John Kawamoto: The antis asked the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry to perform a Public Health Assessment on the west side of Kauai due to environmental health concerns associated with pesticide use by nearby agricultural operations.

The agency declined, noting: “It is unlikely that residents of Kauai west side communities are being exposed to pesticides at levels of health concern when they swim in, have contact with, or drink from local streams and rivers. Overall, the scientific literature does not provide strong support for an association of human agricultural pesticide exposure with the birth defects of concerns."

If the feds don't think an assessment is warranted, why should the state pay? If the groups clamoring for testing think it's needed, let them pay, especially since they're awash in money. But maybe they're afraid they won't find anything, as happened with their air and water tests.