Pubdate: Tue, 11 Sep 2012
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2012 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Author: Jason Pohl

STUDY FINDS PERILOUS MOLD IN POT-GROWING OPERATIONS

Police and other first responders may be exposed during busts of
illegal marijuana growing operations to dangerous levels of mold that
could lead to potentially deadly respiratory diseases, researchers
said Monday.

A team working with National Jewish Health researcher Dr. John Martyny
reviewed conditions in 30 marijuana growing operations in Denver,
Littleton and Larimer County and found mold levels at times 100 times
higher than considered safe and in a few cases so high that their
instruments could not read the levels.

"These are pretty incredible exposures," Martyny said during a news
conference where the findings were reported. "These are extremely high
levels that we would consider dangerous."

The researchers, who worked with the Colorado Drug Investigators
Association, the Colorado Association of Chiefs of Police, and County
Sheriffs of Colorado, compared the environmental issues related to
illegal pot growing to the boom in methanphetamine production a decade
ago but with less exposure to dangerous chemicals.

Martyny and his team did similar research on meth labs in
2002.

None of the growing operations studied was a licensed medical-
marijuana-cultivation operations, the researchers
said.

Martyny said mold thrives because of constant watering and lack of
ventilation, and many of the illegal operations are in homes with
carpeting that retains moisture and allows mold to multiply.

Seventy percent of the busts, he said, had levels that would "be a
sufficient concern for anyone who might live there."

Children and people with compromised immune systems are especially at
risk, he said.

Short-term exposure isn't typically a reason to be alarmed, though
officers with suppressed immune systems are especially at risk.
Martyny said cops should wear protective gear, including respirators,
especially when they are tearing down operations.

Levels of chemicals and fertilizers were also high in places where pot
was growing illegally, but Martyny said many of the chemicals observed
were "mostly nontoxic" when used properly. However, many of these were
being used indoors.

Carbon-monoxide levels tended to be higher in more intricate growing
operations because of modifications to water heaters and furnaces. The
research also found increased risk of electrical fires.

Law enforcement leaders said they are grateful for the study - funded
by a Justice Assistance Grant and money from the chiefs and sheriff's
associations - and will take safety measures to ensure the well-being
of officers.

"The threat to the health and safety of our officers posed by these
marijuana grows is a different kind of danger that we had not
adequately considered," said Barbra Roach, special agent in charge of
the Drug Enforcement Administration-Denver Division.
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