Hawaii Deep Water Cable Program, phase II-D task 1 : side-scan sonar and swath bathymetry mapping survey of the preferred cable route from Maui to Oahu, Hawaii

Abstract

Various studies of the shallow water marine topography sur- rounding the principal Hawaiian Islands, including those pre- viously conducted for the HDWC program, provide background information applicable to this proposed survey. These studies suggest that most of the "preferred route" from Ahihi Bay, Maui, to Waimanalo, Oahu, will run along submerged terraces that were formed by reefs that grew during the low stands of sea level accompanying periods of Pleistocene glaciation. In other areas of the state where these terraces have been studied, they have been found to have relatively smooth surfaces that are generally covered with sand-sized sediments. The areas where the fossil reef material is still exposed are typically found to contain gaps and passes in the reef, or portions of the reef surface which are sufficiently smooth that they would not constitute a barrier to the cable. The major portion of the proposed route from Ahihi Bay to the western end of Molokai was expected to have these fairly favorable characteristics.