RELATING TO NATURAL RESOURCES.

SB3223

THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

3223

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

relating
to natural resources
.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

����
SECTION 1.
�
The
legislature finds that the State's natural resources are critical to its
economic stability, energy security, climate resilience, public health, safety,
and cultural continuity.
�
The legislature
further finds that planning for the availability of water supplies, the siting
of renewable energy infrastructure, accurate wildfire and landslide risk
assessment, and response procedures designed for drought and contamination
emergencies are among the fiduciary acts performed by the State in the best
interests of the public.
�
The legislature
believes that such planning is best made when high-quality, site-specific
surface and subsurface data is considered, including information on
stratigraphy, permeability, groundwater levels, temperature gradients, gas
composition, and other geological conditions.

����
The legislature further finds that the
public trust doctrine dictates that the State must protect and manage public
natural resources, including water, land, and forests, for present and future
generations while also providing for their "highest economic social
benefits", necessitating the need to balance various, competing
interests.
�
Existing statutory and
regulatory frameworks governing wells and mining were designed to manage the
long-term production and viability of the State's water and mineral resources.
�
However, these frameworks were implemented
without consideration of the need to treat purely scientific, non-commercial,
temporary subsurface investigations differently from commercial developments.
�
Consequently, these statutory and regulatory
frameworks hinder scientific investigation that produces findings often needed
by regulatory agencies to identify and guide their management of those
resources.

����
The legislature also finds that regulatory
frameworks governing water and mineral resources do not preclude non‑extractive
scientific research that is necessary to identify and understand the State's
natural resources.
�
Furthermore, the
State's environmental review framework authorizes agencies, subject to review
of the environmental advisory council, to exempt actions that individually and
cumulatively will, in all probability, have minimal or no consequential effects
on the environment from the environmental review process.

����
The legislature additionally finds that the
university of Hawaii and other research institutions based in the State use
non-destructive analytical field processes in the normal course of their
work.
�
Those processes may include the
use of temporary, small‑diameter boreholes used solely for the purpose of
collecting scientific data that defines observable subsurface conditions.
�
These activities are non-commercial in nature
and are not intended to support ongoing water or geothermal production.
�
Boreholes used for these purposes are
designed to be sealed or otherwise decommissioned after data gathering is
complete in a manner that protects post-study groundwater and surface
environments.

����
The legislature additionally finds that
without regulatory clarification, temporary boreholes used for scientific
research will continue to be subjected to the same administrative scrutiny as
commercial exploration for water production wells or mining operations which
regularly require environmental assessments or impact statements.
�
As a result, time-sensitive geological
subsurface characterization activities that produce useful scientific data are
often delayed, which increases costs and often discourages data collection
altogether.

����
Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to:

����
(1)
�
Authorize
geological subsurface characterization activities conducted by a public
research institution under certain conditions;

����
(2)
�
Clarify
that boreholes or test holes drilled for the purposes of geological subsurface
characterization are distinct from water well exploration and geothermal or
mineral exploration;

����
(3)
�
Require
the department of business, economic development, and tourism, to designate
the Hawaii groundwater and geothermal
resources center of the university of Hawaii, or a successor entity, as the
repository for data collected from any geological subsurface characterization
activity;

����
(4)
�
Require
the department of land and natural resources to amend its exemption list to be
consistent with administrative rules adopted by the department, specifying that
certain geological subsurface characterization activities shall be exempt from
the environmental review process or shall only require an exemption notice;

����
(5)
�
Require
the university of Hawaii to amend its exemption list to specify that certain
geological subsurface characterization activities shall be exempt from the
environmental review process or shall only require an exemption notice; and

����
(6)
�
Require
the department of health to amend its rules related to hazardous waste and
hazardous waste management for consistency with Title 40, Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 261, to specify that certain waste products generated by
geological subsurface characterization activity are exempt from hazardous waste
management requirements.

����
SECTION
2
.
�
The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by
adding a new chapter to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"
Chapter

GEOLOGICAL
SUBSURFACE CHARACTERIZATION

����
� -1
�
Purpose; applicability.
�
(a)
�

The purpose of this chapter is to clarify that any temporary,
non-commercial, geological subsurface characterization activity, including a
borehole or test bore drilling activity:

����
(1)
�
Shall
not be treated as mining operations or geothermal resources exploration or
development under chapter 182, when conducted solely for scientific data
gathering purposes;

����
(2)
�
Shall
not be treated as wells for the purposes of well construction and pump installation
permitting under part VII of chapter 174C; provided that the geological
subsurface characterization activity is conducted pursuant to section
-3; and

����
(3)
�
May
qualify as de minimis or otherwise exempt actions under chapter 343; provided
that the geologic subsurface characterization activity does not violate any
rule adopted under chapter 343.

����
(b)
�

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to exempt a person from
obtaining a permit or approval required by law, including but not limited to
conservation district use permits under chapter 183C, shoreline or special
management area permits under chapter 205A, or county ordinance.

����
(c)
�

This chapter shall apply to any geological subsurface characterization
activity conducted by or under the direction of a public research institution
on:

����
(1)
�
State
lands, including public lands, forest reserves, lands in the conservation
district, and other lands under the jurisdiction of the department of land and
natural resources and department of Hawaiian home lands;

����
(2)
�
Lands
under the jurisdiction of other state or county agencies; and

����
(3)
�
Private
parcels; provided that the owner of the parcel has provided written permission
to the public research institution.

����
(d)
�

Except as explicitly provided in this chapter, nothing in this chapter
shall be construed to:

����
(1)
�
Limit
public trust water resources under article XI of the Hawaii State Constitution
or chapter 174C;

����
(2)
�
Alter
the jurisdiction of the department of health over underground injection well
control, hazardous waste management, or drinking water protection; or

����
(3)
�
Diminish
protections for any Native Hawaiian traditional and customary practice,
historic property, or cultural resource, including protections provided by
article XII, section 7, of the Hawaii State Constitution, and chapter 6E.

����
� -2
�
Definitions
.
�
For the purposes of this chapter:

����
"Borehole" means a temporary,
artificial excavation, opening, or cored hole in the ground that is drilled,
driven, or otherwise constructed solely for the purpose of geological
subsurface characterization activities that is:

����
(1)
�
Not
equipped with permanent pumps or production equipment other than temporary or
low-capacity equipment used for testing or sampling; and

����
(2)
�
Abandoned,
sealed, or converted to a monitoring or production well.

����
"Department" means the department
of business, economic development, and tourism.

����
"Geological subsurface
characterization activity" means any planned, temporary, non-commercial
program of field activities executed or advised by a public research
institution undertaken to collect scientific, engineering, or environmental
data about subsurface geologic, hydrologic, geochemical, geophysical,
geothermal, or related geological conditions, in compliance with
section -3.
�

"Geological subsurface characterization activity" includes but
is not limited to:

����
(1)
�
Reflection
seismology, refraction seismology, multichannel analysis of surfaces waves,
electrical resistivity tomography, induced polarization, ground‑penetrating
radar, magnetotellurics, magnetic surveys, gravity surveys, and ground and
airborne gamma spectrometry;

����
(2)
�
Drilling,
coring, or advancing small-diameter temporary boreholes;

����
(3)
�
Collection
of rock, soil, groundwater, gas, and temperature measurements and samples;

����
(4)
�
Downhole
logging, tracer testing, hydraulic or thermal response testing, and other
measurements;

����
(5)
�
Preparation,
storage, and transmission of resulting data and samples; provided that the
activity is not primarily intended to produce water, minerals, geothermal,
heat, or other subsurface resources for sale, commercial use, or continuous
operational use;

����
(6)
�
Any
extraction or injection that is limited in duration, volume, and pressure as
reasonably necessary for data collection and testing; and

����
(7)
�
Any
activity necessary to seal or decommission a borehole.

����
"Groundwater" means any water
found beneath the surface of the earth, whether in perched supply, dike
confined, flowing, or percolating in underground channels or streams, under
artesian pressure or not, or otherwise.

����
"Hazardous waste" means any
material designated under Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 261.

����
"Injection well" means a well
into which the subsurface disposal of a fluid or fluids occurs or is intended
to occur by means of injection.

����
"Investigative-derived waste"
means drill cuttings, drilling muds and fluids, purge water, development water,
used tracers, and other materials generated during geological subsurface
characterization borehole drilling, testing, sampling, and decommissioning.

����
"Non-commercial purpose" means an
activity that is not conducted for the primary purpose of generating profit
from the sale or use of water, geothermal heat, minerals, or other subsurface
resources.
�
"Non-commercial
purpose" includes the receipt of grants, contracts, or research funding or
cost‑sharing arrangements with private entities.

����
"Public research institution"
means a regionally accredited university or college, a state or federal
research agency, or their contractors or subgrantees acting under written
direction and control of the institution or agency.

����
"Scientific data-gathering" means
the systematic process of collecting, measuring, and recording information,
including observations, measurements, or existing records, using established
methods to answer research questions, test hypotheses, and draw valid, reliable
conclusions to ensure accuracy and integrity for analysis and informed decision‑making.

����
"Test bore" or "test
boring" means any excavation or drilled hole whose purpose is the
immediate determination of subsurface geologic, hydrologic, or contaminated
conditions in the unsaturated zone above the groundwater level.
�
"Test bore" or "test
boring" includes borings for foundation, underground storage tanks, and
environmental monitoring under the purview of other government agencies and
hazardous waste remediation that is not intended for the purpose of conversion
to a production well.

����
"Well" has the same meaning as
defined in section 174C-3.

����
� -3
�
Geological subsurface characterization
activity; authorized; requirements.
�
(a)
�
A public research institution may conduct
geological subsurface characterization activities; provided that any geological
subsurface characterization activity shall be for a non-commercial purpose.

����
(b)
�
Any
borehole or test bore drilled for the purposes of a geological subsurface
characterization activity shall:

����
(1)
�
Be
designed, constructed, and decommissioned in accordance with rules adopted by
the department and best management practices, including appropriate casing,
cementing, blowout prevention, and sealing;

����
(2)
�
Avoid
direct hydraulic connection between distinct aquifers or between contaminated
and uncontaminated zones, to the extent practicable; and

����
(3)
�
Be
sealed or otherwise decommissioned not more than three years from the date that
drilling is completed; provided that the department may grant an extension for
the purpose of ongoing data gathering.

����
(c)
�
Any
pumping, flowing, or injection to or from a borehole drilled for a geological
subsurface characterization activity shall:

����
(1)
�
Be
limited to the minimum volumes and durations reasonably necessary to perform
hydraulic, thermal, or tracer testing or to collect representative samples;

����
(2)
�
Not
provide a continuous supply of groundwater or geothermal fluids for off-site
use; and

����
(3)
�
Not
measurably and adversely affect any existing legal use of water or protected
resources.

����
(d)
�
A
public research institution conducting geological subsurface characterization
activity shall ensure that:

����
(1)
�
The
geological subsurface characterization activity shall not harm known cultural
sites or burials or impede any Native Hawaiian traditional or customary
practice;

����
(2)
�
The
geological subsurface characterization activity shall not pose any significant
risk of groundwater contamination, subsidence, or induced hazards; and

����
(3)
�
The
geological subsurface characterization activity shall be in compliance with any
applicable state and federal requirements relating to endangered species,
historic preservation, and cultural resources.

����
� -4
�
Investigative-derived waste; hazardous waste;
management.
�
(a)
�
Investigative-derived waste generated by
geological subsurface characterization activity shall be managed in accordance
with Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 261; provided that
investigative-derived waste that does not constitute hazardous waste, including
drill cuttings and fluids, or are excluded from hazardous waste management
under Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 261.4(b), shall not be
managed in accordance with Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 261,
solely because the investigative-derived waste was generated by a geological
subsurface characterization activity.

����
(b)
�

The department, in consultation with the department of health, may, by
rule or guidance, specify a presumptive non‑hazardous management option
for common categories of investigative-derived wasted, including:

����
(1)
�
On-site
or nearby land application of clean cuttings;

����
(2)
�
Contained
storage and evaporation of non-hazardous fluids; and

����
(3)
�
Disposal
at permitted solid waste facilities.

����
� -5
�
Registration with department; proposal;
requirements.
�
(a)
�

Notwithstanding sections 174C‑83 and 174C‑84, a public
research institution shall register any geological subsurface characterization
activity with the department.

����
(b)
�
Before drilling a borehole for any geological
subsurface characterization activity a public research institution shall submit
to the department a geological subsurface characterization activity proposal
and register the proposed project with the department.
�
A geological subsurface characterization
activity proposal shall include, at minimum, the:

����
(1)
�
Project
name;

����
(2)
�
Contact
information, including a telephone number, mailing address, and email address
of the project manager;

����
(3)
�
Proposed
location or locations, including the tax map key or keys of the location or
locations;

����
(4)
�
Anticipated
geological subsurface characterization activities, testing types, durations,
and maximum pumping or injection rates;

����
(5)
�
Proposed
timeline for drilling, testing, and decommissioning;

����
(6)
�
Proposed
measures to prevent cross-contamination and protect groundwater; and

����
(7)
�
A
declaration of non-commercial purpose and intended data products.

����
(c)
�
The department may reject or condition a
geological subsurface characterization activity proposal; provided that the
department determines that:

����
(1)
�
The
geological subsurface characterization activity proposal does not meet the
requirements of subsection (b);

����
(2)
�
The
proposed geological subsurface characterization activity poses an unreasonable
risk to groundwater resources, public trust purposes, or an existing legal use
of water; or

����
(3)
�
A
borehole to be drilled for the geological subsurface characterization activity
will be:

���������
(A)
�
Used
to supply water or geothermal fluids for ongoing operational use beyond
testing;

���������
(B)
�
Equipped
with permanent pumping or production equipment; and

���������
(C)
�
Maintained
beyond the time limit established under section -3 without
decommissioning or conversion to a monitoring or production well.

����
(d)
�
If the department does not reject a
geological subsurface characterization activity proposal within forty‑five
days from the receipt of the proposal, the public research institution
conducting the geological subsurface characterization may proceed with the
project.

����
� -6
�
Reports; data collection and sharing;
required.
�
(a)
�
A public research institution
conducting geological subsurface characterization activity shall submit a report
to the department for each borehole drilled for the purposes geological
subsurface characterization activity.
�

The report shall include the final location, depth, basic construction
details, and decommissioning status of each borehole; provided that the
borehole has been converted to a well.

����
(b)
�
A public research institution conducting any
geological subsurface characterization activity on state lands or with funding
provided by the State shall, within days after
completion of data analysis, submit a report to a repository designated by the
department detailing:

����
(1)
�
Borehole
locations, depths, and basic construction details;

����
(2)
�
Stratigraphic
and lithologic descriptions;

����
(3)
�
Groundwater,
temperature, and geophysical logs, as applicable; and

����
(4)
�
Other
non-proprietary data the department may require by rule.

����
(c)
�
The department, in consultation with the
department of land and natural resources, department of Hawaiian home lands,
and other involved agencies may authorize reasonable protections for
information a state or county agency deems culturally sensitive or
site-specific data, including generalizing public location data for these
sites, consistent with public trust and public interest considerations.

����
� -7
�
Rules.
�

The department, in
consultation with the department of land and natural resources, department of
health, and university of Hawaii shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 for
the purposes of this section, including:

����
(1)
�
Technical
standards for geological subsurface characterization activities, including
borehole diameter, depth, design, construction, and decommissioning;

����
(2)
�
Registration
procedures, forms, and timelines;

����
(3)
�
Standards
determining whether a borehole drilled for geological subsurface
characterization activities becomes a well that requires a permit pursuant to
chapter 174C;

����
(4)
�
Requirements
for monitoring and reporting, including completion reports under section
-6; and

����
(5)
�
Enforcement
mechanisms, including orders to cease operations, undertake corrective actions,
or seal boreholes."

����
SECTION
3
.
�
Section 182-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by amending the definition of "mining operations" to read as
follows:

����
""Mining operations" means
the process of excavation, extraction, and removal of minerals, and the
exploration or development of any and all geothermal resources, from the
ground, design engineering, other engineering, erection of transportation
facilities and port facilities, erection of necessary plants, other necessary
operations or development approved by the board preceding or connected with the
actual extraction of minerals and the exploration or development of geothermal
resources.
�
"Mining
operations" does not include a geological subsurface characterization
activity as that term is defined in section -2.
"

����
SECTION
4.
�
The department of business, economic
development, and tourism shall designate the Hawaii groundwater and geothermal
resources center, or a successor entity, as the repository for data collected
from any geological subsurface characterization activity to support planning
for water resources, geothermal potential, hazard mitigation, and other public
purposes.

����
SECTION
5
.
�
(a)
�

The department of land and natural resources shall amend its exemption
list to include geological subsurface characterization activities in part one
of its exemption list where appropriate, specifying that certain geological
subsurface characterization activities shall be exempt from the environmental
review process.

����
(b)
�

The department of land and natural resources shall amend its exemption
list to include geological subsurface characterization activities in part two
of its exemption list where appropriate, specifying that certain geological
subsurface characterization activities shall only require the preparation and
submission of an exemption notice.

����
SECTION 6.
�

(a)
�
The university of Hawaii
shall amend its exemption list to include geological subsurface
characterization activities in part one of its exemption list where appropriate,
specifying that certain geological subsurface characterization activities shall
be exempt from the environmental review process.

����
(b)
�

The university of Hawaii shall amend its exemption list to include
geological subsurface characterization activities in part two of its exemption
list where appropriate, specifying that certain geological subsurface
characterization activities shall only require the preparation and submission
of an exemption notice.

����
SECTION
7
.
�
The department of health shall amend its
administrative rules relating to hazardous waste, hazardous waste management,
and underground injection control for consistency with Title 40, Code of
Federal Regulations, Part 261, to specify that certain investigative-derived
waste products generated by geological subsurface characterization activity are
exempt from hazardous waste management requirements.

����
SECTION 8.
�

If any provision of this Act, or the application thereof to any person
or circumstance, is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other
provisions or applications of the Act that can be given effect without the
invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this Act
are severable.

����
SECTION 9.
�

New statutory material is underscored.

����
SECTION
10
.
�
This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:

DBEDT;
DLNR; DOH; UH; Hawaii Groundwater and Geothermal Resources Center; Geological
Subsurface Characterization; Natural Resources; Groundwater; Geothermal
Resources; Hazardous Waste; Exemptions; Administrative Rules

Description:

Authorizes
geological subsurface characterization activities conducted by a public
research institution under certain conditions.
�

Clarifies that boreholes or test holes drilled for the purposes
of geological subsurface characterization are distinct from water well
exploration and geothermal or mineral exploration.
�
Requires the Department of Business, Economic
Development, and Tourism, to designate
the
Hawaii Groundwater and Geothermal Resources Center of the University of Hawaii,
or a successor entity, as the repository for data collected from any geological
subsurface characterization activity.
�

Requires the Department of Land and Natural Resources to amend its
exemption list to specify that certain geological subsurface characterization
activities shall be exempt from the environmental review process or shall only
require an exemption notice.
�
Requires
the University of Hawaii to amend its exemption list to specify that certain
geological subsurface characterization activities shall be exempt from the environmental
review process or shall only require an exemption notice.
�
Requires the Department of Health to amend
its rules related to hazardous waste and hazardous waste management for
consistency with federal regulations to specify that certain waste products
generated by geological subsurface characterization activity are exempt from
hazardous waste management requirements.

The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.