PUAKŌ for Reefs

Aloha Puako Community!

Come join us...

The Seattle Aquarium returns for their annual survey results of our reefs.

Dr. Shawn Larson and her team will report on our reef's health and fish life.

This Monday, February 19 at Hokuloa Church. at 5pm.

Read this article from September 2023 Hawaii Business Magazine by Stewart Coleman. It details the problems with Cesspools and the value of our reef!

Cesspools Are Killing Hawai‘i’s Coral – But It Doesn’t Have to Be That Way - Hawaii Business Magazine An expert explains how to reverse the damage from the state’s 83,000 cesspools, including using treated wastewater for irrigation and landscaping.

Please join Kohala meeting to help us save our beautiful Puako reef!

Welcome to the Puako for Reefs page.

We welcome questions and comments on all efforts to save the Puako Reef.

Thank you for being here.

Puakō is an historic ocean-front community on the South Kohala coast of Hawaii Island between major resorts. Off its shore is the spectacular Puakō reef, one of Hawaii’s great natural treasures and a powerful economic driver for the Kohala Coast. Local communities and tourists swim, fish, surf, sail, paddle and dive in Puakō’s waters every day.

Twenty years of scientific research has proven that the reef is in significant danger due to three main sources: wastewater from the local community, run off from further up the mountain, and overfishing. The state of Hawaii understands this and has identified saving Puakō reef as a high state priority.

The community, determined and committed to do what it can to save the reef, has spent millions of dollars over the past 10 years studying potential solutions to the wastewater problem. Experts agree that the best way to sufficiently remove the harmful nutrients that come from the community’s and state parks’ wastewater is a fully sewered system.

At this point there are a few viable solutions and the community supports all options, but it will need extensive cooperation and support from county and state agencies.

The Puakō community is now pursuing additional volunteers to shoulder the challenge of developing a community-wide sanitary sewer collection and treatment system with perhaps the inclusion of like-minded neighboring communities in the spirit of Aloha. It has started this non-profit organization dedicated to protecting the reef for future generations who live and work in the entire Kohala region of the Big Island. Puakō for Reefs welcomes your participation and support.