September 20, 2008

D.O.A. (part 9)

"Body of Evidence" - Cindy Goldstein, Ph.D. (1)



Throughout this David and Goliath struggle of Environmental Injustice and Racism, the cause of repeated events of illness indicative of acute and chronic pesticide exposure has been blamed on the benign weed Cleome Gynandra. The heads of Hawaii Dept. of Ag and Dept. of Health have agreed to perform an ambient air study for pesticides only if the Kauai County Council provides $50,000 to fund an assessment of the "ambient concentrations of odiferous substances from Cleome Gynandra" (2). In a previous agreement with Hawaii State Teachers Association there was to be no cultivation or spraying in field #809 prior Dec. 08' unless Syngenta agreed to construct a 12-foot-high dust-fence along the vegetated buffer zone separating the field from the school (3). This is a video of the lessee of field #809 (Syngenta Seeds Co.) cultivating Cleome Gynandra a weed blamed for sending over 20 children to the hospital, contrary to that agreement.

1. "Body of Evidence", a quote from Cindy Goldstein, Ph.D.
Manager Business and Community Outreach Pioneer (A DUPONT COMPANY) Biotechnology Affairs, cindy.goldstein@pioneer.com
2. Bill 2278 info, http://www.box.net/shared/dj69fctcfh
3. The Garden Island Newspaper, Feb. 8, 2008
http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2008/02/08/news/news02.txt
4. D.O.A (part 9), "Diary of Apathy" the struggle continues...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SYEcowV2d8
5. Music: "Hawaii 78" by Bruddah IZ

1 comment:

Maluia-WCMS said...

HSTA's agreement with Syngenta covers the spraying of pesticide only, not cultivation.