HILO, Hawai'i — The Big Island County Council gave final approval yesterday to an ordinance making it illegal to grow genetically modified taro and coffee on the island, overriding a veto of the measure by Mayor Harry Kim.

It is the state's first such ban.

An overflow crowd at the council's Hilo hearing room was overwhelmingly in favor of the ban, with organic farmers saying they worry that pollen from genetically modified crops could contaminate organic crops and destroy their livelihoods.

Critics of genetically modified crops also said there are no data showing the altered crops are safe.

"With the passing of this bill, you stand up and protect the people," said Lauren Riley-Payne, 16, whose family operates an organic farm in Kapoho. "You show that our safety is worth it."

The council voted 7-0 to override Kim's veto and ban the crops.

Critics of GMO crops cited examples of organic papaya farms that were contaminated by pollen from papaya that was genetically modified to make it resist the ringspot virus.

ARGUMENTS FOR GMO

Opponents of the GMO ban have also pointed to the papaya industry, but draw the opposite conclusion. The ringspot virus nearly destroyed the papaya industry, which survived only because genetically modified strains of papaya were introduced that could resist the virus, they said.

Taro could someday face a similar threat, according to researchers. Taro leaf blight has nearly wiped out the taro crop in the Solomon Islands, and scientists warn it could someday reach Hawai'i. If that happens, genetically modified taro might save the industry.

Big Island veterinarian Billy Bergin told the council he is alarmed at the prospect of an arm of government taking an action that would suppress science.

"I become very, very fearful when I see government enact laws that outlaw and criminalize research by our institutions of higher learning that support food resources and sustainability," Bergin said.

Bergin said he trusts the University of Hawai'i to advance appropriate research, and said further study of the issue ought to be delegated to a committee of experts with the background to study and debate the issue.

University of Hawai'i-Manoa Chancellor Virginia Hinshaw also opposed the ban. In letters to the editor published in Honolulu and on the Big Island, Hinshaw wrote that there is no scientific justification for the ban, and "the university opposes legislation that unnecessarily interferes with our research and educational mission."

Kihei Nahale-a, Hawai'i Community College Hawaiian Studies instructor, sharply disagreed with Hinshaw, telling the council that no one asked him or other faculty and staff what they thought.

Nahale-a said it is culturally disrespectful to genetically modify taro, "and there's no reason to, actually. Kalo is perfect. Why should we change something that works?"

Supporters of the ban said they are not suppressing science, but are requiring that the research be done somewhere else, where it won't pose any sort of threat to Big Island crops.

The council originally approved the ban Oct. 8 in a 9-0 vote, with council members citing strong support for the ban among taro and coffee farmers.

ENFORCEMENT ISSUE

Opponents of the ban include the Hawai'i Island Chamber of Commerce and the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation. Those groups worry that more GMO crops might be banned in the future, leaving Hawai'i crops vulnerable to diseases and imported pests.

Kim, the Big Island mayor, vetoed the bill Oct. 30, citing the "difficulty, if not impossibility," of enforcing the ban. He proposed instead that a GMO Advisory Commission be established, an idea the council has already endorsed.

Kim pointed to the concerns of Police Chief Lawrence Mahuna that police would have no way to enforce the ban. Kim quoted Mahuna as asking "how would the police department make a determination on which taro or coffee has been genetically engineered?"

Kim said the federal permitting process for GMO research is stringent, and the testing is highly regulated.

"I do believe research can help these products, help protect what people want protected, and further the development of local agriculture," Kim wrote in his veto message.

Dexter Washburn, who has a small coffee farm near Holualoa, said that if testing of genetically modified crops turns out to be harmful to local crops, it is the farmers who will pay for the error.

"They would have us take the risk," he said. "The science will develop, but should not develop here."