What’s Happening?
Hawaii is ground zero for the outdoor experimentation of pesticide-promoting plant technologies, genetically engineered to withstand heavy spraying of toxic chemicals.
On Oahu, Kauai, Maui, and Molokai, chemical and biotechnology companies like Monsanto, Syngenta, Dupont, Dow Chemical, Bayer, and BASF are using prime agricultural land, taking advantage of Hawaii’s isolation and year-round growing season, in order to field test crops that have been genetically engineered to withstand greater applications of pesticides.
Despite public health concerns and contamination of natural resources, the State of Hawaii has taken no action to regulate the activities of biotechnology companies performing open-air testing on genetically engineered seed and synthetic pesticides.
So, What’s Home Rule?
Kauai, Maui and Hawaii Counties have asserted their county’s authority to create policies that address these issues and protect the safety and health of their residents and land. Otherwise known as “Home Rule,” Hawaii has shown the world just how important this kind of political power is in the movement to create more safe and sovereign food systems.
How have the Chemical Companies Fought Back?
On Kauai, residents organized to pass Ordinance 960, a measure that requires large argichemical companies to disclose the pesticides they are spraying and observe buffer zones around schools, homes, and hospitals. The chemical companies responded by suing the county rather than telling the community what they are doing.
The citizens of Hawaii Island passed a law prohibiting new GE crop production to protect the island’s biodiversity and local farmers from genetic drift. The chemical companies are suing Hawaii County.
On Maui, residents passed a citizen’s ballot initiative at the polls – calling for a temporary moratorium on GE crop production until human and environmental health impact assessments are completed. The chemical companies are now suing Maui County.
Want to Take Action?
Register to vote.
http://hawaii.gov/elections/voters/registration.htm
Organize.
Attend our Vandana Shiva Home Rule Tour this January 21-25th!
Join Hawaii Center for Food Safety
Support your local farmers.
http://www.hawaiifarmersunionunited.org
http://www.farmloversmarkets.com/kakaako-farmers-market/
Support leaders that believe in Home Rule.
http://hawaiicfsaf.org/endorsements/
https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiCenterForFoodSafety
Demand that our government protect our people and our aina FIRST. Sign the petition here!
Each island is different, each county should determine its own rules. We need to protect Home Rule. Click here to Join the Movement.
