Agrochemical genetic engineering (AGE) is the third generation of run-away industrial technologies. The first and second generation technologies were petrochemical and nuclear, emerging in the 1940s and 1950s, respectively. At their inception, these technologies were widely greeted as triumphs of … Continued
Some of the world’s largest biotech companies have chosen the islands to develop their genetically engineered seed corn. As a result, agricultural lands remain productive, dozens of jobs are created, and millions of dollars are spent here. To many, Hawai`i’s … Continued
Black Market in Golden Fruit: Transgenic Seeds Tempt Thieves When it comes to the use of genetically engineered seeds, Big Island papaya farmers “don’t have much choice,” says Stephanie Whalen, director of the Hawai`i Agriculture Research Center. “They either use … Continued
NMFS Outlines Plan to Rescue Pacific Leatherback Populations The National Marine Fisheries Service is planning a $3 million, five-year initiative to prevent the extinction of the Pacific leatherback sea turtle. The program is part of the Clinton administration’s budget proposal … Continued
State’s Climate Change ‘Action Plan’: Business-As-Usual For Energy Sector With its extensive developed coastal areas, unique and threatened terrestrial ecosystems, and vast coral reefs, Hawai`i is surely as vulnerable as anywhere else on Earth to the effects of global warming … Continued
Climate Change, and Response To It, Could Affect Islands’ Water Supplies For islands, a reliable source of drinking water defines what is habitable and what is not. In Hawai`i, most drinking water sources are underground lenses of buoyant freshwater that … Continued
New Rent Policy For Non-Profits Is Sent Back For Fine Tuning The Board of Land and Natural Resources has decided its new policy on lease rents for non-profit corporations needs a it of fine tuning. The policy was adopted just … Continued
What Natural Area Reserves are to state land, Natural Area Partnerships are to privately owned land: those areas where the natural resource values are so high and rare that they warrant the highest levels of protection the state can offer. … Continued
Ray Chuan’s memory of September 20, 1996, has not faded with time. That was the day when, just before noon, a gleaming, white, 440-foot cruise ship glided into Hanalei Bay and set anchor. No one in the community had been … Continued
The U.S. Army has withdrawn its proposal to install an irrigation system at the Pohakuloa Training Area on the island of Hawai`i to water new outplantings of native plants in an enclosed area at Kipuka `Alala, where a decade ago … Continued