POT: Its impact on the community

[sydneyguy]

POT: Its impact on the community

 

Dec 31 2005

Marijuana Production Impact Statement •?? Coquitlam 2005

 

Over the past five years, Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam have experienced a dramatic increase in the number of marijuana grow operations reported to the police. Since 1998, Coquitlam RCMP has seen a 285% in indoor marijuana grow operations complaints in Port Coquitlam and a 347% increase in indoor marijuana grow operations complaints in Coquitlam. Police drug investigators estimate that there are more than 300 marijuana grow operations within the city limits of Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam. This document is intended to provide factual information concerning the impact marijuana grow operations have had on the community of Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam.

 

 

Organized crime and marijuana grow operations-

Intelligence and evidence gathered during police investigations indicate that organized crime groups control many of the marijuana grow operations located in the province of British Columbia. These groups include not only traditional organized crime groups such as outlaw motorcycle gangs and Asian gangs but also other non-traditional organized crime groups that are operating locally, nationally and internationally.

 

The value of marijuana-

Marijuana grown in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam is often exported to the United States and more specifically to the Seattle and Los Angeles areas. United States Drug Enforcement officers advise that a pound of marijuana from British Columbia worth approximately $2,200 in Canada may sell for as much as $5,000 in Seattle. Profits made from the sale of marijuana are often used by organized crime groups to finance other criminal activity. This criminal activity may include the manufacturing of other drugs such as methamphetamine or ecstasy and the importation of cocaine. Marijuana originating from British Columbia is a very valuable commodity that his highly south by many criminal organizations. A recent study conducted by the Fraser Institute estimates the marijuana trade in British Columbia to be worth more than $7 billion.

 

Increase in THC content-

Indoor grown marijuana has larger concentration levels of Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) than in the past. THC is the active ingredient in marijuana that causes the physical and psychological effects users experience. In the 1960s, marijuana typically had a THC content of 2% or 3%. Today, indoor grown marijuana is routinely found to have a THC content well in excess of 10%.

 

Related crime

Increase in violent crime-

In the past few years, the cities of Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam have experienced a significant increase in violent crime. The city has recently experienced a number of marijuana grow rips. A rip takes place when individuals forcefully enter a residence where marijuana is being grown. Suspects normally produce weapons, physically assault, threaten, torture, and sometimes shoot the residents prior to removing the marijuana plants. Due to the illegality of growing marijuana, the "rips" often go unreported to police. Only when the level of violence is extreme are police made aware of these incidents. On two occasions in 2004, suspects have attended the wrong address and threatened and/or assaulted innocent citizens. In these cases, there was a grow operation next door to the victims' residence. In 2004, Coquitlam RCMP received five reports of home invasions that can be directly attributed to the presence of marijuana grow operations in the community.

 

Use of weapons and booby traps-

Police are finding that more marijuana growers are arming themselves for protection from these "rips" and as such pose an increased risk to the public and police. Guard dogs and weapons such as knives, bats and firearms are encountered in many marijuana grow operations. Booby traps at grow operations designed to act as a deterrent against thefts or "rips" are less frequently encountered but remains a hazard. Coquitlam RCMP members are finding bear spray, swords and various other weapons in residences where marijuana grow operations are present. This factor substantially increases the potential danger for police and other unsuspecting individuals who may enter onto the property of a marijuana grower.

 

Danger to police, firefighters, children and members of the general public-

Marijuana grow operations require abnormally high levels of electricity to power high wattage lights that accelerate plant growth. In an effort to avoid high electrical consumption (and, in turn, detection and costs) growers will steal hydro electrical power and bypass power metres. The bypass may prevent BC Hydro from noticing the unusual electrical consumption. A 2004 study conducted by the University College of the Fraser Valley showed that, on average, marijuana grow operations divert more than $3,000 of electricity. This cost is ultimately passed on to legitimate hydro consumers and taxpayers. Electrical diversions create dangerous situations for hydro employees and police officers when they are dismantling marijuana grow operations. Such tampering is not only dangerous to the growers, but also innocent people, including children, who live in residences where marijuana is being grown and such electrical bypasses are present. Because of health and safety concerns, police and other first responders are now wearing safety equipment such as safety glasses, masks and gloves when encountering marijuana grow operations.

 

Potential house fires-

The electrical bypasses and unsafe electrical wiring used in marijuana grow operations are a common cause of house fires. There is an ever-present danger to fire fighters at any structural fire, however, there are increased risks when attending grow operations because of the unsafe electrical bypasses, booby traps (used to protect the operation), entanglement hazards caused by illegal electrical wiring, confrontations with attack dogs, and an array of toxic chemicals. Fire fighters regularly put themselves at risk and in fighting fires in residential structures. The possibilities of occupants requiring rescue causes firefighters to enter buildings, which normally the would not enter. The added risks accompanying an illegal grow operation or a clandestine laboratory complicates their efforts, increases the danger and raises the risk. In 2004, two homes in Coquitlam and one in Port Coquitlam suffered major structural damage due to fire as a result of a hydro bypass used for the purposes of powering a marijuana grow operation. These fires caused close to $1 million in property damage.

 

Increased costs to policing and fire department-

The Coquitlam RCMP currently ha six police officers that are attached to the Marijuana Enforcement Team. These members are responsible for investigating marijuana grow operations in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam. The expense and cost to the taxpayer of combating marijuana grow operations in the cities of Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam are more than $1 million a year. Dismantling of a standard marijuana grow operation alone can cost as much as $4,000. Countless hours of investigation, surveillance, court preparation and file maintenance are dedicated to each case. The cost of fighting fires varies widely with the complexity of the structure and the size of the fire; however, on average, the direct costs to the fire department are approximately $3,000 to $5,000 per incident. Additional costs to the community are not included in these estimates.

 

Structural damager to the interior-

Marijuana grow operations can cause extensive damage to the interior of residences. Over time, high humidity inside a marijuana grow operation will destroy interior drywall and produce mould. Many studies report that moulds found inside homes where marijuana grow operations were located are extremely toxic. In essence, the interior of these homes is contaminated causing long term health risks to the current and future occupants. The cost of restoring a contaminated structure to its original condition can be extremely high.

 

Harm to the environment-

Marijuana growers typically discard used chemicals into community drainage systems or back yards resulting in environmental damage. The heavy use of pesticides produces an extremely toxic by-product.

 

Destruction of property/increased personal injury/other costs

Homeowners and landlords-

Marijuana growers often buy or rent homes to grow marijuana. The interior of the homes are customized to accommodate the grow operation. Once the marijuana grow operation is dismantled, the home is almost always left with extensive damages. If the grower intends to sell the home they will often make basic or cosmetic repairs to try and cover up evidence of this activity. If the grower is renting the residence, they will usually abandon the house and leave the landlord to deal with the mess. An unsuspecting buyer or renter will often inadvertently expose the new occupants of the home to toxic moulds, mildew and pesticide residue. The cost of repairs in all cases exceeds the value of the landlord's damage deposit and, in most cases, is not covered by household insurance.

 

Insurance costs-

The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) advises that most insurance provides are detailing exclusions in their policies related to marijuana grow operations or simply have an illegal activity clause. Currently, landlords are finding themselves at a loss because the insurance policies do not cover damage from this type of activity. In addition, IBC advises that most of the claims form landlords are related to structure damage, specifically in these cases the addition of new walls or damage to old ones, condensation or the presence of a marijuana grow operation. Rates do tend to rise due to the accompanying related property crimes that often plague effected neighbourhoods. Marijuana grow operations haver been known to attract problems in a neighbourhood including break and enters, vandalism and theft. This increase in property crime forces the insurance rates to rise. IBC recognizes marijuana grow operations as "a part of the large cycle of crime and violence."

 

Conclusion

The growth of organized crime is one of the most critical problems faced by policing in British Columbia. It is an issue that has a negative impact on the quality of life of the citizens of this province. The illicit drug trade, fueled by the marijuana production industry of this province, is often directly related to cocaine importation, methamphetamine production and other drug-related crimes. In turn, the illicit funds derived from these crimes support elaborate money-laundering networks throughout the province that are controlled by local, national and international criminal organizations. The drug traffickers and the users of some of these illegal drugs, cocaine and methamphetamine in particular, will often be involved in a wide variety of street level crimes. It is these crimes which most impact upon the everyday lives of the citizens of British Columbia; robberies, drive-by shootings, all types of weapons offences, break and enter, thefts, car thefts, street-level trafficking, prostitution, frauds schemes of every description, assaults and the list goes on.

 

http://www.tricitynews.com/portals-code/li...id=561698&more=

[Pa-uul]

Sounds like another "drugs are naughty" prohibitionist arguement. It completely fails to point out that almost every problem mentioned is the result of the prohibition of pot, the prohibition of other drugs and other "crimes" like prostitution, and most of all the juxtaposition of the relaxed BC marijuana law to the draconian US marijuana laws. Why don't these preaching puritans wake up and realise that all of this activity needs to be legitimised so that the "street crime" can be reduced and proper environmental and building regulations can be enfored? With full legalisation there would be almost no household operations just as no-one has whiskey distilleries or tobacco plantations in their home today. Instead of "sook", "sook", "sook", "organised crime", "prostitution", "wah", "wah", "wah", "I want my mummy", how about a solution? Drug prohibition is bigotry. So suck it "Family First" types, your moralising doesn't work on me. Go back to the dark ages. Edited January 9, 2006 by Pa-uul

[Infinitee]

Meh, same stupid argument they been telling us for years.

 

At least the psychosis bullshit was something new!

[Pa-uul]

About "Cannabis is a very dirty plant" did you get that from the "60 minutes" online chat-room after their Reefer Madness article a while ago? I tuned in to bit of that too. It was frustrating how the questions were moderated, probably so you couldn't get any real ones through! And who were these people with horror stories about Cannabis giving them flash-backs, cravings, disease etc? It was weird, every question started with a preface of a horror story. I've used a lot of cannabis and have friends who've used it similarly but none of them report horror stories. It's all too suspicious. These questions are called "Dorothy Dixs" in Australian Parliament: a set-up question from the people on your side of the political equation.

One 30 year-old woman said that she quit long ago but "still gets cravings". That's weird I've never had that. I wonder if this woman used tobacco with her pot?

Anyway about the dirtiness, I wonder if Yasmine thinks that her body is dirty too? Every person has natural cannabinoids in their body so... she must be dirty. Yeah, I would say she is dirty, as in dirty money -- being payed to find "something wrong" with Cannabis!

Boy, the discovery of endogenous cannabinoids is a real blow to the scare-mongering prohibitionists. It ruins a lot of their theories. Here's a question I wanted to ask her: "if cannabinoids cause schizophrenia how come everyone doesn't have it, seeing as everyone has them in their system?" Or: "Do people with naturally higher levels of these cannabinoids in their system have higher rates of schizo?" Probably not.