HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0883.004 2006-2008
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Murashige, Laura
From: Richard Manshardt[manshard@hawaii.edu] RE( ",;'EL-)
Sent: Monday, January 07, 2008 6:32 PM
To: counciltestimony@co.hawail.hi.us
Subject: MANSHARDT testimony on HB 1577 and Res. 463-08 2008 AN 8 HM 7 56
Attachments: Res. 463-08 coffe .doc
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Res. 463-08 coffee
revised.doc...
Dear Sir/Madam:
I made an error in my written testimony that I submitted earlier today. In my electronic
document titled "Res. 463-08 coffee", I incorrectly referred to the resolution and the
associated bill as "Resolution 462-08 and SB 958, SD1, H01." I am attaching a corrected
electronic version of the document with the error changed to "Resolution 463-08 and HB
1577 HD1." Please substitute the attached document for my earlier version.
If your office lacks sufficient time to make these changes, I will bring copies of the
corrected version.
Sorry for the extra bother.
With aloha,
Richard Manshardt
Gomm. No.
Ref, To,
Ref, Dafe JAN8 20nR
I
Testimony Presented before the
Committee on Environmental Management
of the
Hawai'i County Council
January 8, 2008
by
Richard M. Manshardt, Professor
Department of Tropical Plant & Soil Sciences
College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources
University of Hawai'i at Manoa
Comm. 883 (Res. 463-08): A RESOLUTION SUPPORTING H.B. 1577 H.D.1 TO
TEMPORARILY PROHIBIT THE GROWING OF GENETICALLY MODIFIED
COFFEE FOR A PERIOD OF FIVE YEARS AND, AT THE SAME TIME, PERMIT
RESEARCH IN AN ENVIRONMENTALLY SECURE FACILITY
Chair Jacobson, Vice Chair Ford, and Members of the Committee:
My name is Richard Manshardt. I am a professor and plant geneticist in CTAHR
at UH Manoa. I have 25 years of research and teaching experience in crop
sciences at UH, including my work in conventional crop breeding and the
development of virus-resistant GMO papaya varieties for Hawaii growers. I am
providing testimony on my own behalf, not officially presenting the position of
CTAHR or UH on this bill.
I respectfully oppose Resolution 463-08 and HB 1577 HD1.
Invasive species are a constant challenge to Hawai'i's agriculture and
environment. The ongoing arrival of new invasive species is unpredictable and
can have far-reaching consequences, as is illustrated by the current situation in
which indigenous wili wili trees (Erythrina sandwiciensis) are being decimated by
an invasive gall-wasp species. Crop plants like coffee are likewise vulnerable to
damage by invasive species.
The five-year moratorium on testing, propagating, cultivating, raising, or growing
genetically modified coffee proposed in HB 1577, HD1 would limit the ability of
HawaiTs coffee industry to respond to the arrival of new pests or diseases. It
would prevent the field tests that are a required part of the process by which a
new transgenic cultivar is assessed. Such field testing is regulated by the U.S.
Department of Agriculture and requires that precautions be taken before, during,
and after the test to prevent the escape of the regulated transgenic plant from the
test site.
Such limitations would prevent the future development or use in Hawai'i of
transgenic coffee cultivars with pest or disease resistance. Development or use
of pest- or disease-resistant GM coffee would be banned even if an industry-
threatening disease or pest outbreak were to result in strong support for GM
coffee from the Big Island's coffee growers. By removing the option of using
genetic modification to help coffee growers overcome the effects of new pests or
diseases, the moratorium proposed in HB 1577, HD1 renders the state's coffee
crop more vulnerable to unpredictable invasions of plant pathogens and other
pests.
For these reasons I respectfully oppose HB 1577, HD1 and Resolution 463-08.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify.