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<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> February 1, 2008 <br /> <br /> TO: Donald Ikeda, Chairperson <br /> County Council Committee Members <br /> Public Safety and Parks and Recreation Committee <br /> FR: Faith Rossman, RN, MN, Clinical Specialist, Kona Community Hospital <br /> <br /> RE: WRITTEN TESTIMONY IN SUPPORT OF BILL 224, <br /> Relating To Smoking in Certain Places in the County of Hawaii <br /> Public Hearing on Tuesday, February 5, 2008, 9:30 a.m. <br /> Committee on Public Safety and Parks and Recreation <br /> <br /> My Name is Faith Rossman and I am a member of the Breath Free - Make Tobacco History <br /> organization in West Hawaii. I strongly support Bill 224, which would prohibit use of tobacco <br /> products at all County of Hawaii parks and beaches, effectively providing a clean and healthy <br /> environment for Hawaii's keiki, ohana, visitors and wildlife. <br /> As a nurse and community member I am a beach user, and I also use our parks frequently. <br /> You already know that secondhand smoke has been proven to cause lung cancer and heart <br /> disease, and has been linked to asthma and other serious respiratory problems. On June 27, <br /> 2006, the U.S. Surgeon General released its landmark report, The Health Consequences of <br /> Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke. One of the report's major conclusions is that there is <br /> no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke. <br /> <br /> In addition the toxic litter of cigarette butts is harmful to children on our beaches and in our <br /> pristine oceans. The majority of our society no longer uses tobacco; so allowing tobacco use at <br /> our public parks and recreation areas sends a mixed message about government concern for <br /> health issues. As a nurse I am acutely aware that: <br /> • Cigarette butts are the number one litter problem we have on our beaches <br /> • Children can be harmed when they step on cigarette butts that are improperly extinguished, <br /> beside it being distasteful even if they are extinguished <br /> • Ingesting cigarette butts is harmful to toddlers and our coastal birds <br /> • Asthmatics and others with cardiopulmonary diseases must move if someone is smoking <br /> around them at the beach <br /> Last year, Kahalu'u Beach Park in Kona went smoke-free. We need to do the same for the rest <br /> of the Big Island. Passing Bill 224 will make visiting all County parks and beaches a more <br /> pleasurable experience for kama'aina and visitors alike. <br /> Please protect the health of our people, the purity of our 'aina, and the safety of our keiki. The <br /> County Council can prove it cares about public health by protecting it wherever possible, <br /> including while people enjoy HawaiTs parks and beaches. <br /> <br /> Please support Bill 224. Mahalo nui. <br /> <br /> Sincerely, <br /> Faith Rossman, RN, MN <br /> 73-1176 Kahuna A'o Road, Kailua-Kona, HI 96740-8470 <br /> 808.325.0836 <br /> alfaithla7hawaii. rr. com <br />