Weather challenges continue.The Department of Water Supply (DWS) declared a drought for Upcountry Maui last week. Residents of Ha‘iku, Makawao, Olinda, Hali‘imaile, Pukalani, Kula, Oma‘opio/Pulehu, Kula, Keokea, ‘Ulupalakua, and Kanaio/Waiohuli have been asked to reduce water consumption by 5 percent… so far. The Central Maui water system has been in drought conditions since August of last year. Wailuku, Kahului, Pu‘unene, Pa‘ia, and especially Kihei should continue to keep water consumption under 600 gallons per day. Since most water usage takes place outside, reducing your watering by a day or two should enable us to survive the drought this summer without any mandatory restrictions, according to DWS. Should the situation continue to worsen, a 10 percent reduction in water consumption will be made mandatory. Unfortunately, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center (www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov) foretells of a high likelihood of below normal precipitation through October.
The meteorological effects of El Niño, the large-scale oceanic warming that periodically affects most of the tropical Pacific and beyond, and La Niña, a periodic cooling of ocean surface temperatures in the central and east-central equatorial Pacific Ocean, are the main sources of annual variability in weather and climate here and around the world because oceanic and atmospheric components are strongly linked. Through the warming of the eastern tropical Pacific, El Niño episodes usually bring drier weather to Hawai‘i–the opposite of the effects brought to us by La Niña.
During July through September of last year, we began to leave the El Niño cycle that caused our summer drought conditions. Then the La Niña cycle picked up strength, bringing us flood conditions during December 2007 and decent rainfall through February of this year. But since then, not so much. From January 2008 through the end of April, Kahului Airport received only 2.49 inches of rain, 24 percent of normal.
La Niña episodes often dissipate over the spring and early summer, and as predicted, NOAA observed that La Niña continued to weaken in April. The agency now predicts a transition to neutral conditions during June or July.
These cycles occur at irregular intervals—anywhere between one and 12 years. La Niña events often follow El Niños, but not always… and sometimes El Niño and La Niña events are separated not by their counterparts, but by normal conditions. Currently, ocean temperatures remain below normal, but are approaching near-normal state.
Since dry weather conditions are expected to continue through October, the Maui Weekly will once again intermittently print recommendations and stats from the county to help remind readers about the importance of conservative water use. As always, the department gives away free low-flow fixtures at the Hokama Building at 59 Kanoa St. in Wailuku (244-8550).
Although conservation of water and all our precious resources is always in season, it is especially important now, during our seasonal weather challenges, until new water sources are established for the island.