Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and 

Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, 

and After H-3 Highway Construction, 

Oahu, Hawaii, 1983–99

Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and 

Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, 

and After H-3 Highway Construction, 

Oahu, Hawaii, 1983–99

Prepared in cooperation with the State of Hawaii Department of Transportation ransportation 

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Scientific Investigations Report 2004-5002

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Scientific Investigations Report 2004-5002
About the cover: This vertical aerial color photograph was taken on June 2, 1989, by Air Survey 

Hawaii. The photograph shows the North Halawa Valley during the early phases of the construction 

of the H-3 freeway. At the time of this photograph, only the 2-lane paved access road had been constructed in the valley. The Hawaiian Cement quarry and plant, the H-1 freeway, and the urbanized 

areas near the mouth of the valley are visible in the lower left.
Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and 

Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, 

and After H-3 Highway Construction, Oahu, 

Hawaii, 1983–99

By Michael F. Wong

Prepared in cooperation with the

STATE OF HAWAII DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Scientific Investigations Report 2004–5002

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2005

For sale by U.S. Geological Survey, Information Services

Box 25286, Denver Federal Center

Denver, CO 80225-0286

For more information about the USGS and its products:

Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS

U.S. Department of the Interior

Gale A. Norton, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Charles G. Groat, Director

World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov/

Any use of trade, product, or firm names in this publication is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply 

endorsement by the U.S. Government.

Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured from the individual copyright owners to 

reproduce any copyrighted materials contained within this report.

Suggested citation

Wong, M.F., 2005, Water quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe drainage basins before, during, and after H-3 Highway construction, Oahu, Hawaii, 1983–99: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2004–5002, 

45 p.
iii

Contents

Abstract . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Purpose and Scope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

H-3 Highway Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Study Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Previous Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Data Collection and Statistical Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Water-Quality Data Collection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Statistical Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Summary and Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

References Cited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Figures

1. Selected water-quality stations and drainage basins in the H-3 Highway study area, 

Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

2. Water-quality stations in the Haiku and Kaneohe drainage basins, 

Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

3. Flow-duration curves of daily flows for stations 16226200 North Halawa Stream and 

16275000 Haiku Stream, 1983–99, Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

4. Total nitrogen concentrations at station 16267500, February 1983 to January 1998, 

Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

5. Total nitrogen concentrations and instantaneous discharges at (A) station 16265700, 

February 1983 to January 1998; and (B) station 16270900, February 1983 to 

January 1998; and (C) station 16275000, April 1983 to February 1998, 

Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

6. Nitrite and nitrate nitrogen concentrations and instantaneous discharges at 

(A) station 16266500, February 1983 to December 1996; and (B) station 16274100, 

December 1988 to February 1998, Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

7. Turbidity concentrations and instantaneous discharges at station 16265600, 

February 1983 to April 1998, Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

8. Specific conductance at (A) station 16226200, May 1983 to March 1999; (B) station 

16269500, February 1983 to January 1998; and (C) station 16227100, November 1988 to 

November 1998, Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
iv

Tables

1. Chronology of highway construction activities within drainage basins of the H-3 

Highway study area, 1983–98, Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

2. Locations and period of water-quality data-collection activities in the H-3 Highway 

study area, Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

3. State of Hawaii water-quality standards specific for streams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

4. Trace metals and organic compounds analyzed at water-quality stations in the H-3 

Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, February 1983 to August 1999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

5. Total nitrogen at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, 

water years 1983–99 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

6. Rank-sum test p-value results comparing selected water-quality constituents and 

turbidity between highway construction time periods in the H-3 Highway study area, 

Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

7. Total nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study 

area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

8. Total phosphorus at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, 

Hawaii, water years 1983–99 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

9. Total suspended solids at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, 

Hawaii, water years 1983–99 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

10. Turbidity at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, 

water years 1983–99 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

11. pH at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water 

years 1983–99 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

12. Dissolved oxygen saturation at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, 

Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

13. Water temperature at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, 

Hawaii, water years 1983–99 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

14. Specific conductance at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, 

Hawaii, water years 1983–99 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

15. State of Hawaii water-quality standards for trace metals, insecticides, herbicides, 

and polychlorinated compounds and number of samples exceeding standards at 

water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, February 1983 to 

August 1999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

16. Summary of dissolved trace metals, insecticides, and polychlorinated compounds at 

water-quality stations that exceeded State of Hawaii water-quality standards in the 

H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, February 1983 to August 1999 . . . . . . . . . . 37

17. Summary of dissolved trace metals quality-assurance blank samples collected 

during 1997 and 1998 as part of the water-quality monitoring study of the H-3 Highway, 

Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

18. Median values of selected water-quality properties and constituents by depth at 

Waimaluhia Reservoir stations 212335157482603 (RES 1-3) and 212329157483102 (RES 

3-2) during and after H-3 Highway construction, Oahu, Hawaii, May 1983 to January 

1998 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

19. Rank-sum test p-value results of selected water-quality constituent instantaneous 

loads and values between upstream and downstream stations during H-3 Highway 

construction in the Halawa and Kaneohe drainage basins, 

Oahu, Hawaii, 1983–1997 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

20. Previously collected water-quality data at stations 16270900 Luluku Stream and 

16275000 Haiku Stream in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . 40
v

Conversion Factors and Datums

Multiply By To obtain

Length

inch (in.) 25.4 millimeter (mm)

foot (ft) 0.3048 meter (m)

mile (mi) 1.609 kilometer (km)

Area

acre 4,047 square meter (m2)

square mile (mi2) 2.590 square kilometer (km2)

Volume

acre-foot (acre-ft) 1,233 cubic meter (m3)

Flow rate

cubic foot per second (ft3/s) 0.02832 cubic meter per second (m3/s)

Temperature in degrees Fahrenheit (°F) may be converted to degrees Celsius (°C) as follows:

°C = (°F – 32) / 1.8

Specific conductance is given in microsiemens per centimeter at 25 degrees Celsius (μS/cm at 

25°C).

Concentrations of chemical constituents in water are given either in milligrams per liter (mg/L) or 

micrograms per liter (μg/L).

Datums

Altitude, as used in this report, refers to distance above the vertical datum.

Horizontal coordinate information is referenced to the Old Hawaiian Datum unless otherwise 

specified.

Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe 

Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway 

Construction, Oahu, Hawaii, 1983–1999

By Michael F. Wong

Abstract

Selected water-quality data collected before, during, and 

after construction of the H-3 Highway at 13 water-quality 

stations were compared to the State of Hawaii Department of 

Health water-quality standards to determine the effects of 

highway construction on the water quality of the affected 

streams. Highway construction had no effect on the high 

concentrations of total nitrogen and nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen 

observed except for increased nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen 

concentrations at one station on Hooleinaiwa Stream. 

Exceedences of the 10- and 2-percent-of-the-time 

concentration standards for total phosphorus, total suspended 

solids, and turbidity, all constituents associated with sediment, 

occurred more commonly and at more stations during 

construction than either before or after. These exceedences may 

be, in part, due to land disturbance caused by highway 

construction. Highway construction had no effect on the 

physical water-quality properties of pH, dissolved oxygen, 

temperature, and specific conductance except at North Halawa 

and Kuou Streams, where specific-conductance values 

increased throughout the study period, most likely due to 

highway construction. No effects on selected trace metals and 

organic chemical compounds were observed due to highway 

construction. No effects due to highway construction were 

observed in the water quality of Waimaluhia Reservoir. Runoff 

from areas of urban land use in the Kaneohe drainage basin 

contributed more to the higher loads of selected water-quality 

constituents than did runoff from areas affected by highway 

construction.

Introduction

The H-3 Highway is a major highway across the Koolau 

Range on the eastern part of the island of Oahu, Hawaii (fig. 1). 

Potential effects of construction, such as soil erosion from land 

disturbance, runoff from construction staging areas, and stream 

sedimentation that might degrade the water quality of streams 

along the route, were an issue of public concern, and 

construction began only after a lengthy environmental 

evaluation (U.S. Department of Transportation and others, 

1987). In 1983, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in 

cooperation with the State of Hawaii Department of 

Transportation and in collaboration with the Federal Highway 

Administration, began a study to assess the effects of highway 

construction on the water quality in the affected streams; 

specifically to determine whether highway construction 

resulted in any exceedence of the State of Hawaii water-quality 

standards. The results of the study also will add information to 

what is generally known about the effects of highway 

construction in tropical environments. 

Purpose and Scope

The purpose of this report is to describe whether waterquality standards were exceeded before, during, or after 

construction, and if so, whether the exceedence could be 

attributed to highway construction. To meet this objective, data 

collection was carried out before, during, and after construction 

during 1983–99 at a network of 13 water-quality stations. 

Twelve of the stations were on streams and one station was in 

the Waimaluhia Reservoir.

This report describes the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe 

drainage basins, the methods used for water-quality data 

collection, and a statistical analysis of water-quality data 

collected during the 17-year (1983–99) study period. Data were 

analyzed at 2 stations in the Halawa, 1 in the Haiku, and 10 in 

the Kaneohe drainage basins (figs. 1 and 2). Additional data 

from the Waimaluhia Reservoir also were analyzed. Only those 

constituents that can be compared to the State of Hawaii waterquality standards (State of Hawaii Department of Health, 2000) 

are described in this report. These and other constituents were 

previously summarized in two published statistical summaries 

of data; one covering data collected during water years 1983–

89 (Wong and Hill, 1992), and the other during water years 

1983–99 (Wong and Young, 2001). A water year is a 12-month 

period that extends from October 1 to September 30 and is 

designated by the calendar year in which it ends.
2 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction Figure 1. Selected water-quality stations and drainage basins in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii.

Sou ht Ha

al

wa Stream

Ha

al wa Stream

Nor ht Ha

al

wa Stream

Kaneohe Stream

East Loch

PEARL HARBOR

KANEOHE

BAY

21 ̊26'21 ̊22'

157 ̊52' 157 ̊56' 157 ̊48'

0

0

3 MILES 2

2 3 KILOMETERS

1

1

Kaneohe

Marine Corps

Base Ha

waii

H-3 H

gi hway

H 3- H gi

wh

ay

DEVELOPED AREA 

WITHIN 

 STUDY BASINDRAINAGE DIVIDEWATER-QUALITY STATION AND NUMBER

TRANS-KOOLAU

TUNNEL

KOOLAU

RANGE

EXPLANATION

Kamehameha Highway

H-1 Highway

Moanalua Freeway

L ki el ki e H gi hway

Pali H gi hway

Ford

Island

16226200

16226200

16227100

HALAWA DRAINAGE BASIN

KamooaliiStreamSystem

Base modified from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1:24,000, 1983, Albers equal area projection, standard parallels 21 ̊19'40" and 21 ̊38'20", central meridian 157 ̊58'

Ha ki

u

Stre

ma

Hee ai

ert S

am

22 ̊20 ̊

158 ̊ 156 ̊ 160 ̊

Kauai

Niihau

Oahu

Maui

Molokai

Lanai

Kahoolawe

Hawaii

HAWAII Halawa

Study

Area

OAHU,

HAWAII

Pacific

Ocean PACIFIC

OCEAN
Introduction 3

Figure 2. Water-quality stations in the Haiku and Kaneohe drainage basins, Oahu, Hawaii.

Base modified from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 

1:24,000, 1983, Albers equal area projection, 

standard parallels 21 ̊19'40" and 21 ̊38'20", 

central meridian 157 ̊58'

Kamehameha Highway

Kaneohe Bay Drive

Trans-Koolau

Tunnel

Hospital Rock

Tunnel

Windward Viaduct

Ho'omaluhia Botanical Garden

Koolau

Golf

Course

NUUANU

VALLEY

KANEOHE

 BAY

Kahekili Highway

H-3 Highway

Pali

Golf

Course

Hawaii Loa

Campus

Kaneohe

Interchange

Halekou

Interchange

Kalanianaole

Highway Right Branch

Kamooalii Stream

Kamooalii

Pali Highway

RANGE

KOOLAU

157 ̊49' 157 ̊46'30"

21 ̊

25'

21 ̊

22'

30"

H-3 Highway

Likelike Highway

Windward Highway

EXPLANATION

DEVELOPED AREA WITHIN 

 STUDY BASIN

DRAINAGE DIVIDE

WATER-QUALITY STATION

 AND NUMBER

0 

0 1 KILOMETER 

1/2 1 MILE

OAHU,

HAWAII

Kaneohe

Study Area

Pacific

Ocean

Iolekaa Stream

Heeia

Stream

Stream

Stream

Haiku

Kapunahala

South Fork

Kapunahala

Kuou Stream

Piho Stream

Hooleinaiwa Stream

Kamooalii Stream

Kaneohe Stream

Luluku Stream

Stream

Waimaluhia

Reservoir

16272200

16274100

16275000

16275000

16273950

16265600

16266500

16265700

16267500

16269500RES 3-2

16270900 RES 1-3
4 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Instantaneous water-quality data used in the analyses in 

this report have been published in the U.S. Geological 

Survey’s annual water-resources data reports for Hawaii, water 

years 1983 through 2000. See, for example, Hill and others 

(2000) for the water year 1999 report. These data also are 

available on the World Wide Web at NWISWeb 

(http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis).

H-3 Highway Construction

The H-3 Highway route traverses the drainage basins of 

Halawa and Haiku Streams and the tributaries of Kaneohe 

Stream (fig. 1). The H-3 segment that is the subject of this 

report extends from the H-1 Highway near the East Loch of 

Pearl Harbor on the leeward (southwestern) side of the Koolau 

Range to the Halekou Interchange on the windward 

(northeastern) side, where the H-3 connects to a previously 

constructed section of H-3 leading from Kamehameha 

Highway to Kaneohe Marine Corps Base–Hawaii. The 

completed H-3 Highway consists of part cut-and-fill and part 

viaduct sections in the lower North Halawa Valley, a viaduct 

through the upper North Halawa Valley, twin tunnels below 

the crest of the Koolau Range, a viaduct through the Haiku 

drainage basin, and a cut-and-fill section through the 

Kapunahala and Kamooalii drainage subbasins of the Kaneohe 

drainage basin (U.S. Department of Transportation and others, 

1987). Highway construction affected from 3 to 15 percent of 

the drainage basin areas upstream from the water-quality 

stations discussed in this report.

Construction of the H-3 Highway proceeded in 

increments (table 1). Construction was, at times, halted by 

court actions, and the planned route was modified to avoid 

sites of cultural importance. The court actions also halted 

water-quality data collection before construction started. 

Access roads were built in the North Halawa and Haiku 

Valleys before construction of the highway. An exploratory 

tunnel was excavated below the crest of the Koolau Range 

before the larger traffic tunnels were excavated.

Study Area

The Koolau Range is the eroded remnant of the larger and 

younger of the two major shield volcanoes that formed the 

island of Oahu (Hunt, 1996). Much of the windward side of the 

original Koolau Volcano has been eroded, leaving a steep 

windward slope indented with short, broad, amphitheatershaped valleys (Hinds, 1925). In contrast, the gentle leeward 

slope is deeply dissected by long, roughly linear valleys. 

Ridges on the leeward side approximate the original 

morphology of the Koolau volcanic dome (Wentworth, 1943). 

Geology of the study area consists primarily of Koolau 

Basalt that was extruded in numerous gently dipping thin (less 

than 10 ft) flows of lava that are intruded by near-vertical, 

dense basaltic dikes near the crest of the present Koolau Range 

(Hunt, 1996). More recent volcanic rocks are exposed in small 

areas on the windward side of the study area (Takasaki and 

others, 1969). The gently sloping lower parts of the windward 

drainage basins and the valley floor of the North Halawa 

drainage basin are overlain by alluvium derived from erosion 

of the Koolau Range (Takasaki and others, 1969; Izuka, 1992).

The climate of Oahu is warm and humid. Average annual 

temperature near the study area is about 74°F and monthly 

averages range from 65°F to 84°F (Owenby and Ezell, 1992). 

Temperatures above 95°F and below 50°F are rare on Oahu 

(Blumenstock and Price, 1961). The distribution of rainfall is 

affected by the prevailing northeasterly trade winds and the 

topography of the island. Because of the Koolau Range, which 

has an altitude of 2,000 to 3,000 ft above mean sea level at the 

crest, there is orographic lifting and cooling of marine air 

masses moving with the trade winds. This lifting results in 

heavier and more frequent rainfall on the windward side and 

near the crest of the Koolau Range. The heaviest rain falls 

about 0.5 to 1 mi leeward of the crest (Wentworth, 1942; Mink, 

1960). Rainfall varies seasonally, with most rain falling from 

November to April. Median annual rainfall ranges from 60 to 

120 in. on the windward side of the study area and from 40 to 

more than 120 in. on the leeward side (Division of Water and 

Land Development, 1982). Average annual pan evaporation is 

between 50 to 70 in. on the windward side and between 30 to 

80 in. on the leeward side of the study drainage basins (Ekern 

and Chang, 1985).

The temporal and spatial distribution of streamflow is 

determined almost exclusively by geology and climate. 

Streams on the windward side respond rapidly to direct runoff 

that takes place during periods of rainfall. Large quantities of 

rainfall and the presence of numerous low-permeability dikes 

result in storage of high-elevation ground water that maintains 

the base flow of streams on the windward side (Takasaki and 

others, 1969). As a result of the highly permeable bedrock and 

the orientation of dikes, ground water is known to flow 

between windward drainage basins. Rainfall infiltrating in one 

valley may emerge as streamflow in another (Hirashima, 1963, 

1971; Takasaki and others, 1969). Streamflow in the Halawa 

Stream drainage basin is intermittent and is dependent 

primarily on direct runoff that occurs during rainfall. Most 

infiltrating rainfall in the North Halawa Valley percolates to 

the freshwater-lens aquifer and does not maintain base flows in 

the streams (Izuka, 1992). Streamflow is supplemented by the 

discharge of small quantities of ground water from alluvial 

aquifers that extend recession flows only to a minor extent 

(Izuka, 1992). The contrast between streamflow characteristics 

in the leeward and windward drainage basins of the study area 

is shown by using flow-duration curves (fig. 3). A flowduration curve indicates the percentage of time that values of 

daily mean streamflow were equaled or exceeded (Searcy, 

1959). The steep slope of the North Halawa Stream curve 

indicates the highly variable nature of streamflow in Halawa 

Valley, while the flat slope of the Haiku Stream curve indicates 

the large storage of ground water on the windward side (fig. 3).

Soils in the Halawa drainage basin are classified as 

low-permeability, very stony clays of the Kaena series with 
Introduction 5

Table 1. Chronology of highway construction activities within drainage basins of the H-3 Highway study area, 1983–98, Oahu, Hawaii.

[Locations of streamflow-gaging stations are shown in figures 1 and 2; do., ditto. Start and end dates provided by the State of Hawaii, Department 

of Transportation (written commun., 1999)]

Station Drainage basin and highway construction activities Start date End date

16226200 N. Halawa Stream and 

16227100 Halawa Stream

N. Halawa access road . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11/02/87 03/89

Exploratory tunnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 02/27/89 03/90

Drilled shaft test program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11/13/90 02/91

Trans-Koolau Tunnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 03/19/91 02/07/981

N. Halawa viaduct. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 02/21/92 06/95

N. Halawa Valley Highway Unit I Phase 1A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 04/11/94 09/95

N. Halawa Valley Highway Unit I Phase 1B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 05/24/95 12/12/97

N. Halawa Valley Highway Unit II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 08/01/94 12/12/97

16265600 Right Branch Kamooalii Stream and Waimaluhia Reservoir stations

212335157482603 Halekou Interchange2 02/22/83 12/01/83

212329157483102 do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 03/02/84 07/31/85

do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11/04/85 02/28/86

do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11/02/86 12/31/86

do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 06/15/87 09/30/88

Windward Highway. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 06/19/89 06/92

16265700 Kamooalii Stream at altitude 200 feet and 

16266500 Hooleinaiwa Stream at altitude 220 feet and 

16267500 Hooleinaiwa Stream above confluence with Kamooalii Stream and 

16269500 Kuou Stream at altitude 220 feet

Windward Highway . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 06/19/89 06/92

16270900 Luluku Stream

Windward Highway . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 06/19/89 06/92

Kaneohe Interchange. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01/19/93 12/22/95

16272200 Kamooalii Stream3

16273950 S. Fork Kapunahala Stream

Hospital Rock Tunnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 03/06/89 05/92

Kaneohe Interchange. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01/19/93 12/22/95

16274100 Kaneohe Stream4

16275000 Haiku Stream

Haiku access road . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10/24/88 06/90

Exploratory tunnel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 02/27/89 03/90

Haiku Valley bridges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 08/07/89 03/91

Windward viaduct . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01/08/90 05/13/93

Trans-Koolau Tunnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10/01/90 02/07/981

1This is the official completion date for all work on the tunnel; however, for the Haiku Valley part of the tunnel construction, all land-disturbance 

work was completed by November 1994, so for the purpose of determining the post-construction dates, November 1994 will be used. In North 

Halawa Valley, channel and earthwork by the tunnel continued until September 1997, so September 30, 1997 will be used for the purpose of 

determining the post-construction dates.

2Work on Halekou Interchange interrupted multiple times by court injunctions.

3Includes highway construction activities listed under stations 16265600 and 16270900, as these drainage basins drain into Kamooalii Stream.

4Includes highway construction activities listed under stations 16265600, 16270900, 16272200, and 16273950, as these drainage basins drain into 

Kaneohe Stream.

 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
0.01

0.1

1

10

100

1000

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

PERCENTAGE OF TIME INDICATED DISCHARGE WAS EQUALLED OR EXCEEDED

DISCHARGE, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

Haiku Stream

North Halawa Stream

6 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Kawaihapai clay loam soils by the mouth of Halawa Stream 

(Foote and others, 1972). Soils in the Haiku and Kaneohe 

drainage basins are classified as Lokelaa with some Kaneohe 

and Hanalei series silty clays. These types of silty clays have 

moderate permeability and are highly erodible on steep slopes 

(Foote and others, 1972). Most of the mountainous areas 

within all the study drainage basins are classified as "rough 

mountainous land," "rock land," or "rock outcrop" (Foote and 

others, 1972), and little information is available on the soils of 

these areas.

Except where disturbed by development (figs. 1 and 2), 

all study basins are completely covered with some type of 

vegetation. Most of the native vegetation on the windward side 

of the study area has been replaced by cultivated crops such as 

bananas, other nonnative plants, and residential and 

commercial developments. Much of the Luluku subdrainage 

basin (fig. 2, station 16270900) has been converted to banana 

plantations. Vegetation in the North Halawa Valley is 

representative of undisturbed forest in the leeward Koolau 

Range and includes native and introduced species.

Eight-digit station numbers are used throughout the report 

to refer to locations of data collection and their corresponding 

drainage basins. Stations with 15 digit station numbers are 

referred to by their names. Table 2 lists station numbers and 

their corresponding station names, drainage areas, locations, 

and periods of water-quality data collection. Water-quality 

data collection continues (2004) at station 16226200, and data 

through July 2000 was used in this report.

Halawa Drainage Basin.—The Halawa drainage basin is 

on the leeward side of the crest of the Koolau Range and has a 

drainage area of 8.90 mi2 upstream from station 16227100. 

Halawa Stream flows into the East Loch of Pearl Harbor and 

originates at the confluence of North and South Halawa 

Streams, downstream from Moanalua Freeway (fig. 1). Data 

collection in the Halawa drainage basin was concentrated in 

the North Halawa Stream valley. For this study, the waterquality data collected at station 16227100 on Halawa Stream 

(fig. 1) were the only data collected in the Halawa drainage 

basin outside of North Halawa Valley. Between stations 

16227100 and 16226200, the land is developed and consists of 

a light industrial park near the mouths of both North and South 

Halawa Streams and residential areas near the Moanalua 

Freeway and H-1 Highway. The H-3 Highway composes about 

3 percent of the drainage area upstream from station 16227100 

and about 4 percent of the North Halawa 4.01-mi2 drainage 

area upstream from station 16226200.

Before highway construction in the North Halawa Stream 

valley began in November 1987, this drainage basin was 

undeveloped, but the lower valley was used for agriculture 

from 1850 to 1947 (Spear, 1990). The stream is more than 

100 ft above the freshwater-lens water table throughout the 

valley and flow in the main channel is intermittent in most 

Figure 3. Flow-duration curves of daily flows for stations 16226200 North 

Halawa Stream and 16275000 Haiku Stream, 1983–99, Oahu, Hawaii.
Introduction 7

years (Izuka, 1992). About 20 percent of the stream channel 

was channelized during the highway construction.

Haiku Drainage Basin.—The Haiku drainage basin (fig. 

2) is on the windward side of the Koolau Range and adjoins the 

Halawa drainage basin along the crest of the Koolau Range 

(fig. 2). At station 16275000, Haiku Stream flows perennially. 

Almost all of the 0.97-mi2 drainage basin upstream from 

station 16275000 was undeveloped except for a road and large 

building that was part of a U.S. Coast Guard low-frequency 

radio navigational facility. This station was operated from 1944 

to September 30, 1997. The main land-use impact of the station 

was an array of radio antenna wires suspended over the valley, 

anchored from the ridge crests. A municipal water-supply 

tunnel and well also are located in the valley. Highway 

construction in the Haiku drainage basin began in October 

1988 (table 1). The part of the H-3 Highway located within the 

Haiku drainage basin was constructed entirely as a viaduct and 

covers about 3 percent of the drainage area upstream from 

station 16275000.

Kaneohe Drainage Basin.—The Kaneohe drainage basin 

(fig. 2) is on the windward side of the Koolau Range, south of 

the Haiku drainage basin, and has an area of 5.22 mi2 upstream 

from station 16274100. Kaneohe Stream flows into Kaneohe 

Bay downstream from the confluence of Kapunahala and 

Kamooalii Streams, which join to form Kaneohe Stream near 

Kamehameha Highway (fig. 2). Data collection in the study 

basin was concentrated in the Kapunahala and Kamooalii 

subdrainage basins. The water-quality data collected at 

station 16274100 on Kaneohe Stream (fig. 2) were the only 

data collected in the Kaneohe drainage basin outside of these 

two subbasins. Land use upstream from station 16274100 and 

downstream from stations 16272200 and 16273950 consists 

entirely of residential and urban areas of Kaneohe town. 

H-3 Highway construction affected about 3 percent of the 

drainage area upstream from station 16274100.

In the Kapunahala subdrainage basin, only the South Fork 

of Kapunahala Stream was monitored during the study. The 

South Fork Kapunahala subdrainage basin lies to the southeast 

of the Haiku drainage basin and has a drainage area of 0.40 mi2 

upstream from station 16273950, located at an altitude of 

111 ft (fig. 2). The subdrainage basin consists of residential and 

some agricultural lands in the lower parts of the basin. H-3 

Highway construction in the basin began in March 1989 (table 

1), with most construction activities occurring near the 400-ft 

altitude. The H-3 Highway covers about 15 percent of the 

drainage area upstream from station 16273950. Drainage 

patterns to station 16273950 from the existing Likelike 

Highway were altered during the H-3 Highway construction.

The Kamooalii sub-drainage basin upstream from station 

16272200, at an altitude of 116 ft, has a drainage area of 

Table 2. Locations and period of water-quality data-collection activities in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii.

[mi2, square miles; ft, feet; Str, stream; P, data collection continues at present, 2004]

USGS station

number

Drainage 

area

(mi2)

Altitude of 

station

(ft)

Location

Period of 

water-quality data

Station name Latitude Longitude Start End

Halawa drainage basin

16227100 Halawa Str below H-1 8.90 20 21°22′17′′ 157°55′57′′ Nov 1988 Nov 1998

N. Halawa subdrainage basin

16226200 North Halawa Str near Honolulu 4.01 160 21°23′04′′ 157°54′22′′ May 1983 P

Haiku drainage basin

16275000 Haiku Str 0.97 272 21°24′46′′ 157°49′33′′ Mar 1983 Apr 1998

Kaneohe drainage basin

16274100 Kaneohe Str 5.22 40 21°24′54′′ 157°48′03′′ Nov 1988 Aug 1999

South Fork Kapunahala subdrainage basin

16273950 South Fork Kapunahala Str 0.40 111 21°24′21′′ 157°48′31′′ Aug 1983 Apr 1998

Kamooalii subdrainage basin

16265600 Right Branch Kamooalii Str 1.11 195 21°23′22′′ 157°47′44′′ Feb 1983 Jan 1998

16265700 Kamooalii Str at altitude 200 ft 0.46 200 21°23′11′′ 157°47′56′′ Feb 1983 Jan 1998

16266500 Hooleinaiwa Str at altitude 220 ft 0.41 220 21°23′06′′ 157°48′16′′ Feb 1983 Feb 1997

16267500 Hooleinaiwa Str above conflu- ence with Kamooalii Str0.57 180 21°23′15′′ 157°48′19′′ Feb 1983 Jan 1998

16269500 Kuou Str at altitude 220 ft 0.34 220 21°23′30′′ 157°48′45′′ Feb 1983 Jan 1998

212335157482603 RES 1-3 (Waimaluhia Reservoir) 3.20 160 21°23′35′′ 157°48′26′′ May 1983 Jan 1998

212329157483102 RES 3-2 (Waimaluhia Reservoir) 3.20 160 21°23′29′′ 157°48′31′′ May 1983 Jan 1998

16270900 Luluku Str 0.44 220 21°23′42′′ 157°48′44′′ Feb 1983 Apr 1998

16272200 Kamooalii Str 3.81 116 21°23′47′′ 157°48′23′′ Oct 1980 Apr 1998
8 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

3.81 mi2 (fig. 2). Highway construction within the Kamooalii 

subdrainage basin began in 1983 (table 1) with the 

construction of the Halekou Interchange upstream from station 

16265600 on the right branch of Kamooalii Stream (fig. 2). 

Numerous court injunctions delayed the construction at 

various times (table 1). Construction of the Windward 

Highway segment of the H-3 Highway (the section between 

the Halekou and Kaneohe Interchanges), which affects most of 

the basin, began in the summer of 1989 and ended in the 

summer of 1992 (table 1). Most of the highway segments in the 

Kamooalii subdrainage basin were constructed using 

cut-and-fill techniques. The H-3 Highway composes about 4 

percent of the drainage area upstream from station 16272200.

In addition to station 16272200, water-quality data were 

collected in the Kamooalii subdrainage basin at stations 

16265600 Right Branch Kamooalii Stream, 16265700 

Kamooalii Stream at altitude 200 ft, 16266500 Hooleinaiwa 

Stream at altitude 220 ft, 16267500 Hooleinaiwa Stream above 

confluence with Kamooalii Stream, 16269500 Kuou Stream at 

altitude 220 ft, and at station 16270900 Luluku Stream (fig. 2). 

Streamflow at all stations except 16269500 is perennial. Kuou 

Stream at station 16296500 was observed to be dry numerous 

times during the study period. Streamflow at station 16272200 

includes water that has flowed through Waimaluhia Reservoir, 

a flood-control reservoir completed in 1981 upstream from the 

confluence of Luluku and Kamooalii Streams. Water from 

Luluku Stream does not flow through the Waimaluhia 

Reservoir. The reservoir consists of a 26-acre permanent pool 

with a capacity of 209 acre-ft in 1998 (Wong, 2001). Mean 

depth is about 8 ft with depths up to 16 ft. The area affected by 

the H-3 Highway construction includes about 4 percent of the 

drainage area at station 16266500, about 5 percent of the 

drainage areas at stations 16265600, 16265700, 16269500, and 

16270900; and about 6 percent of the drainage area at station 

16265700.

Land use upstream from station 16272200 includes the 

Hoomaluhia Botanical Garden, a public park operated by the 

City and County of Honolulu (fig. 2), which includes the 

Waimaluhia Reservoir. Stations 16265700, 16266500, 

16267500, 16269500, and 16270900 all are within the park 

boundaries. Downstream from the botanical garden, most of 

the drainage basin has been developed for residential use. 

Upstream from the botanical garden to the east and southeast 

is the Pali Golf Course, built in 1957; the Koolau Golf Course 

built between 1989 and 1991; and the Hawaii Loa campus of 

Hawaii Pacific University (fig. 2). Both the Pali Golf course 

and the Hawaii Loa campus are upstream from station 

16265600. The Koolau Golf Course is upstream from stations 

16265600, 16265700, 16266500, and 16267500. The 

remaining land area in the Kamooalii drainage basin is banana 

plantations, which covers about 40 percent of the area 

upstream from station 16270900, or undeveloped land. Parts of 

both Likelike and Pali Highways cross the drainage basin near 

the Koolau Range (fig. 2). More information on the land use 

and land cover in the Kamooalii drainage area can be found in 

Wong (2001).

Previous Studies

Except for studies of suspended sediment (Hill, 1996; 

Wong and Yeatts, 2002), no previous studies of water-quality 

effects of highway construction are known for Oahu or other 

similar central Pacific Islands. Investigations from the 

continental United States on the effects of highway 

construction on water quality (Parizek, 1971; Barrett and 

others, 1993) have detected increases in suspended solids and 

turbidity due to increased soil erosion caused by 

highway-construction activities. Once highway construction 

was completed, suspended-solids and turbidity values returned 

to ambient levels (Barrett and others, 1993). Other 

water-quality constituents such as nutrients, bacteria, oxygen 

demand, trace metals, and oil and grease monitored in these 

studies did not significantly change during highway 

construction (Barrett and others, 1993, 1995).

Previous studies on stream water quality in the 

H-3 Highway study area were done in the Kaneohe and Haiku 

Stream drainage area. The Kaneohe drainage area studies were 

done to determine the water-quality effects of urban Kaneohe 

town on Kaneohe Bay or the effects of constructing the 

Waimaluhia Reservoir, and included sampling at some stream 

sites that also were sampled as part of this study. Quan and 

others (1970) sampled for bacteria and nutrients in Kaneohe 

Stream, downstream from station 16274100, from February to 

April 1968. Cox and others (1973) collected samples for pH, 

nutrients, dissolved oxygen, and oxygen demand from 

September 1968 to April 1969 from Kamooalii Stream near 

currently discontinued station 16273900 (which was located 

on Kamooalii Stream about 50 ft upstream from the confluence 

with Kapunahala Stream) and from Haiku Stream at 

station 16275000. Cox and others (1973) concluded that total 

nitrogen concentrations in streams were greater than the State 

of Hawaii water-quality standards for coastal waters, and that 

sewage sources had the greatest effect on nutrient loading to 

Kaneohe Bay. As part of studies supporting the environmental 

impact statement for the Waimaluhia Reservoir, the U.S. Army 

Corps of Engineers (1975) collected biweekly samples for pH, 

dissolved oxygen, turbidity, nutrients, and fecal coliform at 

sites on Kamooalii Stream near station 16272200 and 

discontinued station 16273900 and on Kaneohe Stream 

downstream from station 16274100 from February 1972 to 

February 1973. Dugan (1977) collected monthly samples for 

nutrients from February 1974 to February 1975 at 

stations 16270900 and 16274100. Dugan (1977) also sampled 

for nutrients and turbidity of storm runoff at discontinued 

station 16273900 from November 1974 to March 1975. Dugan 

(1977) concluded that constituent concentrations were related 

to flow and not the time phase of the storm runoff, with 

increasing concentrations with increasing flow. Finally, 

AECOS, Inc. (1981), sampled for turbidity and nutrients 

upstream and downstream (near station 16272200) from the 

Waimaluhia Reservoir construction site during 1977–81.

Because of changes in land use in the upper Kaneohe 

drainage basin, especially the construction of the Hoomaluhia 
Data Collection and Statistical Analysis 9

botanical garden and Waimaluhia Reservoir during 1976–81, 

direct comparison of water-quality data from this study with 

data collected prior to 1981 for Kamooalii and Kaneohe 

Streams to detect changes associated with construction of the 

H-3 Highway cannot be made. Comparisons with previous data 

from stations 16270900 and 16275000, however, can be made 

because the only land-use change of significance in these 

basins during the time interval between studies is the 

construction of the H-3 Highway. More recent water-quality 

data were collected at station 16274100 by Brasher and 

Anthony (2000), who sampled for organochlorine pesticides in 

fish tissue and bed sediments in 1998. In the Haiku drainage 

area, Izuka and others (1993) sampled for polychlorinated 

biphenyls (PCBs) in Haiku Stream as part of a study on PCB 

transport.

The USGS collected water-quality data at some study 

stations in the past. These data include measurements of 

physical properties such as pH, temperature, and specific 

conductance and samples for major ions, except at 

station 16275000, where additional samples for nitrite plus 

nitrate nitrogen (NO2+NO3) were collected (Matsuoka, 1983). 

Data from sites along Kamooalii Stream were collected during 

1967–75 and 1967–77 at discontinued stations 16270500 

(which was located downstream from Waimaluhia Reservoir 

but upstream from Luluku Stream) and 16273900, and during 

1977–79 at station 16272200. Data also were collected at 

stations 16270900 and 16275000 during 1970–76 and 1970–

77. Because of the occurrence of multiple land-use changes in 

most basins, only data from stations 16270900 and 16275000 

can be used for comparison with current data to detect changes 

associated with construction of the H-3 Highway.

A statistical summary of hydrologic and water-quality 

data collected by the USGS in the H-3 Highway study area 

during water years 1983–89 was presented in Wong and Hill 

(1992). Wong and Young (2001) presented an updated 

statistical summary of hydrologic and water-quality data 

through water year 1999. These summary reports presented 

annual rainfall, streamflow, suspended-sediment loads, particle 

size, and concentrations, and water-quality data from 

streamflow and suspended-sediment gaging stations in the 

H-3 Highway study area.

Acknowledgements

The author gratefully acknowledges Harold Sexton, 

George Dayag, and Frank Romualdo, retired 

U.S. Geological Survey employees, for their assistance with 

data collection. The staff at the Hoomaluhia Botanical Garden, 

Department of Parks and Recreation, City and County of 

Honolulu, provided access to Waimaluhia Reservoir and boats 

used for field data collection. Start and end dates for 

construction activities were provided by Dennis Higa, Earl 

Kobataki, and Emilio Barroga, Jr. of the State of Hawaii 

Department of Transportation.

Data Collection and Statistical 

Analysis

To determine whether the State of Hawaii water-quality 

standards were exceeded before, during, or after construction 

of H-3 Highway, sample data from each time period were 

compared to the standards. In cases where the standards were 

exceeded during construction, sample data were compared 

between time periods by simple statistical tests. The results of 

these comparisons were used to determine if any exceedence of 

the standards could be attributed to highway construction. 

Additional comparisons were made between upstream and 

downstream locations and with previous water-quality data 

collected at selected stations.

The State of Hawaii water-quality standards specific to 

streams are presented in table 3 (State of Hawaii Department of 

Health, 2000). The standards use the geometric mean for 

selected constituents (table 3). The geometric mean is 

computed by taking the logarithms of the data set, determining 

the mean of the logarithms, and then back transforming the 

mean of the logarithms to the original units. Geometric means 

are used to reduce the effects of outliers on the mean value of a 

data set. The geometric mean is an estimate of the median when 

the logarithms of the data are symmetric. Additional properties 

of the geometric mean as used for water-quality standards can 

be found in Landwehr (1978). Natural (base e) logarithms were 

used throughout this report. Data from Waimaluhia Reservoir 

station RES 1-3, were compared to these stream standards 

(table 3), although they are not applicable to lakes and 

reservoirs. The State of Hawaii does not have similar standards 

for lakes and reservoirs.

The State of Hawaii water-quality standards also include 

concentration values that should not be exceeded more than 10- 

and 2-percent-of-the-time (table 3). Values to compare to these 

exceedence criteria were computed as the 90th and 98th 

percentiles, which are equivalent to the 10- and 2-percent 

exceedence. Percentiles were computed by assuming no 

statistical distribution and by using only the instantaneous 

water-quality data collected. Each sample was assumed to 

represent an equal period of time. Percentiles were computed 

by ranking the data from lowest to highest in value and then 

dividing the rank by the total number of samples (Iman and 

Conover, 1983). Values for the 90th and 98th percentiles were 

interpolated when necessary because of sample size between 

the given percentages assigned to each data point. Percentiles 

were only computed when sample size was greater than five 

values.

The State of Hawaii water-quality standards for physical 

properties—pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and specific 

conductance—are given as numeric values or ranges not to be 

exceeded (table 3). The standard for specific conductance is 

listed in units of micromhos per centimeter. During this study, 

specific conductance was measured in units of microsiemens 
10 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

per centimeter. Both of these units are numerically equivalent 

(Hem, 1985).

The final aspect of the State of Hawaii water-quality 

standards, called basic standards, are standards for trace metals 

and organic chemical compounds that are applicable to all 

surface waters, fresh and salt, in the State. These standards list 

numeric values for acute and chronic conditions that are not to 

be exceeded (State of Hawaii Department of Health, 2000). 

Table 4 lists the trace metals and organic compounds that were 

analyzed during this study. Only those constituents with State 

water-quality standards were further analyzed for this report.

Water-Quality Data Collection

Water-quality measurements and samples were collected 

at the following 12 stream- water-quality stations: 16226200, 

16227100, 16265600, 16265700, 16266500, 16267500, 

16269500, 16270900, 16272200, 16273950, 16274100, and 

16275000 (table 2), and at various depths at 2 sites in 

Waimaluhia Reservoir (figs. 1 and 2). Measurements of 

physical properties such as streamflow, water temperature, 

specific conductance, pH, and dissolved oxygen were made in 

the field. In addition, samples were collected and subsequently 

analyzed for inorganic constituents such as turbidity, total 

suspended solids, major ions, nutrients, and trace metals; 

biological constituents such as fecal coliform bacteria; and 

organic constituents such as total organic carbon, oil and 

grease, pesticides, and polychlorinated compounds. All field 

measurements and samples for chemical constituent analyses 

were collected, processed, and treated according to guidelines 

in Ward and Harr (1990), Sylvester and others (1990), and 

Shelton (1994). Direct measurements of streamflow were 

made using standard practices for current-meter measurements 

(Rantz and others, 1982).

Stream-sample collection was done using an equal-width 

increment method when flow conditions (stream widths 

greater than 3 ft and depths greater than 0.5 ft) permitted. 

Otherwise, dip samples were collected at the centroid of 

streamflow. Inorganic samples were collected using a DH–81 

sampler with 1-L polyethylene bottles when depths were 

greater than 0.5 ft. An open-mouth polyethylene bottle was 

used to collect samples from shallower depths. A churn splitter 

(Ward and Harr, 1990) was used to composite and split all 

inorganic samples. Samples for fecal coliform bacteria and 

organic constituents were collected directly into sterile 

(bacteria) or baked (organic) glass containers by dip sampling 

at the centroid of streamflow.

Samples from Waimaluhia Reservoir were collected 

using a modified vertical configuration Van Dorn sampler until 

1995; after which, a standard horizontal configuration Van 

Dorn sampler was used (Ward and Harr, 1990). Reservoir 

measurements for physical properties and sampling for 

turbidity, total suspended solids, nutrients, and fecal coliform 

bacteria were done by depth at RES 1-3 and 3-2 (fig. 2). In 

addition, at RES 1-3, the primary reservoir sampling site, 

samples were collected at various depths and then composited 

for analysis of major ions, trace metal, and organic 

constituents. All other samples, except those for major ions 

and trace metals, were collected directly into sample bottles 

using the Van Dorn sampler. Major-ion and trace-metal 

Table 3. State of Hawaii water-quality standards specific for streams.

[mg/L, milligrams per liter; NTU, Nephelometric Turbidity Unit; standards listed in Hawaii Administrative Rules, Title 11, Chapter 54, Section 5.2, dated 

April 4, 2000; wet season is from November 1 to April 30 and dry season is from May 1 to October 31; ambient conditions are conditions that would occur 

in the receiving waters if these waters were not influenced by the proposed new human activity]

Property or constituent Season

Geometric mean not to 

exceed the given 

value

Not to exceed the given value 

more than 10 percent of the 

time

Not to exceed the given value 

more than 2 

percent of the time

Total nitrogen (mg/L as N) wet 0.25 0.52 0.80

dry 0.18 0.38 0.60

Nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen wet 0.07 0.18 0.30

(mg/L as N) dry 0.03 0.09 0.17

Total phosphorus (mg/L as P) wet 0.05 0.10 0.15

dry 0.03 0.06 0.08

Total suspended solids (mg/L) wet 20 50 80

dry 10 30 55

Turbidity (NTU) wet 5.0 15.0 25.0

dry 2.0 5.5 10.0

pH units Shall not deviate more than 0.5 units from ambient conditions and shall not be lower than 

5.5 nor higher than 8.0

Dissolved oxygen Not less than 80 percent saturation, determined as a function of ambient water temperature 

and barometric pressure

Temperature Shall not vary more than 1 degree Celsius from ambient conditions

Specific conductance Not more than 300 micromhos per centimeter
Data Collection and Statistical Analysis 11

samples were composited in a churn splitter. The composite for 

organic constituents at RES 1-3 was done by filling part of each 

organic sample bottle from samples collected at the various 

depths in equal proportions based on the number of different 

depths sampled. Measurements for only physical properties 

(pH, dissolved oxygen, temperature, specific conductance) 

were done by depth at 10 other reservoir sites, although these 

data are not summarized in this report.

Water-quality samples at stream sites were collected, on 

average, 10 times per year. Sampling dates were equally 

divided between wet (October to April) and dry (May to 

September) seasons. Measurements of streamflow, water 

temperature, specific conductance, pH, and dissolved oxygen 

and samples for turbidity and total suspended solids were 

collected for all 10 of the sampling dates during a water year. 

Samples for nutrients and fecal coliform bacteria were 

collected during 4 of the 10 sampling dates, approximately 

quarterly, twice during the wet season and twice during the dry 

season. Samples for major ions, trace metals, and organic 

constituents were collected during 2 of the 10 sampling dates, 

approximately semiannually, once during the wet season and 

once during the dry season. At Waimaluhia Reservoir, 

measurements of water temperature, specific conductance, pH, 

and dissolved oxygen and samples for turbidity, nutrients, and 

fecal coliform bacteria were collected four times per year, 

approximately quarterly; and samples for major ions, trace 

metals, and organic constituents were collected during two of 

Table 4. Trace metals and organic compounds analyzed at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, 

February 1983 to August 1999.

[μg/L, microgram per liter; *, State of Hawaii water-quality standard exists for this constituent; diss., dissolved]

Trace metal constituent

Original minimum

 reporting level 

(μg/L)

Revised minimum

 reporting level, 

December 1997

(μg/L) Organic constituent

Minimum

reporting level

(μg/L)

Aluminum, total and diss.* 28 total, 10 diss. 28 total, 10 diss. Aldrin * 0.01

Arsenic, total and diss.* 1 1 Chlordane * 0.1

Barium, total and diss. 100 total, 2 diss. 1 total, 2 diss. Chlorpyrifos * 0.01

Beryllium, total and diss.* 10 total, 0.5 diss. 5 total, 1 diss. DDD 0.01

Cadmium, total and diss.* 1 1 total, 8 diss. DDE * 0.01

Chromium, total and diss.* 1 1 total, 14 diss. DDT * 0.01

Cobalt, total and diss. 1 total, 3 diss. 1 total, 12 diss. DEF 0.01

Copper, total and diss.* 1 1 total, 10 diss. Diazinon 0.01

Iron, total and diss. 10 total, 3 diss. 14 total, 10 diss. Dieldrin * 0.01

Lead, total and diss.* 1 1 total, 100 diss. Disulfoton 0.01

Lithium, total and diss. 10 total, 4 diss. 10 total, 4 diss. Endosulfan-alpha * 0.01

Manganese, total and diss. 1 3 total, 4 diss. Endrin * 0.01

Mercury, total and diss.* 0.1 0.1 Ethion 0.01

Molybdenum, total and diss. 1 total, 10 diss. 1 total, 60 diss. Fonofos 0.01

Nickel, total and diss.* 1 1 total, 40 diss. Heptachlor * 0.01

Selenium, total and diss.* 1 1 Heptachlor epoxide 0.01

Silver, total and diss.* 1 1 total, 4 diss. Lindane * 0.01

Strontium, diss. 0.5 1 Malathion * 0.01

Vanadium, diss. 6 10 Methyl-Parathion 0.01

Zinc, total and diss.* 10 total, 3 diss. 40 total, 20 diss. Methoxychlor * 0.01

Mirex * 0.01

Parathion * 0.01

Perthane 0.1

Phorate 0.01

PCB * 0.1

PCN 0.1

Toxaphene * 1

Trithion 

(carbophenothion)

0.01

2,4-D * 0.01

2,4-DP (dichlorprop) 0.01

2,4,5-T 0.01

Silvex (2,4,5-TP) 0.01
12 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

the four sampling dates, approximately semiannually. Sample 

dates were not always equally spaced in time.

Samples for major ions, nutrients, and trace metals that 

were required to be filtered prior to laboratory analysis were 

filtered at the field site using a 0.45-μm pore-size plate filter 

prior to water year 1995. Starting in water year 1995, a 

0.45-μm pore-size capsule filter was used and sample filtering 

was done in the office following the filtering protocol in 

Horowitz and others (1994). Sample filtering for nutrient 

samples on sampling dates when only the nutrient samples 

required filtering continued to be filtered at the field site.

Starting in water year 1995, samples for inorganic 

constituents such as major ions, nutrients, and trace metals 

were collected and processed using the part per billion protocol 

in Horowitz and others (1994). This protocol uses cleaner 

techniques than previous methods and provides for accurate, 

quality-assured, inorganic data at lower concentration levels. 

Beginning in water year 1997, because of the use of the part per 

billion protocol, quality-assurance field-blank samples for 

trace metals were processed twice a year. Prior to water year 

1997, no field quality-assurance samples were collected. All 

personnel responsible for field data collection participated 

annually in the USGS National Field Quality Assurance 

(NFQA) Program during the study period (Stanley and others, 

1998). The NFQA Program checks the proficiency of 

personnel making pH and specific-conductance 

measurements.

Samples for trace-metal analysis were preserved with 

nonultrapure nitric acid until water year 1995, when the use of 

ultrapure nitric acid was started. Prior to October 1994, 

samples for nutrient analyses were preserved with mercuric 

chloride and then chilled to 4oC. After October 1994, nutrient 

samples were preserved only by chilling (U.S. Geological 

Survey, 1994). Starting in January 1999, nutrient samples for 

total ammonia and organic nitrogen and total phosphorus were 

preserved with sulfuric acid and then chilled (U.S. Geological 

Survey, 1998b). Only data collection at stations 16226200 and 

16274100 were affected by this change because data collection 

ended at all the other stations prior to January 1999 (table 2).

The methods used for the analysis of all the water-quality 

properties and constituents followed those in Wershaw and 

others (1987), Britton and Greeson (1989), Fishman and 

Friedman (1989), Patton and Truitt (1992), and Fishman 

(1993). All laboratory analyses were conducted by the 

U.S. Geological Survey’s National Water Quality Laboratory 

(NWQL) in Colorado. Quality-assurance practices at NWQL 

are documented in Friedman and Erdmann (1982) and Pritt and 

Rease (1992). In January 1993, laboratory analysis for 

unfiltered NO2+NO3 nitrogen was discontinued, and only 

filtered NO2+NO3 was analyzed after that date, because values 

for unfiltered and filtered NO2+NO3 nitrogen were statistically 

indistinguishable (U.S. Geological Survey, 1992).

Statistical Analysis

Water-quality constituents that are not detected in a 

sample are commonly reported to be below the minimum 

reporting level. The minimum reporting level is the smallest 

measured concentration of a constituent that can be reliably 

reported by using a given analytical method (Childress and 

others, 1999). This means that the actual concentration can be 

anywhere from zero to the minimum reporting level. A 

concentration less than the minimum reporting level does not 

mean that the constituents are not present in the sample. 

Minimum reporting levels can change over time because of 

improved laboratory techniques or as a result of refinements in 

the analytical methods used.

During this study, minimum reporting levels for several 

constituents changed. The minimum reporting level for 

(NO2+NO3) nitrogen changed from 0.10 to 0.05 mg/L in April 

1991 due to changes in laboratory method. The minimum 

reporting level for ammonia and organic nitrogen decreased 

from 0.20 to 0.10 mg/L in November 1997, and values from 

0.05 to 0.10 mg/L were reported as estimates starting in 

October 1998 because of changes in laboratory method and 

new reporting procedures (U.S. Geological Survey, 1997a, 

1998a). Total nitrogen values used in this report were 

computed by adding the concentrations of NO2+NO3 nitrogen, 

ammonia, and organic nitrogen. The minimum reporting level 

for total phosphorus changed from 0.01 to 0.05 mg/L in 

October 1998, although values between 0.03 and 0.05 mg/L 

may be reported as estimates (U.S. Geological Survey, 1998a). 

The minimum reporting level for total suspended solids was 

raised from 1 to 10 mg/L in April 2000 (U.S. Geological 

Survey, 2000). This change only affected total 

suspended-solids data collected at station 16226200 because 

data collection ended earlier at all the other stations (table 1). 

The changes to the minimum reporting levels for total 

phosphorus and total suspended solids were due to new 

reporting procedures based on statistical and quality-assurance 

analyses (Childress and others, 1999). Constituents with 

variable minimum reporting levels were analyzed in this report 

using the minimum reporting level applicable at the time the 

samples were originally collected. Constituents reported as 

estimates were used at the reported value. The changes in 

minimum reporting levels mostly occurred during the afterconstruction data-collection period at all stations (table 1).

Methods for computing summary statistics such as the 

geometric mean when data are reported as less than the 

minimum reporting level, commonly called censored data, are 

summarized in Helsel (1990). The method recommended by 

Helsel (1990) for computing means is log-probability 

regression. This method requires at least three detected 

observations not having the same value and can be used on data 

sets with up to 80 percent censored data, but error and bias 

increase when more than 60 percent of the data set is censored 
Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 13

data (Gilliom and Helsel, 1986). The log-probability method is 

robust, easy to compute with standard statistics software, can 

be used with multiple minimum reporting levels (Helsel and 

Cohn, 1988), and is ideal for computing geometric means 

(Travis and Land, 1990). In this study, log-probability 

regression was used when censored data did not constitute 

more than 60 percent of the data set for data sets greater than 

10 values and more than 50 percent for data sets with 5 to 

10 values. Where log-probability regression could not be used 

because of the above limitations, a simple substitution method 

of using one-half the minimum reporting level was used. 

Compared to other simple substitution methods (Helsel and 

Gilliom, 1986; Helsel, 1990), this substitution method 

provided the lowest error and bias in computing sample means 

and also provided a lower error than log-probability regression 

when samples sizes were small (less than 10 samples)(Clarke, 

1998).

Although useful, the comparison of geometric means with 

water-quality standards cannot be used to infer the effects of 

highway construction at the study stations. It was assumed, 

however, that at stations where the geometric mean did not 

exceed the water-quality standards, the effects of highway 

construction were negligible. At stations where the geometric 

mean did exceed the water-quality standards, a rank-sum test 

was conducted to determine if there were any significant 

differences between the before-, during-, and afterconstruction data sets.

The rank-sum test, also known as the Wilcoxon-MannWhitney rank-sum test, is a nonparametric hypothesis test used 

to compare two independent sample sets for differences (Iman 

and Conover, 1983; Helsel and Hirsh, 1992). The rank-sum test 

was used to compare seasonal data sets between the time 

periods before and during, during and after, and before and 

after. The null hypothesis was no difference between time 

periods and was tested with a significance level of α=0.10. 

Because all rank-sum tests in this study were computed as twosided, the actual test statistic was α/2=0.05, so a p-value less 

than 0.05 is needed to reject the null hypothesis. The rank-sum 

test is valid for all sample sizes and distributions but does 

assume that both sample sets are random samples of their 

respective populations (Iman and Conover, 1983).

To compare data sets at one station over two different time 

periods requires the assumption that variations in rainfall and 

streamflow are similar for both time periods. The small data 

sets in this study prevented the use of more rigorous statistical 

methods such as analysis of covariance to account for this 

variation. Therefore, an assumption was made that if the stream 

discharges associated with the water-quality samples were 

similar, then any variation in rainfall between the two time 

periods tested would have a minimal effect on the rank-sum test 

results. Thus, stream discharge between time periods, but not 

by season, also were tested using the rank-sum test with a null 

hypothesis of no difference in stream discharge. Where 

discharges were found to be significantly different, no ranksum test on the water-quality constituent was done.

Another problem that would affect the interpretation of 

the rank-sum test between time periods is the change in 

minimum reporting levels for certain constituents. Most of 

these changes occurred to the sample data in the 

after-construction time period. Differences were checked 

visually using time-series plots of the data and if there appeared 

to be a noticeable difference in the data due to the change in the 

minimum reporting level, then no rank-sum test was done. 

Such differences were more easily seen in data sets with large 

numbers of values below the minimum reporting levels.

In addition to comparing the data between time periods, 

total nitrogen, NO2+NO3 nitrogen, phosphorus, total 

suspended solids (TSS), and turbidity data between two pairs 

of stations also were compared using the rank-sum test. 

Stations 16227100 Halawa Stream and 16274100 Kaneohe 

Stream were established in 1988 at sites near the mouth of each 

stream downstream from the urban areas (figs. 1 and 2). The 

upstream sites, stations 16226200 on North Halawa Stream and 

16272200 on Kamooalii Stream, are upstream from the urban 

areas and downstream from the area affected by highway 

construction. The purpose of comparisons at station 16226200 

with 16227100 and station 16272200 with 16274100, using the 

during-construction data sets, was to determine if the waterquality effects from the H-3 Highway construction were any 

different from the existing urban effects.

Because of differences in streamflow between the two 

sampling locations, this comparison was done using 

instantaneous constituent loads and not concentration data, 

because concentration data may be affected by inflows and 

outflows between locations. Constituent loads were computed 

by multiplying the concentration data in milligrams per liter 

with its corresponding instantaneous discharge in cubic feet per 

second and by a conversion factor of 5.394 to convert all units 

into pounds per day. The rank-sum test was computed 

comparing the load data except for turbidity, because turbidity 

data are not reported in a concentration unit. The basic 

hypothesis was no difference between loads or turbidity at 

sampling locations and this was tested with a significance level 

of α/2=0.05.

Data sets were tested first using all the data collected 

during the construction time period, and then by using wet- and 

dry-season data sets. Because this was a test between data at 

different locations during a similar time period, the rainfall 

variations and changes in minimum reporting levels were 

assumed to be the same at both locations and would have no 

effect on the interpretation of these rank-sum test results.

Water Quality Before, During, and 

After Highway Construction

Nitrogen.—Geometric mean values for total nitrogen 

ranged from 0.14 mg/L at station 16267500 after construction, 

wet season, to 0.89 mg/L at station 16265600 during 
14 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

construction, dry season. This dry-season maximum value is 

almost five times higher than the State of Hawaii standard of 

0.18 mg/L (table 3). The State of Hawaii standards for total 

nitrogen geometric means were exceeded at almost all stations 

both before and during construction (table 5). The only 

exception was at station 16267500 where the wet-season, 

during-construction geometric mean value was below 

standards. After construction, the total nitrogen geometric 

means exceeded the standards at most stations except the 

wet-season geometric means at stations 16226200, 16267500, 

16273950, and 16275000. Dry-season after-construction 

geometric means also were below standards at 

stations 16266500 and 16267500. At the majority of sites 

where the geometric mean standards were exceeded, the 10- 

and 2-percent-of-the-time exceedence values also were 

exceeded (table 5). 

Table 5. Total nitrogen at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99.

[--, no data; mg/L, milligrams per liter; e, value estimated by log-probability regression; h, value estimated by one-half minimum reporting limit 

substitution; minimum reporting limits for total nitrogen were determined by the addition of minimum reporting limits for nitrite plus nitrate 

nitrogen, ammonia, and organic nitrogen and changed from 0.30 to 0.25 mg/L in 1992 and to 0.15 mg/L in 1997; shaded values exceeded the 

State of Hawaii water-quality standards in table 3]

Station

Construction 

period Season

Number of 

samples

Number of 

samples 

greater than 

minimum 

reporting 

level

Geometric mean 

(mg/L)

Concentration (mg/L) exceeded

10 percent of the 

time

2 percent of the 

time

16226200 before wet 1 0 -- -- --

dry 6 0 h0.46 h0.85 h0.85

during wet 18 2 h0.26 h0.87 h2.6

dry 15 2 h0.27 h1.0 h1.7

after wet 8 4 e0.21 0.94 0.99

dry 1 0 -- -- --

16227100 during wet 17 6 h0.32 0.63 0.69

dry 13 5 h0.51 1.0 3.4

16265600 during wet 18 10 e0.80 1.2 1.8

dry 20 16 e0.89 1.3 3.6

after wet 12 1 h0.59 h0.69 h0.90

dry 7 0 h0.49 h0.59 h0.60

16265700 before wet 5 5 0.80 1.2 1.3

dry 6 5 e0.56 0.70 0.70

during wet 7 2 h0.43 0.94 1.2

dry 7 4 e0.52 0.83 0.89

after wet 10 0 h0.40 h0.48 h0.62

dry 5 0 h0.48 h0.68 h0.69

16266500 before wet 5 1 h0.26 h0.52 h0.66

dry 5 0 h0.20 h0.30 h0.34

during wet 7 1 h0.28 h0.49 h0.66

dry 7 3 h0.29 0.66 0.77

after wet 7 1 h0.26 h0.39 h0.58

dry 6 0 h0.17 h0.21 h0.22

16267500 before wet 5 0 h0.33 h0.55 h0.55

dry 6 1 h0.26 h0.57 h0.71

during wet 7 2 h0.24 0.53 0.59

dry 7 0 h0.22 h0.44 h0.61

after wet 10 0 h0.14 h0.19 h0.20

dry 6 0 h0.17 h0.24 h0.33
Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 15

Table 5. Total nitrogen at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99.—Continued

[--, no data; mg/L, milligrams per liter; e, value estimated by log-probability regression; h, value estimated by one-half minimum reporting limit 

substitution; minimum reporting limits for total nitrogen were determined by the addition of minimum reporting limits for nitrite and nitrate 

nitrogen and ammonia and organic nitrogen and changed from 0.30 to 0.25 mg/L in 1992 and to 0.15 mg/L in 1997; shaded values exceeded the 

State of Hawaii water-quality standards listed in table 3]

Station

Construction 

period Season

Number of 

samples

Number of 

samples 

greater than 

minimum 

reporting 

level

Geometric mean 

(mg/L)

Concentration (mg/L) exceeded

10 percent of the 

time

2 percent of the 

time

16269500 before wet 5 4 e0.68 1.2 1.5

dry 5 1 h0.52 h2.6 h4.5

during wet 7 2 h0.50 0.70 0.70

dry 7 3 h0.47 0.83 1.3

after wet 10 2 h0.41 h0.53 h0.59

dry 5 0 h0.37 h0.45 h0.51

16270900 before wet 10 6 e0.71 1.1 1.9

dry 9 1 h0.35 h0.58 h1.64

during wet 12 3 h0.36 0.50 0.58

dry 12 4 h0.28 0.40 0.55

after wet 7 0 h0.26 0.31 0.33

dry 2 0 -- -- --

16272200 during wet 20 11 e0.56 0.80 1.1

dry 25 16 e0.53 0.80 1.3

after wet 7 3 h0.47 0.53 0.55

dry 2 1 -- -- --

16273950 before wet 1 1 -- -- --

dry 8 0 h0.35 h0.68 h0.82

during wet 12 2 h0.37 h0.78 3.65

dry 12 2 h0.24 h0.62 0.78

after wet 7 0 h0.17 h0.20 h0.22

dry 2 0 -- -- --

16274100 during wet 13 5 h0.62 0.87 0.98

dry 12 9 e0.54 0.77 0.88

after wet 7 4 e0.48 0.54 0.60

dry 3 3 0.54 -- --

16275000 before wet 3 0 h0.33 -- --

dry 8 0 h0.27 h0.57 h0.63

during wet 11 3 h0.27 0.40 0.48

dry 10 0 h0.22 h0.27 h0.57

after wet 8 0 h0.18 h0.22 h0.23

dry 4 0 h0.19 -- --

RES 1-3 during wet 30 23 e0.74 1.1 1.3

dry 45 44 e0.71 1.2 1.4

after wet 13 0 h0.51 h0.57 h0.59

dry 6 2 h0.56 0.84 0.85
16 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Rank-sum test p-value results comparing geometric 

means between construction time periods for total nitrogen are 

shown in table 6. Rank-sum tests could not be computed 

because of small sample size, n<5, in one of the construction or 

seasonal time periods at stations 16226200, 16270900, 

16272200, 16273950, 16274100, and 16275000. The changes 

in the minimum reporting level for total nitrogen were most 

obvious at station 16267500 as shown in figure 4, so no ranksum test was done comparing the after-construction data with 

the other two time periods at this station. Rank-sum tests could 

not be computed because streamflow values associated with 

the total nitrogen samples were significantly different between 

some of the construction time periods at stations 16269500, 

16270900, and 16275000. At station 16275000, for example, 

the difference in the before- and during-construction 

discharges was significant with a p-value of 0.01. Beforeconstruction discharges were lower (fig. 5C). Results were 

similar at stations 16269500 and 16270900 except that at 

station 16269500, the after-construction discharges were 

significantly lower than the before-construction discharges. 

Also, because no before-construction data were collected at 

stations 16227100, 16265600, 16272200, and 16274100, 

comparisons with before-construction data could obviously not 

be made. Where the rank-sum test was computed, only 

stations 16265600, 16265700, 16270900, 16273950, and 

16275000 had statistically significant differences between 

comparisons with the after-construction time period (table 6).

At all five stations where statistically significant 

differences in total nitrogen were found, the geometric means 

were lower after construction than either before or during 

construction (tables 5 and 6). This may be, in part, due to the 

lower minimum reporting levels for total nitrogen (0.25 mg/L 

starting in April 1991 and 0.15 mg/L in November 1997) that 

affected the after-construction data at most sites (table 1). 

However, time-series plots of the total nitrogen data show that 

the effect of lower minimum reporting levels is minimal 

(fig. 5). In figure 5, total nitrogen concentrations are mostly 

above the minimum reporting level at stations 16265700 and 

16270900, while at station 16275000, concentrations are 

mostly below the minimum reporting level; yet in both cases, 

the after-construction concentrations are significantly lower 

than the before- or during-construction concentrations. The 

lower after-construction concentrations may be due to a 

decrease in land disturbance after highway construction or 

land-use change because land-use prior to construction 

upstream from these stations was not pristine.

Of the two major components of total nitrogen, standards 

exist only for NO2+NO3 nitrogen (table 3). The lowest 

NO2+NO3 nitrogen geometric mean was at station 16267500 

after construction, dry season, with a value of 0.04 mg/L; the 

highest geometric mean was at station 16265600 during 

construction, dry season, with a value of 0.50 mg/L (table 7). 

The geometric mean standards at all sites and during all time 

periods were exceeded except for before construction, wet 

season, at stations 16266500, 16267500, and 16275000 and 

after construction, wet season, at stations 16226200 and 

16267500 (table 7). The 10- and 2-percent-of-the-time 

exceedence values were not exceeded as often for total nitrogen 

(table 5). Stations 16267500 and 16275000 had no exceedence 

of the 2-percent-of-the-time exceedence value. Stations 

16226200, 16266500, 16267500, and 16275000 had the least 

amount of developed land prior to highway construction.

Figure 4. Total nitrogen concentrations at station 16267500, February 1983 to 

January 1998, Oahu, Hawaii.

Station 16267500

0.00

0.10

0.20

0.30

0.40

0.50

0.60

0.70

0.80

DATE

TOTAL NITROGEN, IN MILLIGRAMS PER LITER

1983 1984 1985

Begin construction, June 1989

End construction, June 1992

1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

Note: values less than minimum reporting level plotted using one-half substitution method

 0.30 mg/L

0.25 mg/L

0.15 mg/L

Minimum reporting level

BEFORE DURING AFTER
Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 17

Table 6. Rank-sum test p-value results comparing selected water-quality constituents and turbidity between highway construction time 

periods in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99.

[Shaded values represent significant results with p-values less than 0.05; wet season is from November 1 to April 30 and dry 

season is from May 1 to October 31; --, no test done]

Station Construction periods Season Total nitrogen

Nitrite plus 

nitrate nitrogen

Total 

phosphorus Turbidity

16226200 before and during dry 0.19 1 -- --

during and after wet 0.89 0.23 -- 0.25

16265600 during and after wet 0.06 0.93 -- --

dry 0.00 0.03 -- --

16265700 before and during wet 0.12 0.86 -- 0.02

dry 0.56 0.55 0.94 0.05

during and after wet 0.59 0.24 -- --

dry 1 0.62 0.59 --

before and after wet 0.02 0.11 -- --

dry 0.52 0.29 0.38 --

16266500 before and during wet 0.68 0.05 -- --

dry 0.31 0.03 -- --

during and after wet 0.80 0.52 -- --

dry 0.17 0.17 -- --

before and after wet 0.68 0.01 -- --

dry 0.64 0.39 -- --

16267500 before and during wet 0.48 0.13 -- 0.01

dry 0.66 0.49 -- 0.02

16269500 before and during wet 0.25 0.57 -- --

dry 1 0.80 -- --

during and after wet 0.20 0.10 -- --

dry 0.41 0.68 -- --

16270900 during and after wet 0.04 0.13 -- --

before and after wet 0.00 0.03 -- --

16272200 during and after wet 0.40 0.05 -- --

16273950 before and during dry 0.45 0.14 -- 0.97

during and after wet 0.02 0.15 -- --

dry -- -- -- 0.75

before and after dry -- -- -- 0.88

16274100 during and after wet 0.07 0.02 -- --

16275000 during and after wet 0.01 0.06 -- --
18 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway ConstructionFigure 5. Total nitrogen concentrations and instantaneous discharges at (

A) station 16265700, February 1983 to January 1998; and (

B) station 16270900, February 1983 to 

January 1998; and (

C) station 16275000, April 1983 to February 1998, Oahu, Hawaii.

Station 16265700

1.000.100.01

10.00

100.00

OND CES FEET PER C UBI C E, IN G HAR SC DI S TANTANEOU S PER LITER, AND IN S RAM G EN, IN MILLI G TOTAL NITRO

OND CES FEET PER C UBI C E, IN G HAR SC DI S TANTANEOU S PER LITER, AND IN S RAM G EN, IN MILLI G TOTAL NITRO

TOTAL NITROGEN, IN MILLIGRAMS PER LITERINSTANTANEOUS DISCHARGE, IN CUBIC FEET 

 PER SECOND

Station 16270900

1.000.10

10.00

100.00

Station 16275000

0.10

1.0

10.0

100.0

A

B

C

tion, June 1989 cur onst c Begin 

tion, June 1992 cur onst c End 

 1988 r tobe c tion, O cur onst c Begin 

 1994 r tion, Novembe cur onst c End 

 0.30 mg/L 0.25 mg/L

0.15 mg/L

minimum reporting level

Median discharge = 1.4 ft3/s Median discharge = 0.83 ft3/s

Median discharge 

= 1.4 ft3/s 0.30 mg/L 0.25 mg/L 0.15 mg/L

Minimum reporting level

Median discharge = 1.5 ft3/s Median discharge

= 1.9 ft3/s

Median discharge = 1.9 ft3/s

Median discharge = 0.74 ft3/s Median discharge

= 1.2 ft3/s

Median discharge = 1.2 ft3/s

DATE

1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

DATE

1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

Note: values less than minimum reporting level plotted using one-half substitution method

DATE

1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

tion, June 1989 cur onst c Begin 

 1995 r embe c tion, De cur onst c End 

 0.30 mg/L

0.25 mg/L

0.15 mg/L

Minimum reporting level

BEFORE DURING AFTER BEFORE DURING AFTER

BEFORE DURING AFTER

EXPLANATION
Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 19

Table 7. Total nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99.

[--, no data; mg/L, milligrams per liter; e, value estimated by log-probability regression; h, value estimated by one-half minimum reporting limit 

substitution; minimum reporting levels for nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen were changed from 0.10 to 0.05 mg/L in 1992; <, actual value is less than 

value shown; shaded values represent total nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen values that have exceeded the State of Hawaii water-quality standards 

listed in table 3]

Station

Construction 

period Season

Number of 

samples

Number

 of samples 

greater than 

minimum 

reporting 

level

Geometric 

mean (mg/L)

Concentration (mg/L) exceeded

10 percent of 

the time

2 percent of 

the time

16226200 before wet 1 0 -- -- --

dry 6 0 h0.05 <0.10 <0.10

during wet 18 11 e0.08 0.18 0.19

dry 15 5 h0.06 0.10 0.74

after wet 8 4 e0.05 0.12 0.13

dry 1 0 -- -- --

16227100 during wet 17 7 e0.13 0.29 0.30

dry 13 5 h0.08 0.39 2.2

16265600 during wet 18 18 0.44 0.60 0.67

dry 20 20 e0.50 0.60 1.8

after wet 12 12 0.48 0.54 0.59

dry 7 7 0.39 0.49 0.50

16265700 before wet 5 5 0.24 0.30 0.30

dry 6 6 0.24 0.30 0.30

during wet 7 7 0.26 0.44 0.73

dry 7 7 0.28 0.53 0.59

after wet 9 9 0.30 0.38 0.52

dry 5 5 0.37 0.58 0.59

16266500 before wet 5 2 h0.06 0.10 0.10

dry 5 0 h0.05 <0.10 <0.10

during wet 7 6 e0.16 0.30 0.30

dry 7 5 e0.12 0.26 0.37

after wet 8 8 0.13 0.18 0.20

dry 6 4 e0.08 0.11 0.12

16267500 before wet 5 0 h0.05 <0.10 <0.10

dry 6 2 h0.06 0.10 0.10

during wet 7 3 h0.10 0.23 0.29

dry 7 1 h0.06 h0.06 h0.09

after wet 10 7 e0.06 0.09 0.10

dry 6 3 h0.04 0.06 0.07

16269500 before wet 5 4 e0.21 0.80 1.0

dry 5 3 h0.24 2.2 3.7

during wet 7 7 0.34 0.50 0.50

dry 7 7 0.24 0.41 0.64

after wet 10 10 0.26 0.36 0.47

dry 5 5 0.27 0.35 0.41
20 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Rank-sum test comparisons between construction time 

periods were done for the same stations and seasons as with 

total nitrogen because both constituents were sampled with the 

same conditions. Rank-sum results were statistically 

significant at stations 16265600, 16266500, 16270900, and 

16274100 (table 6). At three of the stations, NO2+NO3

nitrogen geometric means were lower after construction 

(table 7). At station 16266500, NO2+NO3 nitrogen geometric 

means were lower before construction than during and after 

construction (table 7). The change in the minimum reporting 

level from 0.10 to 0.05 mg/L in April 1991 did not evidently 

affect the lower after-construction geometric means. At 

station 16266500, all the before-construction concentrations 

were less than the minimum reporting level (fig. 6A) and at 

station 16274100, all sample concentrations were greater than 

the higher minimum reporting level (fig. 6B).

Table 7. Total nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99—

Continued

[--, no data; mg/L, milligrams per liter; e, value estimated by log-probability regression; h, value estimated by minimum reporting limit 

substitution; minimum reporting levels for nitrite and nitrate nitrogen were changed from 0.10 to 0.05 mg/L in 1992; <, actual value is less than 

reported value; shaded values represent total nitrite and nitrate nitrogen values that have exceeded the State of Hawaii water-quality standards 

listed in table 3]

Station

Construction 

period Season

Number of 

samples

Number

 of samples 

greater than 

the minimum 

reporting 

level

Geometric 

mean (mg/L)

Concentration (mg/L) exceeded

10 percent of the 

time

2 percent of the 

time

16270900 before wet 10 9 e0.31 0.60 1.2

dry 9 4 h0.11 0.35 0.79

during wet 12 12 0.21 0.35 0.39

dry 12 11 e0.12 0.16 0.19

after wet 7 7 0.17 0.21 0.23

dry 2 2 -- -- --

16272200 during wet 20 19 e0.29 0.40 0.40

dry 25 23 e0.24 0.36 0.56

after wet 7 7 0.35 0.38 0.40

dry 2 2 -- -- --

16273950 before wet 1 1 -- -- --

dry 8 0 h0.05 <0.10 <0.10

during wet 12 9 e0.14 0.58 3.4

dry 12 6 e0.05 0.11 0.48

after wet 7 6 e0.09 0.12 0.13

dry 2 2 -- -- --

16274100 during wet 13 13 0.43 0.60 0.75

dry 12 12 0.20 0.30 0.34

after wet 7 7 0.29 0.40 0.40

dry 3 3 0.16 -- --

16275000 before wet 3 0 h0.05 -- --

dry 8 0 h0.05 <0.10 <0.10

during wet 11 10 e0.13 0.20 0.20

dry 10 6 e0.09 0.12 0.16

after wet 8 8 0.09 0.12 0.13

dry 4 4 0.09 -- --

RES 1-3 during wet 30 28 e0.33 0.40 0.50

dry 45 45 0.27 0.40 0.50

after wet 13 13 0.41 0.47 0.49

dry 6 6 0.41 0.54 0.55
(A)

1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996

SAMPLE DATE

0.02

0.05

0.1

0.2

0.5

1

2

5

8

INSTANTANEOUS DISCHARGE, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

NO2 + NO3 TOTAL, IN 

 MILLIGRAMS PER LITER

NO2 + NO3 DISSOLVED, IN 

 MILLIGRAMS PER LITER

TOTAL AND DISSOLVED NITRITE AND NITRATE NITROGEN, IN MILLIGRAMS PER LITER, AND INSTANTANEOUS DISCHARGE, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

Begin construction, June 1989

End construction, June 1992 End construction, December 1995

 0.1 mg/L

0.05 mg/L

Minimum reporting level

Median discharge = 0.30 ft3

/s

Median discharge = 0.16 ft3

/s

Median discharge = 0.30 ft3

/s

0.10 mg/L

0.05 mg/L

Minimum reporting level

Median discharge = 14 ft3 Median discharge = 14 ft /s 3

/s

(B)

Station 16266500

Station 16274100

1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 1999

SAMPLE DATE

0.02

0.05

0.1

0.2

0.5

1

2

5

10

20

50

60

EXPLANATION

DURING AFTER

BEFORE DURING AFTER

Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 21

Figure 6. Nitrite and nitrate nitrogen concentrations and instantaneous discharges at (A) station 16266500, 

February 1983 to December 1996, and (B) station 16274100, December 1988 to February 1998, Oahu, Hawaii
22 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Because the minimum reporting limits for total and 

NO2+NO3 nitrogen were greater than the State of Hawaii 

geometric mean standards for most of the study period, it is 

difficult to determine the effects of highway construction on 

these two constituents. However, because before-construction 

data for both total and NO2+NO3 nitrogen were not 

statistically different from during-construction data at all 

stations where the tests could be conducted (table 6), no 

highway construction effects on total or NO2+NO3 nitrogen 

can be attributed to any station except at station 16266500.

Nitrogen component data collected during 1991–92 at all 

stations showed that, on average, total nitrogen was made up 

of 45 percent nitrate (NO3), 45 percent organic N, 5 percent 

nitrite (NO2), and 5 percent ammonia (NH4) (unpublished data 

on file at Hawaii District, U.S. Geological Survey). Looking at 

the geometric mean values of NO2+NO3 nitrogen in relation to 

total nitrogen, a distribution change can be seen at stations 

16265700, 16275000, and RES 1-3 (tables 5 and 7). At these 

sites, after-construction geometric means for total nitrogen 

show a greater NO2+NO3 nitrogen component than either 

before or during construction. Increasing NO2+NO3 nitrogen 

can be attributed to increased anthropogenic effects from the 

increase in urban land use (Mueller and others, 1995; Thom 

and others, 2001).

Phosphorus.—Geometric mean values for total 

phosphorus ranged from 0.01 mg/L at many stations to 

0.05 mg/L at station 16275000 before construction, wet season 

(table 8). Geometric mean values for total phosphorus 

exceeded the standards only during construction, dry season, at 

stations 16265600 and 16265700 (table 8). Rank-sum tests 

could be done only at station 16265700 because of 

significantly different phosphorus sample discharges, p-value 

of 0.02, between during- and after-construction time periods at 

station 16265600. Rank-sum results (table 6) indicate no 

significant differences between the before-, during-, and afterconstruction geometric means for phosphorus at station 

16265700. Total phosphorus concentrations exceeded waterquality standards more commonly for the 10- and 2-percent 

standards than for the geometric mean, in contrast to the 

opposite pattern for nitrogen (tables 5 and 7). The 10- and(or) 

2-percent-of-the-time exceedence values for total phosphorus 

were exceeded before construction at stations 16269500 and 

16270900; during construction at stations 16226200, 

16227100, 16265600, 16265700, 16270900, 16272200, and 

16273950; and after construction only at stations 16226200 

and 16265600 (table 8). Except for station 16226200, all the 

other stations with high phosphorus values have upstream 

land-use activities, such as golf courses or banana plantations, 

where fertilizers would be used. Because phosphorus tends to 

adsorb to sediment particles, increased land disturbance due to 

highway construction also may have caused the higher 

observed phosphorus values.

Total suspended solids and turbidity.—Total suspended 

solids (TSS) geometric means ranged from 1 to 17 mg/L and 

only exceeded the standard at stations 16227100 and 

16274100, both during construction, dry season (table 9). The 

high TSS geometric means at stations 16227100 and 

16274100 may be a result of other urban land-use activities 

upstream from these stations. No rank-sum test could be 

computed for either station, because no or insufficient beforeor after-construction data were collected. The 10- and (or) 

2-percent-of-the-time exceedence standards (table 3) were 

exceeded, for the most part, only during construction at most 

stations and after construction only at stations 16226200 and 

16267500 (table 9). The high TSS values are probably the 

result of land disturbance caused by highway construction and 

also by golf-course construction upstream from 

stations 16265600 and 16265700. A larger number of samples 

for the concentration of suspended sediment were collected 

during this study, especially during periods of storm runoff. 

Suspended-sediment data were summarized in Wong and 

Young (2001) and suspended-sediment loads were analyzed 

by Wong and Yeatts (2002). Results in Wong and Yeatts 

(2002) show that suspended-sediment loads increased at most 

stations during construction, even though that increase is not 

reflected in the TSS data.

Turbidity geometric mean values ranged from 0.3 to 

14 NTU and exceeded the standard before construction at 

stations 16226200, 16267500, 16269500, and 16273950; 

during the construction period at stations 16226200, 

16227100, 16265600, 16265700, 16267500, 16273950, and 

16274100; and after construction at stations 16267500, 

16273950, and 16274100 (table 10). During highway 

construction the 10-percent-of-the-time exceedence standards 

were exceeded at all stations except 16273950, 16275000, and 

RES 1-3; after construction, only at stations 16226200 and 

16267500. The 2-percent-of-the-time exceedence standards 

were exceeded at all stations during highway construction and 

after construction at stations 16226200, 16265600, 16267500, 

16270900, and 16275000. 

Rank-sum tests could not be computed because of small 

sample size (less than five samples) in one of the construction 

or seasonal time periods at stations 16226200, 16273950, and 

16274100 (table 10). Rank-sum tests also could not be 

computed because of discharges associated with the turbidity 

samples being significantly different between some of the 

construction time periods at stations 16226200, 16265600, 

16265700, and 16267500. Figure 7 shows this difference at 

station 16265600, where the after-construction discharges 

were significantly lower (p-value of 0.001) than the 

during-construction discharges. Stations 16265700 and 

16267500 had significant differences between the during- and 

after-construction discharges (p-values of 0.02 and 0.01, 

respectively), while station 16226200 had significant 

difference (p-value of 0.03) between the before- and 

after-construction discharges. Rank-sum test results (table 6) 

indicate that the differences in the before and during turbidity 

geometric means at stations 16265700 and 16267500 are 

statistically significant, with the during-construction 

geometric means being higher (table 10). 

Because turbidity values represent not only suspended 

particulate matter that can be caused by land disturbance, but
Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 23

Table 8. Total phosphorus at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99.

[--, no data; mg/L, milligrams per liter; e, value estimated by log-probability regression; h, value estimated by one-half minimum reporting level 

substitution; minimum reporting level changed from 0.01 to 0.05 mg/L in 1998; <, actual value is less than value shown; shaded values represent 

total phosphorus values that have exceeded the State of Hawaii water-quality standards listed in table 3]

Station

Construction 

period Season

Concentration (mg/L) exceeded

Number of 

samples

Number

 of samples 

greater than 

the minimum 

reporting 

level

Geometric 

mean (mg/L)

10 percent of the 

time

2 percent of the 

time

16226200 before wet 2 2 -- -- --

dry 6 4 e0.02 0.05 0.06

during wet 20 13 e0.02 0.13 0.22

dry 17 9 e0.02 0.05 0.10

after wet 8 3 h0.03 0.12 0.14

dry 1 0 -- -- --

16227100 during wet 19 13 e0.02 0.07 0.14

dry 15 13 e0.03 0.08 0.10

16265600 during wet 18 18 0.03 0.10 0.35

dry 20 16 e0.04 0.10 0.39

after wet 14 8 e0.01 0.02 0.16

dry 9 7 e0.02 0.07 0.24

16265700 before wet 5 5 0.02 0.04 0.04

dry 6 6 0.03 0.05 0.07

during wet 7 5 e0.04 0.28 0.33

dry 7 5 e0.04 0.25 0.34

after wet 11 9 e0.02 0.04 0.06

dry 8 7 e0.02 0.04 0.06

16266500 before wet 5 3 h0.01 0.04 0.06

dry 4 2 h0.01 -- --

during wet 7 2 h0.01 0.03 0.06

dry 7 4 e0.02 0.04 0.06

after wet 10 1 h0.01 h0.01 h0.10

dry 8 2 h0.01 0.02 0.02

16267500 before wet 5 4 h0.02 0.03 0.03

dry 6 4 h0.01 0.03 0.03

during wet 7 4 e0.02 0.07 0.11

dry 7 4 e0.01 0.03 0.04

after wet 12 5 h0.01 0.02 0.02

dry 8 5 h0.01 0.03 0.08

16269500 before wet 5 3 h0.01 0.02 0.02

dry 5 4 e0.02 0.12 0.18

during wet 7 5 e0.02 0.03 0.04

dry 7 4 h0.01 0.02 0.02

after wet 12 5 e0.01 0.06 0.08

dry 6 4 h0.01 0.02 0.03
24 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Table 8. Total phosphorus at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99—Continued

[--, no data; mg/L, milligrams per liter; e, value estimated by log-probability regression; minimum reporting limit changed from 0.01 to 0.05 mg/L 

in 1998; <, actual value is less than value shown; shaded values represent total phosphorus values that have exceeded the State of Hawaii 

water-quality standards listed in table 3]

Station

Construction 

period Season

Concentration (mg/L) exceeded

Number of 

samples

Number

 of samples 

greater than 

minimum 

reporting 

level

Geometric 

mean (mg/L)

10 percent of the 

time

2 percent of the 

time

16270900 before wet 10 9 e0.03 0.14 0.26

dry 9 9 0.02 0.04 0.13

during wet 14 13 e0.04 0.19 0.77

dry 14 12 h0.02 0.03 0.03

after wet 7 5 e0.01 0.02 0.03

dry 2 2 -- -- --

16272200 during wet 23 20 e0.03 0.18 0.26

dry 27 24 e0.02 0.02 0.16

after wet 7 6 e0.01 0.02 0.02

dry 2 2 -- -- --

16273950 before wet 1 1 -- -- --

dry 8 8 0.02 0.03 0.04

during wet 15 14 e0.04 0.06 0.22

dry 14 12 e0.02 0.04 0.04

after wet 7 7 0.02 0.03 0.03

dry 2 2 -- -- --

16274100 during wet 15 15 0.04 0.08 0.09

dry 14 12 e0.03 0.04 0.05

after wet 7 4 e0.02 0.04 0.04

dry 3 3 0.03 -- --

16275000 before wet 3 3 0.05 -- --

dry 8 7 e0.02 0.06 0.07

during wet 13 10 e0.02 0.04 0.13

dry 12 11 e0.02 0.03 0.08

after wet 8 5 e0.01 0.02 0.02

dry 4 4 0.02 -- --

RES 1-3 during wet 30 26 e0.02 0.03 0.05

dry 45 40 e0.02 0.04 0.08

after wet 16 7 e0.01 0.01 0.03

dry 9 7 e0.02 0.03 0.03
Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 25

Table 9. Total suspended solids at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99.

[Minimum reporting level is 1 mg/L; --, no data; mg/L, milligrams per liter; e, value estimated by log-probability regression; h, value estimated by 

one-half detection limit substitution; shaded values represent total suspended-solids values that have exceeded the State of Hawaii water-quality 

standards listed in table 3]

Station

Construction 

period Season

Number of 

samples

Number

 of samples 

greater than 

the minimum 

reporting 

level

Geometric 

mean (mg/L)

Concentration (mg/L) exceeded

10 percent of the 

time

2 percent of the 

time

16226200 before wet 3 1 -- -- --

dry 7 5 e2 5 25

during wet 20 19 17 210 530

dry 16 12 e3 54 480

after wet 8 8 10 53 74

dry 1 0 -- -- --

16227100 during wet 18 15 e7 39 280

dry 15 13 e12 72 320

16265600 during wet 20 15 e5 113 424

dry 21 17 e7 54 214

after wet 14 9 e2 15 42

dry 9 6 e2 8 9

16265700 before wet 6 6 5 9 11

dry 8 7 e4 12 17

during wet 7 6 e10 44 47

dry 7 5 e6 227 369

after wet 11 7 e1 4 7

dry 8 6 e2 5 7

16266500 before wet 6 4 e3 18 28

dry 7 5 e4 12 14

during wet 7 3 h2 14 32

dry 7 4 e2 18 33

after wet 10 3 h1 2 69

dry 8 6 e2 5 7

16267500 before wet 6 4 h3 11 12

dry 8 7 e4 10 12

during wet 7 7 12 99 154

dry 7 5 h5 18 27

after wet 12 9 e3 21 28

dry 8 7 e5 36 146

16269500 before wet 6 3 h2 11 12

dry 7 5 e5 10 12

during wet 7 7 5 18 20

dry 7 3 h1 6 10

after wet 12 9 e3 13 38

dry 6 4 e2 9 9
26 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Table 9. Total suspended solids at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99—Continued

[Minimum reporting level is 1 mg/L; --, no data; mg/L, milligrams per liter; e, value estimated by log-probability regression; h, value estimated by 

one-half detection limit substitution; shaded values represent total suspended-solids values that have exceeded the State of Hawaii water-quality 

standards listed in table 3]

Station

Construction 

period Season

Number of 

samples

Number

 of samples 

greater than 

minimum 

reporting 

level

Geometric 

mean (mg/L)

Concentration (mg/L) exceeded

10 percent of the 

time

2 percent of the 

time

16270900 before wet 13 9 e5 23 28

dry 9 6 e5 24 64

during wet 14 10 e2 109 770

dry 14 7 e2 7 12

after wet 7 5 h1 3 3

dry 2 2 -- -- --

16272200 during wet 26 24 e8 106 149

dry 27 24 e4 11 68

after wet 7 3 h1 5 7

dry 2 2 -- -- --

16273950 before wet 2 2 -- -- --

dry 7 6 e6 9 11

during wet 15 13 e8 19 109

dry 14 13 e6 14 14

after wet 7 6 e4 6 9

dry 2 2 -- -- --

16274100 during wet 15 15 8 22 26

dry 14 13 e11 25 32

after wet 7 6 e5 10 18

dry 2 2 -- -- --

16275000 before wet 5 3 e3 8 9

dry 8 5 e5 10 11

during wet 13 11 e5 34 162

dry 12 7 e2 10 27

after wet 8 4 e1 2 4

dry 4 2 h1 -- --

RES 1-3 during wet 33 30 e4 13 18

dry 45 30 e2 12 17

after wet 22 17 e3 8 11

dry 10 10 4 8 10
Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 27

Table 10. Turbidity at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99.

[Minimum reporting level is 0.1 NTU; --, no data; NTU, Nephelometric Turbidity Unit; shaded values represent turbidity values that have exceeded the 

State of Hawaii water-quality standards for turbidity listed in table 3]

Station

Construction 

period Season

Number of 

samples

Number

 of samples 

greater than 

the minimum 

reporting level

Geometric 

mean (NTU)

Concentration (NTU) exceeded

10 percent of 

the time

2 percent of 

the time

16226200 before wet 3 3 5.6 -- --

dry 8 8 1.5 5.4 6.7

during wet 52 52 9.0 190 520

dry 37 37 2.2 85 400

after wet 8 8 3.8 20 31

dry 3 3 0.4 -- --

16227100 during wet 52 52 3.2 38 390

dry 35 35 2.5 34 270

16265600 during wet 30 30 5.4 60 300

dry 34 34 4.0 31 79

after wet 35 35 1.8 9.0 29

dry 21 21 1.1 2.0 8.6

16265700 before wet 9 9 1.4 5.3 5.8

dry 9 9 0.9 1.8 7.6

during wet 19 19 11 116 2,660

dry 17 17 7.4 199 8,800

after wet 30 30 0.7 1.7 2.3

dry 17 17 0.4 1.0 1.2

16266500 before wet 8 8 0.8 1.5 2.2

dry 7 7 0.5 0.9 1.2

during wet 17 17 1.8 23 3,140

dry 17 17 0.8 1.6 22

after wet 29 29 0.5 1.4 13

dry 17 17 0.5 1.1 2.8

16267500 before wet 8 8 3.5 6.2 11

dry 9 9 3.0 3.5 7.5

during wet 16 16 14 120 447

dry 17 17 4.0 8.9 22

after wet 31 31 3.1 8.2 17

dry 17 17 4.1 16 51

16269500 before wet 8 8 3.8 12 37

dry 7 7 3.2 4.8 6.3

during wet 16 16 2.2 5.2 13

dry 17 17 2.0 6.0 13

after wet 31 31 0.8 2.8 25

dry 14 14 1.0 3.5 3.9
28 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Table 10. Turbidity at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99—Continued

[Minimum reporting level is 0.1 NTU; --, no data; NTU, Nephelometric Turbidity Unit; shaded values represent turbidity values that have exceeded the 

State of Hawaii water-quality standards for turbidity listed in table 3]

Station

Construction 

period Season

Number of 

samples

Number

 of samples 

greater than 

minimum 

reporting level

Geometric 

mean (NTU)

Concentration (NTU) exceeded

10 percent of the 

time

2 percent of 

the time

16270900 before wet 15 15 3.1 44 115

dry 10 10 1.1 1.2 27

during wet 37 37 2.2 24 300

dry 32 32 0.9 3.5 7.9

after wet 15 15 1.0 9.6 29

dry 5 5 0.3 0.3 0.4

16272200 during wet 52 52 3.7 31 120

dry 46 46 1.7 2.8 5.0

after wet 15 15 1.6 2.6 5.1

dry 5 5 0.7 1.2 1.4

16273950 before wet 3 3 13 -- --

dry 8 8 2.8 3.5 3.7

during wet 39 39 3.8 6.5 37

dry 34 34 3.0 4.4 17

after wet 15 15 2.7 4.0 4.7

dry 5 5 3.1 4.1 4.7

16274100 during wet 40 40 4.4 18 25

dry 34 34 3.5 6.3 11

after wet 15 15 2.7 5.2 6.7

dry 4 4 4.5 -- --

16275000 before wet 5 5 0.7 1.0 1.0

dry 10 10 0.7 0.8 1.4

during wet 32 32 1.0 2.6 190

dry 30 30 0.8 5.1 19

after wet 22 22 0.4 0.8 41

dry 9 9 0.4 0.6 0.8

RES 1-3 during wet 40 40 2.3 5.0 9.2

dry 73 73 1.6 3.4 13

after wet 35 35 2.6 8.8 16

dry 24 24 1.4 2.5 7.9
INSTANTANEOUS DISCHARGE, IN CUBIC FEET PER SECOND, AND TURBIDITY, IN NEPHELOMETRIC TURBIDITY UNITS

1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1997

SAMPLE DATE

0.02

0.05

0.1

0.2

0.5

1

2

5

10

20

50

100

200

500

600

INSTANTANEOUS DISCHARGE

TURBIDITY

End construction, June 1992

Median discharge = 0.80 ft3/s Median discharge = 0.43 ft3

/s

DURING AFTER

Station 16265600

Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 29

also organic matter, high values at these sites may be, in part, 

due to algae growth observed during low-flow conditions at all 

stations that exceeded the geometric mean standards and to the 

waterfowl habitat observed upstream from stations 16267500 

and 16273950. The high turbidity values computed for 

station 16265700 during construction also may be due to the 

upstream golf-course construction, which occurred during the 

same time as the highway construction (table 10). Because of 

these circumstances, none of the geometric mean exceedences 

during the construction time period can be attributed solely to 

highway construction. However, the 10- and(or) 2-percent-ofthe-time exceedences during construction at all stations may 

be, in part, due to land disturbance caused by highway 

construction.

pH.—Median pH values at all stations ranged from 6.6 to 

9.0 pH units (table 11). Lowest and highest pH values 

measured were 4.5 at station 16265700 and 10.1 pH at 

station 16227100. Normal pH values range from 6.5 to 8.5 for 

uncontaminated natural waters (Hem, 1985, p. 64). Except for 

a few high values of pH at most stations, pH values exceeded 

the standard, both during and after construction, only at the two 

urban stations, 16227100 and 16274100 (table 11). The 

interquartile ranges, the difference between values of the 75- 

and 25-percentile concentrations, were all less than or equal to 

0.5 pH units except before construction at station 16275000; 

during construction at stations 16226200, 16227100, and 

16272200; and after construction at station 16274100 (table 

11). The median and 75-percentile pH values increased by 

more than 0.5 pH units from before to during construction at 

stations 16226200 and 16272200 (table 11). These increases 

may be construed as a violation of the pH standard (table 3).

Dissolved oxygen.—Median dissolved-oxygen values 

ranged from 61 to 132 percent saturation (table 12). Dissolvedoxygen values tended to be low in 25 percent of the 

measurements during all time periods only in the Kamooalii 

drainage basin at stations 16265600, 16265700, 16266500, 

16267500, and 16269500, and in the reservoir itself (table 12). 

Station 16265600 was the only site with constantly low 

dissolved-oxygen values after construction. Low median 

dissolved-oxygen values in the reservoir were due to the low 

dissolved oxygen at deeper depths.

Temperature.—Whether any water-temperature values 

exceeded the standard is difficult to determine, because no day 

and night measurements were made to determine the ambient 

water temperatures. However, the majority of daytime watertemperature measurements tended not to vary more than 1°C 

from the median (table 13). Highest median water 

temperatures were measured at the urban sites, 

stations 16227100 and 16274100.

Specific conductance.—Specific-conductance values 

exceeded the standards most often at the intermittent stream 

sites, stations 16226200, 16227100, and 16269500 (table 14). 

At stations 16226200 and 16269500, the highest values 

occurred after highway construction. Specific-conductance 

Figure 7. Turbidity concentrations and instantaneous discharges at station 16265600, 

February 1983 to April 1998, Oahu, Hawaii.
30 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Table 11. pH at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99.

[Resolution is 0.1 pH unit; --, no data; shaded values represent pH values that have exceeded the State of Hawaii water-quality standards for pH listed in table 3]

Station Construction period

Number of 

measurements Minimum

Concentration percentile

25

(median)

50 75 Maximum

16226200 before 23 6.5 6.9 6.9 7.3 7.5

during 91 6.2 7.4 7.7 8.0 8.3

after 11 6.7 7.3 7.6 7.7 7.9

16227100 during 89 6.7 8.6 9.0 9.3 10.1

after 4 8.7 -- 9.0 -- 9.1

16265600 before 1 -- -- -- -- 5.9

during 74 5.7 6.5 6.6 6.8 7.9

after 57 6.0 6.6 6.6 6.8 7.9

16265700 before 19 6.0 6.5 6.8 7.0 8.6

during 35 6.4 6.9 7.0 7.4 8.1

after 48 4.5 6.6 6.8 7.1 7.6

16266500 before 16 6.1 6.4 6.7 6.8 7.0

during 33 6.2 6.8 7.0 7.2 7.5

after 46 6.0 6.6 6.8 6.9 7.4

16267500 before 17 6.3 6.8 6.9 7.1 7.4

during 33 6.8 7.0 7.3 7.4 7.8

after 48 6.3 7.0 7.2 7.4 7.6

16269500 before 17 6.0 6.8 6.9 7.0 7.4

during 32 6.6 7.0 7.0 7.4 8.7

after 45 6.5 6.8 7.1 7.3 7.5

16270900 before 43 6.3 6.9 7.1 7.4 8.3

during 70 6.0 7.2 7.5 7.7 8.1

after 21 7.0 7.4 7.6 7.7 7.9

16272200 before 11 6.8 7.1 7.2 7.4 7.7

during 113 6.4 7.3 7.8 8.0 8.5

after 20 6.5 7.6 7.8 8.0 8.1

16273950 before 11 7.1 7.4 7.6 7.8 7.9

during 73 6.8 7.6 7.8 7.9 8.1

after 20 6.8 7.7 7.8 8.0 8.1

16274100 during 73 6.7 8.3 8.6 8.8 9.3

after 20 7.9 8.4 8.6 9.0 9.3

16275000 before 28 6.3 7.0 7.3 7.7 7.9

during 62 6.5 7.6 7.8 7.9 8.2

after 31 7.3 7.6 7.7 7.8 8.0

RES 1-3 during 271 6.4 7.2 7.4 7.6 8.7

after 109 6.9 7.2 7.4 7.6 7.8
Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 31

Table 12. Dissolved oxygen saturation at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99.

[Resolution is 1-percent saturation; --, no data; shaded values represent dissolved-oxygen percentages that have exceeded the State 

of Hawaii water-quality standards for dissolved oxygen listed in table 3]

Construction 

period

Concentration percentile

Station

Number of 

measurements Minimum 25

(median)

50 75 Maximum

16226200 before 11 82 87 88 91 97

during 89 65 88 95 98 108

after 10 73 81 88 97 101

16227100 during 87 65 119 131 149 186

after 4 114 -- 132 -- 137

16265600 before 1 -- -- -- -- 79

during 64 48 64 76 86 103

after 57 37 56 61 68 102

16265700 before 18 74 83 90 95 106

during 32 68 85 89 93 100

after 47 50 74 85 92 101

16266500 before 15 78 82 85 97 107

during 33 63 82 89 96 103

after 45 47 74 79 84 99

16267500 before 17 74 78 81 92 97

during 33 73 87 91 95 100

after 47 63 81 84 90 107

16269500 before 15 60 64 82 92 105

during 32 67 77 84 93 98

after 45 30 81 86 91 133

16270900 before 25 79 86 94 102 113

during 68 77 92 95 98 105

after 20 78 95 98 100 101

16272200 before 1 -- -- -- -- 96

during 98 68 97 102 107 134

after 19 90 102 104 109 113

16273950 before 9 89 92 93 94 97

during 73 89 95 96 98 103

after 19 93 95 98 99 101

16274100 during 74 67 106 112 116 122

after 21 103 108 114 120 136

16275000 before 15 62 91 94 97 98

during 61 93 96 97 98 101

after 31 93 97 98 100 103

RES 1-3 during 265 31 72 84 92 111

after 102 26 71 79 86 101
32 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Table 13. Water temperature at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99.

[Resolution is 0.5 degrees Celsius; --, no data]

Station

Construction 

period

Concentration percentile

Number of 

measurements Minimum 25

(median)

50 75 Maximum

16226200 before 23 19.0 21.0 22.0 23.0 24.5

during 91 17.5 21.5 22.5 24.0 26.5

after 11 18.0 20.0 21.5 23.0 25.5

16227100 during 89 19.5 24.0 27.5 30.0 37.0

after 4 22.5 -- 24.0 -- 27.5

16265600 before 1 -- -- -- -- 22.5

during 76 20.0 23.0 24.0 25.0 27.5

after 57 21.0 23.0 23.5 24.0 25.5

16265700 before 19 20.0 21.5 22.5 22.5 26.0

during 35 20.0 21.0 22.0 23.0 24.0

after 48 20.0 21.5 22.0 22.5 24.5

16266500 before 16 21.0 22.5 22.5 23.5 25.0

during 33 20.0 22.0 22.5 23.0 24.5

after 45 20.0 22.0 22.5 23.0 24.5

16267500 before 17 21.5 23.0 24.5 25.0 30.0

during 33 20.0 22.0 23.5 24.0 26.0

after 47 20.0 22.0 23.0 24.0 26.5

16269500 before 17 20.5 22.0 22.5 23.0 24.5

during 33 20.5 22.0 22.5 23.0 25.0

after 45 20.5 21.5 22.5 23.0 27.0

16270900 before 43 19.5 20.1 21.5 22.5 26.0

during 69 19.5 20.0 21.0 21.5 26.0

after 21 18.5 20.0 21.0 21.5 22.0

16272200 before 11 20.5 22.0 24.0 25.0 28.0

during 113 20.5 23.0 25.0 26.5 31.0

after 20 19.5 22.5 24.0 25.5 27.0

16273950 before 11 22.5 23.0 23.5 23.5 25.0

during 73 20.0 21.5 22.0 23.0 25.5

after 20 20.0 21.5 22.0 23.0 24.5

16274100 during 74 20.0 23.0 25.0 26.5 31.0

after 21 21.0 22.0 24.5 26.5 29.0

16275000 before 35 19.5 20.5 21.0 21.5 23.0

during 64 18.5 20.0 20.5 21.0 22.5

after 32 18.0 20.0 20.0 20.5 22.5

RES 1-3 during 274 20.5 23.0 25.0 26.0 29.0

after 109 20.5 21.5 23.5 26.0 28.0
Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 33

values at stations 16226200 and 16269500 increased 

throughout the construction period (fig. 8) most likely due to 

construction. Increased municipal ground-water withdrawals 

began during the construction period in 1990 upstream from 

station 16269500. Because station 16269500 was not a 

continuous streamflow site, the effect of the increased 

pumpage on streamflow and specific conductance cannot be 

determined. No trend at station 16227100 due to construction 

is apparent (fig. 8). Values were high during and after 

construction (table 14). High values at station 16227100 are 

most likely due to the urban effects associated with the light 

industrial park and concrete-lined channel. The pattern of 

increasing conductance during and after construction also is 

present at stations 16266500 and 16267500 as well, although 

the values did not exceed the standard (table 14).

Trace elements and organic compounds.—Ten 

constituents were detected at concentration levels in excess of 

the State of Hawaii water-quality standards for trace metals 

and organic compounds in freshwater (table 15). The 

detections in excess of standards were predominantly during 

construction and at a total of nine stations (table 16). In most 

cases, a constituent in excess of standards was detected only 

once at any station. Chlordane, copper, dieldrin, and zinc were 

the only constituents to be detected in excess of standards more 

than once at any station. At the urban station 16227100, four 

constituents were detected in excess of standards, and three 

constituents in excess of standards were detected at three 

stations: 16272200, 16273950, and 16274100.

Chlordane concentrations in excess of the chronic waterquality standard were detected in 3 out of 18 samples at 

station 16274100. Dieldrin concentrations in excess of the 

chronic water-quality standard were detected in nearly all 

samples from station 16274100 and in more than 15 percent of 

samples from the two stations immediately upstream, 

16272200 and 16273950 (table 16). Stations 16272200, 

16273950, and 16274100 all receive some runoff from urban 

areas (fig. 2). Chlordane and dieldrin, both insecticides used to 

control termites, were not detected in any samples from 

stations affected by highway construction without other urban 

influence. Bed-sediment data from station 16274100 also were 

high in dieldrin in a study by Brasher and Anthony (2000).

Acute water-quality standards were exceeded a few times 

by concentrations of the common metals aluminum, copper, 

and zinc and once by silver (table 16). Aluminum, copper, and 

zinc were detected in a majority of the samples collected 

during the study (table 15). Late in the study period, the 

NWQL raised the minimum reporting levels for a number of 

metals determined by inductively coupled plasma-atomic 

emission spectrometry method (ICP-AES) because of an 

excessive rate of false positive results (U.S. Geological 

Survey, 1997b, 1998a). These values are presented as the 

revised minimum reporting levels in table 4. Concentrations 

between the original and revised minimum reporting levels 

have a 1- to 50-percent chance, depending on the constituent, 

of being a false positive (U.S. Geological Survey, 1998a). The 

ICP-AES method was used to determine dissolved metal 

concentrations during the entire study period. During 1997 and 

1998, the project also submitted 10 samples of blank water for 

analysis by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry 

method (ICP-MS), which has lower minimum reporting levels 

than ICP-AES. These blank samples were processed through 

all the same steps as routine environmental samples and were 

intended to detect potential sources of the metals throughout 

the term of the study. When the study was initially planned 15 

years earlier, such targeted quality-assurance samples had not 

been commonly recognized as necessary.

 The distribution of copper and zinc contamination caused 

by sample handling and processing can be estimated from the 

analysis of blank water. The highest measured concentration 

among 10 blanks would be expected to be exceeded randomly 

in about 7 percent of all environmental samples (Jim Eychaner, 

U.S. Geological Survey, written commun., December 30, 

2003). Thus, if the blank samples represent the full study 

period, more than 3-μg/L copper and 5-μg/L zinc could be 

found in 7 percent of the samples, even if none were present in 

the environment (table 17). In fact, 13 percent of the 

environmental samples exceeded 3-μg/L copper and 35 

percent exceeded 5-μg/L zinc, which indicates that 

environmental sources of copper and zinc were measured in 

some cases. Copper usually has concentrations of less than 10 

μg/L and zinc has a median value of 20 μg/L in streams (Hem, 

1985). The high values of copper (detected at station 

16226200) and zinc (detected at stations 16265600 and 

16273950)(table 16) may indicate sources other than natural 

inputs, even though Hawaiian soils also are high in copper and 

zinc because of the volcanic parent material (De Carlo and 

Anthony, 2002; Halbig and others, 1985). Median copper and 

zinc concentrations from unfiltered samples, (total recoverable 

samples) were, on average, only twice as great as dissolved 

copper and zinc median values (Wong and Young, 2000). Both 

stations 16265600 and 16273950 are near heavily used 

highways, Kamehameha and Likelike, respectively (fig. 2), as 

well as residential areas, so potential anthropogenic sources 

exist. The high copper concentrations at station 16226200 may 

be due to highway construction because no other 

anthropogenic sources exist prior to highway construction 

upstream from this site.

High aluminum values are not surprising because 

Hawaiian soils are naturally high in aluminum (Moir and 

others, 1936), but aluminum usually does not exist in the 

dissolved fraction (Hem, 1985). Median aluminum 

concentrations from total recoverable samples are about 10 

times higher than the median values for dissolved aluminum 

based on samples collected in the study area (Wong and 

Young, 2000). Aluminum contamination from sample 

handling and processing of the samples was very minimal 

(table 17).

Because silver is rare in Hawaiian soils and no readily 

apparent anthropogenic source exists anywhere in the study 

area, it was a surprise that silver was detected at 

station 16272200 (table 16). The detection of silver, however, 

may be false. The revised minimum reporting levels (table 4) 
34 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Table 14. Specific conductance at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, water years 1983–99.

[Resolution is 1 μS/cm at 25oC; --, no data; μS/cm at 25oC, microsiemens per centimeter at 25 degrees Celsius; shaded values represent specific-conductance 

values that have exceeded the State of Hawaii water-quality standards for specific conductance listed in table 3]

Station

Construction 

period

Concentration percentile

Number of 

measurements Minimum 25

(median)

50 75 Maximum

16226200 before 23 69 120 135 145 180

during 91 48 170 215 268 660

after 11 107 144 310 351 386

16227100 during 89 90 328 570 770 1,500

after 4 173 -- 640 -- 912

16265600 before 1 -- -- -- -- 196

during 74 87 200 220 237 360

after 57 80 208 220 234 295

16265700 before 19 159 193 200 207 212

during 35 148 205 225 235 380

after 48 23 215 223 232 267

16266500 before 16 99 113 121 125 133

during 33 110 132 152 160 190

after 46 140 155 161 170 250

16267500 before 17 115 147 166 174 188

during 33 65 155 180 195 204

after 48 142 186 192 197 200

16269500 before 16 200 212 248 290 320

during 33 225 260 280 300 325

after 45 215 304 318 350 400

16270900 before 43 126 158 162 177 195

during 70 108 150 160 170 218

after 21 120 156 158 172 187

16272200 before 11 170 180 200 220 250

during 113 80 175 182 190 220

after 20 138 181 190 197 215

16273950 before 11 147 188 190 196 210

during 73 160 190 198 205 376

after 20 170 194 200 208 301

16274100 during 74 120 190 198 202 225

after 21 194 198 202 208 213

16275000 before 28 140 145 148 159 185

during 62 92 145 150 154 185

after 31 114 146 150 153 165

RES 1-3 during 274 147 182 186 191 210

after 109 152 186 192 196 214
1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996

SAMPLE DATE

0

25

50

75

100

125

150

175

200

225

250

275

300

325

350

375

400

425

SPECIFIC CONDUCTANCE, IN MICROSIEMENS PER CENTIMETER AT 25o CELSIUS

SPECIFIC CONDUCTANCE, IN MICROSIEMENS PER CENTIMETER AT 25o CELSIUS

B

A C

1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998

SAMPLE DATE

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

1990 1992 1994 1996 1998

SAMPLE DATE

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

1600

Station 16226200 Station 16227100

Station 16269500

Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 35

Figure 8. Specific conductance at (A) station 16226200, May 1983 to March 1999, (B) station 16269500, February 1983 to January 

1998, and (C) station 16227100, November 1988 to November 1998, Oahu, Hawaii
36 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

Table 15. State of Hawaii water-quality standards for trace metals, insecticides, herbicides, and polychlorinated compounds, and the number of samples 

exceeding standards at water-quality stations in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, February 1983 to August 1999.

[μg/L, micrograms per liter; ns, no standard; +, value is minimum standard, higher standard may apply depending on the receiving water hardness value]

Constituent

State of Hawaii freshwater 

water-quality standard

Total number of 

samples at all 

study sites

Total number of 

samples exceeding 

original minimum 

reporting limit

(table 4)

Total number of 

samples exceeding 

State of Hawaii 

standard

acute/chronic

acute

(μg/L)

chronic

(μg/L)

Aldrin 3.0 ns 240 2 0

Aluminum, dissolved 750 260 235 144 1/2

Arsenic, dissolved 360 190 124 32 0

Beryllium, dissolved 43 ns 124 9 0

Cadmium, dissolved 3+ 3+ 124 6 0

Chlordane 2.4 0.0043 240 5 0/5

Chlorpyrifos 0.083 0.041 134 14 1/1

Chromium, dissolved 16 11 127 21 0

Copper, dissolved 6+ 6+ 127 102 2/2

DDE 0.03 ns 240 0 0

DDT 1.1 0.001 240 2 0/2

2,4-D 670 ns 222 18 0

Dieldrin 2.5 0.0019 240 28 0/28

Endosulfan-alpha 0.22 0.056 240 0 0

Endrin 0.18 0.0023 240 0 0

Heptachlor 0.52 0.0038 240 0 0

Lead, dissolved 29+ 29+ 127 32 0

Lindane 2.0 0.08 240 1 0

Malathion ns 0.1 226 8 0/1

Mercury, dissolved 2.4 0.55 123 23 0

Methoxychlor ns 0.03 240 0 0

Mirex ns 0.001 240 0 0

Nickel, dissolved 5+ 5+ 238 83 0

Parathion 0.065 0.013 226 0 0

PCB 2.0 0.014 240 1 0/1

Selenium, dissolved 20 5 235 2 0

Silver, dissolved 1+ 1+ 235 4 1/1

Toxaphene 0.73 0.0002 240 0 0

Zinc, dissolved 22+ 22+ 127 85 3/3
Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 37

Table 16. Summary of dissolved trace metals, insecticides, and polychlorinated compounds at water-quality stations that exceeded State of Hawaii waterquality standards in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii, February 1983 to August 1999.

[μg/L, micrograms per liter; b, before-construction period; d, during-construction period; a, after-construction period; State of Hawaii standards listed in table 

15]

Constituent Station

number Station name

Total 

number of 

samples

Total number of 

samples 

exceeding State 

of Hawaii 

standard

 Highest 

concentration 

measured

(μg/L)

Time period when 

highest 

concentration 

occurred

Aluminum, dissolved 16226200 North Halawa Stream near Honolulu 25 1 340 d

16227100 Halawa Stream below H-1 17 1 300 d

16272200 Kamooalii Stream below Luluku Stream 31 1 1,200 d

Chlordane 16227100 Halawa Stream below H-1 16 1 0.1 d

16273950 South Fork Kapunahala Stream 24 1 0.1 d

16274100 Kaneohe Stream 18 3 0.1 d

Chlorpyrifos 16265600 Right Branch Kamooalii Stream 15 1 0.9 d

Copper, dissolved 16226200 North Halawa Stream near Honolulu 15 2 14 d

DDT 16227100 Halawa Stream below H-1 16 1 0.01 d

16275000 Haiku Stream 32 1 0.08 d

Dieldrin 16227100 Halawa Stream below H-1 16 1 0.01 d

16272200 Kamooalii Stream below Luluku Stream 33 5 0.01 d, a

16273950 South Fork Kapunahala Stream 24 4 0.02 d

16274100 Kaneohe Stream 18 17 0.05 d, a

212335157482603 RES 1-3 22 1 0.01 d

Malathion 16265700 Kamooalii Stream at altitude 220 ft 3 1 0.28 b

PCB 16274100 Kaneohe Stream 18 1 0.2 d

Silver, dissolved 16272200 Kamooalii Stream below Luluku Stream 31 1 2.0 d

Zinc, dissolved 16265600 Right Branch Kamooalii Stream 15 2 160 d

16273950 South Fork Kapunahala Stream 11 1 100 d
38 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

calls into question the presence of silver at station 16272200, 

because the highest concentration of 2 μg/L is below the newer 

4 μg/L minimum reporting level.

Waimaluhia Reservoir.—The water-quality data 

collected from Waimaluhia Reservoir at the primary reservoir 

site (RES 1-3) were compared to the State of Hawaii waterquality standards specific to streams, although these standards 

do not apply to reservoirs. This was done for comparative 

purposes with the tributaries and downstream stream sites of 

the reservoir. Geometric mean values in the reservoir exceeded 

the State standards for total and NO2+NO3 nitrogen (tables 5 

and 7). Total nitrogen geometric means were higher during 

construction than after, and NO2+NO3 nitrogen geometric 

means increased after construction. This change was similar to 

the effect observed at stations on two tributaries to the reservoir 

(stations 16265700 and 16269500) (tables 5 and 7). Geometric 

mean values of total and NO2+NO3 nitrogen were lower 

downstream from the reservoir at station 16272200 than in the 

reservoir (tables 5 and 7). The remaining constituents had 

geometric mean values that were similar in and downstream 

from the reservoir. Geometric mean values of all constituents 

at station 16270900, which contributes flow to 16272200 

downstream from the reservoir outlet, were all lower than at 

16272200. There may be some dilution effect, but only very 

small, because the contribution of streamflow from 

station 16270900 to 16272200 is only about 12 percent, on 

average, computed from daily mean streamflow data collected 

in water years 1985–97 (Wong, 2001). Upstream from the 

reservoir, geometric mean values for total and NO2+NO3

nitrogen at all tributaries (stations 16265600, 16265700, 

16266500, 16267500, and 16269500) were high, about equal to 

those at RES 1-3, and exceeded the standards during all time 

periods (before, during, and after construction) at all stations 

except 16266500 and 16267500 (tables 5 and 7). Therefore, 

much of the nutrient input to the reservoir exists as natural or 

anthropogenic sources not related to highway construction, and 

the reservoir may serve as a nutrient sink because nitrogen 

values are lower downstream. Nutrient values and other 

limnological data collected in Waimaluhia Reservoir 

(Matsuoka and others, 1991) indicate that the reservoir is 

eutrophic.

Temperature, pH, and specific-conductance data from all 

depths at RES 1-3 fell below or within the ranges listed in the 

water-quality standards (tables 3, 11, 13, and 14). Only 

dissolved oxygen fell below the standard level of 80 percent 

saturation (tables 3 and 12). This was due to the low dissolved 

oxygen at the deeper reservoir depths (table 18). Nutrient, pH, 

and specific-conductance data collected by reservoir depth 

(table 18) showed no differences with depth or by time period. 

The only changes by depth both during and after construction 

were with temperature and dissolved oxygen, which was 

expected because deeper waters tend to be cooler and have less 

oxygen (table 18). Turbidity and TSS were, on average, 1 NTU 

or 1 mg/L higher at the deepest depths compared to the 

shallower depths (table 18). This may be, in part, due to 

interference by the Van Dorn sampler close to the reservoir 

bottom or by possible turbidity currents.

Additional comparisons.—Results of the 

upstream/downstream comparisons between 

stations 16226200 and 16227100 and between stations 

Table 17. Summary of dissolved trace metals quality-assurance blank samples collected during 1997 and 1998 as part of the water-quality 

monitoring study of the H-3 Highway, Oahu, Hawaii.

[μg/L, micrograms per liter; --, not applicable]

Trace metal 

constituent, 

dissolved fraction 

Minimum reporting 

limit (μg/L)

Method detection 

limit (μg/L)

Total 

number of 

samples

Total number of 

detections 

exceeding 

method detection 

limit

 Highest 

concentration 

detected

(μg/L)

Mean value of 

detected 

concentrations 

(μg/L) 

Aluminum 10 0.3 10 1 1.1 --

Barium 2 0.2 10 0 -- --

Beryllium 0.5 0.2 10 0 -- --

Cadmium 1 0.3 10 0 -- --

Chromium 1 0.2 10 0 -- --

Cobalt 3 0.2 10 0 -- --

Copper 1 0.2 10 5 2.9 1.2

Iron 3 3 10 0 -- --

Lead 1 0.3 10 0 -- --

Manganese 1 0.1 10 1 1.7 --

Molybdenum 10 0.2 10 0 -- --

Nickel 1 0.5 10 0 -- --

Silver 1 0.2 10 0 -- --

Strontium 0.5 0.1 10 2 0.3 0.2

Zinc 3 0.5 10 6 4.9 1.9
Water Quality Before, During, and After Highway Construction 39

16272200 and 16274100 are shown in table 19. Significant 

differences (p-values less than 0.05) between stations 

16226200 and 16227100 were detected only among wetseason turbidity data (table 19). Wet-season turbidity values 

were significantly higher upstream at station 16226200, which 

could be a construction-related effect. The differences due to 

urban Kaneohe were more pronounced as shown by the data 

from stations 16272200 and 16274100. Combined (wet- and 

dry-season) data and dry-season data for all constituents tested 

were significantly higher downstream at station 16274100 

because of urban effects (table 19). The only significant wetseason difference was with total and NO2+NO3 nitrogen loads, 

both being higher at station 16274100.

Because land-use changes upstream from stations 

16270900 and 16275000 were minimal prior to highway 

construction, a comparison was made between data collected 

prior to 1983 (table 20) and data that was collected during this 

study. Cox and others (1973) determined a total nitrogen 

average of 0.26 mg/L at station 16275000. Compared to the 

geometric means, which would be lower than average 

Table 18. Median values of selected water-quality properties and constituents by depth at Waimaluhia Reservoir, stations 212335157482603 (RES 1-3) and 

212329157483102 (RES 3-2) during and after H-3 Highway construction, Oahu, Hawaii, May 1983 to January 1998.

[--, no data; mg/L, milligrams per liter; oC, degrees Celsius; μS/cm at 25oC, microsiemens per centimeter at 25 degrees Celsius; NTU, Nephelometric Turbidity 

Unit; e, median estimated by log-probability regression due to values below the detection limit; <, less than]

Depth

(feet)

pH

(pH units)

Dissolvedoxygen 

saturation

(percent)

Dissolvedoxygen 

concentration

(mg/L)

Water 

temperature 

(

oC)

Specific 

conductance 

(μS/cm at 25oC)

Total nitrate 

plus nitrite 

nitrogen

(mg/L)

Ammonia and 

organic 

nitrogen

(mg/L)

Phosphorus

(mg/L)

Total 

suspended 

solids

(mg/L)

Turbidity

(NTU)

Station 212335157482603 (RES 1-3), during highway construction, May 1983 to June 1992

Number of measurements or samples varied by depth, property, and constituent, and ranged from 9 to 38

1 7.6 94 7.6 25.5 184 0.30 e0.40 e0.02 e2 1.2

3 7.6 94 7.5 25.5 184 -- -- -- -- --

5 7.6 88 7.2 25.5 185 -- -- -- -- --

7 7.4 84 7.0 25.0 186 0.30 e0.40 e0.02 e3 1.3

9 7.3 76 6.1 25.0 188 -- -- -- -- --

11 7.2 68 5.6 24.0 189 0.40 0.30 e0.02 e6 2.2

12 7.2 63 5.2 24.0 188 e0.30 e0.40 0.02 e6 2.3

Station 212335157482603 (RES 1-3), after highway construction, August 1992 to January 1998

Number of measurements or samples varied by depth, property, and constituent, and ranged from 5 to 17

1 7.4 84 7.0 23.0 188 0.41 <0.20 <0.01 e2 1.4

3 7.4 84 6.8 24.0 188 -- -- -- -- --

5 7.4 82 6.8 24.0 188 -- -- -- -- --

7 7.4 80 6.6 23.5 190 0.40 <0.20 <0.01 e4 1.3

9 7.3 70 6.2 23.5 192 -- -- -- -- --

11 7.3 66 5.6 23.0 196 0.44 <0.20 e0.02 e6 2.5

Station 212329157483102 (RES 3-2), during highway construction, May 1983 to June 1992

Number of measurements or samples varied by depth, property, and constituent, and ranged from 6 to 23

1 7.6 96 7.6 26.5 184 e0.30 e0.30 e0.01 e3 1.0

2 7.6 97 7.9 25.5 180 -- -- -- -- --

3 7.6 95 7.6 26.5 185 -- -- -- -- --

5 7.6 90 7.2 26.0 184 -- -- -- -- 1.6

6 7.5 92 7.6 26.0 184 e0.30 e0.40 e0.01 e2 1.2

7 7.5 87 7.2 25.5 185 -- -- -- -- --

9 7.4 84 6.9 25.0 186 -- -- -- -- --

10 7.4 78 6.6 25.0 186 e0.30 0.30 e0.01 e4 2.4

11 7.3 68 5.6 24.0 182 -- -- -- -- --

Station 212329157483102 (RES 3-2), after highway construction, August 1992 to April 1998

Number of measurements or samples varied by depth, property, and constituent, and ranged from 4 to 15

1 7.6 87 7.3 23.0 186 0.37 <0.20 <0.01 e2 1.3

3 7.6 87 7.0 22.5 188 -- -- -- -- --

5 7.6 86 7.3 22.5 188 0.39 <0.20 <0.01 e2 1.3

7 7.6 85 7.0 22.5 188 -- -- -- -- --

9 7.6 83 7.0 22.5 186 -- -- -- -- --

10 7.6 81 6.8 23.0 188 0.38 <0.20 0.02 e4 2.8
40 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

(table 5), the earlier data were similar and slightly lower than 

the before- and during-construction data at station 16275000. 

The median NO2+NO3 nitrogen at station 16270900 computed 

by Dugan (1977) was similar to the study data geometric means 

(table 7). At station 16275000, median NO2+NO3 nitrogen also 

was lower than, but similar to, the before-construction study 

data and lower than the during-construction data (tables 7 and 

20). The older Jackson Turbidity Unit (JTU) was similar to the 

NTU but not exactly equivalent (Fishman and Friedman, 

1989), and geometric mean values (table 10) were similar to the 

older data median values at both stations. The pH and water 

temperature data collected by Cox and others (1973) were 

similar to that in Matsuoka (1983), so are not presented in table 

20. For pH, temperature, and specific conductance, the older 

data were similar to the current data (tables 11, 13, and 14). The 

past pH data at station 16275000 have a lower median pH 

(table 20), and median temperature and specific conductance at 

station 16270900 also are lower in the previous data but, in all 

cases, not greatly so. Therefore, for these two stations, any 

effect the highway construction had on the above-discussed 

properties and constituents was temporary, and no long-term 

change in water-quality trends is apparent based on this simple 

comparison.

Table 19. Rank-sum test p-value results of selected water-quality constituent instantaneous loads and values between upstream and downstream 

stations during H-3 Highway construction in the Halawa and Kaneohe drainage basins, Oahu, Hawaii, 1983–1997

[Shaded values represent significant results with p-values less than 0.05; wet season is from November 1 to April 30 and dry season is from May 1 to 

October 31; lbs/day, pounds per day; NTU, Nephelometric Turbidity Unit]

Constituent All data Wet-season data Dry-season data Remarks

Stations 16226200 (upstream) and 16227100 (downstream), Halawa drainage area, during 

highway construction, water years 1988-97

Total nitrogen (lbs/day) 0.48 0.87 0.18

Nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen(lbs/day) 0.93 0.59 0.46

Total phosphorus (lbs/day) 0.36 0.82 0.13

Total suspended solids (lbs/day) 0.83 0.38 0.15

Turbidity (NTU) 0.35 0.02 0.16 Values at 16226200 higher.

Stations 16272200 (upstream) and 16274100 (downstream), Kaneohe drainage area, during 

highway construction, water years 1983-96

Total nitrogen (lbs/day) 0.00 0.04 0.02 Loads at 16274100 higher.

Nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen (lbs/day) 0.00 0.00 0.02 Loads at 16274100 higher.

Total phosphorus (lbs/day) 0.00 0.05 0.00 Loads at 16274100 higher.

Total suspended solids (lbs/day) 0.00 0.10 0.00 Loads at 16274100 higher.

Turbidity (NTU) 0.00 0.08 0.00 Values at 16274100 higher.

Table 20. Previously collected water-quality data at stations 16270900 Luluku Stream and 16275000 Haiku Stream in the H-3 Highway study area, Oahu, Hawaii

[--, no data; mg/L, milligrams per liter; oC, degrees Celsius; μs/cm, microsiemens per centimeter; >, greater than; JTU, Jackson turbidity units]

Constituent or 

property

Station 16270900 Station 16275000

Data source

Number of 

observations 

or samples Minimum Median Maximum

Number of 

observations 

or samples Minimum Median Maximum

pH (units) 6 6.0 7.2 7.5 28 6.0 7.1 8.5 Matsuoka, 1983

Temperature (oC) 5 18.0 20.0 21.0 26 19.0 20.5 22.0 Matsuoka, 1983

Specific conductance (μs/cm)

6 130 142 150 28 134 160 206 Matsuoka, 1983

Nitrite plus nitrate 

nitrogen (mg/L)

138 0.005 0.16 >1.4 8 0.01 0.04 0.21 Dugan, 1977, 

 Matsuoka, 1983

Turbidity (JTU) 5 0 1 4 12 0 1 2 Matsuoka, 1983
Summary and Conclusions 41

Summary and Conclusions

Selected water-quality data collected before, during, and 

after construction of the H-3 Highway at 13 water-quality 

stations were compared to the State of Hawaii Department of 

Health water-quality standards to determine the effects of 

highway construction on the water quality of the affected 

streams. The geometric mean and concentrations not to be 

exceeded 10- and 2-percent-of-the-time were used as numeric 

standards for five water-quality constituents: total nitrogen, 

nitrite plus nitrate (NO2+NO3) nitrogen, total phosphorus, total 

suspended solids, and turbidity. The remaining standards 

consist of a single numeric criteria not to be exceeded, except 

for water temperature and pH, which depend on deviations 

from ambient conditions. Numeric standards for total nitrogen, 

NO2+NO3 nitrogen, total suspended solids, and turbidity are 

dependent on wet or dry seasons, with wet-season standards 

being higher. For constituents with data determined to be 

below the minimum reporting levels, log-probability 

regression or one-half minimum reporting level substitution 

methods were used to determine the numeric values for 

comparison to the water-quality standards.

Highway construction had no significant effect on the 

geometric means of total nitrogen concentrations. The 

geometric means of total nitrogen exceeded the standards at all 

12 streams and the primary reservoir site both before and 

during construction. At almost all stations where the total 

nitrogen geometric means exceeded the standards, the 

standards for the 10- and 2-percent-of-the-time concentrations 

also were exceeded.

The NO2+NO3 nitrogen geometric mean standards were 

exceeded before, during, and after construction at all sites 

except during the wet season before construction at 

stations 16266500, 16267500, and 16275000 and after 

construction at stations 16226200 and 16267500. At these 

sites, land-use effects prior to highway construction were 

minimal. Also, at almost all stations where the NO2+NO3

nitrogen geometric means exceeded the standards, the 

standards for the 10- and 2-percent-of-the-time concentrations 

also were exceeded. Highway construction had a significant 

effect on increasing NO2+NO3 nitrogen concentrations only at 

station 16266500.

Highway construction did not have an effect on total 

phosphorus values except at station 16226200. Geometric 

means for total phosphorus at all stations did not exceed the 

standards except at stations 16265600 and 16265700 during 

construction, dry season. Golf courses exist or were built 

upstream from both these stations, and fertilizer use may be the 

cause of high phosphorus values. No before-construction data 

were collected at station 16265600, but at station 16265700, 

there were no significant differences in phosphorus 

concentrations before, during, or after highway construction. 

Phosphorus standards for the 10- and 2-percent-of-the-time 

concentrations were exceeded at 7 of the 13 sites. Exceedences 

of these standards, except at station 16226200, may be, in part, 

due to existing upstream agricultural and urban land use. The 

land disturbances caused by highway construction most likely 

contributed to the high values at station 16226200.

Highway construction did have an effect on total 

suspended-solids concentrations. Geometric means for total 

suspended solids exceeded the standards only at 

stations 16227100 and 16274100, both urban sites, during 

construction during the dry season. The 10- and 2-percent-ofthe-time concentrations were exceeded at most stations only 

during construction. High values for the 10- and 2-percent-ofthe-time concentrations most likely are due to land 

disturbances caused by highway construction. After 

construction, total suspended-solids values were still high 

enough to exceed the 10- and 2-percent-of-the-time 

concentrations at stations 16226200 and 16267500.

High turbidity values during highway construction were, 

in part, due to land disturbance caused by the highway 

construction. Turbidity geometric means were high enough to 

exceed the standards during construction at stations 16226200, 

16227100, 16265600, 16265700, 16267500, 16273950, and 

16274100. These exceedences, however, cannot be directly 

attributed to highway construction because of beforeconstruction exceedences and existing land-use activities 

upstream from these sites. The 2-percent-of-the-time standard 

was exceeded at all stations during construction while the 

10-percent-of-the-time standard was exceeded at all stations 

except 16273950, 16275000, and RES 1-3.

The effects of highway construction on total suspended 

solids and turbidity can be considered temporary due to land 

disturbances, because after-construction values do not exceed 

the standards except at a few stations of which only total 

suspended solids at stations 16226200 and 16267500 and 

turbidity at station 16226200 can be directly attributed to afterconstruction effects. This effect is similar to those observed in 

other studies.

Highway construction had no effect on the physical waterquality properties of pH, dissolved oxygen, and temperature. 

No effects were observed on specific conductance except at 

stations 16226200 and 16269500. At these two sites, specificconductance values increased throughout the study period, 

most likely due to changing land use caused by highway 

construction. Median values of specific conductance also 

increased during the study period at stations 16266500 and 

16267500, although not in excess of standards. No effects were 

observed on selected trace metals and organic chemical 

compounds because of highway construction. High dieldrin 

concentrations detected at station 16274100 were likely caused 

by the urban use of this chemical. No effects due to highway 

construction were observed in the water quality of Waimaluhia 

Reservoir. The reservoir is naturally eutrophic and acts as a 

nutrient sink. 

In comparing selected water-quality data collected 

downstream from highway construction but upstream from 

urban areas with that collected downstream from urban areas 

during highway construction, no significant differences were 
42 Water Quality in the Halawa, Haiku, and Kaneohe Drainage Basins Before, During, and After H-3 Highway Construction

observed in Halawa Stream. Turbidity values were higher 

upstream at station 16226200 during the wet season than 

downstream because of the highway construction. Urban land 

use contributed to higher loads or values of total nitrogen, 

NO2+NO3 nitrogen, phosphorus, total suspended solids, and 

turbidity at station 16274100, than at station 16272200, which 

was affected only by highway construction or agriculture. Data 

at stations 16270900 and 16275000 collected prior to 1983 

were similar to data collected during this study. Land-use 

changes prior to highway construction were minimal in these 

basins and for the properties and constituents compared; 

therefore, little long-term change due to highway construction 

was observed.

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