Mana ka Wai Ola
Protecting Water, including Streams, Groundwater, and Aquaculture
This program takes inspiration from the mele “Ka Wai a Kāne.” Mana means spiritual power, but it also means to split as a stream. Mana Ka Wai Ola was founded to ensure that the rights to wai for Kānaka are respected and upheld, with clean water in Hawaiʻi aquifers and streams, and the sea.
According to the Hawaiʻi Department of Land and Natural Resources, there are approximately 376 streams that continuously flow in the state. However, water is increasingly being diverted for private commercial use to the benefit of large land owners and developers, often to the detriment of the environment and traditional and customary practices.
NHLC is committed to holding the state accountable to its constitutional public trust duties and duties to protect Native Hawaiian traditional and customary practices associated with water.
Visit NHLCʻs Blog and filter by water to learn more about current work NHLC is doing to protect water, a precious source of life and public trust resource.
If you have a legal issue and would like to see if we can help you, please call our office at (808) 521-2302 or contact us using our Contact Form.
Contact
Ashley Obrey
Senior Staff Attorney
Resources
- Ola i ka Wai: A Legal Primer for Water Use and Management in Hawai‘i (PDF) by Dr. Kapua Sproat from the Ka Huli Ao Center for Excellence in Native Hawaiian Law
News + Insights
Water is a resource held in trust for the people of Hawaiʻi. The public trust doctrine prioritizes Native Hawaiian traditional and customary practices and the health of free-flowing streams and coastal life over ...
In 2024, the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation (“NHLC”) represented Mogul Luʻuwai and the Lu‘uwai ‘Ohana in the process of obtaining a Special Use Permit for the practice of their traditional cultural fishing in ...
Decision Honors Uncle Henry Chang’s Last Wishes To Protect Marine Resources in ‘Ewa In 2012, Uncle Henry Chang Wo, a recognized loea limu (limu expert), and the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation (NHLC) began ...
