HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0385.011 2012-2014 CODUTY CLER
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September 3,2013 # '- '
TO: Public Safety&Mass Transit Committee of Hawaii Island County Council 1013 SEP -14 AM 8: 59
FROM: Hector Valenzuela, Ph.D.
RE: Testimony in Support of Bill 113 (Replaces Bill 79)
Testimony Text to read
This testimony is in strong support of Bill 113. My name is Hector Valenzuela. I
have been a Professor and Crop Specialist at the University of Hawaii for the
past 22 years, but provide this testimony on a personal capacity.
I have been following the science of crop biotechnology for about 25 years. Ten
years ago in 2003 I was invited to testify by the Maui County Council about my
concerns with GM crops.
Fast-forwarding 10 years after my testimony, my concerns and questions about
the safety of GM crops have only continued to increase in magnitude.
After 20 years, we are actually starting to obtain hard-data about the harmful
effects from the production of GM crops. Epidemiological studies have
documented a range of serious health effects from the exposure to pesticides
that are used to grow GM crops in South America. Similar concerns, based on
the literature, have also been raised by The American Academy of Pediatrics,
and several other recent reviews.
Considerable evidence is also mounting about health and environmental risks
from the consumption and planting of GM crops.
The strongest point raised by the GM industry is that a scientific consensus
exists about the safety of GM crops, but nothing could be further from the truth.
The fact is that none of the agencies that vouch for the safety of GM crops have
conducted the research themselves, and that most assessments are based on
data provided by the GM industry itself.
Another case raised by the chemical industry to defend GM crops is their
portrayal of the GM papaya as the poster-child for the industry. However their
claims that the GM papaya saved the papaya industry has not been documented
by a SINGLE study.
To provide a perspective on how the issue of Conflict of Interest, is prevalent
among proponents of GM crops, a leading cheerleader of the GM papaya, Dr.
Gonsalves, also holds several patents on the GM papaya, along with Monsanto,
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