Pubdate: Tue, 22 Feb 2005
Source: Sacramento Bee (CA)
Copyright: 2005 The Sacramento Bee
Contact:  http://www.sacbee.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/376
Note: Note: Does not publish letters from outside its circulation area.
Author: Emily Gurnon
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California)

CREEKS FOULED BY POT FARMERS

Diesel Generators Used By Humboldt's Indoor Growers Leak Toxic Fuel.

Diesel spills on country roads, motor oil containers strewn among the 
trees, the drone of generators where there used to be owl calls: Such are 
the signs of a growing problem in rural parts of Humboldt County. Indoor 
marijuana plantations here - tucked inside nondescript buildings on private 
land or state parks - are often fueled by poorly rigged diesel generators 
that can cause leaks, noise pollution and dangerous fires.

"If (generators) are not properly contained and stored in a safe place, it 
can have harmful environmental impacts, affect aquatic species and affect 
public health," said Melissa Martel, senior hazardous materials specialist 
with the Humboldt County Environmental Health Division. "It's definitely a 
concern for us."

Fish can die in a stream when exposed to just one teaspoon of diesel fuel 
in 25 gallons of water, Martel said. Humans can get sick from drinking 
contaminated water or from eating fish that have been exposed to diesel.

The diesel generators that supply power for the 1,000-watt growing lights 
used by pot farms can be as big as a small pickup truck. They are often 
installed without the required containment base, so that leaks spill 
directly onto the ground.

Some are rigged with plastic water tubing instead of fuel lines. They are 
often placed in dubious locations, such as right beside creeks because the 
depth of the terrain and the surrounding trees help to muffle the machines' 
drone. The placement greatly increases the potential for contaminated water.

Then there's the motor oil used to lubricate the generators. It must be 
changed and, by law, disposed of properly. Instead, it gets dumped or 
buried in the ground.

Law enforcement personnel say they stumble over the problem on a regular 
basis, but the nature of the operations makes them less than optimistic 
about the potential to educate scofflaws.

"Indoor marijuana cultivation is not environmentally friendly, but if 
you're committing felonies, why do you care?" asked Humboldt County 
sheriff's Sgt. Wayne Hanson, head of his office's Drug Enforcement Unit.

He said he sees more contamination and attributes it to the increasing 
popularity of indoor pot farms.

"The indoor problem in 2005 is like the outdoor problem was in 1983," he said.

It can be difficult to prosecute growers, because they have to be found 
first, Hanson said. The landowner may not be the guilty party - though he 
or she is responsible for cleanup costs.

The issue is a touchy one around laid-back southern Humboldt County where 
pot growing is rampant. The traditional mom-and-pop growers who put down 
roots in this area 65 miles south of Eureka are tolerated, but residents 
say the large indoor growers seem to be different.

The mom-and-pop tradition is "about doing things right and respecting the 
environment," said Willie Bosco, 60, a longtime Garberville resident who 
called into the local radio station last week during a forum on the diesel 
dope issue. "But for every one of those, there are probably 50 or 100 
idiots," he said during an interview.

Neighbors, he said, are reluctant to confront anyone who they think might 
be growing pot irresponsibly. "They don't want to say anything, because 
these people have dogs and guns, and people are afraid to get shot."

Large-scale pot operations started to move indoors after the state's 
Campaign Against Marijuana Planting helicopters buzzed rural parts of the 
county en masse beginning in 1983, finding huge outdoor weed fields.

Growing indoors not only gives cover to the illegal activity, but also 
increases its potential profit: Indoor pot farms can produce three or four 
crops every year, Hanson said.

Humboldt County now ranks No. 1 in the state in marijuana seizures from 
indoor operations with 40 percent of all such busts, he said.

One of the reasons the issue is getting attention lately may be because the 
smaller pot growers don't want law enforcement sniffing around, said Larry 
Bruckenstein, the warden in the Garberville office of the state Department 
of Fish and Game, who has responded to a number of diesel spills affecting 
streams.

"If you've got a little grow going on," he said, "the last thing you need 
is the cops showing up in the area."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom