We need a solution to the cane burning without eliminating the sugar cane industry. Growing cane does add to the beauty of the island. Certainly, cane fields are more appropriate then outlet malls for the landscape of Maui.
How then do we reconcile the harvesting of cane without burning with the added cost of such harvesting? Since growing cane adds to the beauty of the island and maintains the open space for our tourism industry, then why not subsidize the industry by the state? The state would then help pay for the added cost of harvesting the cane without burning it. The industry could thrive, cane could be grown and the land would be preserved.
It would not be the first time the government bailed out an industry.
Mary Trotto
Kihei
