| Maui County Population, 1960-2000 |
| 1960 | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | 2000 |
| Total | 42,576 | 45,984 | 70,847 | 100,374 | 128,094 |
| Change | | 3,408 | 24,863 | 29,527 | 27,720 |
| Percent Change | | 8.0% | 54.1% | 41.7% | 27.6% |
| source: CensusScope 2000 Census analysis |
Population growth—partly due to an influx of new people typically from Canada and the U.S. mainland—is producing strains, including growing congestion on many of the major roads. There is concern about the availability of affordable housing and access to water. Property prices have risen to levels that families on average incomes find it difficult to afford housing (either renting or buying). Property developers have insufficient regulatory or financial incentive to build less expensive (affordable) homes. Maui County Council has been investigating ways of changing the situation. There have been long-term concerns about the reliability of supply of
potable water: droughts have been declared in most recent years and the
Ī‘ao aquifer has been drawn down at what are believed may be unsustainable rates of above 18 million gallons (68,000 m³) per day. Whilst the situation remains unclear, and reliable supply has not been secured, recent estimates indicate that the total potential supply of potable water on Maui is, at an estimated 476 million gallons (1,800,000 m³) per day, many times greater than foreseeable demand. There is a great deal of discussion about the meaning of, and the way to achieve, smart development. There is clearly a tension between economic growth and urbanisation on the one hand, and the wish to preserve the beauty of Maui and a relaxed way of life on the other. In the past there existed a pro-growth bias in policy with developers and politicians working to stimulate the economy; now the balance has swung toward more sensitive consideration of community concerns (about the dangers of unwise growth/development) and developers no longer have everything their way.
Economy
The major industries are
agriculture and
tourism. Maui Land & Pineapple and Hawaiian Commercial and Sugar (HC&S - a subsidiary of Alexander and Baldwin Company) dominate agricultural activity. HC&S produces sugarcane on about 37,000 acres (150,000,000 m²) of the Maui central valley, the largest sugarcane operation remaining in Hawai‘i. The cane is irrigated mostly with water drawn from aqueducts that run from the windward (northern) slopes of
Haleakalā that receive considerable rainfall. A controversial feature of sugarcane production is the burning that is done for about 9 months of the year. These are controlled burns of fields to reduce the crop to bare canes just before harvesting. The fires produce smoke that towers above the Maui central valley most early mornings, and ash (locally referred to as "Maui snow") that is carried downwind (often towards north Kihei). The retail center for Maui residents is
Kahului. Maui is also an important centre for
astronomy with the Haleakalā High Altitude Observatory Site being one of the five best astronomical and space surveillance sites in the world.
Topography
Maui is a
volcanic doublet: an island formed from two volcanic mountains that abut one another to form the isthmus between them. The older volcano,
Mauna Kahalawai, is much older and has been eroded considerably; it is now called the West Maui Mountain. The larger volcano in the East,
Haleakalā with its famous
caldera — rises above 10,023 feet (3,050 m). The last eruption occurred around 1790, and the lava flow can be viewed between ‘Āhihi Bay and
La Perouse Bay on the southwest shore of East Maui. Both volcanoes are
shield volcanoes and the low viscosity of the Hawaiian
lava makes the likelihood of large explosive eruptions negligible.
Climate
At sea level Maui has a remarkably stable tropical climate with highs in the region of 29 C (80 to 85 F) and lows around 20C (65 to 70 F); rainfall is greater in the northern hemisphere winter (wet season is November through April). However, because of the two volcanic mountains that dominate the topography, Maui has a very wide range of climatic conditions depending on elevation and whether an area faces toward or away from the prevailing Tradewinds (blowing from the northeast). For example the top of the West Maui mountain receives over 400 inches (10 m) of rainfall per year, whereas Kihei receives less than 10 inches (250 mm), being in the
rain shadow of East Maui Volcano (
see Orographic precipitation); Kahului airport (the main airport on Maui) has average rainfall of about 19 inches (480 mm), whereas Olinda (upslope from the airport) receives about 73 inches (1.8 m). Maui has an unusual weather feature known as the
Maui vortex, an area of clear sky that often forms over
Pukalani due to the swirling of air (a vortex) as it enters the central valley after being forced to move around Haleakalā. Maui, like the whole of the Hawaiian Islands, has a hurricane season in the late summer and fall, with tropical storms typically approaching from the southeast. Storms initiated by hurricanes or tropical depressions that approach from the southeast are known locally as Kona storms.
Tourism
Maui welcomed 2,225,060 tourists in 2002. The main tourism centres are Lahaina to Kapalua and Kihei-Wailea, each of which has several luxury resort hotels. Whereas O‘ahu is most popular with Japanese tourists, Maui tends to appeal especially to visitors from the US mainland and Canada. Maui is a leading whale-watching center in the Hawaiian Islands due to the fact that many
Humpback whales winter in the sheltered
‘Au‘au Channel between the islands of Maui county. The whales migrate approximately 3,500 miles (5,600 km) from
Alaskan waters each autumn and spend the northern hemisphere winter months mating and birthing in the warm waters off Maui. The whales are typically sighted in pods: small groups of several adults and one or more calves. Humpbacks are an
endangered species protected by U.S. federal and Hawai‘i state law. There are estimated to be about 3000 humpbacks in the North Pacific. Among the many features on Maui popular with tourists are the "Road to Hāna" (the drive from the central valley to Hāna and beyond), the drive up to Haleakalā crater, Makawao (and Maui's Upcountry region), the
Ī‘ao Valley, and Lindbergh's grave (near Kaupo on East Maui).
| Road to Hana | Wai'anapanapa |
| Road to Hāna | Wai‘ānapanapa |
The Maui Chamber of Commerce issues medals, called
Maui Dollars, that can be used as currency in local shops and are valued as collectables.
See Also
External links