GaryHooser's Blog

Aloha

This past two years, Hawaii has experienced the birth of an intensely passionate grass roots movement for change. This movement has brought together people from all islands representing many different groups and issues but each sharing at its core the battle for social justice.  Whether that battle be manifested in the fight against health and environmental degradation, cultural debasement or economic inequality, at the end of the day it is about social justice.

The 10,000 that marched recently for Unity and Aloha ‘Āina in Waikiki represent just a small fraction of the large number of our residents who are dissatisfied with the status quo and increasingly empowered to stand up and work now for positive change.  On Hawaii Island, on Kauai and on Maui, thousands more have marched and are demanding a government that listens and responds to the people rather than simply kowtow to big business and big money.

People across Hawaii are demanding to be heard and and their concerns and issues respected by government policy makers, but the majority in political office have their head in the sand, hoping, I suppose, that this whole “movement thing” will just go away.

To be clear the movement is not going away.  The abuse by the status quo has crossed the line and the “in your face nature of the actions” are far too egregious for people to turn away and act like they don’t see.

The rail financial boondoggle, the Kakaʻako “good planning and affordable housing” sham, and the “sustainable agriculture” hypocrisy that accompanies Hoʻopili and so many other ag-to-urban development projects on Oahu and around the islands are just a few examples.

On Maui, over 50% of the voters chose to support an initiative requiring agrochemical companies to prove that their operations are safe; yet the local County government will neither acknowledge that concern with legal support nor offer an alternative solution.  The County Councils of both Hawaii and Kauai County also passed laws attempting to regulate this same industry; and yet State government at all levels takes no action, choosing instead to ignore the possibility that additional regulation might be necessary.

In all of these cases and so many more, the common theme is that government is not working for the common good but rather seems focused only on facilitating the business interests who are the “rent seekers” in search of government favors.    They come before our government officials and agencies asking for zoning changes, permit variances, subsidies and other dispensations, and our government seems only willing to bend over backward to accommodate them.  When their project does not go well or when they feel there is more money to be made, they come back again and ask for even more from the public trough.

The movement surrounding the protection of Maunakea happened not just because of one particular telescope, but rather from decades of State inaction and lack of responsiveness.

There comes a time when enough is enough, and I believe now is such a time.

The word on the street is that the growing movement for change in Hawaii is evolving from marching and carrying signs toward the additional action of meaningful participation in the 2016 elections.  There is a movement afoot to register new voters and emerging leaders fueled by the urgency of the moment are making plans to become candidates for public office.

The Hawaii Alliance for Progressive Action (H.A.P.A.) of which I am the volunteer President of the Board has recently launched the Kuleana Academy, a five-month leadership development and candidate training program.  H.A.P.A. is working with Alliance Education Partners representing a wide variety of leading Hawaii public interest organizations.  This is a nonpartisan statewide program that will educate the participants through 1) Leadership and Campaign Skills Training, 2)Progressive Values and Statewide Issues Workshops; and 3) Community-Based Hands-On Experience.  Space is limited, but anyone in the public is welcome to apply.  The evaluation of participants and their acceptance into the program will be conducted by a panel consisting of H.A.P.A. Board Members and Alliance Education Partners.

Please read about and support this exciting new opportunity to create positive change in Hawaii.    We need new candidates and we need funding support to make the Kuleana Academy the best that it can be.  To learn more and apply please visit http://www.hapahi.org/kuleana-academy/

Please also consider making a generous tax deductible donation to support this important program and the many other projects H.A.P.A. now has underway.  We urgently need your help today.

http://www.hapahi.org/donate/

Hawaii needs more progressive government leaders who value ʻaina and the people ahead of corporate profit and who have the courage to stand up for their convictions.

Small numbers matter.  While big numbers are important when measuring the success of a march or a concert, when it comes to casting votes at the legislature and in County Council meetings across Hawaii, a handful of votes can make an important difference.  At the State legislature a handful of new, forward-thinking, community-based individuals can likewise make a significant difference, giving courage to other likeminded colleagues and catalyzing change within the body.

Please, if you are a leader and want to take your potential to a higher level, apply to the Kuleana Academy today.  If you have the financial capacity to help Hawaii’s new emerging leaders to reach out, take on, and carry that mantle of leadership, please offer your financial support.

Together we can do this.

Sincerely,
Gary Hooser

To be clear this is even worse than I originally thought.

Instead of a meeting of national leaders in Hawaii that promotes at the minimum balance and perhaps in our dreams even forward thinking – we get same-ole, same-ole.  We get a rerun of decades of industrial agriculture that a majority don’t want, don’t trust and won’t eat.

The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) Annual Meeting that started this past Sunday, September 13 and runs through Wednesday the 16  in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii – is even worse than I originally thought. The meeting is hosted by NASDA President and Hawaii Chairman of Agriculture Scott Enright.   Mr. Enright runs the Department of Agriculture for the State of Hawaii.

http://www.nasda.org/News/37606.aspx

As mentioned in an earlier blog, a featured speaker at the meeting is Margery Bronster whose law firm is suing Kauai County, Hawaii County and Maui County opposing their right to protect the health and environment of their citizens through the regulation of industrial agriculture.  I thought this invitation faux pas was bad enough but it gets worse.

To have Ms Bronster speak without inviting a contrary opinion is offensive both to the elected County officials who worked and voted on these issues, but more importantly to the citizens who supported those votes.  On Maui over 50% of the voters supported County regulation and their voices and perspective deserves also to be represented.

But to add even further to the bad judgment, a close look at the entire meeting agenda shows an overwhelming majority of the invited speakers are without question staunch and aggressive advocates of the industrial agrochemical model of our agricultural future.

Clearly the State is not listening to the people, nor to the marketplace.

Though organic food production is the fastest growing segment of agriculture in the nation, only one speaker out of 14 will speak to this topic while a Dow Chemical lobbyist will speak, a former Syngenta lobbyist will also present remarks, and of course Ms Bronster who represents the industry in court against three Hawaii Counties will also be featured.  In addition, various other individuals who have official positions opposing GMO labeling and who downplay the health and environmental impacts of pesticide usage also have been given platforms in which to promote their agenda and their world view.

It is not just disgruntled environmentalists and residents worried about their health and the health of our natural environment but it is also the global marketplace that is screaming for attention and being ignored by our State.

Yet the government of the State of Hawaii give these voices no attention at all, or at best a few scraps now and then to quiet the rabble.

“Major packaged-food companies lost $4 billion in market share alone last year, as shoppers swerved to fresh and organic alternatives.”  Fortune May 2015

http://fortune.com/2015/05/21/the-war-on-big-food/

Where is the balance?  Where is the respect for views and opinions and science that support a more sustainable approach to agriculture? Where is the perspective that says local governance at the County level is a valuable participant in the decision making process?  Where is the common sense business approach that says Hawaii should go after niche organic markets?

Industrial food is bad for our health, bad for the environment and increasingly is proving bad for business.

Our State government at many levels, both State agencies and in the legislature, have shown that they are more or less tone deaf when it comes to the concerns being expressed by a significant number of Hawaii residents and by the marketplace.

Clearly, it well past time for them to wake up, to listen and to respond accordingly.

FYI: Tuesday September 15^th schedule of NASDA speakers in the morning include:

Breakfast sponsored by Dow AgroSciences with remarks by Megan Provost, State Government Affairs (lobbyist)

James Gorny, Ph.D., Vice President, Food Safety & Technology, Produce Marketing Association (?)

Ryan Yates, Director, Congressional Relations, American Farm Bureau Federation (lobbyist)

Margery Bronster, Founding Partner, Bronster Fujichaku & Robbins Attorneys at Law (representing the agrochemical cartels in court against Maui, Kauai and Hawaii County)

Ron Williams, Government relations: Now at Coca-Cola, Previously with Syngenta (lobbyist)

Today of course is Labor Day and here are a couple of good reads I recommend:

• Civil Beat – “America Doesn’t Just Need A Raise” http://www.civilbeat.com/2015/09/america-doesnt-just-need-a-raise/

“…this Labor Day, let’s not only chant that America needs a raise but also rally around a simple norm that all workers should share fairly in the economic growth they help produce.”

“Today’s $7.25 per hour minimum has a purchasing power about 25 percent below its peak in 1968….”

• New York Times – “The Minimum Wage-Getting to $15 http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/05/opinion/the-minimum-wage-getting-to-15.html?_r=1

“Fifteen dollars, phased in gradually, is the better option. It would be adequate and feasible, assuming that policy makers also take steps to raise middle-class wages, which would include tough enforcement of updated laws on overtime, scheduling, worker classification and other labor issues.”

The curtain continues to be pulled back on the actions and impacts of the chemical companies here in Hawaii and around the world.

• The New York Times – “Food Industry Enlisted Academics In GMO Lobbying War Emails Show” http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/06/us/food-industry-enlisted-academics-in-gmo-lobbying-war-emails-show.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=first-column-region&_r=0

Dr. Folta testified for the chemical companies during the Bill 2491 hearings on Kauai –

“Dr. Folta is among the most aggressive and prolific biotech proponents, although until his emails were released last month, he had not publicly acknowledged the extent of his ties to Monsanto.”

“I am grateful for this opportunity and promise a solid return on the investment,” Dr. Folta wrote in an email to one Monsanto executive.”

• Insiders might enjoy reading the actual emails that relate to Hawaii and Kauai. See page 26 for starters https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/2303691-kevin-folta-uoffloridadocs.html#document/p8/a237529

Just published today in The Guardian and is a MUST READ AND SHARE:

Pesticides in Paradise: Hawaii’s spike in birth defects puts focus on GM crops http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/aug/23/hawaii-birth-defects-pesticides-gmo

And know that the rapid pro GMO bloggers will cry foul and attempt to discredit the facts.

One of the key facts are the numbers and quantities of Restricted Use Pesticides used on Kauai.  The number quoted in the story and the number I use is 18 tons used annually.  The industry and their paid online shills vociferously dispute this number and instead quote a much lower number.  So below I fully disclose how the 18 tons is calculated.

Also for further facts to combat the spin and disinformation that will be put forth by the industry bloggers please consult the source documents attached here:  9 MOST FREQUENT MISSTATEMENTS MADE BY CHEMICAL COMPANIES IN HAWAI‘I http://tinyurl.com/9Misstatements-07-07-15

The basis for which the 18 ton figure was calculated is as follows:

1)      Data of is from the total RUP’s sold to agricultural users in Kauai County during 2012 provided by State Department of Agriculture.

Raw data is here:https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B43mvAFMJQpcLXNYT3ppcHd6ZWs/view?usp=drive_web

Summary data is here:https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B43mvAFMJQpcTXFsOTRtQ0NJSzQ/view?usp=drive_web

2)      From the above data source the total amount of all RUP’s sold during 2012 to the 4 agrochemical companies only = 5,477.20 lb’s and 4,324.5 gallons

3)      Converting gallons to pounds using the weight of water: 4,342.5 gallons X 8.33 lb’s  = 36,173.025 lb’s

4)      Combine 36,173.025 plus 5,477.20 = 41,650.225 lb’s divided by 2,000lb’s = 20.825 tons

5)      Adjust downward by 10% and round down to compensate for unknown actual weight, varying weights of the gallons of RUP and variation due to purchase/use factor

6)      = 18 tons of RUP purchased/used annually – based on assumption that the companies were using approximately what they were purchasing.

7)      Note: The data made available to me consists of RUP’s purchased annually.  The companies are purchasing Restricted Use Pesticides products and they are not purchasing “active ingredients”.  Thus the SDOA records reflect the annual purchase of over 18 tons of RUP’s by these 4 companies.

8)      When the State Department of Agriculture was originally requested to provide information pertaining to RUP sales in Kauai County, they provided the data referenced above consisting of “RUP product purchased and not active ingredient purchased”.  However since the controversy and attempts to regulate the industry and use of these RUP’s the SDOA have started reporting the data also in “active ingredient format” which results in the lower figures quoted by the industry and the SDOA.

9)      It is important to note that each active ingredient has different characteristics and different levels of toxicity.  All active ingredients are not equal.  It is also important to note that the “other ingredients” also have impacts and that no one has studied the combined impacts of all of the various 22 different kinds of RUP’s and their active and “other” ingredients  interacting in the Hawaii environment.

10)   PLEASE READ “9 Most Frequent Misstatements by Chemical Companies.” This document is linked to source documents that respond/refute many of the claims by the agrochemical industry on Kauai that are misleading at best. http://tinyurl.com/9Misstatements-07-07-15

11)   There is no accurate data showing current use that is available publicly.  The “Good Neighbor Program” data is not verifiable and the SDOA has refused to continue providing per company RUP sales data.

12)   It is also important to note that the “Good Neighbor Program” does not require the disclosure of “Round Up” or glyphosate based products.  I have requested in writing that this also be disclosed however the 4 companies have refused to do so.  It is likely from the historical information I do have in terms of “agricultural industry standards” – that glyphosate use far exceeds all RUP use combined in terms of tonnage.

If you care about the health risks and wonder about the integrity of the agrochemical companies operations in Hawaii, please, please, please take a moment to read this and share it with your friends and neighbors.

****The New England Journal of Medicine – GMOs, Herbicides, and Public Health http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1505660

“The first of the two developments that raise fresh concerns about the safety of GM crops is a 2014 decision by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to approve Enlist Duo, a new combination herbicide comprising glyphosate plus 2,4-D…”

“In our view, the science and the risk assessment supporting the Enlist Duo decision are flawed. The science consisted solely of toxicologic studies commissioned by the herbicide manufacturers in the 1980s and 1990s and never published, not an uncommon practice in U.S. pesticide regulation.

These studies predated current knowledge of low-dose, endocrine-mediated, and epigenetic effects and were not designed to detect them. The risk assessment gave little consideration to potential health effects in infants and children, thus contravening federal pesticide law. It failed to consider ecologic impact, such as effects on the monarch butterfly and other pollinators. It considered only pure glyphosate, despite studies showing that formulated glyphosate that contains surfactants and adjuvants is more toxic than the pure compound.”

****DuPont And The Chemistry of Deception: by Sharon Lerner (first in three part series) This article was reported in partnership with The Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute. A well written and powerful investigative report. https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2015/08/11/dupont-chemistry-deception/

“DuPont scientists had closely studied the chemical for decades and through their own research knew about some of the dangers it posed. Yet rather than inform workers, people living near the plant, the general public, or government agencies responsible for regulating chemicals, DuPont repeatedly kept its knowledge secret.

Another revelation about C8 makes all of this more disturbing and gives the upcoming trials, the first of which will be held this fall in Columbus, Ohio, global significance: This deadly chemical that DuPont continued to use well after it knew it was linked to health problems is now practically everywhere.

A man-made compound that didn’t exist a century ago, C8 is in the blood of 99.7 percent of Americans, according to a 2007 analysis of data from the Centers for Disease Control, as well as in newborn human babies, breast milk, and umbilical cord blood.”

****In case you missed it earlier: Here is the entire 4 minute video of remarks I delivered to the Syngenta Shareholders Meeting held in Basel Switzerland. https://youtu.be/e0zz7cV_Qe8

****And if you are not familiar with the who, what and why we went to Switzerland in the first place here is the full story. https://garyhooser.wordpress.com/2015/05/03/from-kauai-to-switzerland-why-we-went-what-we-accomplished-and-whats-next/

****Finally: WATCH THIS 23 MINUTE FILM – IT IS EXTRAORDINARY http://ainafeeds.us/film ʻĀINA means “that which feeds us” in the Hawaiian language. This 23 minute film highlights a way to address some of the most pressing environmental and health crises facing the island of Kauaʻi – and of island Earth.

Why I March

I told a friend recently that I was getting too old to fight for incremental change, only to settle for a study or a task force.  Frankly, I am tired of having state legislators (of which I used to be one), council-members (of which I am one) and members of congress (of which I once tried to be one) tell us all the reasons why nothing can be done.

I am tired of watching big corporations cause irreparable harm to our health, our natural environment and our planet itself, while our government stands on the side and does nothing or actually facilitates the injustice under the guise that the offender is actually in “compliance” of the law.

Government will tell us these large multi-national billion dollar corporations are “following the rules”, but fail to remind us that these same entities fund the politicians that make those same rules.

And so I march.

Aloha ‘Āina is not about checking off a box on a permit showing the applicant has minimally complied with some provision on a list.

As my friends in the Aloha ‘Āina movement have taught me, Aloha ‘Āina is understanding that stewardship is not a burdensome impediment to development but a joyful responsibility that should be embraced and celebrated.

Aloha ‘Āina is about core values and pro-active advocacy on behalf of those values.

The Agribusiness Development Corporation (ADC) is an entity whose members are appointed by the Governor of Hawai`i and is responsible for the management of over 15,000 acres of State owned agricultural lands.  These are State/Public/Crown lands. The vast majority of these lands are leased to the largest chemical companies in the world, not to grow food for local consumption but to grow experimental genetically modified crops that eventually end up somewhere else in the world as cattle feed, high fructose corn syrup or ethanol.

These companies sell and use tons of highly restricted use pesticides throughout Hawai`i — many of which are banned in other countries.  These same companies are involved in lawsuits against Kauai County, Maui County and Hawai`i County who have attempted to regulate their actions.

These large multi-national corporations do not pay General Excise Tax on their production and their operations are subsidized by county property tax laws.  They operate shrouded in secrecy and they refuse to disclose both the amount and types of pesticides they use and the type of experimental crops they are growing.

Even though an agency of the World Health Organization has declared glyphosate a probable carcinogen, these companies have refused to disclose the amount of glyphosate they are using each day in our community.

The ADC, who manages these State/Public/Crown lands is focused on the revenue generated from the high lease rents paid by these large chemical companies.  The ADC has refused to require soil testing for pesticide residue as these companies exit their leases, even though there is clear evidence of heavy use of restricted use pesticides on these same lands.  The ADC is now seeking an exemption from a required National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit in order to save money and avoid the higher standards of clean water reporting required by the Federal Government and State Department of Health.

Operating under the spirit and values of Aloha ‘Āina, would mean this agency responsible for managing public lands would seek the highest level of protections for health and the environment, not seek exemptions and minimal protections.

This is only one example and extends throughout government agencies at almost all levels.

Instead of seeking first to protect and preserve via Aloha ‘Āina and embracing the precautionary principle, our government leans increasingly toward a cost/benefit analysis.  The sad part is that the people and the environment are paying the costs and the corporations and their enablers are reaping the benefit.

If you are on Oahu, tomorrow Sunday August 9^th, please join me along with many friends to send a message loud and clear that people and the environment must come first.  We expect thousands of Hawai`i residents to march through Waikiki and help send the message that Aloha `Āina is about much more than just a box on a permit that gets checked off as quickly and as cheaply as possible.

March with us to send a message that environmental stewardship is a mindset and a core value that demands advocacy. Join H.A.P.A. on Saratoga Road near Kalakaua sat 10am put on a free HAPA t-shirt (while supplies last) and march with us for justice.

Aloha ‘Āina Unity March is to express political views regarding issues that are impacting the management and use of land and natural resources in Hawai`i.  At the forefront of these issues are the construction of TMT on Mauna Kea, regulation of pesticide use and genetically modified organisms on agricultural lands in rural communities throughout the state, and mismanagement of agricultural lands across the State.

Regardless of how one might feel about the various individual battles and issues presently going on in Hawai`i, one thing is clear – the decisions that are being made by government with regards to managing these issues is not based on Aloha ‘Āina.

This is not about being for or against science, or GMOs or telescopes or even development.  This is about putting the values of people and the environment first.

Please join us tomorrow, Sunday August 9 at 10am, on Saratoga Road and march through Waikiki in unity and in support for Aloha ‘Āina.

A very short video about the event is here: https://www.facebook.com/395112027349071/videos/vb.395112027349071/401652516695022/?type=2&theater

The event FB page is here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/400520650136449