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Water commission taps consultant, allocates $1 million to statewide recycled‑water study
Summary
The Commission on Water Resource Management approved selecting Birchline Planning LLC to prepare a statewide recycled‑water implementation study funded with a $1 million legislative appropriation. The study will map feasible recycled‑water projects for state and county facilities, identify regulatory barriers and propose a timeline toward 2045.
The Commission on Water Resource Management voted unanimously to approve the selection of Birchline Planning LLC and delegated authority to the chair to award, execute and extend a contract for a Hawaii Statewide Recycled Water Implementation Study.
Katie Roth of the commission’s planning branch told commissioners the study was authorized by Act 170 (2016) and that the Legislature provided $1,000,000 to begin implementation work. Roth said the consultant selection followed a March 23, 2026 RFP and that Birchline scored highest in the evaluation: “They received the highest average score during the RFP evaluation committee meeting,” Roth said, adding that five proposals were evaluated and that applicants generally met the RFP criteria.
Staff described four study goals: (1) a statewide implementation roadmap that targets state and county facilities where recycled water is most feasible, (2) identification of policy, regulatory and planning mechanisms to reduce barriers, (3) an implementation timeline to track progress through 2045, and (4) exploration of high‑volume nonpotable uses such as watershed restoration, agriculture and firefighting.
Commissioners asked about local experience and project schedule. Roth said proposals were weighted for local track record and that Birchline scored about 48 out of a possible 50 while the lowest proposer scored about 43. The proposed contract term is one year with an option to extend for an additional 12 months.
The chair and commissioners praised staff for advancing a long‑pending effort to evaluate recycled water options across the state. The commission found the study exempt from an environmental assessment under the commission’s existing exemption list and approved delegation to the chair to execute the contract, subject to Attorney General review. The commission directed staff to bring questions from the public‑engagement workshops into the study scope and to expect a timeline and deliverables from the consultant.
