IV-422 



doubt that the reduced coral density is a result of the increased 

 turbidity, since coral relies upon light penetration for its 

 formation and maintenance. 



At many sugarcane mills, the normal procedure is to combine 

 human sewage with the sugarcane wastes. This practice results 

 in very high concentrations of coliform bacteria, because the 

 bacteria in the warm sugar-laden waste multiply rapidly. At 

 the outfall of the Honokaa mill, the coliform count was 100,000 

 per 100 milliliters (ml). The coliform concentration was still as 

 high as 1000 per 100 ml at a distance of one mile down current from 

 the outfall. 



Many tropical fish are dependent upon the coral reef structure 

 for protection from predators and on the organisms symbiont with 

 coral reefs for food. Since the coral in the Honokaa sugar mill 

 outfall area was destroyed, it is reasonable to expect that the 

 fish population also deteriorated. The diversity of fishes in 

 the outfall area decreased to 16, as compared to a normal 60 found 

 two miles away. The biomass of fish was also reduced near the 

 waste disposal area; 160 pounds per acre (lb/acre) during the 

 sugarcane grinding season, compared to 600 lb/acre two miles 

 away (IV-5-10). 



