Toxic Metals Found in Maui Residents After Fires — SkimNews
Get the Energy newsletter
Daily energy & climate — solar, EVs, oil, the policy fights and tech bets shaping the transition. Free.
- MauiWES researchers measured 24 metals in 1,400 adults six to 18 months after the fires and found urine concentrations of arsenic, barium, manganese, and antimony significantly higher than U.S. averages
- Alika Maunakea, co-director of MauiWES, stated that wildfires in developed areas create complex exposure environments beyond smoke, including contaminants from burned infrastructure and pre-existing pollution
- Noelani Ahia, Kanaka Maoli and co-founder of Maui Medic Healers Hui, emphasized that colonial legacies like plantation agriculture and land dispossession are confounding factors in current health disparities
- Katie Kamelamela, Kanaka Maoli and assistant professor, argued that recovery must enable people to remain in communities, care for ʻāina, and preserve cultural knowledge, not just rebuild physically
- Maui Medic Healers Hui operates a free clinic in Lāhainā but says it would need 10 more clinics to meet the ongoing mental and physical health needs of fire-affected residents
Why it matters: The discovery of toxic metals at up to 40 times normal levels in Maui residents reveals a persistent public health emergency that existing disaster response frameworks fail to address, particularly for Native Hawaiian communities already burdened by historical environmental harm and inadequate healthcare access.
Ask SkimNews
