This month, Oʻahu residents and businesses will see a 6% rate hike to their sewer bill — the first hike in a decade. The city set a schedule for the next five years to raise billions to fix an aging sewer system and make upgrades mandated by new environmental laws.
Just a few weeks ago, Oʻahu residents saw a break in a sewage pipe near Nimitz Highway that spilled close to a quarter million gallons of wastewater into the Nuʻuanu Stream.
The Conversation spoke to Roger Babcock, director of the Honolulu Department of Environmental Services, to share why this hike is in place…