In August 2023, the Island of Maui was ravaged by wildfires that burned over 3,200 acres, destroyed at least 2,200 buildings, left thousands without water or electricity, and took the lives of more than 100 people.[1] As a result, the cost to rebuild the island is estimated at over $5.5 billion.[2] Although the damages are viewed as largely societal or economic, the resulting environmental effects are equally as imperative. While officials are still uncertain about the cause of the fires, the role climate change may have played should not be ignored. For example, according to Hawaii Governor Josh Green, “It is a product, in my estimation, of certainly global warming combined with drought, combined with a super storm, where we had a hurricane offshore several hundred miles, still generating large winds.”[3] Even if the cause is disputed, the environmental damage is irrefutable.
The three main issues resulting from the fires are the release of toxins, disposal of waste, and water runoff. While the fires have been extinguished, “the health and safety impacts of the Maui fires go beyond the initial blaze due to the variety of air pollutants released.”[4] As a result of the incineration of buildings, as well as plastics and household chemicals, much of the debris will be toxic.[5] Specifically, officials are concerned with asbestos and lead based exposure.[6] To make matters worse, due to Maui’s mountainous landscape and high speed winds, air pollutants could be dispersed into areas that were originally not affected by the fires.[7] Therefore, the aftermath of the fires has the potential effect all of Maui’s residents. Ultimately, exposure to these toxins can cause cancer, respiratory problems, and other health issues.[8]
The same toxins that threaten the health of Maui residents simultaneously pose a threat to coastal waters if they infiltrate water runoffs. Polluted runoff is one of the greatest threats to clean water in the U.S.[9] Runoff can “impede coral growth and reproduction, disrupt overall ecological function, and cause disease and mortality in sensitive species.”[10] According to the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”), the main concern with coral reefs is the hazardous mix of fire debris sitting immediately next to the reefs[11], which polluted runoff can cause. Coral reefs are photosynthetic organisms that need light to produce energy in order to survive. [12] Therefore, when debris enters the ecosystem, it clouds the water, blocking light, and ultimately killing coral reefs. Furthermore, the water runoff can cause stress to the coral, also resulting in disease or death.[13] Additionally, the pollution affects marine life that rely on the reefs to survive.[14] Fish, which cannot differentiate between plankton and pollution, may ingest toxins which harm the fish and then consumers.[15] Essentially, unless the state of Hawaii is able to prevent the infiltration of toxins into the water, or remove the high volume that has already entered the waterways, marine life will be sufficiently diminished.
The most frightening aspect of the wildfires is that all of the environmental concerns are only scientifically backed estimations. Since fire damage to this degree rarely occurs so close to a tropical reef, the actual extent of the fires on the environment is completely unknown.[16] Thus, the fires could result in unprecedented and irreversible damage that may forever change the tide of Hawaiian ecology. Equally as concerning, all of this could have been prevented. Despite authority recommendations, Hawaii fire experts say that wildfire prevention was disregarded on the island.[17] Thus, as stated above, and as seen time and time again, environmental neglect has caused another environmental disaster.
[1] Caitlin O’Kane, How much of Maui has burned in the wildfires? Aerial images show fire damage as containment efforts continue, CBS News (August 27, 2023), https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-much-of-maui-has-burned-wildfires-aerial-images-acres-containment/.
[2] Id.
[3] Emily Mae Czachor, How did the Maui fire start? What we know about the cause of the Lahaina blaze, CBS News (August 27, 2023), https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-did-maui-fire-start-cause-lahaina-hawaii-wildfire/.
[4] Julia Jacobo, Environmental impacts of Maui wildfires will last for years to come, experts say, ABC News (September 8, 2023), https://abcnews.go.com/US/environmental-impacts-maui-wildfires-years-experts/story?id=102458299.
[5] Id.
[6] Id.
[7] Id.
[8] DOH Provides Guidance on Re-entry to Impacted Areas of Maui Wildfires, Hawaii State Department Of Health (September 21, 2023), https://health.hawaii.gov/news/newsroom/doh-provides-guidance-on-re-entry-to-impacted-areas-of-maui-wildfires/.
[9] Soak Up the Rain: What’s the Problem?, Environmental Protection Agency (March 24, 2023), https://www.epa.gov/soakuptherain/soak-rain-whats-problem.
[10] How does land-based pollution threaten coral reefs?, Environmental Protection Agency (January 20, 2023), https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/coral-pollution.html#:~:text=Impacts%20from%20land%2Dbased%20sources,and%20mortality%20in%20sensitive%20species.
[11] Jeff Tollefson, Maui Fires Could Contaminate the Island’s Waters, Scientific American, (August 31, 2023), https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/maui-fires-could-contaminate-the-islands-waters/#:~:text=The%20fire%20damaged%20or%20destroyed,not%20to%20drink%20tap%20water.
[12] Lauren Sommer, Another struggle after the Maui fires: keeping toxic runoff out of the ocean, NPR (August 29, 2023), https://www.npr.org/2023/08/29/1196424210/maui-fires-lahaina-runoff-ocean-coral-reefs.
[13] Id.
[14] Gabrielle Canon, ‘Coral are going to die’: Maui wildfires take toxic toll on marine ecology, The Guardian (August 18, 2023), https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/aug/18/hawaii-fires-environmental-harm-coral-reefs-grasses#:~:text=Ash%20and%20runoff%20from%20the,also%20ingest%20the%20harmful%20runoff.
[15] Id.
[16] Sommer, supra note 12.
[17] Lauren Sommer, 3 strategies Maui can adopt from other states to help prevent dangerous wildfires, NPR (August 18, 2023), https://www.npr.org/2023/08/18/1194505306/3-strategies-maui-can-adopt-from-other-states-to-help-prevent-dangerous-wildfire.