Uncle Loui Cabebe is smiling down upon us, of that I have no doubt. As a member of Ke Kauhulu O Mana and a plaintiff in our communities recent huge win at the Hawai’i Supreme Court, his legacy of caring and protection of the aina – lives on.

He spoke for all of us when he said in 2018 shortly after the initial legal action was filed, “We are the ones feeling the impacts from corporate agriculture. We are the ones who are hurting. We can see the damage that is being done to our land and to endangered birds and marine life. The burden should be on the companies to prove that their activities are safe.”

The Hawai’i Supreme Court just said Uncle Loui was right AND the Board of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR) failed to do its job protecting our communities health and natural environment.

Mahalo Uncle Loui and to all the Plaintiffs – Ke Kauhulu o Mānā, Punohu Kekaualua III, Hawai’i Alliance for Progressive Action (HAPA), Surfrider Foundation, and Koholā Leo.

Mahalo also to the excellent legal team of Lance Collins and Bianca Isaki who persisted through thick and thin…all the way to the Hawai’i Supreme Court – and won!

Mahalo plenty and especially and hugely our Hawai’i Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice Mark E. Recktenwald.

Hawai’i is extremely fortunate to still have in place a judicial branch of government we can have faith and confidence in.

My hope is that in the future, our government agencies and elected leaders will listen closer to the words of those who live, work, and raise their families near these lands.

“For generations, our ʻāina has been exploited and contaminated by corporate practices. The impact is not just on the land, but on our families. Our keiki are forced to live with obstacles created by environmental injustice—burdens that should never have been theirs to carry.” Punohu Kekaualua III, Aloha ʻĀina and Cultural Practitioner, Plaintiff

Hawai’i Revised Statutes HRS 343 says that actions involving state conservation lands MUST undergo an environmental review to disclose potential environmental and health impacts.

The “action” in this case was a proposed lease by Syngenta of State conservation lands adjacent to a sensitive shoreline area.

Syngenta is one of the largest agrochemical companies in the world. It’s a Chinese owned conglomerate, headquartered in Switzerland that develops and sells genetically modified seeds, AND manufactures and sells highly toxic pesticides/herbicides.

Many of the pesticides and genetically modified products Syngenta (and affiliates) develop, use, and sell in Hawai’i are illegal to develop, use or sell in Switzerland where the company is based.

These companies spray dangerous chemicals in fields, along roads, and next to schools and residential areas here in Hawai’i, that are forbidden by law to use in their own country.

Syngenta’s federal permits to conduct experimental genetic modification research, marked “not for release into the natural environment” are NEVER reviewed by the State.

The Court found the BLNR failed to follow proper procedures when it exempted Syngenta’s Hawai’i operations (now Hartung Brothers) from environmental review, and thus the potential environmental impacts of such activities were never disclosed or analyzed.

YES, this is a big win for our community, YES when the revocable permit is renewed or a new lease entered into an environmental assessment at the minimum will be required, and YES this sets precedent for other cases.

Full disclosure: I was Board President when HAPA joined this legal action against the BLNR and Syngenta. Prior to that, I was a member of the Kauaʻi County Council and fought tooth and nail against Syngenta during the Bill 2491 saga.

So yes, I’m totally biased and doing cartwheels at the moment.

Tomorrow we huddle to figure out next steps, but today we celebrate.

Gary Hooser