Senate Standing Committee on Agriculture and Environment

Aloha aloha and good afternoon. Mahalo for joining today's AEN hearing. It's Friday, March 20, and we're convening in 224. And video conferencing, which includes the audio and video of remote participants is being streamed live on YouTube. So in the unlikely event that this hearing is cut short, the committee will reconvene to discuss any outstanding business on Monday, March 23 at 03:05PM here in Room 224, during AEN's time slot.

And because of our ninety minute time limit for hearings, there'll be a two minute time limit for all testifiers. Two measures on the agenda, hb 1880 hg 3, relating to pesticides beginning 01/01/2030 prohibits the use of or application of a pesticide containing 1.3 d as an active ingredient such as talon. First up is DAB.

Hello, chair. Friday, the Department of Agriculture and Policy and Policy and Policy and Policy and Policy and Policy and Policy and Policy and Policy and Policy and Policy and Policy and Policy

up next is Chris Caulfield from, the Hawaii Public Health Institute.

Good morning, chair and Senator Rose. I'm Chris Caulfield from, the Hawaii Public Health Institute. We're in support of this bill. When we know that a chemical causes harm, we can't wait to take action. The science on this is clear.

The active ingredient in Toulon is classified by the US EPA, the National Toxicology Program, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer as a probable or possible human carcinogen. It's a volatile fumigate designed to become a gas, meaning that it doesn't stay where it's applied. It moves through the air, exposing farm workers, families, and children, to a chemical that's been linked to respiratory illness, organ damage, and long term cancer risk.

In Hawaii where schools, homes, and agricultural fields exist side by side, that exposure is real, it's preventable, and public health teaches us, that prevention is essential because it's always the most vulnerable communities, the most rural communities, and our keiki, our kupuna who bear the greatest burden of environmental exposure.

So when a substance is known to cause cancer and respiratory harm and safer alternatives do exist, the only ethical choice we feel is to put people before profit, and take action that protects the people in the land that sustains us.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to testify.

Thank you, Chris. Scott Enright from the Western Plant Health Association.

Chair Gabbard, Senator Rhodes. Good afternoon. I'm Scott Enright from Western Plant Health Association in opposition to this bill. I know we're gonna move this along chair, so I'll make it quick. You know, I'm gonna take a page out of Farm Bureau and Brian Miyamoto's playbook because every year around this time, we usually address some of these pesticide bills.

And I'm a believer in in good government, and I believe that the safeguards that we have in place with the EPA, with the Department of Agriculture serve us well when it comes to pesticides. This particular crop protection Talon is one that we need for pineapple in Hawaii. I believe there's more than likely testimony from the pineapple growers letting you know that if they don't have this crop protection, they're not gonna continue to crop pineapple in Hawaii.

And with that, again, in opposition and thank you for the chance to testify. Thank you, chair.

Thank you, Scott. Next is, Daniel Nellis from Dole Food.

Good afternoon, Jared Gabbard and Senator Rhodes. I have submitted written testimony. Excuse me. And, also, along with our written testimony was a petition signed by 95, employees from Dole. We we actually have over a 150 employees approaching 200 if we get fully manned.

And we are in a situation where if we cannot use this product, which is regulated, registered, and safe to be used if you follow label instructions, which we do, if we are not able to use it, we're talking about possible loss of a 150 to 200 jobs and the end of the pineapple industry in Hawaii, which would be an awesome shame. So we're strongly opposed to this. There are no commercially viable effective alternatives for Talon that are registered for use in pineapple.

It affects jobs, economy, and local food production. Our state is aiming to be food secure and depend on local production and agricultural sustainability, and this is pushing us in the opposite direction.

It's fed federally registered and highly regulated, and we follow all the EPA rules. EPA has determined that its use is satisfactory to use it with the risk that exists. We fumigate with it. We do not broadcast it. We do not not let it escape in the air.

We seal the soil according to the label. You don't touch it for seven days. You don't release any of the volatiles. And, again, a 150 to 200 people just at Dole, not to mention the multiplier effect for all of the ag industry inputs that Dole participates in. So I ask you to to reconsider this bill and end it because it's not good for the economy.

It's not good for the community on the North Shore and Central Oahu, and it's not good for agriculture. Thank you very much for letting me, participate in testimony today.

Thank you, Daniel. Hunter Hevelin on Zoom from Hawaii Farmers Union.

Not present on Zoom, chair.

Thank you. Anne Frederick from Hapa on Zoom.

No. Aloha, chair, vice chair. Thank you for the opportunity to testify on behalf of Hapa in strong support. We've done an in-depth review of the RUP reporting data, since it's become available. And what we've seen consistently, especially after a very close look at the first three years of reporting, is that, fumigants are consistently the most heavily used RUP across the street, and in in particular, T loan or 13 d is the most heavily used fumigant.

As has been mentioned already, is a, is classified as a probable carcinogen by the EPA, and California actually classifies it under Prop 65 as a carcinogen. What we do see, as well, is that it appears that Dole is the only user of one, three d these days. It appears that other pineapple growers have transitioned away to other alternatives.

There are many documented incidents of 13D, drifting off target even when applied according to the regulations, and this would certainly not be the first time that the EPA has approved a pesticide and then withdrawn it from the market after long term studies and impacts, over time. It is banned in 40 other countries.

And, again, there's, you know, often the EPA will look at short term acute impacts, which in this case includes, irritation of the skin, difficulty breathing, nausea, vomiting, headache, respiratory issues, but, longer term, especially with chronic exposures at the rates we're seeing, where it is heavily applied, between Waialua and Wahiawa, can lead to things like cancers when exposed over long periods of time and frequently.

So, again, as this body did in banning chlorpyrifos, which had also been approved by the EPA, we believe it's a prudent step in protecting public health. Thank you.

Thank you, Anne. Anyone else wishing to testify on this measure, either in person or online?

Oh, we had another one online. Malie Freibel Freibel? Is she here?

Not present on Zoom, chair.

Okay. K. Any questions, Senator Brooks? Any questions, Senator Rose? No.

Thank you. You're good? Okay. There were 73 in support of this measure, seven opposed, and two with comments. So with no questions, we'll move on to the next measure, HB 1931.

Excuse excuse me, chairman, Gabbard. We had 95 people, send in their signatures on on the petition opposed to this. So I'd like your record if if possible. Please let the record show that in addition to the seven testimonies in opposition, there is 95 signatures of people who are in opposition, and these are people whose jobs depend on pineapple production in Hawaii. Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you, Daniel. Okay. Moving on to the next measure, HB 1931 HD 2; establishes a state noxious weed coordinator and updates the process for designating and managing noxious weeds. Allows public proposals to add, amend, or remove noxious weed designations; requires notice and public reporting.

Clarifies the authority of DAB, authorizes updates to the noxious weed list to be adopted by order, and classifies noxious weeds into three categories. It also strengthens the enforcement and penalties. First up is Patrick Chi from DLNR. Patrick here? Okay. In support. Next is DAB.

DAB stands on its written testimony in support.

In support. Thank you. Let's see. Stephanie Easley from CGAPS.

Aloha, Chair Gabbard, Senator. My name is Stephanie Easley with the Coordinating Group on Alien Pest Species. Thank you very much for hearing this bill today and for allowing me to testify. The current noxious weed statutes and administrative rules were primarily written in the 1950s. They are from another time when agriculture was carried out on large parcels and was the economic engine of the state.

The-- means that the agricultural production and practices have changed a lot since the 1950s, but the statutes have not changed. The way the statute is written now, DAB cannot make rules to modernize its program without changes to the statute as those proposed in this bill. We hope that you will move it forward. With respect to the definitions of limited distribution and very limited distribution, we think it's a sensible approach to leave those definitions out of the statute.

They could be added into the regulation so they could be changed or made applicable to different types of noxious weeds, depending on how they grow in their biology. And finally, I did have a chance to read DAB's testimony. They raised a number of good points, and again, I think those points could be addressed in administrative rules. Section 10 of the bill has a provision for expedited making of administrative rules where all those could be answered by the experts of the agency. Thank you again for considering the bill, and I'm here if you have any questions. Mahalo.

Thank you, Stephanie. Hunter Heaivilin on Zoom.

Not present on Zoom, Chair.

Okay. Anyone else wishing to testify on this measure, either online or in person? There were 38 in support, zero opposed, and zero comments. Any questions? Okay. As you can see, we don't have quorum, so we're gonna have to roll decision-making to Wednesday--on these two measures--to Wednesday, March 25th at 3:05 p.m. here in Room 224. Thank you for your participation, and we're adjourning at 4 o'clock a.m.