HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0392.093 2014-2016Murashige, Laura COUNTY CLERK
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From: Jane Taylor <artteacher@hawaii.rr.com>
Sent: Sunday, August 02, 2015 6:33 PM 2015 AUG --3 PH 12: 3'S
To: Jane Taylor
Subject: Bill 071 draft 1 Testimony (in favor of ban, but please read the details!)
To Whom it May Concern:
I support the ban of glyphosate and other toxic herbicides on county property.
I am personally made seriously ill by exposure and have to call the county road crew all the time to ask where
they are spraying roundup. Because of my personal reaction I did a lot of research and determined that this habit
of poisoning our roadsides is almost certain to be contributing to chronic illness island wide. The cancer thing is
the tip of the iceberg. I get flu-like symptoms and my immunity is compromised when I am exposed. If exposed
to recent spray blowing I can be sick for as long as a month. I also get red spots on my skin if exposed to the
dust that has been recently or just frequently sprayed. One time the spots lasted a year.
It is very sad to me that I am afraid of my own county road crew. I would like this to change. They have been
very helpful and always tell me what I need to know when I call, but at the same time, if I forget to call, the
spray truck doesn't even have warning cones. Even the mowers have warnings!
I am concerned for them as well. Chronic exposure is linked to increasingly provable problems world wide. It is
time for us to be a place where our children can play safely beside the road and our citizens and visitors walk
and bicycle without fear of contamination. We should be a safe, healthy, and welcoming place.
I realize that this has become a habitual way of clearing roadsides and a lot of people who work in the field
depend on it. I understand that alternatives must be provided. I suggest that they be mechanical. Weed eaters,
steam, and simply mowing are all ways to keep down weeds.
I learned when studying botany at UH that herbicides increase the prevalence o some weeds because they clear
off the grass and then the weed seeds germinate. They get killed again by the next spraying but their seeds
survive and the weedy places along our roads are oftentimes actually CAUSED by the frequent spraying that
prevents grass from filling in and keeping the weeds down. This is clearly evident to the careful observer.
Other alternatives include vinegar. Salt is not recommended as it will kill the soil. We want healthy
soil! Mechanical means are the best. Perhaps with the money we used to use on spray we can hire a few more
people to cut and weed eat.
Again, mechanical means are the healthiest.
Sincerely,
Jane W. Taylor
64-5292 Iolcua Place
Kamuela Hawaii 96743
artteacher a bawaii.rr.com
coram, No. 39a ► 93
Ref. To: UMM
Ref, Dote AUG f n m
http://janewordtgylor.bloaspot.com/
"Wisdom demands a new orientation of science and technology towards the organic, the gentle, the non-violent,
the elegant and beautiful." E.F. Schumacher.
Murashige, Laura
From: Jane Taylor <artteacher@hawaii.rr.com>
Sent: Sunday, August 02, 2015 6:58 PM
To: Council Testimony; Kanuha, Dru; Wille, Margaret; Eoff, Karen; David, Maile; Ilagan,
Greggor; Poindexter, Valerie; Chung, Aaron; Paleka, Daniel; Onishi, Dennis
Subject: Bill 071 - in favor of ban - here is an alternative
Here is a place where they are using steam to kill roadside weeds:
http•//www echo net au/2014/02/non-toxic-steam-weeding-trials-begin/
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