Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0882.033 2006-2008 Murashige, Laura From: Susan Mi asaka sc mi asaka ahoo.com Sent: Tuesday, January 22, 2008 8:17 PM To: counciltestimony@co.hawaii.hi.us 2008 JAN 23 Ail 9 19 Subject: Against Resolution 462-08 Attachments: Resolution-taro.doc L~J Resolution-taro.doc (24 KB) Dear Clerk of Hawaii County Council, I would like to submit written testimony against Resolution 462-08. Thank you for your attention. Sincerely, Dr. Susan C. Miyasaka University of Hawaii CTAHR, Hawaii County 875 Komohana St. Hilo, HI 96720 ph: (808) 981-8264 Never miss a thing. Make Yahoo your home page. http://www.yahoo.com/r/hs Comm tom. 3 3 Ref, To.. R W un cc: / Ref. Dote JAN 24 2M i Testimony Presented before the Hawai'i County Council January 24, 2008 by Susan C. Miyasaka, Professor Department of Tropical Plant & Soil Sciences College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources And Interim CTAHR Hawaii County Administrator University of Hawai'i at Manoa Relating to Comm. 882 (Res. 462-08): A RESOLUTION SUPPORTING S.B. 958 S.D.1 H.D.1 TO IMPOSE A TEN-YEAR MORATORIUM ON DEVELOPING, TESTING, PROPAGATING, CULTIVATING, GROWING, AND RAISING OF GENETICALLY MODIFIED TARO IN THE STATE OF HAWAII To Hawaii County Council: My name is Susan C. Miyasaka. I am a professor and agronomist in CTAHR at UH Manoa. I have 19 years of research and teaching experience in crop sciences at UH. I am providing testimony on my own behalf, but not presenting the official position of CTAHR or UH on this bill. I respectfully oppose Resolution 462-08 and SB 958, SD1, HD1. As the lead scientist on this now-ended research project to genetically engineer (GE) increased disease resistance in the Chinese taro variety Bun long, I would like to correct some common misconceptions: First, my team made no attempt to insert foreign genes into Hawaiian taro varieties and we have no plans to do so in the future. In 2005, Dean Andrew Hashimoto of the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources signed a moratorium on genetic engineering of Hawaiian taro until appropriate dialog is held with the Hawaiian community. Second, we inserted disease resistance genes from rice, grape, or wheat into the Chinese taro variety Bun long and the resulting transgenic plants showed increased tolerance to several taro pathogens. The only existing GE Chinese taro plants are in the laboratory and we have no plans to field-test them in Hawaii due to lack of funding. An update of this research project is attached. Third, there is little risk of accidental movement of foreign genes from GE Chinese taro to Hawaiian taro varieties because: a) Chinese taro variety Bun long rarely flowers under the environmental conditions in Hawaii; b) Hawaiian taro varieties flower but they rarely produce seed capable of growing into whole plants; and c) the insect pollinator that fertilizes taro flowers is not found in Hawaii. When we applied for federal funding to study the risk of accidental movement of foreign genes from GE Chinese taro variety Bun long to Hawaiian taro, we were turned down because the reviewers thought that the risk was too low to be measured. What would be the effect of a 10-year moratorium against genetic engineering research on Chinese taro? A lot can happen in 10 years, because invasive pests and diseases are entering Hawaii all the time due to the ease of global transportation. For example, there is a deadly disease found in the South Pacific called Alomae-Bobone that kills taro, and all Hawaiian taro varieties are susceptible to this viral complex. When this viral complex was accidentally introduced into the island of Makira in the Solomon islands, it took only 15 to 20 years before it caused the demise of taro production in several large taro-growing regions. Genetic engineering has had its greatest success in increasing viral disease resistance in many crops in which there is no natural resistance. In the case of papaya, genetic engineering for increased resistance to the papaya ringspot virus saved the papaya industry in Hawaii. This biotechnology has the potential to increase viral disease resistance in taro, but not if a 10-year moratorium against genetic engineering research on all taro varieties is passed. Let's compromise and work together to ensure the sustainability of taro production in Hawaii. Let's balance respect for indigenous culture with the need for pro-active, scientific research. For these reasons I respectfully oppose SB958, SD1, HD1 and Resolution 462- 08. Thank you for the opportunity to testify.