The Hawai‘i Department of Transportation (HDOT) has announced a temporary closure of a section of the North Shore Greenway bike and pedestrian path near Kahului Airport. The closure, scheduled to begin on Monday, June 16, and continue through Sunday, July 20, is necessary for soil removal work.
The affected area is located near the Kahului Airport Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) training pit close to Kanahā Beach Park. HDOT has provided a map of the closure area on their website.
For those using the path, there will be a turnaround point on the Pā‘ia side of the closure. Signage will be in place to inform users about the closed section.
This project involves removing soil potentially impacted by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), as part of an approved removal action plan submitted to the Hawai‘i Department of Health. Soil removal activities are set to commence on June 16 following preparatory work that began in late May. A community meeting was held on May 21 to discuss both the closure and the planned work.
PFAS are components found in aqueous film-forming foams (AFFF), which are used in firefighting at airports due to aircraft fuel fire risks. Although AFFF is no longer utilized during firefighting training since 2021, it was previously employed. ARFF vehicles across the state have been modified to restrict AFFF use exclusively to fires involving or near aircraft fuel.
