For Immediate Release:
Press release by:
Kauanoe Batangan, Councilmember
Maui County Council
kauanoe.batangan@mauicounty.us
Councilmembers share residents’ concerns over imminent closure of popular Central Maui recycling center
KAHULUI, Hawaiʻi (June 26, 2026)—Signs at the UHMC Recycling Center saying that the much-used facility will be “permanently closing” Tuesday are being met with concern from Central Maui residents and their representatives in government, Councilmember Kauanoe Batangan said today.
Councilmembers have been hearing community members’ concerns since earlier this month when the signs went up at the facility, also known as the Kahului Recycling Center, he said. The signs list alternative sites for recycling cardboard, glass and plastics, including the Central Maui Landfill—which is five miles away—and recycling centers in Haʻikū, Kīhei, Makawao and Olowalu.
“The last thing we want to see is for residents to be inconvenienced or prevented from engaging in sustainable practices that have become habit,” said Batangan, who holds the council seat for the Kahului residency area. “The UHMC Recycling Center has been a Central Maui community asset for years.”
In emails to councilmembers and staff, the County of Maui’s executive branch has said the county’s agreement with University of Hawaiʻi Maui College to use the Wahinepio Avenue site is ending at the month’s end, Batangan said. The administation further advised that it requested UHMC reconsider and has been searching for another recycling site that is more convenient to Central Maui residents, he said.
“We understand the importance of having a conveniently located recycling center in Central Maui,” Batangan said. “Presently, the county is left with no choice because of the decision of the landowner, but our office has joined in the search for potential solutions, and we hope there will be a new location soon.”
The Department of Environmental Management leads the county’s recycling efforts. The department may be reached through its recycling hotline at 808-270-7880 or online at https://www.mauicounty.gov/2907/Environmental-Management.
Information on recycling centers is available on the county’s website.
UHMC Recycling Center on Wahinepio Avenue is scheduled to permanently close Tuesday / PC: Office of Council Services.
Signs posted in and around the facility alert the public to the closure / PC: Office of Council Services.
