral polyps with symbiotic algae. Fish, crabs and other species find shelter in it. Scientists say a quarter of the ocean’s fish depend on healthy coral reefs, which protect shoreline communities from powerful waves during storms.
One of Hawaii’s oldest stories, a centuries-old chant called Kumulipo, reflects the central role of coral in the archipelago. According to this theory, coral polyps were the first living things to emerge from the darkness of creation. Starfish, earthworms, and sea cucumbers followed. Humans came last.
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“So the first form of life is the coral polyp. That’s your foundation. The foundation of life is the coral,” said the Lahaina community advocate who has long pushed for the restoration of his home’s coral reefs, fisheries and traditions. Ecole Lindsay said.
Lindsey said Lahaina’s coral reefs were already facing challenges before the fires, including overfishing, abuse from kayaking and stand-up paddleboard tours, warmer ocean temperatures, and sediment runoff from fallow fields and construction sites.
Most of the coral offshore from the burn site had already degraded before August, Sparks said, but some reefs were in good condition, such as the area north of Lahaina Harbor toward Mara Pier.
Sea Maui, a whale watching and snorkeling tour company, has frequently taken snorkelers to the reef at Mara Wharf, where they often see sea turtles and sometimes monk seals. The company’s boats now avoid the reef out of concern for spills and out of respect for the town, said partner and chief operating officer Phil LeBlanc.
“We’re not interested in disaster tourism,” said LeBlanc, who instead sends tours to places like Olowalu in the south and Honolua Bay in the north.
Researchers at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa were awarded a $200,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to test water immediately after the fire.
In October, they installed 20 sensors off the coast of West Maui that measure temperature, salinity, oxygen, turbidity, and chlorophyll every five minutes. Andrea Kealoha, a Manoa professor from Maui who is leading the research project, said six sensors measuring water flow will provide clues to where pollutants may migrate and accumulate. It is said that it has been installed.
The Hui O Ka Wai Ora citizen science group collects additional samples, such as after heavy rains.
Researchers are collecting tissue fragments from fish, seaweed and coral, and examining burnt wood, metal and plastic for signs of heavy metals and pollutants.
Their grant will cover activities through August. So far, they don’t have enough data to draw any conclusions, but they aim to publish some results within a month.
Kealoha suspects that scientists could detect pollutants accumulating in plants and animals over the next two to five years. He said coral reef degradation and water quality decline could emerge over the same period and called for the development of long-term monitoring plans that could be supported by state funding.
The effects of the wildfires could extend beyond Maui, as scientists believe ocean currents carry water from Lahaina’s waters to the nearby islands of Lanai and Molokai.
“Fish collected for consumption on Molokai’s reefs may very well contain compounds that were washed into the water by rainfall in Lahaina and carried by ocean currents across the strait to reefs on neighboring islands. Eric Conklin said. Director of Marine Science for Hawaii and Palmyra for the Nature Conservancy.
Authorities are trying to limit harmful spills. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is removing debris and ash. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency applied soil stabilizers to prevent ash and dust from flying. Maui County officials installed protective fencing along storm drains and coastal roads to block debris.
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Lindsey, a community advocate, lost her home in the fire. In the immediate aftermath of the fire, he was more focused on where he lived and the well-being of his family than on the reef. But he also realized that his environment shaped his mental, spiritual, and physical health.
He recalled seeing turtles, seals and hundreds of crab tracks on the beach facing the remains of his home two months after the fire and thinking he should go surfing. He has been away from the ocean ever since due to heavy rains in January and the unknown circumstances surrounding the runoff. However, he still believes in the healing power of nature.
“When you see resources coming back like I did, it just fills my heart,” Lindsey said. “Wow, we really messed up this place. Nature will fix it if we let it.”
