Pubdate: Sat, 15 Mar 2014
Source: Daily Courier, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2014 The Okanagan Valley Group of Newspapers
Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/5NyOACet
Website: http://www.kelownadailycourier.ca
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/531
Author: Don Plant

FARMLAND SHOULD GO TO POT, SAY GROWERS

Cannabis growers are seeing red over Okanagan communities blocking
medical-marijuana operations from their farmland.

West Kelowna's council voted this week to restrict commercial pot
producers to industrial land. The City of Kelowna, which holds a
public hearing on Tuesday, is poised to do the same. People who've
applied to set up licensed factories in the Valley are aggravated by
what they say is ignorance of the new rules that control how they operate.

"Business-wise, it's a ridiculous decision," said one grower who
requested anonymity because his licence application is pending. "They
should open it up and embrace it. The demonizing should stop. The
gangsters are not going to get in here. It's the most difficult
business to get approved in."

Growing medical marijuana meets the definition of farm practices under
B.C. legislation. But the stigma surrounding weed is hazing
politicians' view of what promises to be a lucrative industry for
farmers struggling to make a buck, said the grower, whom we'll call
Brian.

He and his business partners have invested $750,000 in outfitting a
building on four hectares of farmland outside Kelowna in the Central
Okanagan Regional District. He's confident Health Canada will allow
his company to produce enough medical marijuana to supply more than
1,000 patients starting later this year.

Forcing growers to raise their plants in "bunkers" on industrial land
instead of in greenhouses gives the edge to foreign competitors such
as Jamaica, Spain and Uruguay because they can sell cannabis for far
less, Brian said.

He estimates the bills to power the grow lights indoors could amount
to $8,000 to $10,000 a month.

"We'll be competing against guys who are growing it outside. . . .
It's not feasible to do it under all those lamps in a warehouse and
compete with the rest of the planet who do it out in fields. We can
grow all we want in industrial areas, but that's going to be a lot of
wasted money and a lot of wasted power," he said.

More than 1,000 Kelowna adults have federal approval to grow pot at
home for medical reasons. Their licences are about to expire, and
Health Canada has ordered them to dispose of their plants at the end
of the month.

The department is switching to large-scale producers so people allowed
to use cannabis for a medical condition continue getting a supply. It
just licensed a commercial operator in the Vernon area - the fifth in
the province.

In the Zone Produce plans to start selling medical marijuana in
mid-June for $5 to $8 a gram. The company's website states it's a
family-operated farm that produces organic strains such as Hindu Kush
and Green Ogopogo "in a clean, safe manner."

The City of Vernon is considering a proposal to zone the large pot
factories both industrial and agricultural. Staff recommend that
council define what qualifies as medical-marijuana production
facilities and permit them in the agricultural land reserve as well as
light industrial areas, said city planner Dale Rintoul.

About 10 federal licences have been granted so far across Canada.
Municipalities are wringing their hands over how a commercial factory
might affect their social fabric if a licence is approved in their
community.

Jennifer Thorne, a Kelowna lawyer representing more than 10 applicants
in B.C., is infuriated by the misinformation that Central Okanagan
politicians have been working with.

"Nobody's doing their homework," she said. "The misconception is that
this new system will be a continuation of the old one, and that it's a
mask for the criminal element.

"These new facilities will be more akin to running a liquor store or a
pharmacy. We're talking about professional business people with
training and experience."

The current rules are rife with loopholes and lack oversight, allowing
home-growers to sell their surplus bud on the black market. The new
legislation makes the larger-scale operations so secure and
accountable, they're almost impregnable, Thorne said.

The Marijuana for Medical Purposes Regulations demand strict standards
for on-site security and criminal background checks. To prevent money
laundering or other crimes, applicants undergo rigid screening and
must reveal in detail where they earned their income over the last
decade.

Security is similar to an armoury or drug company, said Brian.
Producers must install video cameras and alarms around a site's
perimeter and monitor them around the clock. Anyone entering the
building must use a key fob, PIN pad or thumbprint. Cameras at the
entrance record everyone who comes and goes.

Access to the vault containing dried marijuana and grow rooms is
restricted and monitored.

"There are layers upon layers of security. When's the last time you
heard of a bank vault getting robbed? There are way easier marks (for
thieves) out there," said Thorne, whose primary practice is criminal
defence. "They'd be insane."

The new regulations are attracting educated professionals. Brian's
team of six includes a plant scientist with a PhD and an accountant
with a commerce degree. Brian, in his 50s, has a law-enforcement background.

Two weeks ago, city councillors in Kelowna practically rejected any
notion that operators could set up on farmland within city limits.
After boning up on the subject since then, Coun. Colin Basran is now
reconsidering his vote and plans to keep an open mind at Tuesday's
public hearing.

Basran is happy that large-scale facilities are unwelcome in
residential neighbourhoods. His concern is fairness: marijuana
producers can operate on agricultural land just outside the city
limits in the regional district because, under the Municipal Act, the
district can't stop them.

"How can we say to our Kelowna growers 'you can't do it, but your
neighbour in the regional district can?' That's part of my
frustration. . . . How does that make sense?" he said.

Another factor is the isolation of farm properties. Fewer neighbours
are close by, he said.

The new legislation demands strict controls on odour so outsiders
aren't offended by the smell of fresh marijuana venting from a
building. Brian's team plans to install carbon filters similar to the
kind used by sewage plants.

Once his company gets a commercial licence, he said, staff will be
allowed to keep up to $250,000 worth of dried marijuana in their safe.
They'll send their product in small packages directly to patients by
secure courier at $25 per delivery.

New jobs will spring up, Brian said. There's big potential for spinoff
companies to profit from delivery services, destroying waste products,
working in security and consulting.

Like it or not, Health Canada has declared marijuana a medicinal
product and the program is here to stay. A new industry is emerging in
the province, and the Okanagan has the farmland and expertise to cash
in, Thorne said.

"We have so much knowledge and experience here that I think we should
be capitalizing on. This could be a great industry for B.C. It could
be world-renowned because not only does this legislation allow you to
grow, but you can export and import," she said. "I see a real
opportunity."
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MAP posted-by: Matt