HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	51
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

URGING THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, TO Study and EVALUATE THE HEALTH-RELATED AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF GLYPHOSATE-BASED HERBICIDE PRODUCTS.

WHEREAS, glyphosate is the active ingredient in a wide range of herbicides and is commonly used in residential areas and agricultural lands; and

WHEREAS, research by the University of California, Berkeley School of Public Health found that children who exhibited high levels of glyphosate residue were associated with liver inflammation and metabolic disorders, and that diet was the major source of glyphosate exposure; and

WHEREAS, a peer-reviewed research paper, Use of Genetically Modified Organism (GMO)-Containing Food Products in Children, conducted by the American Academy of Pediatrics concludes that glyphosate may be an endocrine disruptor in humans and notes the determination by the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer that glyphosate is "probably carcinogenic to humans"; and

WHEREAS, a peer-reviewed research paper, Glyphosate: Its Environmental Persistence and Impact on Crop Health and Nutrition, conducted by the National Library of Medicine, suggests that glyphosate may reach groundwater and surface water through leaching and surface runoff; and

WHEREAS, Hawaii has a public trust responsibility to ensure its citizens have the right to a clean and healthful environment under Article XI, section 9, of the Hawaiʻi State Constitution; and

WHEREAS, many countries, including Denmark, France, Germany, India, Mexico, and the Netherlands, have issued bans, imposed restrictions, or stated an intent to ban glyphosate, finding its ties to environmental degradation and negative health risks to be a threat to public health; and

WHEREAS, the Department of Agriculture and Department of Health would be appropriate entities to evaluate the health-related and environmental impacts of such a widely used herbicide; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2024, that the Department of Agriculture, in conjunction with the Department of Health, is urged to study and evaluate the health-related and environmental impacts of glyphosate-based herbicide products; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Agriculture, in conjunction with the Department of Health, is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations regarding the health-related and environmental impacts of glyphosate-based herbicide products, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2025; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture and Director of Health.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title:

HDOA; DOH; Study; Glyphosate-Based Herbicide Products