Editorials
Tuesday, April 28, 1998

Speeding up decisions
on land-use changes

TIME is of the essence for developers, but prompt approvals of development proposals have been scarce in Hawaii for decades. Part of the problem is the state Land Use Commission. Developers who have to go before the commission to win reclassification of land must go through the same procedure at the county level. This duplication is wasteful of money and effort but the crucial factor is time. Years can go by before developers can proceed, and by then they may have given up or gone bankrupt. If they finally win approval, they must charge higher prices to make up for the expense of marking time for years while paying interest charges.Others are deterred from even trying.

With Hawaii seeking ways out of its economic doldrums, one obvious improvement would be to speed up land reclassification. The Economic Revitalization Task Force recommended abolition of the Land Use Commission. However, that proposal encountered problems with the state Constitution, which requires the state to conserve and protect agricultural lands.

The Legislature is currently considering bills that would curtail the powers of the commission rather than abolish it. Both the House and Senate measures would create four land-use districts -- conservation, agriculture, rural and urban.

The Senate bill would authorize a renamed State Planning Commission to set district boundaries for conservation and agriculture while the counties would set rural and urban boundaries and handle all zoning decisions. The House bill would retain the Land Use Commission but let the counties reclassify agriculture land of less than 150 acres.

The constitutionality of the House version has been questioned by a deputy attorney general because it would delegate authority over agricultural lands to the counties. If this is indeed a problem, the Senate version should be adopted.

Defenders of the Land Use Commission in its present form view it as a barrier to unwanted development, but it often looks as though they apply that description to any development. In the view of anti-development activists, the more barriers to development the better, whatever the damage to the economy.

Most people accept the need for development while agreeing that some areas should be excluded. There is no valid reason why at least some of these decisions cannot be made at the county level without first hurdling the gauntlet of a state commission -- and made much more promptly.

Reforming the land-use reclassification system is one of the most important steps the Legislature can take in the current session to revitalize the economy.

Asbestos removal

HOMELESS people are especially vulnerable to exploitation. Usually destitute, they are often eager to find employment and can't be choosy about working conditions. Unscrupulous contractors have taken advantage of the situation to use the homeless in illegal asbestos removal operations without training or adequate protection.

The Justice Department has obtained indictments against three Wisconsin men who allegedly brought workers from a homeless shelter in Chattanooga, Tenn., to Marshfield, Wis., to remove asbestos from a building that was being demolished. The three were charged with illegal asbestos removal, failing to train the workers and failing to follow safe removal procedures.

Justice Department officials said prosecutions have been conducted in eight other states -- Connecticut, Florida, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Washington and West Virginia. Attorney General Janet Reno called the operations "shameful human exploitation," vowing that the government would take all necessary measures to prosecute cases involving the homeless, teen-agers and unqualified day laborers.

Asbestos has been classified as a hazardous air pollutant since 1972 on the basis of research linking it with lung disease. Federal rules require contractors renovating or demolishing most buildings to first remove all asbestos that could crumble.

The problem is that such removal is dangerous work and safety precautions are essential. Dispensing with training and safety precautions can save money for contractors, but at the cost of workers' health. This is an area that requires vigorous law enforcement.

Papaya industry

SCIENCE has come up with an answer to the ringspot virus that has devastated papaya crops in the Puna district of the Big Island and Oahu. A virus-resistant fruit has been developed and is being made available for commercial use.

The new variety, called the Rainbow, is the first genetically engineered fruit approved for commercial production in the country. It is described as a cross between the Kapoho Solo papaya grown throughout Hawaii and the genetically engineered SunUp papaya. The fruit has the color and taste of the Solo papaya and the disease-resistant quality of the SunUp.

The Rainbow was developed by researchers at the University of Hawaii, Cornell University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The seeds are being produced by the Hawaii Agricultural Research Center.

Big Island growers produced 58 million pounds of papayas in 1993 but saw that figure slip to 36 million last year. The Papaya Administrative Committee hopes to have 13 million seeds available this summer for farmers who had to destroy their fruit because of the ringspot virus.

The new variety could be a big step back for the ailing papaya industry. Another big step would be the establishment of an irradiation plant to kill fruit fly larvae.

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Rupert E. Phillips, CEO

John M. Flanagan, Editor & Publisher

David Shapiro, Managing Editor

Diane Yukihiro Chang, Senior Editor & Editorial Page Editor

Frank Bridgewater & Michael Rovner, Assistant Managing Editors

A.A. Smyser, Contributing Editor