Pubdate: Fri, 07 Jul 2017 Source: Fort McMurray Today (CN AB) Copyright: 2017 Fort McMurray Today Contact: http://www.fortmcmurraytoday.com/letters Website: http://www.fortmcmurraytoday.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1012 Author: Vincent McDermott Page: A3 COUNCILLOR PROPOSES RESTRICTING POT USE NEAR SCHOOLS, PARKS AND PUBLIC SPACES With marijuana expected to be legalized across Canada in 2018, Councillor Sheldon Germain wants the municipality to begin researching possible restrictions on its legal use within Wood Buffalo. The motion, which will be introduced at next Tuesday's council meeting by Germain, will direct administration to examine amending bylaws on how and where marijuana can be sold and consumed within Wood Buffalo. If the motion is passed, staff will research and develop "strategic initiatives" establishing parameters for where cannabis dispensaries can be established. The motion will also direct staff to research developing restrictions on smoking cannabis, "cannabis-based products" or related products near "schools, playgrounds, parks, child care centres, places of worship, community centres and at any public events." "We need to be cognizant there likely will be the desire by some to have cannabis dispensaries and places of sale in the community," said Germain on Thursday morning. "We have seen this in other communities and cities across the country, and we can expect that Fort McMurray and Wood Buffalo will be no different." In April, the federal government released its plan for the legal sale and use of marijuana, which is expected to be legal by July 2018. The new law, if passed, would allow adults over the age of 18 to possess up to 30 grams of cannabis or its equivalent in public, and share with any other adults. It would also allow the purchase of cannabis and cannabis oil from a provincially regulated retailer, and the possession of up to four plants per residence for personal use. Selling cannabis to youth would remain illegal with new penalties ranging from a police citation to up to 14 years imprisonment. "Obviously, any recommendations or eventual outcomes need to be aligned with federal and provincial laws and regulations and will need to evolve with those processes," said Germain. "This is about guiding our municipality to be proactive and responsible, understanding cannabis is going to be legalized across the country." Germain is not the first person in the Wood Buffalo area to raise concerns about the distribution and consumption of marijuana locally. Enform, an oil and gas industry safety group based in Calgary, is pressing federal and provincial governments to ban marijuana in hazardous workplaces, and permit employers to adopt zero-tolerance policies on its use. "If people in safety-sensitive positions, or safety-sensitive projects or work, are not competent to do the work, a catastrophic event could unfold," said Cameron MacGillivray, Enform's chief executive, in an interview with the Calgary Herald days after the legislation was announced. "That's the sort of thing that causes great concern to the industry." - --- MAP posted-by: Matt