Monsanto’s land petition wins partial approval

The state Land Use Commission has approved one of two petitions by corn seed producer Monsanto to restrict portions of farmland the company owns on Oahu and Molokai for agriculture use under a state law aimed at preserving prime farmland.

Commissioners with the state agency voted 8-0 last week to designate 1,550 acres in Kunia for protection under the state’s Important Agricultural Lands law. One member was absent.

But at a meeting on Molokai on Thursday, the commission deferred making a decision on a petition from Monsanto to similarly designate 1,084 acres it owns on Molokai.

The Oahu land petition was for about 75 percent of the farmland Monsanto owns in Kunia. The Molokai petition seeks to preserve 60 percent of 1,817 acres the company owns in Maui County.

In the Oahu case, testimony from the state Office of Planning and state Department of Agriculture along with two local farm industry groups, the Hawaii Farm Bureau and Hawaii Cattlemen’s Council, supported Monsanto.

But the city Department of Planning and Permitting objected, on grounds that it had recommended earlier this year that all of Monsanto’s 2,151 acres in Kunia be preserved under the Important Agricultural Lands law.

The law, enacted in 2005 and amended in 2008, allows private landowners to seek protection for qualified land in return for benefits that include loan guarantees and tax credits for investments in farm equipment and infrastructure. Another benefit precludes a county from imposing protections on any land if the property owner voluntarily protects more than half of its property in the same county.

To date, 12 landowners statewide have voluntarily sought and received protection under the law for about 100,000 acres through the Land Use Commission.

County agencies are working on their own efforts to identify and petition the commission for involuntary protections under the law, also called IAL, after finalizing lists through county councils.

To date, the City and County of Honolulu is furthest along in the process mandated by the law, and in January recommended protection for 52,575 acres on Oahu held by about 2,000 landowners.

Maui County is not as far along, but supported Monsanto’s petition along with the state Agriculture Department, Office of Planning and several individuals and organizations.

Dan Clegg, head of Hawaii business operations for Monsanto, said in a statement that the company is proud about petitioning to protect about 2,600 acres of its Hawaii land, roughly two-thirds of what it owns in the state.

“Monsanto Hawaii supports the vision of IAL to encourage the long-term sustainability of Hawaii’s agricultural industry, and we chose to voluntarily request IAL designation because it aligns so well with our commitment to local agriculture,” he said.