The stuck valve and falling water level in Wahiawa’s Lake Wilson have been in the news for a couple of days.

Did you notice that ownership of the lake have been described in several different ways?

According to KITV, it’s owned by Dole:

There has been concern after a malfunctioning valve caused water to drain from the lake. Dole Food Company owns the lake, but the Department of Land and Natural Resources has an agreement to manage the fisheries in the lake.

KHON modifies that a bit, saying Dole owns “a majority”:

Dole Foods, which owns a majority of the reservoir, had partial success Monday in closing the malfunctioning valve two-thirds shut.

Hawaii News Now says Dole leases it:

Workers at Dole Foods, which leases the reservoir and is responsible for its maintenance, have been scrambling to stop the drain. State officials say the valve that’s been causing the problem is now at least two-thirds of the way closed.

While the Star-Advertiser sidesteps the ownership issue and refers to Dole as “the operator”:Dole Foods Co. Hawaii, the operator of Lake Wilson, said it is in the process of fixing an outlet valve that has been draining the water.

I recall that ownership of the land under Lake Wilson was previously held by Castle & Cooke, now Dole Foods, and the Estate of George Galbraith. The Galbraith portion was sold several years ago to Sustainable Hawaii LLC, controlled by attorney Howard Green, who also owns North Shore Marketplace in Haleiwa. It doesn’t appear to be clear who owns the portion where the faulty valve is located.

It’s probably lucky that the valve was stuck in the open position. If it had been stuck in the closed position, it might have created a dangerous situation, I would think.