(BIVN) – A nine-person research team from the University of Hawaʻi is trying to gain a better understanding of how freshwater from Kona’s Hualālai aquifer releases into the ocean, below the seafloor.

According to the Hawaiʻi County Department of Water Supply, the Hualālai Aquifer Sector Area is divided into the Kiholo and Keahou Aquifer System Areas, the latter of which was recently the focus of a National Park Service petition to designate it as a Groundwater Management Area. The petition was denied by the State Commission on Water Resource Management.

The team from UH-Mānoa issued this media release this week, explaining the study: