HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0212.275 1996-1998 948 P01 MqY 85 '97 ~7~03
National HeaAquanrrs
i 1816 Race Track Roatl i . I
• 7arnpa. FL 33626
N~tur~l Hy~lene (8131855.667
SaCiety Inc e~~~e~eolte~to.
iyt
v"~ ~ • lames Michael Lennon
I
Living in Harmony wirh Nature
Facsimile Cover Sheet
o ~
C~ z ~ i
~r ~ I ~
DATE: p4ay 5, 1997 TIME: U' I
~ ~
' '-n i
Hawaii Countq Council b4embers _ i-a
TO:
companp:
phone:
Fax: (808) 969-3291
FROM: James 1~fichael Lennon, Executive Director
phone (813) 855-6607 fax (813) 855-8052
TOTAL NUMBER OF PAGES BENT (including thi9 page): 19
ME88AGE: I am sending a two-page letter to each of the
Council members. Please deliver to them as soon as
possible so that they Will have a chance to read it
beSare their meeting on Wednesday. Thank you.
PLEABE CALL IMMEDIATELY IF' THERE IS ANY ERROR
IN TRANSMISSION!
l;omm. Dia 212. tl~
F11e Ifo. FNO ?Ci
?ot PrQSentect~ ~',~~t~
,,,.w N.~ NAY 071997
,Ref. Dete__ _
A 94B Pp2 MAY p5 '97 17:p3
y~~rr~^~ 1"f _ ~ National Heatlquarte rs i
11 1 ~ l C~1 1 r.0. Box 30630
NcZturdl Hygiene (8 3) 855-66070
SOClety, Inc. Fxecueioe Director
)amen Michael Lennon
Living in Harmony with Nature
May 5, 1997 can i
Councillor James Arakaki VIA FAX
Hawaii County Council (808) 969-32'.91 ~ n
25 Aupuni St.
_ m
Hila, HI 06720
C .n
Dear Councillor Arakaki,
~
I am writing to you today on behalf of the more than ~,000n
members and friends of the American Natural Hygiene Society the-
oldest health education association in the United States.
our members--physicians and laypersons alike--are united in
opposition to food irradiation for reasons of health and safety.
We respectfully urge you to oppose the construction of an
irradiation facility in your community. W'e believe the arguments
against food irradiation are compelling Por moral, scientific,
and economic reasons. Some are listed below.
1. If the irradiation of food takes place in Hawaii, the
society will be among the national and international
groups boycotting irradiated foods and considering a
boycott of all Hawaiian produce.,
2. Radiation is very dangerous. Radiation accidents are
frequent, and the history of the nuclear industry is a
history of coverups. Japan is currently facing the
disgrace of its nuclear industry having covered up a
serious accident. It took the United States government
40 years to admit it had injured American soldiers and
civilians during atomic tests. Citizens in Honolulu
were subjected to an unreported radiation leak for 12
years before cleanup began.
3. Radiation facilities put your constituents at
unjustifiable and uncompensatable,risk. Most
homeowners' insurance policies carry an exemption for
nuclear accidents. Can the County of Hawaii assume the
liability for damages related to,an irradiation
facility, including the transportation of nuclear
materials to or from the site, that no insurance company
is .willing to assume?
4. Americans have already rejected irradiated foods. The
only food irradiation facility in the nation is located
just miles fzom our national headquarters here in
Florida. It has lost millions of dollars since 1992
PmNd m Recl'GIW PaPN
946 P03 MRY 85 '97 17:04
since n s
o uppliers or retailers want to be as
i sociated
with food irradiation.
Most Americans know that Pood ir~radiatien is not an
outgrowth of the farming or food industries. It is an
outgrowth of the problem of nuclear waste. It is a
technology in search of a use. (Food irradiation is a
poor solution to the problem of nnuclear waste. We
consider the introduction of nuclear waste materials at
any new sites a reckless contamination of our
neighborhoods and communities. I
5. It has been widely reported that radiation damages the
makeup and structure of food. Good health dictates
Presh foods, not preserved foods, and certainly not
foods exposed to deadly radiation.
6. Food irradiation is unnecessary.i All of the supposed
benefits attributed to food irradiation are already
obtainable from other less expensive, less dangerous
processes.
On behalf of all ANHS members, I respectfully urge you to
oppose the construction of an irradiation facility in your
community for health and environmental safety reasons.
Sincerely, I
3ames Michael Lennon
Executive Director
Please make this letter a numbered communication.
i
Councillor Arakaki: Page 2 of 2
I