Pubdate: Sat, 13 Jul 2013
Source: Kamloops Daily News (CN BC)
Copyright: 2013 Kamloops Daily News
Contact:  http://www.kamloopsnews.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/679
Author: Michele Young

POT ZONING 'TOTALLY RIDICULOUS'

The City is proposing medical marijuana growers find themselves a 
building and some industrial land.

Amendments to the City's zoning bylaw go to council Tuesday as a 
follow-up to changes to medical marijuana grow regulations made by 
the federal government last month.

Changes include requiring medical marijuana grow operations to be 
located in general industrial or heavy industrial areas, with a 
business licence and ventilation plan.

Local medical marijuana advocate Carl Anderson said Friday the 
regulations are making it so only the rich can have access to therapeutic pot.

"It's totally ridiculous. If I want to grow marijuana to help sick 
people, I'm not going to use a million dollars in power to do it," he said.

"If it's grown naturally under the sunlight, it's going to be far 
superior than anything you can produce under artificial lighting.

Anderson said the way he reads the federal rules, greenhouse growing 
is allowed as long as it's properly secured. He didn't see that as an 
option with the City's amendment. "The City is saying you can't do 
that: you have to grow it indoors under hydroelectric power and 
produce an inferior product. I think they don't want any marijuana 
grown in Kamloops."

City planner Maren Luciani said the federal rules require medical 
marijuana to be grown indoors. "There's a heavy security requirement 
involved as well. They have to meet heavy security requirements," she said.

While greenhouses aren't excluded, the security requirements are 
rigorous, she said.

Last month, Ottawa outlawed growing medical marijuana at home. 
Instead, users will have to buy from licensed growers who meet strict 
conditions.

Municipal zoning bylaws would have to be met, the federal rules state.

Health Canada says at the end of last year there were 28,000 people 
across the country licensed to possess dried medical marijuana; 
13,500 of them are in B.C. Those holding production licences number 
18,000 Canada wide - half of them in B.C.

Anderson said the new rules make it prohibitively expensive for 
people with medical marijuana licences to access their medication. He 
knows one man who would need to spend $3,000 a month to buy marijuana 
that he grows in his home for $25 to $30 a month.

"I don't know too many people who can afford to fork out three grand 
a month," he said. He estimates about 100 people in Kamloops use 
medical marijuana.

"His operation is smaller than a kitchen table, totally self 
contained and safe, no threat to anybody or anything. . . . Now the 
federal government is saying no you can't do that. You have to pay 
$10 a gram from these indoor producers."

City community development manager Randy Lambright said if people 
continue to grow marijuana in their own homes after the federal rules 
go in effect, they could be in contravention of the City's controlled 
substance bylaw - as well as any Criminal Code violations.

Licensing for industrial medical marijuana grow-ops will be 
classified as manufacturing.

And while Anderson said the high costs associated with setting up a 
commercial medical marijuana grow operation in an industrial area 
could be prohibitive, the City has already had people asking questions.

"There has been some interest expressed in our community on at least 
three occasions (for an industrial medical marijuana grow-op)," Lambright said.

"They'd have to take out a building permit. There would be compliance 
with building code. It does get it into a more regulated, formalized, 
structured type of a process."

They'll also have to provide the City and its fire and police 
departments with notice of application for a growing licence and a 
copy of the federal licence if they obtain one, he said.

That's a change from the current situation, whereby fire and police 
are not informed of which homeowners are licensed to grow medical marijuana.
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