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Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0664.163 2014-2016 1-%u comm. c)&4 Murashige, Laura From: Carmelita Phillips <csdp@kyd-inc.com> Sent: Tuesday, May 31, 2016 9:45 AM To: Council Testimony Subject: Emailing - KYD_June3_2016_Bi11140dr2_Testimony.pdf Attachments: KYD_June3_2016_Bi11140dr2_Testimony.pdf Chair Kanuha and Members of the Hawaii County Council o CL- CD Please see attached our written testimony E c-T Sincerely yours, De ctesr Yamada/ i? President KYD, Inc. —ire -- 2949 Koapaka St, Honolulu, HI 96819 Tel 808 836 7302 Fax 808 833 8995 email-csdp(a)kyd-inc.com website–www.kydinc.com/ *********************************************************: ******************************** ****** NOTICE: This message is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed and may contain confidential and/or privileged information. If you are not the intended recipient, any review, retransmission, dissemination, copying or other use of this message is strictly prohibited. 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Date_MO 0 3 2A 1 IP ' j, KYD, Inc. dba k,yamada distributors An independent leader in packaging and wholesale distribution P.O. BOX 29669, Honolulu, Hawaii 96820 Phone: (808)836-3221 Fax: (808)833-8995 Hawaii Island County Council June 3, 2016 BILL 140draft2: "AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 20, OF THE HAWAII COUNTY CODE 1983 (2005 EDITION, AS AMENDED) BY ADDING A NEW ARTICLE RELATING TO REDUCTION OF POLYSTYRENE FOAM "STYROFOAM" FOOD CONTAINERS AND FOOD SERVICE WARE" Position: Oppose Chair Kanuha, and Members of the Hawaii County Council: I am Dexter Yamada, President of KYD Inc, doing business as K Yamada Distributors. Our company is a locally founded, family run business in Kalihi. KYD, Inc. began in the 1940's as a florist and a supplier of florist supplies. In 1958 we evolved into the packaging company we are today and later expanded into a distributor of many other fine products. KYD, Inc and its sister company, Hawaii Foam Products, LLC provide jobs to about 90— 100 men and women and contribute much to Hawaii's economy in the form of payroll and taxes. A major portion of our business is the production and distribution of the packaging materials all of us see and use every day, such as food-grade expanded polystyrene (PS foam)food containers. We supply these containers to food processers, food establishments, supermarkets, hotels, hospitals, and other major institutions. We stand by the safety,functionality and affordability of PS Foam and our employees. Thank you for the full discussion at the hearings since February. Today, I wanted to highlight observations from listening to these discussions: 1. Bill 140 continues to scare people into believing PS foam products are toxic, bad for people and the environment. Dr. George Cruzan corrected misinformation about polystyrene and styrene. He clarified if EPS is eaten, it and alternative products too, may plug fish stomachs. If these fish are eaten by people and wildlife, the EPS remains in the fish stomach. As I have heard, there are other man-made things in fish stomachs, yet only PS foam containers are targeted. 2. I have heard that this is not a litter problem, that PS foam must be banned because it is not accepted at the pending composting facility. Hawaii Island is fortunate that there are two private, multi-million dollar alternative power plants in the works: 1) Hu Honua Bioenergy plant and 2) BioEnergy Hawaii. We understand that PS foam will be part of the feedstock, burning at the highest BTU rate of 18. 3. The West Hawaii Today May 17, 2016 article showed a photo of an EPS container w/fries left on a Kona cur , ;_i;,, bside. ,,, ,,.. �'+ ,. ,; How did it get there? It was not by the food vendor's action. It is because the : ti ',,, person who ate the food did not properly throw away the container. Yet, Bill �� 140draft 2 targets only food operators who serve prepared foods. t 4, TOPi(' Hawaiian 0pJA WIPES®Plantations K tiR p �,,T.0 fPaaaive WILL CALL,G&A,AND WAREHOUSE OFFICES:2949 Koapaka Street,Honolulu,Hawaii 96819-1923 Phone:(808)836-3221 Fax:(808)833-8995 IP ' ,. KYD, Inc. dba k,yamada distributors An independent leader in packaging and wholesale distribution P.O. BOX 29669, Honolulu, Hawaii 96820 Phone: (808)836-3221 Fax: (808)833-8995 4. Lastly, many things have been said about ocean debris and plastics. What has not been fully discussed is the marine and industrial plastics, surfboards, ice chests, coolers etc that are found in the ocean and contribute to debris, perhaps to a greater extent than the PS foam containers. A local marine biologist said that 26- 89% of the island's ocean debris is from land based sources: straws, wrappers, insulation, shipping containers, hot coffee cups, meat trays, saimin containers and PS foam containers represent 1% of debris. This is similar to NOAA's September 2015 study that the 5 most common items found are: plastic cigarette butts, food wrappers, plastic beverage bottles, plastic bottle caps, plastic straws and drink stirrers. PS Foam containers are not mentioned. Chelsea Rochman, ecologist from UC-Davis noted that a lot of ocean debris is "microplastic" or pieces smaller than 5 millimeters, whose source may be beads from facial scrubs, fibers shed by synthetic clothing in the wash, or eroded elements from larger debris. Again, PS foam is not mentioned. So, it seems to me that litter management, personal and government responsibility, for the proper disposal of rubbish is key to reducing marine debris. Health and safety of PS foam containers have been addressed by.Dr. Cruzan. Organizations like Surfrider and Wildlife Foundation can work with others on litter education and disposal programs rather than banning a particular product. The pending Hu Honua Bioenergy Plant and BioEnergy Hawaii facility will resolve the 1%of PS foam in landfills and contribute to generating alternative energy. These are reasons to stop Billl40draft 2. Thank you for the opportunity to testify. ToPi( Hawaiian �w D RgC1PES® Plantations HA AlVienne fPaladlfe WILL CALL,G&A,AND WAREHOUSE OFFICES:2949 Koapaka Street,Honolulu,Hawaii 96819-1923 Phone:(808)836-3221 Fax:(808)833-8995