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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMIN CRNRMC 2021/11/17 2020-2022 Committee on Climate Resilience and Natural Resource Management l't Session West Hawaii Civic Center 74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Highway, Building A Kailua-Kona, Hawai i November 17, 2021 CALL TO The regular meeting of the Committee on Climate Resilience and Natural ORDER: Resource Management was called to order at 2:00 p.m., in the Council Chambers, Kailua-Kona, by Ms. Rebecca Villegas, Chair. ROLL CALL: Present: Ms. Rebecca Villegas, Member, Chair Ms. Heather L. Kimball, Vice Chair Mr. Aaron S. Y. Chung, Member (came in later) Ms. Maile Medeiros David, Member Mr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Member Mr. Matt Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Member (via videoconference from Hilo) Ms. Ashley L. Kierkiewicz Ms. Susan L. K. Lee Loy, Member Mr. Herbert M. "Tim" Richards, III, Member STATEMENTS The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, FROM THE Statements from the Public on Agenda Items. PUBLIC ON AGENDA ITEMS: The following individuals registered to speak and came forward when called by the Chair: Rabbi Rachel Short: Bill 91 (Comm. 491), comment. Cory Harden: Bill 91 (Comm. 491), comment. (representing the Sierra Club Hawaii Island Group) Margaret Wille: Bill 91 (Comm. 491), comment. John Tuakalau: Bill 91 (Comm. 491), comment. Yari Tuakalau: Bill 91 (Comm. 491), comment. Maki Morinoue: Bill 91 (Comm. 491), comment. CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 Kiyoko Nanni: Bill 91 (Comm. 491), comment. Blake Watson: Bill 91 (Comm. 491), comment. CHR. VILLEGAS: Thank you so much. Relinquish Chair: At this time, the Chair relinquished the chair to Vice Chair Kimball. COMMUNI- The Acting Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, CATIONS: Communications. (There were none.) ORDER OF The Acting Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, RESOLUTIONS: Order of Resolutions. (There were none.) ACTING CHR.KIMBALL: Mr. Clerk, can we go ahead and take the first and only order of business. BILLS FOR The Acting Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, ORDINANCES: Bills for Ordinances. Bill 91: AMENDS CHAPTER 15, HAWAII COUNTY CODE 1983 (2016 EDITION, AS AMENDED), BY ADDING A NEW ARTICLE 12 PROHIBITING USE OF GLYPHOSATE-BASED PESTICIDES IN COUNTY PARKS AND RECREATIONAL FACILITIES Prohibits the use of glyphosate-based pesticides by the County or its contractors in County parks and facilities listed in Section 15-68.1 of the Hawai`i County Code, effective July 1, 2022. Provides certain exemptions, including the Hilo Municipal Golf Course, Hilo Drag Strip, and County cemeteries. Reference: Comm. 491 Intr. by: Ms. Villegas Motion to Approve: Ms. Villegas moved to recommend passage of Bill 91 on first reading. Seconded by Mr. Inaba. ACTING CHR.KIMBALL: Ms. Villegas, the floor is yours. Page 2 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 MS. VILLEGAS: Thank you so much. Wow, we're here. It's been a while since this topic has been brought up here by the County Council. Within that timeframe from the last time that the last version of this herbicide bill, which unfortunately didn't pass, I've heard from a number of different community members asking for it to be brought up again. I just want it to be known, that in the interest of sensitivity to the other issues we were dealing with as a County during a global pandemic, this has never gone off the radar. But in the grand list of priorities, I wanted it to be appropriate timing. I am incredibly grateful to have Mr. Maurice Messina here today. We worked hand-in-hand and side-by-side articulating the specific piece of legislation. I want to make it very clear to the testifiers that unfortunately at this time, this piece of legislation does not include how we manage roadways and how DPW (Department of Public Works) manages our roads, and paths, and whatnot. This piece of legislation is strictly associated with Parks and Recreation facilities. It's also specific to the pesticide glyphosate. The reason it has been named a pesticide in this legislation is because essentially all "cides" are pesticides, whether or not it's an herbicide or not. I want to express gratitude to Leslie Chow for her help navigating this legal process, and her wisdom, and encouragement to very much simplify this piece of legislation. My hope was to work with the department that would be putting this into practice and to provide the support and the parameters for success. You know, there's been an outcry from the people, as was stated by one of the testifiers. It's unfortunate that under the prior Administration, you know, some attempts to create a vegetation management committee and long-term tracking of our pesticide use as a County, it was none to impossible to keep moving forward. We still have struggled with transitioning the two parks that Beyond Pesticides invested in supporting our County to transition to pesticide-free parks, to move those projects forward. Thus the need for a law. The reason that this piece of legislation, I requested for it to be heard in the Climate Resilience and Natural Resource Management Committee, is to acknowledge and connect to this issue to the long-term health of our soils. And the healthy soils are our largest carbon, sequestration resource. Dead and exposed soils do the opposite. We have an opportunity as a County to return to cultural regenerative practices of natural resource management. We also have an opportunity to avoid potential lawsuits against the County and its employees. The goal is to prioritize the health of our staff and our natural resources by investing in equipment and resources. Soil-friendly weed control, high-performing bioherbicides with proven benefits to soil microbiology. Page 3 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 There are a number of other reasons that have been mentioned by testifiers. And in the many, many pages of scientific studies in front of me: the effects on children when glyphosate is used in our public parks and facilities; effects on bees. I'd like to think that anybody that's watching the news nowadays have seen all of the recent lawsuits and litigation related to this. So the hope today is to transition this piece of legislation out of Committee and to Council to continue this dialogue. I am consciously optimistic, as this round, working close with the Director of the department that will, in fact, be navigating this transition—I've had long conversations—well not that long, but specifically about this—but with the Mayor's Office, and have received—in fact, I have one in writing that they are in full support. I'd like to invite Mr. Maurice Messina, if you'd like to come up and say a few words? I couldn't, wouldn't be here without him and am so grateful for this commitment and passion for getting our County parks and open spaces to a healthier management practice. (Note: At this time Parks and Recreation Director Maurice "Mo" Messina came forward to address the members of the Committee.) MR. MESSINA: Good afternoon Council. Maurice Messina, Director of Parks and Recreation. So,there's a couple of things that I would like to make clear, and that is, even after speaking with the Mayor, that this Administration does agree the pesticide glyphosate, we should not be using it in our park and rec facilities. We've already started making the transition. Right now in all Puna parks, we use zero pesticides in Puna parks. We have, Council Member Villegas, you mentioned the herbicide tracking. We have actually been doing that. We've been tracking it since the other bill before. Before it was even vetoed, we started tracking that. We've been going through different thoughts about what we can do next. From saltwater to steam, to other kinds of non-glyphosate products. You mentioned also the working would be Beyond Pesticides at a couple of our parks. We are still going to be doing that. We have FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) funding to—we do the parks grounds at Pahoa Regional Park, and we're going to be working with Beyond Pesticides to go in and use their knowledge to create what they consider a healthy park without using the pesticides. We feel this is something that we can do. And the bill, it starts in July of next year. Just on Monday, I spoke with our Parks Maintenance Manager, Jason Mattos, and he assured me that we're still on track and that this is something that we can do. Page 4 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 I can't speak for other departments, but I can speak for our department. We have seen some social media posts over the last few days. And I've been made aware of them, that it's been said that we are poisoning their playgrounds and things of that nature. I can assure you that is prohibited under my leadership and also Jason Mattos' leadership. That is not something that we promote or that we know that our folks are even doing. Right now, the only places that we're using Roundup is along the fence lines in our parks. And we want to continue with this transition, and we think that it is something that we can do. And just like all the testifiers said today, I would also not want my children in a playground where Roundup has been sprayed previously. But I would say that every time we have been spraying, we've been following the directions and we've been actually following what was in the other bill about putting up signs, and place and times; dates, humidity, wind direction, and everything else, and everything that we've been using since that day in our department. Thank you. MS. VILLEGAS: Thank you, Director Messina. You have been incredibly diligent, and you staff, passionately committed to this transition. And not always easy to make changes like this when glyphosate-containing products have become such kind of an easy go-to. But you guys have been committed over the years with transitioning those practices and exploring new means for maintaining our Parks and Rec facilities. And with that I'll yield to my colleagues. ACTING CHR.KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Villegas. Anyone here in Kona. Council Member David. MS. DAVID: Thank you. Aloha, Director, thank you for being here. And I want to thank you for your explanation and what you folks are doing and plan to do about this transitioning. And thank you, Ms. Villegas for reintroducing this important piece of legislation. I think for me, it shows the County's sensitivity to the concerns of our kids, especially in our parks. And this is, to me, the first step in actually taking care of the health and safety of the people that use our facilities and our parks. So I really want to commend you and commend Ms. Villegas, because I think the redo of this bill, Ms. Villegas is very straight and to the point. And I can understand it now. The other one had so many different kinds of terminologies and stuff that, you know,just for me, short and sweet. And I know what you folks are doing. I know what you folks—your passion will be and for the people that use our Page 5 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 facilities. So, on that note, I just wanted to say thank you very much for all your work in your department. Mahalo, I yield. ACTING CHRKIMBALL: Thank you, Chair David. Council Member Inaba. MR. INABA: Mahalo. And Council Member Villegas, thank you for reintroducing it. I think similar to other items that we've discussed this term, sometimes it's that incremental change in progress, that is the approach that we need to take. And mahalo to Director Messina and the Administration for working with you to make this bill if passed, you know, a reality for our County to keep our kids safe. And I don't think it's too much,just at least in the places that our kids play, to get something like this passed. So I will be supporting this wholeheartedly and mahalo again. ACTING CHRKIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Inaba. Anyone else here in Kona? Mr. Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, anything from you? MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Yes, please Chair. Thank you, Chair. I just wanted to commend Ms. Villegas. The first bill which we fought for, you know, my first term in office, was a hard push and it was a big bill and there was a lot involved. I mean, we did manage to pass that bill and then had it pushed back from the Mayor's Office, then we lost it. So to see you bring this back in this form, I think as Mr. Inaba mentioned, you know, taking on a small piece and making one small step. And that's what you've done by doing this, and I look forward to seeing how the votes play out today. I do commend Director Messina for making this step with you as well. It sounds like we've been making strides already as a County. And it's so important to our residents, this issue, for our County use specifically. For our personnel, for our residents, for everyone in the County of Hawaii, that we take on legislation like this. So I commend you for bringing this forward. I think, well done and look forward to seeing how it plays out today. Thank you, Ms. Villegas. Thank you, Chair. I yield for now. ACTING CHRKIMBALL: Thank you. Council Member Richards. MR. RICHARDS: Thank you, Chair. First I want to thank you, Mo, for the report that you gave on the following and use of herbicides, pesticides. And Ms. Villegas, thanks for the explanation of the statement, pesticide. It catches herbicides as well. It's a little bit of a misnomer, but that is what the legalities of the write things up are. I do appreciate the fact, Mo, that you've been working on this for quite some time now. And I don't think there's anybody on Page 6 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 this Council that would disagree about the reduction of use of chemicals going forward, all chemicals. My problem, and I've actually looked forward to this coming out, I have some issues with it. And it starts out by saying, this "Council finds that glyphosate-based pesticides. . ." I don't think this Council can make any determinations like that, because we're not qualified to make those statements. And I do have a concern, though I like the fact that we are striving to reduce chemicals, all chemicals. But we have IARC (International Agency on Research and Cancer) which claims that glyphosate is a Category 2A probable carcinogen. And then we have the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) that claims it is not a carcinogen if it's used appropriately. Those are the organizations that should really be making that. So this is a clerical thing that I don't think we can support that, because we actually don't have the capability of making those determinations. Further on that one, it comes down to agriculture. And this won't surprise anybody. I will always speak for agriculture. And I am very mindful of exposing or over-exposing anyone to any type of chemicals out there. I find it curious that we worry about one thing in one category, but then we kind of ignore something else. And my point on that is the disinfectants. We are all now using almost ubiquitously throughout the community. And our society is pretty much ethanol- based, which is a known carcinogen. But we don't worry about that yet, we slather it on ourselves daily. So I think our findings there, I take issue with that because we have organizations that have the capability of making those decisions, and those really cannot be made at this Council level. My concern is removing anything from a tool belt. And I think appropriately used, Roundup, glyphosate, is safe, as has been deemed by the EPA. But it has to be used appropriately. My concern comes if we remove it from the tool belt of the County for Parks and Rec, and I know there's a provision here that we can possibly use it, but I like the concept of reducing its use over time, rather than mandating its use being removed completely, because we may get ourselves into trouble. And further on that one, legislation like this is used as a stepping stone to justify something else further. And again, coming from agriculture, speaking on behalf of it, I get the reduction of chemicals in our environment. And I get the concern going forward, and I get it in our food supply. I'm fully supportive of all that. But by the same token, I think passing something that seems a little bit innocuous initially is used and to justify something further, something further. Page 7 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 And I've articulated why I don't think this Council can make a determination or finding of glyphosate-based pesticides are linked, because we're not qualified to do that. There's not a single person sitting up here that can actually make that determination. We have to rely on the experts. So with that, I do commend you for wanting to reduce the use of chemicals. Mo, I really appreciate the fact that our Parks and Rec is striving to do that. And I know this has been going on for years because we check on this. And I know the use of saltwater, the weed-whacking, all that is going on in the immediate areas. But I cannot support this the way it's written today. So with that, Chair, I yield. Thank you. ACTING CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Richards. Council Member Kierkiewicz. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you, Chair. I appreciate the nature of this discussion and hearing from all of my colleagues on where they stand with this. I'm going to be supporting this. Thank you, Council Member Villegas, for all of your hard work on this particular issue and working in partnership with Director Messina and his staff to hone in on what the priority is. And the priority is, let's keep our kids and community safe. They go to parks, right? This is where they recreate. So this is a small step in the right direction. And this is what is in front of us. The use of this product at County parks and recreational facilities. I'm not talking about anything else. And so,just want to confirm with Director Messina that, it's just for Parks and Recreation. MR. MESSINA: Correct. Yes, it's just for Parks and Recreational facilities. And I also want to make one statement, because there has bene some talk about the difference between pesticides and herbicides. And I just wanted to make it clear, in our Puna parks we have not been using the pesticide Roundup for at least over a year. Thanks. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thanks for sharing that, Director. I remember going on some ride-alongs where they did talk about that particular step in the right direction. And I was really curious, you might have said this before, but remind me again, what portion of the operations right now, you know, are staff using this product? Because I know that you have shared in the past that there's been a concerted effort to really scale it back. And so I see this as sort of codifying department practice and ensuring across the board that this isn't happening, but you have prescribed in here places like the Hilo Dragstrip and Hilo Muni where you feel this is the best option. But just, other than those locations, I mean what is herbicide usage right now? Page 8 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 MR. MESSINA: Now primarily used along our fencelines, for the most part. We use it in cemeteries. At the dragstrip we rely heavily on a lot of volunteer efforts. We have acres and acres that we just have guinea grass growing everywhere and no one is in those areas. They just become a site hazard for the dragstrip racers and for people coming in. So other than that, spot applications where we need it. But like I said, we feel that we can, by next July, we can transition away from glyphosate or Roundup products. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thanks, Director. And I think this is another opportunity to kind of emphasize all of the Friends of the Park agreements that we have around the island and coordinate those volunteer workdays where we are all coming in to malama these shared places. The last kind of wondering I had about this particular bill was related to emergency usage. Can you provide me an example of when you would consider an emergency use and have to file a formal request to the Council? I appreciate inclusion of that, but I'm justI can't think of an emergency situation, but clearly you have thought of one. And hoping that you can kind of share some of these examples. MR. MESSINA: We're not a hundred percent sure either. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Okay. MR. MESSINA: For instance, if we talk about something like at the dragstrip, an area like that, or if we have—all of a sudden we go out to one of our fields, and there is just been a blooming of poke grass and we know we have a tournament coming up the next weekend. Something like that. And to go along with your previous question, and we also did away with our—or reallocated our position in our department that was basically one person that went around the whole island using Roundup. So we also scaled back that a great deal as well. So we no longer have that position, or we reallocated that position. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you for doing that. And so I'm just looking at that particular emergency provision, formal request to the Council. Question maybe for you, Council Member Villegas, that formal request coming in the form of—is there a form that you folks have generated? Is this by resolution? Just trying to better understand what this formal request could look like, because thinking about the logistics of agendizing an item; wanting to make sure that if there's an emergency request, that we as a Council have rules in place to hear it in real time and address it. So just curious if you folks have kind or thought through implementation of that piece? Page 9 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 MR. MESSINA: Not all the way, no. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Okay. But you hear what I'm saying, right? MR. MESSINA: Yes. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Things come up and I think with our rules right now, it inhibits us from being able to act in real time. And we saw that during the pandemic. And so, I'm supportive of this. Not quite sure what we'll use it for. But in the event, want to just make sure that we're able to take up matters quickly. MR. MESSINA: And that particular section, that was a request by my department. Because I was justI don't know every situation that could arise, but in case a situation does arise, I wanted to be able to have some type of mechanism where we could go and get it taken care of. Whether it's a big flood like Hurricane Lane where everything gets washed down from the mountain into the Hilo ballfields or Hilo soccer fields, and we had an issue that we'd never dealt with before. Things like that. So I'm not sure, but that was one of the ones that I requested it was in there,just in case. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Okay, and I'm assuming the request would also include if it is a one-time application or a sustained period of time, which isI don't think you're going to move in that direction, but seems more like spot application for a particular situation. MR. MESSINA: Yeah, we would come in front of Council for whatever mechanism that we have, and say, this is our goal. This is our plan of action and milestone of how we're going to take care of it. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Okay, and then you guys do so much, but just another consideration, I know the Planning Department has a fellow they're using to map out all the PONC (Public Access, Open Space and Natural Resources Preservation Commission)properties. Wondering if we can also map out, ArcGIS (mapping software), all of our Parks and Recreational facilities. And just kind of identify what the need is there to support continued maintenance of those spaces. Stuff that, you know, your staff is doing, but this also kind if puts out to community groups, Friends of the Parks groups what the need is on the ground and how people can maybe help organize, and you know, support the department and collaborate on shared maintenance. So just a consideration for the future. MR. MESSINA: So, Asia Wasser and Josh Black. Asia from DPW and Josh Black from Civil Defense, we've recently did an entire inventory of everything that we own; every park, beach, inland park, community center, senior center, Page 10 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 everything we have. And we've given that list to them and they're actually working on it right now for us. As far as herbicide is concerned, Asia also worked with us to create a GIS (Geographic Information Systems) database on every place that we've put herbicide, and we want to go live with that next year to where anybody from the public can go and see whatever applications that we've had. Maybe no need for it anymore considering how next July this goes into effect. But we have those capabilities and both Asia and Josh have stepped up to help us with that mapping. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: That's awesome, that's a really great tool and information to know. Mahalo nui, Director. Thank you again, Director and Council Member Villegas, for all of your work on this. Excited to see this move forward. Thank you, Chair, I yield. ACTING CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Kierkiewicz. Anyone else? Council Member Villegas. MS. VILLEGAS: I just want to thank my colleagues for their support and recognition of this as an issue. Once again, another reason we brought it to the Climate Resilience Committee, last time it came under Agriculture, which I think didn't benefit the bill itself, because there was too much potential for confusion. But as was stated here again by the Director,this bill has nothing to do with agriculture or the use of glyphosate-containing products on private property. And that would never be in the sphere of our County Council, because those laws reside in the State. So I'm excited and I'm grateful. And I'm looking forward to the long-term commitment of working together with Parks and Rec, and these facilities and our communities, as we continue to expand on the Friends of the Park agreements. I think that there have been big strides made. I know in my district and working with a number of different organizations who are there to pull the weeds and lay the mulch. And make sure that the ecosystems are cared for with the highest capacity possible. And Judge Strance, I had a quick question for you. Just in reference to Council Member Richards' questioning about the "Purpose"? (Note: At this time Corporation Counsel Elizabeth Strance came forward to address the members of the Committee.) MS. STRANCE: Thank you, Council Member. Elizabeth Strance, Corporation Counsel. I share the concern that Council Member Richards raised because other departments within the County will continue to use the chemical. And so, if the Mayor were to sign the bill as written, on the one hand there's a preamble purpose Page 11 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 of the bill stating that the reason for it is these risks and then following it. So as you folks were discussing the bill I was looking up in Robert's Rules, and one of the suggestions is not to have preambles in bills, because it can lead to defeat of bills for the preamble when there's agreement to the substance. And for that reason you often see resolutions that accompany bills. So that would be the concern that I would have since it's not a total County ban. It's a partial ban. But it would contain these provisions. I haven't done the research. There may be some law that says that preambles aren't legally binding, but it is a statement of acknowledgement that would run contrary to other departments' use. MS. VILLEGAS: Okay, interesting because I have shared this with the Mayor's Office and hadn't received any feedback like that. I guess with that I would ask for my colleagues to pass this forward out of Committee and into Council. And if you could continue to look at that, any legal precedence. I mean I have documents here with municipalities and countries and all different kinds of places that are navigating their legislation related to the use of either this specific pesticide or pesticides in general. So I'm hopeful that there will be some guidance there. If it's a change in terminology, I have to say I find it ironic in this line of work that you bring something all-encompassing and you get told it's too much, and then you bring something more simplified and then you get told, well it's too simplified. And because it does it does include everything else, it doesn't—but I don't see that happening so much to the chemical companies, or the oil companies or those who have a tendency—you know, we get told just to be satisfied with moving the needle a little. But I see the other side okay, with honking and wonking on that needle. And so I'm asking for your support in finding the best way to change this terminology, because this piece of legislation is the will of the people, and the will of the people of this County. So I'm asking for support from that legal standpoint because I'm not a lawyer so I don't quite have that, but I have worked in the best capacity with the best staff and legal support that I've had through this role. So maybe if we could work together on that, but I'm just asking for my colleagues' support to move this through Committee and then we'll follow-up in two weeks if this is essentially just a statement versusI don't think this becomes part of the law itself. MS. STRANCE: Yeah, when it gets incorporated into the code, it won't have the preamble. What will happen is that there is some dispute or action, it's not uncommon to look to the legislative history or the purpose of a piece of legislation. And that's where this language would come in. Page 12 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 MS. VILLEGAS: Okay, and if we have to pull that language—yeah, because Lord knows the other side has unlimited resources, and if this becomes the tiniest loophole for them to get a foothold and stop the will of the people, I'll be damned if I'll let that happen. So we'll make those changes, as necessary. Thank you, Judge Strance. I yield. ACTING CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Villegas and Judge Strance. Council Member David. MS. DAVID: Yes, thank you, and I'll be real quick. And thank you, Judge Strance, for bringing that point up, and Mr. Richards. Because to me, I was saying that is such a great, simple legislation, yeah? But I totally understand the way that the preamble could be used, and it would negate your efforts in making this a piece of legislation that is very succinct and to the point. So the preamble is to me, not important as the bill itself, because my first suggestion was to just take out"the Council finds." But the other statements within the preamble could be down the line as a contradiction to what I think I would support happening. I'd like this to be just a bill that says what it is. And so, anyway, that's just my thoughts and thank you for that input. I yield. ACTING CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member David. Council Member Villegas. MS. VILLEGAS: Yeah, and I can see why Maui County did an overall ban in all departments and on all of these products. Because then it's just complete. And I wish that I believe that our County had the courage to do that right now. And I am hopeful that at some point we will. We have a new Administration that hosted a Sustainability Summit and recently a TEDx talks on sustainability, and environmental, and cultural issues. So I am hopeful that we can get to the space and walk the walk that we talk the talk about. But I'll look forward to working with you on this. And I'll just chuckle at the ironies and give credit to those who work as lawyers. Because wow, let's talk about a red herring and a trifecta of in landscape where the chemical companies have unlimited resources and a bible of false prophesies about the usage and what their products do to people and places. I find that tragic, but we will continue to do what needs to be done to move that needle in the right direction. So, thank you for your gracious understanding. And yeah, I yield. ACTING CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Council Member Villegas. Anyone else? Alright, I'll just conclude by saying, mahalo to Council Member Villegas for putting a really concise bill forward that I think is very clear. Appreciate that you've taken the time to work with the department. I did follow the last piece of legislation and I think you've identified some of the challenges that were brought Page 13 CRNRMC-1 November 17,2021 up last time that make this a doable thing at this point in time. So happy to support this. And I just want to congratulate you on a well-crafted bill. We'll go ahead and take the vote. All of those in favor or moving Bill 91? So, Mr. Clerk, we're going to do a roll call, by request, on the motion on the floor, which is to move Bill 91 to Council with a favorable recommendation. Vote on Bill 91: The motion to recommend passage of Bill 91 on first (Approved) reading was carried by the following roll call vote. Ayes: Committee Members Chung, David, Inaba, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Acting Chair Kimball—7. Noes: Committee Member Richards— 1. Absent: Committee Member Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder— 1. Excused: None. ACTING CHR. KIMBALL: Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Okay, we'll take a motion to adjourn. ADJOURN- There being no further business, at 3:03 p.m., Ms. Lee Loy moved to adjourn the MENT: meeting. Seconded by Mr. Richards and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, David, Inaba, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Richards Villegas, and Acting Chair Kimball—8. Noes: None. Absent: Committee Member Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder— 1. Excused: None. ACTING CHR. KIMBALL: We are adjourned. Thank you. Approved: December 20, 2021 Ms. Rebecca Vill=:as, Chir (Date) Climate Resilience and Natural Resource Management Committee RV/dt Page 14