Maui fires renew centuries-old tensions over water rights. The streams are sacred to Hawaiians

By JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER and JAE C. HONG
Associated Press

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — During the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century, a developer of land around a threatened Maui community urgently asked state officials for permission to divert stream water to help fight the growing inferno. In letters reviewed by the AP, the developer suggests approval was delayed while the state sought the OK from a taro farmer downstream. The dispute highlights tensions over water rights that date to Hawaii’s mid-1800s plantation era. The executive who wrote the letters says he wants stream water for fire suppression. Native Hawaiians worry the developer is using the fires to reduce overall caps on their water use.