Posted December 9, 2013
The Hawaiian island of Maui will consider a bill that
would require companies to disclose when they use pesticides and genetically
modified (GMO) crops on the island, according to a Reuters article available here.
Maui County Councilwoman Elle Cochran introduced the
bill, which is modeled after a measure approved in Kauai last
month. The Kauai city county council recently
voted to override the mayor’s veto which cited the many legal challenges facing
the bill. A recent post from this blog
on the Kauai bill is available here.
On Thursday, Hawaii Island Mayor Billy Kenoi “signed
into law a measure that prohibits biotech companies from growing any new
genetically modified crops” on the island.
GMO papaya is excluded from the bill’s coverage. This law went into effect immediately and
includes a $1,000 fine per day for noncompliance.
Kenoi said, “Today our communities expect that
government will be as cautious as possible in protecting our food and water
supplies…This ordinance expresses the desires and demands of our community for
a safe, sustainable agricultural sector that can help feed our people while
keeping our precious island productive and healthy.”
While the fight of GMO use and pesticides on the
islands of Hawaii and Kauai “have often been heated,” Adolph Helm, project
manager at Dow AgroSciences on Molokai said he hoped the debate in Maui County
would be civil, according to an article by the Honolulu civil beat available here.
Helm said, “I just hope that it will be a discussion
that is done in a way that is respectful and done in a collaborative effort
with the county council and the mayor’s cabinet and in a way that we can always
look at both sides of the issue.”
Molokai is an island included in Maui County where both
Monsanto and Dow AgroSciences operate and employ almost 200 people.
A recent agreement between Monsanto and Maui Mayor Alan
Arakawa will add to the debate over the legislation. According to the memorandum
of understanding, available here, Monsanto agreed to disclose details about
its pesticide use and increase community outreach.
For more information on biotechnology and pesticides,
please visit the National Agricultural Law Center’s website here
and here.
