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From marijuana.com
DEA: Marijuana Homegrows Are The New Meth Houses
By Tom Angell on July 26, 2016
Colorados laws allowing medical and recreational cannabis have led to a proliferation of large-scale marijuana grow operations in hundreds of homes throughout the state, says a new Intelligence Report from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Much like the meth houses of the 1990s, many of these homes may ultimately be rendered uninhabitable, DEA claims.
Homegrown marijuana presents potential risk to the occupants, homeowners, and neighbors of these residences, as well as to first responders who are called to them, the short, four-page report argues. Marijuana grows often cause extensive damage to the houses where they are maintained and are increasingly the causes of house fires, blown electrical transformers, and environmental damage.
And local police often receive numerous calls from neighbors about marijuana grow houses, DEA says. Common complaints include strong odors, excessive noise from industrial air-conditioning units, blown electrical transformers, and heavy vehicle traffic.
Legalization advocates took strong exception to the claims.
Colorados laws have shifted the vast majority of marijuana growing out of homes and into tightly controlled facilities, Mason Tvert of the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) told Marijuana.com in an email. If an adult is doing it privately and in accordance with state laws, it is no more dangerous than an adult brewing his or her own beer.
Paul Armentano of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), added, The DEAs Flat Earth position toward marijuana is out of step with public and scientific consensus.
He said that polls show that an increasing majority of Americans support alternatives to criminalization but the DEA continues to rely on outdated and ineffective scare-tactics that contribute nothing productive to this ongoing, important nationwide narrative.
In the report, DEA attempts to spell out what it sees as the dangers of marijuana homegrow operations:
The report seems intended to impact the public debate surrounding several marijuana legalization initiatives that voters will see on their ballots this November.
This report should certainly be part of any future discussions of changes or refinements to Colorados marijuana laws, Barbara Roach, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Denver Field Division, said in a press release.
Though the document was issued on June 22, it doesnt appear to have generated any press coverage yet, perhaps because the comparison of homes where marijuana is grown to meth houses is seen by journalists as too much of a stretch.
These are the types of ridiculous comparisons that led to the DEA becoming perhaps the least credible government agency in America, MPPs Tvert said. They spent decades exaggerating the potential harms of marijuana in order to scare people into keeping it illegal. Now that states are adopting laws making it legal, theyve moved on to exaggerating the potential harms of those laws. Its Reefer Madness 2.0.
Separately, DEA is expected to soon issue a ruling in response to pending petitions to reschedule marijuana.
http://www.marijuana.com/blog/news/2016/07/dea-marijuana-homegrows-are-the-new-meth-houses/
DEA: Marijuana Homegrows Are The New Meth Houses
By Tom Angell on July 26, 2016
Colorados laws allowing medical and recreational cannabis have led to a proliferation of large-scale marijuana grow operations in hundreds of homes throughout the state, says a new Intelligence Report from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Much like the meth houses of the 1990s, many of these homes may ultimately be rendered uninhabitable, DEA claims.
Homegrown marijuana presents potential risk to the occupants, homeowners, and neighbors of these residences, as well as to first responders who are called to them, the short, four-page report argues. Marijuana grows often cause extensive damage to the houses where they are maintained and are increasingly the causes of house fires, blown electrical transformers, and environmental damage.
And local police often receive numerous calls from neighbors about marijuana grow houses, DEA says. Common complaints include strong odors, excessive noise from industrial air-conditioning units, blown electrical transformers, and heavy vehicle traffic.
Legalization advocates took strong exception to the claims.
Colorados laws have shifted the vast majority of marijuana growing out of homes and into tightly controlled facilities, Mason Tvert of the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) told Marijuana.com in an email. If an adult is doing it privately and in accordance with state laws, it is no more dangerous than an adult brewing his or her own beer.
Paul Armentano of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), added, The DEAs Flat Earth position toward marijuana is out of step with public and scientific consensus.
He said that polls show that an increasing majority of Americans support alternatives to criminalization but the DEA continues to rely on outdated and ineffective scare-tactics that contribute nothing productive to this ongoing, important nationwide narrative.
In the report, DEA attempts to spell out what it sees as the dangers of marijuana homegrow operations:
Colorado homes where marijuana is grown often sustain extensive structural damage. Moisture, condensation, and molds spread throughout the residence. Growers often cut holes in floors and exterior walls in order to install ventilation tubes. Growers often tamper with electrical systems in order to supply multiple high-power grow lights and industrial air-conditioning units. These alterations are often done by tenant growers with little regard for fire risk or the homes structural integrity. This is an increasing concern for first responders.
Altered electrical systems with loose and entangled wires, flammable fertilizers and chemicals, explosive materials such as propane and butane, or holes cut into subfloors for venting all pose clear hazards to firefighters or police officers responding to the residence in an emergency situation.
The agency also argues that the permissiveness of Colorados medical and recreational marijuana laws is exploited by traffickers who operate large marijuana grows that supply out-of-state markets.Altered electrical systems with loose and entangled wires, flammable fertilizers and chemicals, explosive materials such as propane and butane, or holes cut into subfloors for venting all pose clear hazards to firefighters or police officers responding to the residence in an emergency situation.
The report seems intended to impact the public debate surrounding several marijuana legalization initiatives that voters will see on their ballots this November.
This report should certainly be part of any future discussions of changes or refinements to Colorados marijuana laws, Barbara Roach, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Denver Field Division, said in a press release.
Though the document was issued on June 22, it doesnt appear to have generated any press coverage yet, perhaps because the comparison of homes where marijuana is grown to meth houses is seen by journalists as too much of a stretch.
These are the types of ridiculous comparisons that led to the DEA becoming perhaps the least credible government agency in America, MPPs Tvert said. They spent decades exaggerating the potential harms of marijuana in order to scare people into keeping it illegal. Now that states are adopting laws making it legal, theyve moved on to exaggerating the potential harms of those laws. Its Reefer Madness 2.0.
Separately, DEA is expected to soon issue a ruling in response to pending petitions to reschedule marijuana.
http://www.marijuana.com/blog/news/2016/07/dea-marijuana-homegrows-are-the-new-meth-houses/
