A long-delayed plan to build a commercial irradiator on Oahu for farmers to treat produce for mainland export is moving forward.
Pa‘ina Hawaii LLC recently began construction of the facility in Kunia and anticipates opening in September.
The operation will help farmers, particularly papaya growers, expand their markets and possibly increase production, according to Michael Kohn, president of Pa‘ina.
The $4 million project was first announced in 2005 with a location near the Honolulu Airport. But environmental law firm Earthjustice and the group Concerned Citizens of Honolulu contested a federal permit, claiming that potential dangers hadn’t been sufficiently assessed.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission exempts industrial irradiators from environmental assessments, but agreed to one after Earthjustice’s challenge.
Gamma irradiation is generally considered a safe and reliable process for sterilizing a broad range of things from food to medical products. Earthjustice contended that the Pa‘ina plan to locate such a facility in a tsunami evacuation zone and near aircraft runways warranted special review.
David Henkin, an Earthjustice staff attorney, said the environmental review helped lead to the project being relocated to what he says is a much safer site.
“This is a great example of why insisting on environmental review is important and illustrates how federal environmental laws work to protect the public while allowing projects to go forward,” he said in a statement.
Kohn disputed Henkin’s characterization of the review’s impact. He said his decision to relocate the facility to Kunia was unrelated to the environmental review, which he said cost the federal government $1 million and created six years of litigation that delayed a facility meant to benefit local farms.
Kohn said the Kunia land — on Kunia Road near Kunia Drive — became available after Fresh Del Monte Produce quit Hawaii pineapple farming in 2006. He said he pursued the new site because it was less expensive than the airport location, and added that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s permit still allows a facility in the airport area.
“I’m a little sour about the whole thing,” Kohn said. “The facility is just as safe at the airport as it is in Kunia.”
Pa‘ina completed its final supplemental environmental assessment last year. Construction of the facility began recently after financing was obtained.
“We’re elated and happy that we’ve gotten to this stage,” Kohn said. “This irradiator is extremely safe.”
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission governs irradiator permits and determines whether design and operating procedures are sufficient to protect the health and safety of workers and the public. The commission also reviews the adequacy of security and emergency plans.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration determines which products for human consumption may be safely irradiated.
The Pa‘ina irradiator will use cobalt-60 to sterilize or kill fruit flies and other insects so crops can be shipped to mainland states that ban untreated produce from Hawaii because certain pests could harm their own agriculture industries.
The radiation is contained in a pool of water, into which food and packaging is submersed, neutralizing any pest threat.
The Kunia facility will be available to the broad farm industry, according to Kohn, who anticipates treating tropical fruits, herbs and vegetables. Papayas likely will be the biggest export, though sweet potatoes are another prime export crop. There’s also potential to treat nonfood products such as cosmetics and pharmaceutical products requiring sterilization.
Kohn is a papaya exporter who specializes in tree-ripened fruit that doesn’t do well with alternative sterilization treatments such as heat.
A commercial irradiator on Hawaii island owned by competing fruit exporter Calavo Growers Inc. uses electronic-beam radiation. But Kohn said difficulties having his papaya treated at that facility, formerly known as Hawaiian Pride, prompted him to build his own facility.
The Pa‘ina facility will be capable of treating 70 million pounds of papaya a year. The facility will employ four to five workers, including radiation safety officer Lyle Wong, who retired from the state Department of Agriculture, where as plant industry administrator he advocated for export treatments including irradiation.
