Among the many challenges faced by farmers on Kaua‘i and throughout the state and nation, the ability to acquire and retain a stable workforce has long been identified as a top priority. On Kaua‘i, the cost of housing, transportation, and
Among the many challenges faced by farmers on Kaua‘i and throughout the state and nation, the ability to acquire and retain a stable workforce has long been identified as a top priority.
On Kaua‘i, the cost of housing, transportation, and utilities has limited the pool of farm workers for small and large farming operations. The high cost of farmland alone is a major challenge to being able to maintain a viable agricultural community. With this less than favorable environment for local food production, our community needs to come together and identify how we can help those few and special people who are stewards of the land and provide food for our tables.
One of the primary ways to support our farmers and make farming more economically viable is to allow for small, simple, and temporary worker housing. The Farm Worker Housing Bill 2318 will be decided at the County Council meeting this Wednesday. This piece of legislation was introduced to the council over a year ago, and a strong coalition has been working on it for over three years.
In the ensuing months since its introduction, the bill has received a number of amendments and close scrutiny by the Planning Department, the council’s Planning Committee, and members of the farm community and public at large. The bill has been endorsed by the Kaua‘i County Farm Bureau, the Hawai‘i Farmers Union, Malama Kaua‘i, and the Hawai‘i Organic Farmers Association.
From the outset, the farmers, government representatives, and community members who crafted this bill recognized the need to protect farmland from any potential abuse by developers. Hawai‘i Revised Statute 205.4.5 (4) has already established farm worker housing as an allowed use on agriculturally zoned land. However, other than the ability to apply for the worker housing through the Kaua‘i County use permit process, there are currently no criteria for the Planning Commission to use when considering such an application. Farmers and community leaders who met on the ad hoc committee which crafted the bill, felt that adopting strong criteria would rule out options for abuse. (*The various points of protection included in Bill 2318 are listed below.)
Maui has had a less stringent farm worker housing bill in place for ten years. It has been a great boost for farmers on that island with no documented history of abuse. Bill 2318 will actually protect farm land from abuse based on the strong safeguards written into the bill.
The passage of this bill would be a statement by our county leaders that they understand the fragile nature of the food supply on our isolated home in the Pacific. Bill 2318 is for the benefit of the people who grow our local food. Bill 2318 is about recognizing the decline in food producing farms state-wide and how this puts us in such a precarious situation due to our isolation. Anyone who has lived here during shipping strikes, who has rushed out to stock up on rice or Spam, or who may have planted a “victory garden,” should see the importance of protecting not just farmland, but farmers.
We can and should protect our farm land by whatever means that we can. However, we cannot protect the land if we do not protect, support, or more importantly, honor the men and women who have the grit and perseverance to produce our daily bread on that land.
We look to our council members to provide leadership and act on their campaign promises to support agriculture. If there are concerns about potential abuse of the bill, let’s work together to close the loopholes. There is no reason to kill a bill that has had three years of hard work and strong support from the agricultural community.
At the end of the day, if we sit down to a dinner that has shrimp from the Gulf of Mexico, tomatoes from Mexico, lettuce from California, and rice from Thailand, we may be feeding ourselves in the moment and starving ourselves in the future. Sustainability is an empty concept without the basic requirement of a vibrant, local food-producing sector on the Garden Island.
*The various points of protection included in Bill 2318 are listed here:
– Farmers would have to show receipts of $35,000 from gross sales for two consecutive years. This level would have to be maintained each year in order to keep qualifying;
– The land would have to already have a county agriculture dedication;
– Only certain crops would qualify, with tree and turf farms excluded. Those crops have had a history of abuse under the ag dedication program;
– Farmers must have a viable commercial plan that clearly defines a need for worker housing;
– Farmers must appear before the Planning Commission;
– Only current CPRs can apply;
– In case of sale or transfer of land, the Planning Commission must be notified and the permit reviewed;
– Annual fillings and regular inspections will ensure compliance;
– Structures, which will sit on stilts, must be removed within six months of non-compliance;
– Possible fines and liens could bring stiff financial repercussions.
• Andrea Brower of Malama Kaua‘i and Louisa Wooten of Hawai‘i Organic Farms Association were the lead authors of this guest viewpoint. Members of the Kaua‘i County Farm Bureau and Hawai‘i Farmers Union also provided their input and each of the four organizations signed off on the final column.
