David Y. Ige

HONOLULU – The Hawaii Department of Transportation (HDOT) Highways Division, Oahu District, Storm Water Management Program won a Silver Pele Award for its interactive remote learning website. The Pele Awards recognize excellence in advertising and design in Hawaii. The redesigned website was awarded a Pele Silver in the Online and Interactive category.

The Hawaii Storm Patrol Remote Learning Website was established to maintain student engagement after the COVID-19 pandemic halted educational outreach opportunities. The interactive website educates Hawaii youth about the importance of preventing trash from entering Oahu storm drains, how pollution impacts our oceans, and what to do to prevent pollution.

“As the pandemic unfolded, we began exploring ways we could continue to deliver storm water information to keiki during distance learning. With the help of our Storm Water Management and MVNP teams, we were able to transform the program to include animation and motion graphics to truly make it fun, educational, and interactive.” said Jade Butay, Hawaii Department of Transportation Director.

The website is currently provided to third grade students in schools across Oahu, and all instructors, students, and families in Hawaii can access it on our website. A virtual Hawaii Storm Patrol badge is included at the end of the lessons to reward students who complete each video and quiz. The website also includes a comprehensive teacher’s guide and downloadable activity booklet.

The website and materials can be viewed at https://www.stormwaterhawaii.com/hawaiistormpatrol/.

About the Storm Water Management Program

The State of Hawaii Department of Transportation, Highways Division, Oahu District (HDOT) is responsible for the implementation of the Storm Water Management Program. This initiative is undertaken to comply with the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit for the Oahu municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4). The Oahu MS4 qualifies as a large municipal separate storm sewer system since it services a population greater than 250,000 and is therefore subject to permitting requirements under the NPDES Program for storm water discharges. The program is designed to reduce, to the maximum extent practicable, the amount of storm water containing pollutants from entering and ultimately discharging from HDOT’s MS4 into the streams, rivers, and ocean that we all enjoy. For more information, visit https://www.stormwaterhawaii.com/

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