Supporters of tighter reins on agribusiness expressed satisfaction Saturday at the Kauai County Council’s decision to override Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr.’s veto of a measure regulating pesticides and genetically modified crops.

"It’s still soaking in for me at the moment," said Fern Rosenstiel of Ohana O Kauai, a group that supports organic farming. "I can’t express my gratitude enough to the Council for their leadership. For me, it’s a win for the community, a win for people’s rights."

But representatives of Kauai’s big farms vowed to challenge the law in court.

"There will definitely be a lawsuit," said attorney Paul Alston, who represents biotech giant Syngenta.

Carvalho said his administration will honor the Council’s decision and work to implement the new law. But he also said he favors the voluntary pesticides-use disclosure program initiated by the state.

"While a legal challenge is expected and that may prevent us from immediately implementing (Bill) 2491, I can assure the public that nothing will stop us from moving forward as quickly as possible with the public health study, working with the state to ensure the voluntary program gets off the ground in a timely manner, and lobbying the Legislature for additional resources for enforcement on Kauai," he said in a statement.

With new member Mason Chock on board, the Council voted 5-2 Saturday to override Carvalho’s veto of Bill 2491, which requires large agribusinesses to disclose the type of pesticides they spray on their fields and the growth of genetically modified crops. It imposes buffer zones, prohibiting the growth of genetically modified crops near schools, dwellings, medical facilities, public roadways and waterways.

The measure also requires companies to provide annual reports of genetically modified crops grown on their fields to the county Office of Economic Development and state Department of Agriculture.

Council Chairman Jay Furfaro and Council members JoAnn Yukimura, Gary Hooser, Tim Bynum and Chock voted in support of the override. Councilmen Mel Rapozo and Ross Kagawa voted to sustain the mayor’s veto.

Barring court intervention, the law will take effect in nine months.

The Council recessed Thursday after failing to line up enough votes for an override. Five votes were needed, but Kagawa, who earlier approved the measure, withdrew his support.

On Friday, the Council voted 4-2 to appoint Chock to fill the seat vacated by former Vice Chairwoman Nadine Nakamura, who resigned Oct. 31 to serve as Kauai County managing director.

At the meeting Saturday, Chock expressed his support for an override.

"Let’s take this step," he said. "I’m all for overriding the veto on Bill 2491." 

Rapozo, who has long opposed the controversial measure, raised concerns about the process.

"We recessed with six members and reconvened with a seven-member Council," he said at Saturday’s meeting. "The integrity of this process has been compromised on this."

Alston called the Council’s eleventh-hour maneuvering to ensure an override "deeply troubling and suspect."

But attorney Paul Achitoff of Earthjustice said he is not aware of any impropriety with the Council’s process to consider the override.

"I’m pleased and glad that they had the courage to do it," Achitoff said. "We’ll now proceed to the next step and wait for the industry to do what they’re going to do."

Alicia Maluafiti, executive director of the Hawaii Crop Improvement Association, an organization that represents biotech companies, said the Council’s vote was not a surprise given the appointment of a new councilmember a day before the override vote.

If the Council were committed to health and safety, the members would have embraced the state’s voluntary compliance program, she said, adding that the bill will likely get caught up in litigation and cost taxpayers millions.

Both Carvalho, who spoke at the Council meeting Saturday, and Maluafiti expressed support for the state’s Kauai Agricultural Good Neighbor Program, a voluntary pesticide-use reporting program set to begin Dec. 1. The state announced Wednesday that it had completed guidelines for the program under the Pesticides Branch.

Though guidelines in the voluntary compliance program are not as strong as the provisions in Bill 2491, Carvalho said amendments could be made once an environmental and public health impact study is completed.

"I am already working to continue discussions with the state on other issues relative to the pesticide law and to strengthen the voluntary program to include memorandums of agreement that will hold all parties accountable," he told the Council.

The state, not the county, has the resources, experience and knowledge to implement a pesticides-use reporting program, Maluafiti said.

"We’re dedicated to implementing it," she said in an interview. "It will demonstrate to the people of Hawaii that their fears were unfounded."

Since the introduction of Bill 2491 in June, supporters of the measure took a stand in droves, calling for mandatory disclosure of pesticides and GMOs by large agribusinesses, contending they have failed to address community concerns about pesticide exposure. More than 4,000 people participated in a September march.

Advocates submitted vast amounts of verbal and written testimony urging the Council to take action to protect the health of residents and the island’s environment.

Hooser, who co-introduced Bill 2491 with Bynum, said he is pleased with the outcome after all the efforts made by the Council and the community who pushed for "the right to know."

"The Council came through," said Hooser. He commended community members who testified before the Council to express their concerns regarding pesticide exposure.

"They did it because they felt so strongly, because they needed to stand up," he said.