COM 0212.145 1996-1998 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Y m WE, THE PEOPLE OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII SUPPORT ' THE FOLLOWING RESOLUTION WHEREAS, a national boycott against irradiated food has already resulted in the loss of important markets on the mainland including Marsh's, Keim's, S&K and others; and WHEREAS, the nearly 8,000 postcards and letters from people on the mainland have warned the County of Hawaii that they will not buy irradiated fruit from Hawaii; and WHEREAS, Japan does not allow irradiated fruit into their country, and five consumer groups from Japan have warned that Japanese people will "back away" from all }Iadvaiian fruit; and WHEREAS, the FDA has stated that potentially carcinogenic and mutagenic chemicals are created by the irradiation process at 30 parts per million; and WHEREAS, irradiation facilities which use cobalt-60 or cesium-137 support, legitimize, and rely on nuclear power and nuclear weapons production; and WHEREAS, these nuclear industries result in the authorized, non-accidental, random killing of innocent people including children; and WHEREAS, these nuclear industries are leaving a horrific legacy of nuclear wastes products for future generations to deal with; and WHEREAS, accidents at irradiation facilities, including the Hawaii Development Irradiator, have resulted in radioactive contamination of land and water; and WHEREAS, food irradiation facilities are allowed to emit 100 millirems of radiation per year and, under special circumstances, 500 millirems per year; and workers are allowed to receive 30 to 50 times more radiation per year than one would receive from natural background radiation; and WHEREAS, these radiation levels will lead to increased cancers and birth defects; and WHEREAS, as of 1995, the first "food-only" irradiator in the United States, Food Technology Services Inc., located in Mulberry, Florida, had lost 5.5 million dollars; and WHEREAS, Mayor Yamashiro's proposal for $2 million fora "post harvest treatment facility" does not specify how the money would be spent; THEREFORE, we oppose any ordinance or resolution favoring irradiation; and THEREFORE, we believe the most logical and economical solution for agricultural development in Hawaii would be to develop the local markets as a priority, and then, if necessary, to encourage use of existing treatment facilities, and to export specifically to cold-climate regions, i.e. Canada and the northern United States to prevent spreading the fruit fly, until such time as non-toxic disinfestation methods can be developed. Signed: Address: 3~. 3 I believe the $2 million dollars could be better spent for: ,~d~ •~CC~~ . ~ a