LIHU‘E — A pair of resolutions to be heard today by the state House of Representatives are calling for the Department of Health Director Loretta Fuddy to head up a task force to study atrazine’s effects on humans. Atrazine is
LIHU‘E — A pair of resolutions to be heard today by the state House of Representatives are calling for the Department of Health Director Loretta Fuddy to head up a task force to study atrazine’s effects on humans.
Atrazine is a toxic, weed-killing herbicide used for decades in Hawai‘i’s sugarcane, pineapple and, most recently, corn fields, according to a March 14 release by Rep. Cynthia Thielen, of O‘ahu, who co-introduced House Resolution 100 and House Concurrent Resolution 129.
The resolutions — also co-introduced by Kaua‘i’s Reps. Derek Kawakami and James Tokioka — are scheduled for a hearing today at 10 a.m. by the House Health and Energy and Environmental Protection committees.
“To support HCR 129 and HR 100, it helps us to get more information on what is happening,” Tokioka said Wednesday. “For us, to support something like a study would benefit the whole state.”
Referring to information he received from DOH, Tokioka said higher traces of atrazine have been found on the Big Island, near Hilo, than on Kaua‘i.
“(That) doesn’t mean I’m not interested in doing any tests … I still want to go out and make sure a study is done,” he said.
Kawakami said he believes there is a lack of transparency when it comes to health-related studies.
“I’m thinking more and more we need to have a mutual party do the research for the people,” he said. “The people have lost trust in studies that are being conducted.”
The Atrazine Task Force would be charged with reporting its findings, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than Oct. 31. Legislation resulting from the task force’s recommendations would be considered during the 2014 Legislative session.
“It is crucial that the state make every effort to protect our residents, our ‘aina and our oceans from the potential adverse effects of chronic atrazine exposure,” Thielen said. “Historically, in Hawai‘i, waiting to investigate pesticide or chemical exposure has resulted in needless tragedy and expensive cleanups. We need more information, and the time to do it is now.”
According to the resolution, more than 60 million pounds of atrazine is used annually in the United States, and the toxicity of the chemical is well documented and has shown adverse endocrine effects in amphibians, mammals and humans. The chemical was banned in Germany and Italy in 1991, and throughout all of Europe in 2003.
Earlier this month, Kaua‘i County Department of Water Manager David Craddick said Kaua‘i’s water has been atrazine-free since 2005.
“While trace amounts of atrazine were detected in some of our water systems, no trace of the chemical was ever found in our Waimea-Kekaha water system, and there has been no detection since 2005,” he said in a release.
However, water samples collected at Waimea Canyon Middle School by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in February 2011 turned up trace amounts of the chemical — which was well below the maximum contamination level established by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.
Research has indicated that atrazine exposure may be associated with reproductive problems in men, irregular menstrual cycles in women, and low birth weight and small head circumference in infants, according to Thielen’s release. In laboratory mammals, abnormal reproductive system development, impaired prostate gland formation and abnormal breast tissue development have also been found.
While the USDA estimates that a ban on atrazine would result in crop losses of 1.19 percent and decrease corn acreage by 2.3 percent, Italy and Germany have not experienced a reduction of corn productivity or total acreage of land in production since banning the chemical, according to the resolution.
Tests by the DOH repeatedly have shown that Hawai‘i’s drinking water, particularly on the Big Island, is contaminated with low levels of atrazine, both resolutions state. And a report by the Soil/Water/Air Protection Enterprise indicates that Hawai‘i is ranked 10th in the country for the percentage of its population exposed to atrazine in drinking water.
“I understand that the state Department of Agriculture does not test for atrazine because there is a shortage of inspectors,” Thielen said. “Companies using atrazine in Hawai‘i are policing themselves in regard to EPA application compliance. If we are not testing consistently, then how can we know that these companies are following the EPA prescribed protocols?”
Thielen says the fact that atrazine is banned in Europe due to groundwater contamination risks “should be a red flag for all of us.”
As part of EPA’s re-evaluation program for existing pesticides, atrazine is scheduled for a registration review later this year.
• Chris D’Angelo, lifestyle writer, can be reached at 245-0441 or lifestyle@thegardenisland.com.
