Article XI of the Hawaii Constitution declares that the state’s natural resources, including water, are held in public trust for present and future generations. This is not boilerplate. It is one of the strongest environmental provisions in any U.S. constitution, and it has been the legal foundation for some of the most consequential rulings in Hawaii’s environmental history.
What the doctrine actually requires
Under public trust principles, the state cannot simply hand over water rights to the highest bidder. It must affirmatively justify any allocation against the public interest, including instream flows for native ecosystems, traditional and customary Native Hawaiian uses, and domestic water supply. The burden of proof sits with the diverter, not with the community defending the resource.
The line between principle and practice
Decades of litigation, including the landmark Waiahole and Na Wai Eha cases, have built a body of case law clarifying what the public trust requires. Holding state agencies to those standards, in proceeding after proceeding, is unglamorous but essential work. We continue to do it.
