HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 1210.028 2004-2006
Testimony for Bill #365 (No Smoking at Kahalu'u Beach Park)
Donna R. Goodale
73-5403 Kohanaiki Rd.
Kailua-Kona, HI 96740
808-325-1472
donna(a ooodale.org
West Hawaii Fisheries Council
West Hawaii Youth Fisheries Council Coordinator
The original resolution, passed in August of 2006, called for a $100 fine for
smoking at Kahalu'u. The West Hawaii Youth Fisheries Council would like to
change the fine to match the current $25-50 penalty for smoking in the
workplace. This penalty is sufficient as a consequence. In addition, smoking in an
open area, like a beach, should not be fined more heavily than smoking in a work
or public space.
I support the ban on smoking at Kahalu'u Beach Park because:
1. Cigarette filters are thrown in the sand by people smoking on the
beach. These filters take years to degrade (1.5-15 years)
2. Cigarette butts composed 30% of the beach litter in Hawaii
during the 2005 International Coastal Cleanup effort. Kahalu'u is the
"Hamama Bay" of the Big Island, with a huge number of our visitors using
this area.
3. Tourists looking for a pristine tropical beach must be
disappointed with the amount of litter found on Kahalu'u Beach as many of
them signed the West Hawaii Youth Fisheries Council's petition to ban
smoking at Kahalu'u Beach.
4. It cost the County money in the form of salaries to clean this
beach area.
5. Second hand smoke is both annoying and hazardous to other
people using the beach.
6. The cigarette filters leach toxic chemicals into the sand and harm
the invertebrates (crustaceans, echinoderms, nematodes and flatworms)
living there.
7. The toxins can also be lethal to species of fish.
8. The filters can be choking hazards for young children.
9. The filters have been found in the stomachs of sea turtles, fish,
birds, and whales.
Thank you very much for supporting the resolution to ban smoking at Kahalu'u
Beach Park. I hope we can all make the area cleaner and healthier for the
visitors, the resident population and the marine organisms that live in the beach
and near shore waters.
Sincerely,
Donna R. Goodale Comm. No.
Ref. To: Ref. Dat
20