Farmers Will Share Plight At Kamilonui
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Del.icio.usKamilonui Farmers’ Co-op, state Rep. Gene Ward and other area groups present “A Day on the Farm” from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Kamilonui Valley.
The open house is intended to raise awareness about the plight of the farmers in the back of Hawaii Kai who are just a few months away from lease renegotiations with Kamehameha Schools, and many fear steep rent increases will shut down their operations and make staying in in the valley unaffordable.
“A Day on the Farm started as a brainstorming session with the farmers and my office back in 2007, and the first thing we came up with was a bumper sticker, ‘Keep the Valley Valley,’” said Ward.“But this was not enough to get the attention of the community about what was really going on with the farmers and their threatened leases.
“My office then held a Farmer’s Forum in the fall of 2008 which led to a public discussion between the farmers and Kamehameha Schools/Bishop Estate, but this too was not enough.
“So this year feeling increasingly threatened as the renegotiation date of April 2010 neared, we knew it was time to go to the community directly by inviting them for a day on the farm so they could see up front and personal who the farmers are and what agricultural land is at risk in the back of Hawaii Kai.”
The community event will include kids’ games, food, a farmers market, live entertainment, community booths, door prizes, farm tours and talks to educate attendees about the importance of agricultural lands to Hawaii Kai, the dangers of overdevelopment, and the history of farming in Kamilonui Valley.
“Many people don’t even realize that there are farms in Hawaii Kai, let alone their importance to the community,” added Ward. “People enjoy Maunalua Bay and our marina, but they don’t know that beautiful water is the result of the natural filtering process the farms provide in the back of the valley. We’re hoping that this event will change that, and residents will begin calling for preservation of ag land in Hawaii Kai.”
The event will be at R&S Nii Farms, 938 Kamilonui Place. For more information, call Rep. Ward’s office at 586-6420.
“When the renegotiations take place in April, the farmers are going to need as much community support as they can get,“he said.“One should never underestimate the power of a community that bands together, especially this community.”
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