Timeline:  2010 Consent Decree

1979:  Honolulu applies for 301(h) waivers for Honouliuli and Sand Island wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs);

1988:  Clean Water Act closes applications for 301(h) waivers;

1990:  EPA issues approval of permits with waivers for Honouliuli and Sand Island WWTPs, these expire in 1995;

1995 to 2005:  Renewal applications submitted and under review, both facilities operated under administrative extensions;

1995:  A consent decree is issued over sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs);

1999, 2002, 2003, and 2004:  Administrative enforcement Orders issued by EPA/DOH over permit violations and spills;

2004:  Three Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) file lawsuit;

2005:  EPA informs Honolulu’s Mayor 301(h) waivers will not be renewed;

2006:  Beachwalk Force Main break – results in a 48-million gallon diversion of raw sewage into the Ala Wai Canal;

2006:  Negotiations begin on new consent decree and continue through 2009;

2007:  EPA issues tentative denials for waivers;

2009:  EPA issues final decisions and denials; city appeals;

2010:  Mayor meets with EPA and negotiates consent decree with longest compliance schedule ever issued (25 years). The 2010 Consent Decree settles old CD, all AOs, and lawsuits. Three NGOs are party:  Sierra Club, Hawai‘i’s Thousand Friends, and Our Children’s Earth Foundation.