The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0078.005 2006-2008 Page 1 of 1 Murashige, Laura From: Donna Goodale [donna@goodale.org] Sent: Tuesday, January 02, 2007 5:29 PM To: counciltestimony@co.hawaii.hi.us Subject: testimony in favor of Bill 365, no smoking at Kahalu'u Attachments: Donna Testimony12.O6.doc; LauraSmokeTestimony.doc; NathanielTestimony1.07.doc; PeggylTestimony1.07.doc; TienTestimony1.07.doc; AllisonJan07Testimony.doc; Sara PeckSmokeTesti mony. doc Dear County Clerk: attached are several testimonies for the hearing on Jan. 4, 2007. Thank you for making copies for the Council Members. ~Uonna GoocfaCe S^_J e-tee S~ ~ ~ C.~r .D V~ tlQfTt}Sl. ~dl~, • V is E: t. To: Prearalep Ref. Uate JAN 4 7pp~ 1/3/2007 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@goodale.org West Hawaii Fisheries Council West Hawaii Youth Fisheries Council Coordinator The original resolution, passed in August of 2006, called fora $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 BILL #365 No Smoking at Kahalu'u Beach Park Council Meeting 01/04/07 Submitted By: Laura Andersen December 31, 2006 West Hawaii Youth Fisheries Council I support the ban on smoking and the use of tobacco products at Kahalu'u Beach because: - It is needed to protect the environment and the people who frequent the beach. - Cigarette butts are one of the most common items found in beach clean-ups, accounting for at least 20-40% of what's found. - I researched the effects of chemicals in cigarette butts on crustaceans for my science project this year. I did tests at Kahalu'u Beach Park and the Old Airport Beach Park. There was a significant negative correlation, meaning there are less ghost crabs where there are more cigarette butts. -Cigarette toxins can harm people and marine life on the beach. Please pass the ban on smoking at Kahalu'u Beach Park. Thank you! Testimony for Bill #365 (No Smoking at Kahalu'u Beach Park) Nathaniel Goodale Age: 13; 8`h grade 73-4503 Kohanaiki Rd. Kailua-Kona HI 96740 N athani el (r~ goo dale. org Reasons for Banning Smoking at Kahalu'u Beach Park 1. Tourism is negatively affected by smoking due to littering and second hand smoke 2. Smoking can cause lung cancer or other illnesses 3. Four out of five Americans do not smoke and would probably not want to sit next to a smoker on the beach 4. 4.5 trillion cigarettes are littered each year world wide 5. In 30 minutes, a group of students from my school picked up over 2000 cigarette butts at Kahalu'u Beach Park 6. Smokers drop the cigarettes in the sand making the beach their ash tray 7. Cigarettes in the sand are a safety hazard to small children because they can swallow or choke on them 8. Every year the poison control center receives thousands of calls about children ingesting tobacco products BILL #365 No Smoking at Kahalu'u Beach Park Council Meeting 1/04/07 Submitted By: Peggy Andersen 75-5773 Iuna Place Kailua-Kona HI 96740 (808)329-9404 peggycpa@hawaiiantel.net I support Bill #365 which will ban smoking and the use of tobacco products at Kahalu'u Beach Park. This is our family's favorite, and the most popular, snorkeling beach on the Big Island. I helped my daughter, Laura, do test work for her science project "Ghost Crabs & Cigarette Butts" at Kahalu'u and Old Airport Beach Parks. We did not find a single test site at either beach that was free of cigarette butts--even after a community "beach clean-up". The only way we are going to prevent our beaches from being used as ashtrays is to prohibit smoking. In addition, the beach is a public place that should be free of second-hand smoke. Because of the popularity, heavy use and congestion at Kahalu'u beach, it needs to be smoke and tobacco free. Please pass the ban on smoking and use of tobacco products at Kahalu'u Beach Park. Mahalo. BILL #365 No Smokine at Kahalu'u Beach Park Tien Austin 1/4/07 13, 8`h grade 73-4325 Lihilihi Pl Kailua-Kona HI 96740 Lilbassplayer34@hotmail. com My opinion is that, people come to Hawaii expecting spectacular sights, and beautiful beaches. Since Kahalu'u is so close to the Outrigger Keauhou Beach Resort (the place where I stayed when I first came to visit Kona), many of the guests go to Kahalu'u first before any other beaches. The first thing people may notice is how crowded it is. Then when you lay down in the sand you may have to pick up all the cigarette butts that are where you are sitting. That's not a very good first impression, and then when you are walking around you are most likely going to notice all the cigarette smoke hovering everywhere. I didn't like Kahalu'u the very first time I visited, and now that I live here I can do my best to make that beach more beautiful. Who wants to come to Hawaii to breath second hand smoke, go to the beach where there are more cigarette butts than sand, go snorkeling in water that is polluted, not me. Thank you for taking your time to read this even if your decision is not to ban smoking, I appreciate your time. Testimony for Bill #365 (No Smoking at Kahalu'u Beach Park) Hello, my name is Allison Alterman and I am here today to ask you to support the smoking ban at Kahalu'u Beach Park. Smoking is hazardous to the smoker, the marine life, and the keiki. The youth Fisheries council has been working on this law for a couple years, and it has shown us that with a little commitment we can make a difference in our community. A vote for the ban is a vote towards a healthier, cleaner, and safer environment. Thank you. January 1, 2007 To: the Hawaii County Council Re: Supporting Bill #365 Banning Smoking at Kahalu'u Beach I strongly support the ban on smoking at Kahalu'u Bay Beach Park. Over the past t2 years, I have provided and/or supported educational activities at Kahalu'u Bay through my work and on personal time. Research on invertebrate tolerance to nicotine suggests that daphnia species do not survive immersion in water permeated with cigarette butt exudates. At Kahalu'u, there are very few invertebrates normally associated with beach sand, possibly evidence of nicotine permeation. Thank you Sara Peck PO Box 56 Holualoa HI 96725 322-2266