Lawmakers likely to look at genetic altering of crops
By Vicki Viotti
Advertiser Staff Writer
Growth in genetically engineered crops, along with mounting public concern over possible risks, is expected to renew debate on the subject at the state Capitol this session.
Lawmakers are expected to introduce bills aimed at increasing regulatory safeguards.
Hooser
Among them is state Sen. Gary Hooser, D-7th (Kaua'i, Ni'ihau), who is vice chairman of the Water, Land & Agriculture Committee. Hooser plans to submit measures by Thursday's deadline that would make public information about genetically engineered crop production more available.
The bill also would ban the production of certain test crops in the open air, an effort to reduce the risk of contaminating crops in neighboring fields.
A public forum yesterday showed concern among environmentalists and Native Hawaiian advocates about the expansion of an industry that, they argued, receives too little government scrutiny.
The forum was sponsored by Kahea: The Hawaiian-Environmental Alliance, which will host a repeat session at 7 p.m. Saturday at the University of Hawai'i Center for Hawaiian Studies. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are produced by researchers trying to create more disease-resistant strains or, in some cases, producing pharmaceutical and industrial compounds in the plants that can be harvested and marketed.
Native Hawaiians are especially concerned about efforts to produce genetically modified strains of taro, said Le'a Kanehe, a native rights attorney. Very little research is done on the health risks of consuming such plants, she said.
"All the money is going toward the production of GMOs, and not toward evaluating that risk," she said.
Hector Valenzuela, a UH tropical plant and soil science specialist, said other public issues include lack of labeling genetically modified produce, and the potential for the seeds of unmodified crops to become contaminated by genetic material from test crops grown nearby.
But some in Hawai'i agriculture believe there can be a middle ground accommodating the desires of agritech business and the concerns of its critics.
"If they're saying it should be better regulated, I have no problem with that," said Dean Okimoto, a Waimanalo greens farmer and president of the Hawai'i Farm Bureau Federation. "I think the industry is constantly trying to monitor itself better.
"My fear is you're trying to get rid of an industry that is fledgling," Okimoto said. "We really want to meet with these people and promote a feeling of coexistence. We feel that all these industries — GMO, conventional farming, organic farming — can coexist together."
Reach Vicki Viotti at vviotti@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8053.
