AGRICULTURE POLICY

Policy Statement

It shall be the policy of Sierra Club, Hawai`i Chapter, to support actions that would make the State of Hawai`i increasingly capable of sustaining itself in the area of agricultural production.  Agricultural production, for the purposes of this policy, shall be understood to include but not be limited to food, fodder, timber, and biomass crops.


Position Statements

1. Support the growing diversity of agricultural opportunity as a way of life, including support for low-cost water supplies for small-scale farming.

2. Support the diversification of agricultural production through innovative, active research and extension services.

3. Support the concept of incorporating food tree crops into annual cropping systems and of mixed cropping rather than monocultures.

4. Support the establishment of other crops, including trees, as alternatives to sugar on agricultural land, as well as the conversion of marginal sugar cane lands to forest tree crops, but not the conversion of existing native forest into planted forests of exotics.

5. Support efforts to minimize soil erosion and degredation on all islands, most particularly that resulting from human and animal activity.

6. Support measures to protect agricultural water system components including native forest watersheds and ground water aquifers.

7. Support measures to improve the safe handling and controlled use of fungicides, pesticides, and herbicides to prevent the contamination of air, water, and foods and the harming of non-target species, especially those native to Hawai`i. This includes opposition to widespread application of chemicals for eradication purposes.

8. Support the concept of "integrated pest management" where it results in reduction of reliance on pesticides, recognizing at the same time the need for care in introducing biological control agents.

9. Support national efforts to develop farming methods that reduce reliance on chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides.

10. Support efforts to minimize establishment of industries or land use that produce waste products harmful to agriculture.

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