BIL 079 Draft 01 2012-2014 - Laserfiche WebLink

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(10) The Council seeks to protect public and private property owners from expensive eradication and environmental clean-up associated with decontamination of their land from transgenic organisms brought by pollen, or seeds brought by wind, insects, birds, animals, water, trucks or farm machinery; (11) The Council seeks to protect public and private property owners from the liability associated with their land or animals becoming contaminated with transgenic organisms, which may then become vectors to contaminate neighboring land or livestock through cross pollination or seed dispersal (in plants or trees) or interbreeding (in animals, insects or fish); (12) The Council seeks to protect the ocean fisheries and ecosystems of the Pacific Ocean from contamination by transgenic varieties being developed for private "fish farms." Because past and current "fish farms" in the United States of America have often accidentally - and illegally - released large amounts of farmed fish into our public rivers and oceans, it is a reasonable assumption that new transgenic varieties in "fish farms" will inevitably escape into our public rivers and ocean; (13) The Council seeks to protect the public health from any negative impacts from exposure to poorly tested transgenic organisms. Such exposure might occur through transgenic pollen inhaled or eaten, or by increased exposure to increasingly toxic herbicides and pesticides used to kill "super weeds" and "super bugs" - those farm pest species which quickly evolve and develop herbicide tolerance or pesticide resistance due to continuous exposure to transgenic crops bred to express an herbicide tolerance or a pesticide; and (14) The Council seeks to protect Hawaii County's extraordinary diversity of native ecosystems - and the plants, fish, trees, and soil flora and fauna found within - from the possibility of irreversible genetic contamination by species -related transgenic organisms. Such "back -crossing" of transgenic DNA from a transgenic crop to a native relative of the domesticated crop has already been observed in corn, cotton, and canola. The authority to impose long-term health and environmental sustainability standards is granted to counties by: (1) The Hawaii Revised Statutes, Section 46-1.5(13), which states: "Each county shall have the power to enact ordinances deemed necessary to protect health, life, and property, and to preserve the order and security of the county and its inhabitants on any subject or matter not inconsistent with, or tending to defeat, the intent of any state statute where the statute does not disclose an express or implied intent that the statute shall be exclusive or uniform throughout the State."; (2) The Hawaii State Constitution, Article XI, Section 9 "Environmental Rights," which states: "Each person has the right to a clean and healthful environment, as defined by laws relating to environmental quality, including control of pollution and conservation, protection and enhancement of natural resources. Any person may enforce this right against any party, public or private, through appropriate legal proceedings, subject to reasonable limitations and regulation as provided by law.";