Aloha.
I am absolutely opposed to the use of pesticides world wide, beginning here, in my home.
We live on a small island with a fragile ecosystem and an especially sensitive water system. We have already suffered greatly from pesticide contamination from DDT and other chemicals in the Launiopoko Wells, to aquafer contamination from the use of other toxic pesticides including Glyphosate - aka Round Up. Round up is a banned chemical in many places and Maui must remain one of them. Further we should ban the use of Round Up and other pesticides on private property as well.
We also have many people who need work after the Fires have devastated our job situation. We could do two intelligent helpful things for Maui by BANNING PESTICIDES and hiring people to maintain our parks and roadways without them.
Mahalos for making your decision base on protecting the good health of our community and the long range good of our water supply, and employment for our community.
I am deeply opposed to using pesticides on our aina and park lands. I was deeply poisoned in Lahaina in 1981 and it has ruined my health.
I am in strong opposition to Bill 131. Maui County Code, Chapter 2.50 already allows for pesticide and fertilizer use on County property. The problem appears to be that the Department of Parks & Rec wants to use stronger pesticides and fertilizers than we allow already. Stop poisoning our children, our wildlife and us.
My name is Jackie Keefe and I am a Lahaina resident. I am writing to you today because I am unable to attend tomorrow's ADEPT Committee meeting.
I am in strong opposition to Bill 131.
Maui County Code, Chapter 2.50 already allows for pesticide and fertilizer use on County property. The problem appears to be that the Department of Parks & Rec wants to use stronger pesticides and fertilizers than we allow already!
Maui County Code 2.50.040 already allows for the use of some "minimum risk pesticides" and the pesticides and fertilizers listed as "allowed" on the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances as listed in title 7 Code of Federal Regulations 205.601, 205.603, 205.605, and 205.606 as well as "otherwise prohibited pesticides for use in the control of mosquitoes, Animals or insects, such as fire ants or termites, that may cause damage to buildings and structures, and Invasive species whose introduction does, or is likely to, cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health."
This seems, to me, to be plenty of exemptions that we've written into this law.
At the last committee meeting that I attended regarding Bill 131, several of us spoke about the alternatives to harmful pesticides and fertilizers and how successful they have been. I see no reasonable explanation for why the County of Maui would grant further exemptions to these rules.
If the Parks Department wishes to use pesticides and fertilizers, they have a list to choose from.
Bill 131 grants specific exemptions for County property used for agricultural purposes and with grass surfaces that our keiki will play on! These are the last places that this sort of exemption should even be tried for!
The health and safety of our keiki and our 'aina is of significant importance, and as such Bill 131 should not move forward.
Please vote No on Bill 131. I work at Fun, 2,3 Preschool, across the street from Keokea Park. We regularly take the students on outings to this park, their health and well-being is paramount. If these chemicals are used to maintain the park, we would worry for the health of these young keiki, as well as the health of all the keiki, adults, and dogs who use this park every day. As a life long Maui resident who lives in Keokea, I strongly appose this Bill.
Please vote NO on Bill 131 this Thursday. It’s the right thing to do. Obviously. The health and wellbeing of our Maui community and fragile reef ecosystems should not pay the price because of the negligence of Parks and Recreation over the last three years to find
alternative solutions. The golf course is located on oceanside property between Waiehu Beach Park and the environmentally sensitive Waihe'e Coastal Dunes and Wetlands Refuge. Use of pesticides will certainly end up
in the wetlands and ocean.
This should be an easy one.
Aloha Chair Johnson, Vice-Chair Sinenci and Committee Members,
Once again, I submit testimony regarding Bill 131 and urge this Committee to not fall under the pressure of the Chemical/pesticide advocates to not only poison the turf, public parks, walkways and roadside areas that Maui County maintains but to destroy the beauty of our ’āina with the tell tale mark of death that glyphosate herbicides make.
I remember when the County would drive trucks along side our roads with a giant tank of round-up or its equivalent and blast everything and anything in its path with no regard to posting safety warnings that were required by law or over-spraying. I witnessed spraying in high winds which are common here in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
Those herbicides only killed the existing vegetation and within a short time, the weeds were back growing stronger than ever. Have you all heard about round-up resistant weeds?
Why are we exposing our Country workers to known carcinogens for the sake of reducing labor hours to maintain our parks, golf courses and other county areas not to mention our keiki, kupuna, pets and visitors? The cost of these chemicals are not reasonable and there the environmental costs of shipping, killing our pollinators and adding toxins to our oceans that is factored in NO where.
The dead sprayed weeds are also a fire hazard. The county’s use of weed trimmers and other mechanical methods has been a huge and important improvement in maintaining the beauty of our country spaces the last few years since the ban on Bayer’s and other Chemical Corporation broad spectrum herbicides was put in place.
As a former professional commercial landscaper who turned to Organic management of the properties I maintained, beauty and protection of our water, soils, workers, humans animals and pollinators were all serious factors to consider when choosing how to proceed with chemicals in the landscape.
As many professionals have testified, restoring soil health is paramount to a sustainable managed and healthy turf.
Please don’t go backwards and return to the unhealthy ways of the past. Too much depends on sinking back into a toxic, unsustainable environment in Maui County for our most vulnerable citizens and the ‘āina.
Remember Aloha ‘Āina?
Mahalo for staying strong,
Barbara Barry
Aloha.
I am absolutely opposed to the use of pesticides world wide, beginning here, in my home.
We live on a small island with a fragile ecosystem and an especially sensitive water system. We have already suffered greatly from pesticide contamination from DDT and other chemicals in the Launiopoko Wells, to aquafer contamination from the use of other toxic pesticides including Glyphosate - aka Round Up. Round up is a banned chemical in many places and Maui must remain one of them. Further we should ban the use of Round Up and other pesticides on private property as well.
We also have many people who need work after the Fires have devastated our job situation. We could do two intelligent helpful things for Maui by BANNING PESTICIDES and hiring people to maintain our parks and roadways without them.
Mahalos for making your decision base on protecting the good health of our community and the long range good of our water supply, and employment for our community.
I am deeply opposed to using pesticides on our aina and park lands. I was deeply poisoned in Lahaina in 1981 and it has ruined my health.
I am in strong opposition to Bill 131. Maui County Code, Chapter 2.50 already allows for pesticide and fertilizer use on County property. The problem appears to be that the Department of Parks & Rec wants to use stronger pesticides and fertilizers than we allow already. Stop poisoning our children, our wildlife and us.
Please do not poison Maui with more chemicals. I beg you to do what is Pono.
Ua Mau ke Ea o ka ʻĀina i ka Pono!!!
Aloha kakahiaka kakou,
My name is Jackie Keefe and I am a Lahaina resident. I am writing to you today because I am unable to attend tomorrow's ADEPT Committee meeting.
I am in strong opposition to Bill 131.
Maui County Code, Chapter 2.50 already allows for pesticide and fertilizer use on County property. The problem appears to be that the Department of Parks & Rec wants to use stronger pesticides and fertilizers than we allow already!
Maui County Code 2.50.040 already allows for the use of some "minimum risk pesticides" and the pesticides and fertilizers listed as "allowed" on the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances as listed in title 7 Code of Federal Regulations 205.601, 205.603, 205.605, and 205.606 as well as "otherwise prohibited pesticides for use in the control of mosquitoes, Animals or insects, such as fire ants or termites, that may cause damage to buildings and structures, and Invasive species whose introduction does, or is likely to, cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health."
This seems, to me, to be plenty of exemptions that we've written into this law.
At the last committee meeting that I attended regarding Bill 131, several of us spoke about the alternatives to harmful pesticides and fertilizers and how successful they have been. I see no reasonable explanation for why the County of Maui would grant further exemptions to these rules.
If the Parks Department wishes to use pesticides and fertilizers, they have a list to choose from.
Bill 131 grants specific exemptions for County property used for agricultural purposes and with grass surfaces that our keiki will play on! These are the last places that this sort of exemption should even be tried for!
The health and safety of our keiki and our 'aina is of significant importance, and as such Bill 131 should not move forward.
Mahalo for your time and efforts,
Jackie Keefe
Please vote No on Bill 131. I work at Fun, 2,3 Preschool, across the street from Keokea Park. We regularly take the students on outings to this park, their health and well-being is paramount. If these chemicals are used to maintain the park, we would worry for the health of these young keiki, as well as the health of all the keiki, adults, and dogs who use this park every day. As a life long Maui resident who lives in Keokea, I strongly appose this Bill.
With kind regards,
Jenta Russell
Please vote NO on Bill 131 this Thursday. It’s the right thing to do. Obviously. The health and wellbeing of our Maui community and fragile reef ecosystems should not pay the price because of the negligence of Parks and Recreation over the last three years to find
alternative solutions. The golf course is located on oceanside property between Waiehu Beach Park and the environmentally sensitive Waihe'e Coastal Dunes and Wetlands Refuge. Use of pesticides will certainly end up
in the wetlands and ocean.
This should be an easy one.
Aloha Chair Johnson, Vice-Chair Sinenci and Committee Members,
Once again, I submit testimony regarding Bill 131 and urge this Committee to not fall under the pressure of the Chemical/pesticide advocates to not only poison the turf, public parks, walkways and roadside areas that Maui County maintains but to destroy the beauty of our ’āina with the tell tale mark of death that glyphosate herbicides make.
I remember when the County would drive trucks along side our roads with a giant tank of round-up or its equivalent and blast everything and anything in its path with no regard to posting safety warnings that were required by law or over-spraying. I witnessed spraying in high winds which are common here in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
Those herbicides only killed the existing vegetation and within a short time, the weeds were back growing stronger than ever. Have you all heard about round-up resistant weeds?
Why are we exposing our Country workers to known carcinogens for the sake of reducing labor hours to maintain our parks, golf courses and other county areas not to mention our keiki, kupuna, pets and visitors? The cost of these chemicals are not reasonable and there the environmental costs of shipping, killing our pollinators and adding toxins to our oceans that is factored in NO where.
The dead sprayed weeds are also a fire hazard. The county’s use of weed trimmers and other mechanical methods has been a huge and important improvement in maintaining the beauty of our country spaces the last few years since the ban on Bayer’s and other Chemical Corporation broad spectrum herbicides was put in place.
As a former professional commercial landscaper who turned to Organic management of the properties I maintained, beauty and protection of our water, soils, workers, humans animals and pollinators were all serious factors to consider when choosing how to proceed with chemicals in the landscape.
As many professionals have testified, restoring soil health is paramount to a sustainable managed and healthy turf.
Please don’t go backwards and return to the unhealthy ways of the past. Too much depends on sinking back into a toxic, unsustainable environment in Maui County for our most vulnerable citizens and the ‘āina.
Remember Aloha ‘Āina?
Mahalo for staying strong,
Barbara Barry