Congressional delegation seeks more aid for Big Isle farmers

Oct. 7--Hawaii's congressional delegation is pressing for more assistance for Big Island farmers who lost millions in crops, buildings and land during the eruption of Kilauea last year, asking federal agriculture officials for the fourth time to take into account the unique and devastating nature of the lava flow, which lasted several months.

"We understand that you have to consider the entire country when making policy. However, we cannot impress upon you enough the unique nature of the losses experienced by our producers impacted by the volcanic eruption, " Hawaii's congressional delegation wrote in a Sept. 27 letter to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue.

The letter, signed by U.S. Sens. Mazie Hirono and Brian Schatz and U.S. Reps. Tulsi Gabbard and Ed Case, calls the past responses from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to requests for aid disappointing.

The volcanic eruption displaced more than 1, 337 acres of arable land on Hawaii island and caused nearly $28 million in farm losses, according to a conducted by the University of Hawaii at Manoa's College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources. Flower farms and nurseries and papaya farmers were hit hardest, according to the survey, followed by cacao and ulu farmers and macadamia and orchid growers. At least 46 farms were affected by the lava.

Congress enacted legislation that was signed into law by President Donald Trump in June that provides $3 billion in disaster assistance to farmers hurt by national disasters through a program called Wildfire and Hurricane Indemnity Program Plus. However, Hawaii's delegation notes there is a maximum cap of $250, 000 per producer compared with the 2017 cap of $900, 000.

Hawaii's delegation wants the threshold to be raised for Hawaii island farmers, saying the payments "fall extremely short of providing adequate relief for some of our most impacted producers that lost land, infrastructure, and inventory."

The USDA did not respond to a request for comment on the letter.

It's the fourth letter that Hawaii's congressional delegation has sent to top agricultural officials since June 2018 seeking special assistance for Hawaii.

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