Pubdate: Mon, 19 May 2008
Source: Ukiah Daily Journal, The (CA)
Copyright: 2008 The Ukiah Daily Journal
Contact: http://www.ukiahdailyjournal.com/feedback
Website: http://www.ukiahdailyjournal.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/581
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California)

POT IN FOREST A SERIOUS CONCERN

As the weather heats up and the Memorial Day weekend fast approaches, 
representatives of the Mendocino National Forest are warning people 
to be on the lookout for illegal marijuana gardens in the national forest.

"We want the public to be aware that this illegal activity and 
occupation is taking place if they encounter marijuana gardens on the 
national forest," said Forest Supervisor Tom Contreras.

Last year, law enforcement seized more than 220,000 plants from 
illegal marijuana grows.

According to national forest reports, the MNF is becoming an 
increasingly popular place for illegal marijuana growers to plant 
their crops because the forest is remote, largely uninhabited and has 
the proper soil fertility and climate to grow the crop.

Most marijuana growers begin to plant in May and harvest between 
September and November.

"If a private citizen comes upon something suspicious, don't enter 
the area; just leave and notify local law enforcement authorities 
immediately," said Forest Service Law Enforcement Capt. Julie Lombard.

Forest Service law enforcement officers work with county Sheriff's 
Departments, the California National Guard, and Campaign Against 
Marijuana Planting teams. Headed by the Department of Justice Bureau 
of Narcotic Enforcement, CAMP teams were created in 1983 for the 
primary purpose of eradicating illegal marijuana from public lands in 
California.

Marijuana growers sometimes live in the forest near these illegal 
gardens for months at a time. Officers have come across these illegal 
camps with exercise facilities, tree houses, barbed wire fences and 
numerous firearms, Lombard said.

These camps often contain cooking and sleeping areas which are within 
view of the cultivation site. Some camps have tents, hammocks and 
sleeping bags on the ground and have been found with large 
overhanging tarps as cover for the entire campsite.

Current gardens are also larger than they were in the 1980s, where 
gardens were typically between 100 and 1,000 plants. Modern gardens 
average between 1,000 and 30,000 plants, Lombard said.

"Most of the increase can be attributed to the proliferation of 
foreign drug trafficking organizations," Lombard said.

The gardens also endanger the environment, according to Forest 
Service reports. Herbicides and pesticides used to remove local 
vegetation and rodents, as well as garbage and human waste can all 
end up in steams where they are a threat to fish.

For additional information or to notify law enforcement authorities 
of a suspected garden area in the Mendocino National Forest, contact 
Forest Service Law Enforcement at 530-934-3316.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom