Hawaii Administrative Rules › Title 13 - DEPARTMENT OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES › Subtitle 7 - WATER RESOURCES › Chapter 170 - HAWAII WATER PLAN › Subchapter 1 - GENERAL PROVISIONS › Section 13-170-1 - Definitions

Current through June, 2024
As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise
					 requires:
"Authorized planned use" means the use or projected use of
					 water by a development that has received the proper state land use designation
					 and county development plan/community plan approvals.
"Chairperson" means the chairperson of the commission on
					 water resource management.
"Change in use" means any modification or change in water
					 use from or to domestic, municipal, military, agriculture (including
					 agricultural processing), or industrial use.
"Commission" means the commission on water resource
					 management.
"Department" means the department of land and natural
					 resources.
"Deputy" means the deputy to the chairperson of the
					 commission on water resource management.
"Domestic use" means any use of water for individual
					 personal needs and for household purposes such as drinking, bathing, heating,
					 cooking, noncommercial gardening, and sanitation.
"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.
"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.
"Municipal use" means the domestic, industrial, and
					 commercial use of water through public services available to persons of a
					 county for the promotion and protection of their health, comfort, and safety,
					 for the protection of property from fire, and for the purposes listed under the
					 term "domestic use".
"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.
"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.
"Sustainable yield" means the maximum rate at which water
					 may be withdrawn from a water source without impairing the utility or quality
					 of the water source as determined by the commission.
"Water" or "waters of the state" means any and all water
					 on or beneath the surface of the ground, including natural or artificial
					 watercourses, lakes, ponds, or diffused surface water and water percolating,
					 standing, or flowing beneath the surface of the ground.
"Water source" means a place within or from which water is
					 or may be developed, including but not limited to:
(1) generally, an area such as a watershed defined by
					 topographic boundaries, or a definitive ground water body; and
(2) specifically, a particular stream, other surface water
					 body, spring, tunnel, or well or related combination thereof.