Supporters of a bill that proposes to regulate genetically modified crops and pesticide use by large agricultural operations on Kauai will march this weekend to show solidarity before a County Council committee takes action Monday.

Thousands are expected to participate in the Mana March at noon Sunday, a day before the Council’s Economic Development, Agriculture, Sustainability and Intergovernmental Relations Committee reconvenes to discuss Bill 2491.

A pule, or prayer, will start at 11:30 a.m. at Vidinha Stadium before the march, and participants will walk down Hoolako Street and Rice Street to the historic Kauai County Building.

The proposed ordinance calls for biotech companies on Kauai to disclose the type of pesticides they use; create pesticide-free buffer zones around schools, hospitals and homes; and prohibit open-air testing of experimental pesticides until the county conducts an environmental impact statement.

The issue of pesticide use and genetically modified organisms has divided the community. Supporters say the bill is needed to protect people’s health and the environment while opponents contend regulations proposed in the bill will hamper agribusiness.

At Monday’s committee meeting, members can vote to amend and approve the proposed ordinance, according to committee Chairman Gary Hooser, who co-introduced the bill with Councilman Tim Bynum. At least three votes from the five-member committee are needed to approve the ordinance and send it to the full Council.

“I’m hoping that we can take some positive action and move the item forward,” Hooser said.

The committee also can vote to defer the bill for two weeks to review any proposed amendments.

Members deferred a decision on the bill at their Aug. 6 meeting to review legal questions.

Bynum said an executive session of the Council Committee of the Whole will be held today, and that the county attorney will address questions relating to the enactment and implementation of the bill. He said this is a follow-up to their first executive session on the proposed ordinance.

Bynum said it is unlikely the attorney’s written opinion will be made public.

Seed companies Syngeta, DuPont Pioneer, BASF Corp. and Dow AgroSciences, as well as Kauai Coffee, the largest coffee grower in Hawaii, are potentially affected by the bill.