HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 1145.033 2012-2014Urgent shut down bill for Hawaii bill 318
Urgent shut down bill for Hawaii bill 318
- 91111
Page 1 of 1
C,&AM- 1 14S
X DELETE *- REPLY {{ REPLY ALL FORWARD •••
Eric Cohen <eric @seadwelling.com> mark as unread
Sat 11/15/2014 9:30 AM
To: Council Testimony;
Cc: David Dart <alpineairhawaii @yahoo.com>;
Aloha County Council Members and Mayor William P. Kenoi,
I am writing this testimony in opposition to Bill 318 regarding aquarium fish treatment for the
hearing Tuesday Nov. 18 2014 1:45 PM Bill 318.
I have included testimony below from Ron Tubbs, and would like to say that I couldn't agree more
with the comments he has so clearly written.
My experience in the Industry is just one more life long history of working with Aquarium Fish, over
20 years of being one of the leading Aquarium Fish Wholesalers in the USA, along with being the
Technical Advisor on Animal Planet's hit tv show "Tanked ", previous exporter of Kona, HI where I
worked together with DAR and Dr. Bill Walsh to implement the management plan closures, and I
receive aquarium fish from Kona on a weekly basis, year round. My company Sea Dwelling Creatures
is also MAC certified and leads in the industry in ethical, and aquarium keeping advancements.
I personally handle all the Hawaii ordering for the company here in Los Angeles, and concur with Mr.
Tubbs on the low mortality rates that we receive coming from Kona and Honolulu suppliers. Our
shipments average nearly perfect live arrival rates upon imports to Los Angeles. Not only are the
Yellow Tangs, and other Hawaii fish some of the hardiest in the Industry, but the short flights from
Hawaii into Los Angeles are direct, and very short compared to other international flights which are
typically 36 - 48 hours and still average under 5% mortality rates. I have personally offered anyone
interested the opportunity to review and audit our invoices from Hawaii suppliers, and review the
shipping reports to substantiate my comments.
As Mr. Tubbs points out, shipping live fish is all about the preparation of the animal before packing,
and the oxygen content you add to the plastic bag which keeps the fish alive during transport. In
fact, we have found that lower water levels combined with added oxygen is more beneficial to the
survivability of the animals during transport than adding unnecessary amounts of water that would
eliminate the space required for the oxygen. There is no doubt that this bill would counter the
efforts we in the industry make to better the health of the animals we do our best to care for each
day.
G
_ t"
C)
-f
f;
What I learned from many years of handling aquarium fish about shipping preparation, is to limit the
fishes food intake prior to shipping. Ammonia is toxic to animals and we do our best to keep
Comm.
Ref. To: / R w �Ci.._
https: / /webmail.hawaiicounty.gov /owa/ Ref. Date 8 2014.__.._ 11/17/2014