Hawaii Administrative Rules › Title 13 - DEPARTMENT OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES › Subtitle 7 - WATER RESOURCES › Chapter 169 - PROTECTION OF INSTREAM USES OF WATER › Subchapter 1 - GENRAL PROVISIONS › Section 13-169-2 - Definitions

Current through June, 2024
As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise
					 requires:
"Baseline research" means the gathering of data of a
					 primary nature which is used to create a base or foundation of knowledge for
					 understanding some subject, such as the stream water of a particular stream in
					 the state.
"Chairperson" means the chairperson of the commission on
					 water resource management.
"Channel alteration" means to obstruct, diminish, destroy,
					 modify, or relocate a stream channel; to change the direction of flow of water
					 in a stream channel; to place any material or structures in a stream channel;
					 or to remove any material or structures from a stream channel.
"Commission" means the commission on water resource
					 management.
"Continuous flowing water" means a sufficient flow of
					 water that could provide for migration and movement of aquatic life and
					 includes those reaches of streams which, in their natural state, normally go
					 dry seasonally at the location of the proposed alteration.
"Department" means the department of land and natural
					 resources.
"Deputy" means the deputy to the chairperson of the
					 commission on water resource management.
"Ground water" means any water found beneath the surface
					 of the earth, whether or not in perched, dike-confined, or basal supply; in
					 underground channels or streams; in standing, percolating, or flowing
					 condition; or under artesian pressure.
"Hydrologic unit" means a surface drainage area or a
					 ground water basin or a combination of the two.
"Impoundment" means any lake, reservoir, pond, or other
					 containment of surface water occupying a bed or depression in the earth's
					 surface and having a discernible shoreline.
"Instream flow standard" or "permanent instream flow
					 standard" means a quantity or flow of water or depth of water which is required
					 to be present at a specific location in a stream system at certain specified
					 times of the year to protect aquatic life, wildlife, recreational, aesthetic,
					 scenic, and other beneficial instream uses.
"Instream use" means beneficial uses of stream water for
					 significant purposes which are located in the stream and which are achieved by
					 leaving the water in the stream. Instream uses include, but are not limited
					 to:
(1) Maintenance of aquatic life and wildlife
					 habitats;
(2) Outdoor recreational activities;
(3) Maintenance of ecosystems such as estuaries, wetlands,
					 and stream vegetation;
(4) Aesthetic values such as waterfalls and scenic
					 waterways;
(5) Navigation;
(6) Instream hydropower generation;
(7) Maintenance of water quality;
(8) The conveyance of irrigation and domestic water
					 supplies to downstream points of diversion; and
(9) The protection of traditional and customary Hawaiian
					 rights.
"Interim instream flow standard" means a temporary
					 instream flow standard of immediate applicability, adopted by the commission
					 without the necessity of a public hearing, and terminating upon the
					 establishment of an instream flow standard.
"Non-instream use" means the use of stream water that is
					 diverted or removed from its stream channel and includes the use of stream
					 water outside of the channel for domestic, agricultural, and industrial
					 purposes.
"Person" means any individual, firm, association,
					 organization, partnership, estate, trust, corporation, company, or any
					 governmental unit.
"Reasonable-beneficial use" means the use of water in such
					 a quantity as is necessary for economic and efficient utilization, for a
					 purpose, and in a manner which is not wasteful and is both reasonable and
					 consistent with the state and county land use plans and the public
					 interest.
"Stream" means any river, creek, slough, or natural
					 watercourse in which water usually flows in a defined bed or channel. It is not
					 essential that the flow be uniform or uninterrupted. The fact that some parts
					 of the bed or channel have been dredged or improved does not prevent the
					 watercourse from being a stream.
"Stream channel" means a natural or artificial watercourse
					 with a definite bed and banks which periodically or continuously contains
					 flowing water. The channel referred to is that which exists at the present
					 time, regardless of where the channel may have been located at any time in the
					 past.
"Stream diversion" means the act of diverting, pumping or
					 otherwise removing water from a stream into a channel, ditch, pipeline, or
					 other conduit.
"Stream reach" means a segment of a stream channel having
					 a defined upstream and downstream point.
"Stream system" means the aggregate of water features
					 comprising or associated with a stream, including the stream itself and its
					 tributaries, headwaters, ponds, wetlands, and estuary.
"Surface water" means both contained surface water (that
					 is, water upon the surface of the earth in bounds created naturally or
					 artificially including, but not limited to, streams, other watercourses, lakes,
					 and reservoirs) and diffused surface water (that is, water occurring upon the
					 surface of the ground other than in contained waterbodies). Water from natural
					 springs is surface water when it exits from the spring onto the earth's
					 surface.