Hearing July 31 on pesticide, GMO rules

The Kauai County Council will hold a public hearing July 31 on a bill to regulate pesticide use by large agricultural operations and to put a temporary moratorium on experimental use and commercial production of genetically modified organisms.

The hearing on Bill 2491 will take place at 1:30 p.m. at the Kauai Community College Performing Arts Center. The large space is needed because of the wide interest in the contentious issues.

Councilman Gary Hooser, who introduced the bill, said the performing arts center has a maximum capacity of about 540 people and that he expects a large turnout.

The bill calls for commercial agricultural farms to disclose the type and amount of pesticides they use. Also, a buffer zone would be created to prohibit use of certain pesticides within 500 feet of any school, hospital, residential area, public roadway, stream, river or shoreline.

The bill also calls for a ban on open-air testing of experimental pesticides and the temporary GMO moratorium until the county conducts an environmental impact statement.

Suspect is held in Puna robbery

A 44-year-old Puna man was scheduled to appear in state court today on charges he robbed four people at gunpoint at a Hawaiian Paradise Park home.

Hawaii County police arrested John Krause of Kurtistown on Wednesday, and he was charged Thursday with first-degree robbery, first-degree burglary, second-degree assault and two counts of first-degree terroristic threatening. His bail was set at $21,000.

Krause is allegedly one of several suspects who approached a home May 28 brandishing handguns.

Police said a 36-year-old man was injured by being struck on the arm with the butt of a firearm. The suspects then allegedly entered the house and held four occupants at gunpoint, demanded valuables and fled in a vehicle with the valuables.

County’s men called active

Kauai County was ranked one of the top 10 counties in the U.S. where men were considered to be most physically active, according to recent studies published in the July edition of Population Health Metrics.

Experts researched the life expectancy for men and women and the prevalence of physical activity and obesity in U.S. counties. Results from the two studies were published in the peer-reviewed journal.

Kauai County ranked sixth among counties for the share of men reporting any physical activity (71.6 percent) in 2011.

The nine other counties where men were considered most active were Teton, Wyo.; Summit, Utah; Routt, Colo.; Summit, Colo.; Jefferson, Wash.; Nevada City, Calif.; La Plata, Colo.; Wasatch, Utah; and Los Alamos, N.M.