WHEREAS, biotechnology involves using biological processes to produce substances that may be beneficial to agriculture, the environment, industry, and medicine; and

WHEREAS, until the development of cell biology, biotechnology was a relatively passive subject in that it involved using preexisting organisms or slowly selecting desirable traits from generations of domestic crops or livestock; and

WHEREAS, the recognition of cells in 1665, the development of cell theory in 1839, and the discovery of the double helix structure of DNA in 1953 were important milestones in the practice of biotechnology today; and

WHEREAS, the term "biotechnology" became popular in the 1970s after the development of genetic engineering techniques allowed the modification of genetic material in living cells; and

WHEREAS, in the last two decades, the term has been applied to techniques for transforming living things into products and services; and

WHEREAS, there have been new advances in biotechnology in the area of "genetic engineering"; and

WHEREAS, in agriculture, biotechnology is replacing pesticides with pest-resistant compounds and administering growth hormones to cattle and pigs to yield more meat and dairy production from fewer livestock using less land, eating less food, and drinking less water; and

WHEREAS, transgenic species represent organisms that have never before existed and have not evolved within the ecological processes that have created the delicate environmental balance in the world today; and

WHEREAS, these so-called "transgenic" organisms contain a gene or genes that have been artificially inserted instead of having acquired the gene naturally; and

WHEREAS, plants containing transgenes are often called "genetically modified" or "GM" crops; and

WHEREAS, this technology is being used to enable breeders to generate more useful and productive crop varieties containing new combinations of genes, and this expands the possibilities beyond the limitations imposed by traditional cross-pollination and selection techniques; and

WHEREAS, the development of genetically-modified plants, plant parts, and seeds has already been undertaken in Hawaii; and

WHEREAS, despite this advancement in technology, many people have raised concerns about the negative effects that transgenic species may have on human health, ecology, agricultural plants and crops, and human society; and

WHEREAS, genetically-modified foods may also present a risk to the public's health and result in increased allergies, exposure to substances not previously found in the food supply, nutritional loss, and decreased resistance to bacteria; and

WHEREAS, new strains of pest-resistant crops may encourage farmers to use larger quantities of pesticides, impacting water quality and human health; and

WHEREAS, transgenic species could wreak the same havoc on ecological systems as alien species when introduced into environments that do not contain natural controls; and

WHEREAS, for example, the kudzu in the American South, rabbits in Australia, and guava in Hawaii, have severely damaged the ecosystems to which they were introduced; and

WHEREAS, the risk of cross-pollination or cross-contamination caused by genetically-engineered plants or crops presents a viable threat to local farmers and landowners; and

WHEREAS, accidental cross-pollination of herbicide and pest resistant crops with nearby weeds may create a new breed of super-weed resistant to both natural and man-made controls; and

WHEREAS, the widespread use of seeds could have the same effect as the "Green Revolution" 30 years ago in propagating the use of a few varieties of seeds, the patents to which are held by a few large corporations, while other locally bred and regional-specific varieties are lost; and

WHEREAS, the loss of locally bred and regional-specific varieties represents a loss to the gene pool that can never be replaced; and

WHEREAS, there are ethical implications into crossing the species boundary and creating entirely new organisms; and

WHEREAS, there may be other risks in producing and consuming genetically-engineered plants and foods that are not known; and

WHEREAS, the State of Hawaii would greatly benefit from a comprehensive study of the ethical, health, and ecological consequences of crossing the species boundary and creating genetically-engineered organisms; and

WHEREAS, the Legislature believes that the formation of a working group is necessary to undertake such a study; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2003, that a working group be established to assess the ethical, health, and ecological consequences of crossing the species boundary and creating genetically-engineered organisms in Hawaii; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Senate President shall each appoint one member from their respective House to coordinate the working group; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this working group shall consist of representatives from the following groups and organizations:

(1) Department of Agriculture;

(2) Department of Land and Natural Resources;

(4) Department of Health;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group shall study the negative effects of genetic engineering on agriculture in Hawaii; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group shall report its findings and recommendations, including any necessary proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than 20 days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2004; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture, Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, Director of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism, Director of Health, Dean of the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources of the University of Hawaii, and the Director of the Hawaiian Conservation Alliance at the University of Hawaii.

Report Title:

Genetic Engineering; working group.