The legalization of pot may be looming but that doesn't mean police are backing off their crackdown on the "grey" marijuana market. Most recently, RCMP in Colchester County raided the Community Compassion Centre in Bible Hill. They seized cash, marijuana, marijuana derivatives and drug paraphernalia, and charged Ricky Joseph Leclerc, 51, of Upper Kennetcook. He's scheduled to appear in Nova Scotia provincial court Friday. "The RCMP will continue to work within the existing legislation under the Controlled Drug and Substances Act," RCMP spokesman Cpl. Dal Hutchinson said Monday in an email. "If we determine that there is a violation of the legislation, we will take appropriate action." [continues 322 words]
The owner of a Bible Hill marijuana dispensary has been charged for the second time in six months with possession for the purpose of trafficking. Ricky Joseph Leclerc, 51, of Upper Kennetcook, was arrested after police executed a search warrant at the Community Compassion Centre, a marijuana storefront on Pictou Road. Leclerc is to appear in court in Truro on March 21 to enter a plea to the charge. The RCMP said in a news release that members of the Colchester County Integrated Street Crime Enforcement Unit had seized a quantity of cash, marijuana, marijuana derivatives and drug paraphernalia during their search last Friday. [continues 99 words]
Harm reduction is more than a job for Karen Kittilsen Levine. Reducing the numbers of people dying from opioid addiction and blood-borne disease is something she's determined to do. "We began doing outreach in Pictou County on November 1 and have more than 40 clients, and we're beginning outreach in Amherst within a few days," said Kittilsen Levine, who is the harm reduction coordinator for the Northern Healthy Connections Society. The organization collects used needles and distributes clean ones. It also provides condoms and information on blood-borne diseases. [continues 226 words]
It's just another example of how complicated things are going to be as provinces roll out their marijuana rules. Several provinces have decided that marijuana smoking has to be done on private property. Ontario's rules are so tight that weed smoking has to take place in private residences. But what happens if your private residence is an apartment? Here's a part of a Canadian Press story out of Toronto. "(The province is) not going to allow marijuana to be smoked in public areas, so where the heck are people going to smoke marijuana? Well they're going to do it in their apartments," said John Dickie of the Canadian Federation of Apartment Associations. "The problem is, just like when they smoke tobacco, the smell goes to neighbouring apartments. Buildings are not hermetically sealed." [continues 347 words]
Province approves nine locations and online sales Truro is to be one of nine locations in Nova Scotia where marijuana will be sold from an NSLC store, the provincial government announced Tuesday. The NSLC store at 6 Court St., has been selected as a retail location, once cannabis is legalized, Attorney General and Justice Minister Mark Furey said, in a news release. The other eight locations include Amherst, Dartmouth, Lower Sackville, New Glasgow, Sydney River, Yarmouth and two in Halifax. "Our main priority in preparing for the legalization of cannabis has been, and will continue to be, the health and safety of Nova Scotians," Furey said. "Selling through NSLC stores allows us to leverage their experience and expertise in selling these products responsibly in a safe environment." [continues 158 words]
Craft weed market great hypothetically, but likely a long way off It isn't uncommon to see booths or tables of Nova Scotia's finest craft beer, liquors or small-scale produced wines at local weekend farmers' markets around Colchester. With marijuana legalization on the horizon though, is there a possibility craft weed or weed products could have the same future in farmers' market environments? "I don't know there will be the same kind of regulatory allowance for marijuanaproduction as there is for craft breweries and wineries," said Margaret Congdon, manager of the Truro Farmer's Market. [continues 526 words]
The Trudeau government's decision to legalize marijuana was a welcome and overdue acknowledgement of what has in recent decades become a truism of both the health and justice fields: treating pot-smokers as criminals is a costly, dangerous mistake. The government is right that the prohibition on pot has driven up the cost of policing, contributed to a national crisis of court delays, compounded racial and class inequities and unnecessarily criminalized people for doing something that by and large poses little threat to them or others - all without delivering the promised benefits for public health or public safety. [continues 559 words]
Editor's Note: This is the fourth in a series of stories focusing on people in Nova Scotia who will be delving into the marijuana industry. Fish urine is the secret sauce that will allow some 50,000 cannabis plants to thrive in Liverpool. We'll get to that momentarily. Myrna Gillis, founder and president of Aqualitas, reported recently her company had collected $8.7 million from investors across Canada and the United States. Three years into the making, and Gillis says Aqualitas has its sights set on a cultivating licence next month, allowing a minimum of 60 people to go to work in a job-starved area that was devastated by the closure of the Bowater newsprint mill in 2012. The Aqualitis plant itself occupies the former Bowater site. [continues 552 words]
EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the first in a series of stories focusing on people in Nova Scotia who will be delving into the marijuana industry. Legalization of marijuana was a long time coming, but Carl Morgan believes the future is bright for selling the product in Nova Scotia. Morgan is currently the owner of two medical marijuana dispensaries - Scotia Green Inc. on East River Road in New Glasgow and one on Spring Garden Road in Halifax. While they've had some uphill battles, he believes the business will continue to grow into the New Year despite the fact the province has made the decision that recreational marijuana will be sold at Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation outlets. Morgan believes there will be some key differences that separate recreational and medical marijuana including price and ease of access. [continues 248 words]
EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the third in a series of stories focusing on people in Nova Scotia who will be delving into the marijuana industry. Up an Antigonish County woods road, Frank MacMaster's surroundings were modest. But the camp where he's spending the winter was warm, courtesy of a fire going in the wood stove, and there was a microwave with which to make a visitor tea. Most importantly, there was a dream that appears about to bear significant fruit. [continues 726 words]
Today begins a series on Nova Scotia business people who are looking to become involved in the marijuana industry that will soon be sweeping the entire country. This is the first in a series of stories focusing on people in Nova Scotia who will be delving into the marijuana industry. From a business perspective, it seemed like a no-brainer. But for Evan Price, getting involved in the medical marijuana production industry wasn't entirely about growing his bottom line. "Far too many family members and neighbours in this area are coming down with harsh (medical) diagnoses," the Valley resident and businessman said. [continues 558 words]
There's a dirty little secret about legalized marijuana, one that could become an issue in neighbourhoods across the country. Well, maybe it would be better to describe it as a stinky little secret, but one that's likely to become very familiar - and maybe too familiar. Weed, both smoked and unsmoked, is more pungent than it once was. It's gone through decades of horticultural experimentation to strengthen its kick. And there's likely to be a lot more of that pungent to go around once smoking a joint isn't a criminal offence anymore. [continues 556 words]
Six people charged following police raids on marijuana dispensaries in Bible Hill in September are to appear in provincial court in January to enter pleas. The six individuals were charged after RCMP officers made simultaneous busts at three medical marijuana dispensaries on Sept. 1. Each person is charged with trafficking in marijuana and cannabis resin as well as with possessing marijuana and cannabis resin for the purpose of trafficking. [Name redacted], 43, and [Name redacted], 30, of Lyman Street and [Name redacted], 32, of Shore Road, Clifton, are to return to court Jan. 17. [continues 69 words]
They're great for entertainment purposes, but then again, so are fortune-tellers and horoscopes. If you're looking at public opinion polls to predict things, well, there are wins and there are losses. And lately, more losses. We've got to start looking at polling differently - because though some of the tools get better all the time, the results are not the gospel we pretend they are. Two polls in the past week or so highlights that for me: a Toronto poll suggesting Doug Ford could be competitive in a race against Toronto Mayor John Tory, and a Corporate Research Associates poll about marijuana use in the Atlantic provinces. [continues 533 words]
It's enough to make you want to roll a big, fat one. The province is attempting to have a regulatory framework in place prior to the legalization of marijuana on July 1. Weekly, maybe daily, the confusion grows over what the brave new world of legalized weed will look like. That, in my view, is perfectly understandable as the clock loudly ticks toward Ottawa's July 1, 2018, deadline for legalization of wacky tabacky. The feds have said that the date is hard and fast. Our government is taking them on their word. [continues 639 words]
To the editor: Re: "Youth psychiatrist disappointed in Nova Scotia's marijuana age decision" (Dec. 9/17.) Do "health officials" and "provincial and national health organizations" ever think about the social consequences and harms of cannabis prohibition? They are so narrow-minded and seem to only think about the safety of a product. If it isn't 100 per cent safe in their minds, they think it should be illegal? If they had a chance, they would probably make everything illegal that humans do, except for using pharmaceutical drugs, of course. Do they not understand that criminal records and jail sentences for young-adult cannabis users and growers are unhealthy? Herb Couch, Nelson, B.C. [end]
It's funny how quickly a criminal enterprise can turn into a legitimate business opportunity. As a federal Conservative politician, even as late as 2015, Julian Fantino was opposed to the legalization of marijuana. In 2004, he even compared weed to murder in an interview with the Toronto Sun, saying, "I guess we can legalize murder too and then we won't have a murder case. We can't go that way." Now, he's partnered with former RCMP deputy commissioner Raf Souccar to open a medical marijuana business, Aleafia Total Health Network. [continues 407 words]
The latest Corporate Research Associates (CRA) survey this week probably sent chills down the spines of finance ministers and premiers across Atlantic Canada. After returning home from Ottawa earlier in the week with a lucrative tax-sharing deal on the sale of legalized marijuana, visions of windfall revenues were quickly brought back to reality. The CRA survey suggests that approximately 20 per cent of Atlantic Canadians plan to purchase pot once marijuana becomes legal July 1. That is about the same percentage that uses pot today - illegally. [continues 415 words]
Health officials are disappointed that the province has set the legal age for marijuana consumption at 19 years. The consensus among provincial and national health organizations is that the minimum age should be 21, and some believe it should be even older, said Dr. Phil Tibbo, director of the Nova Scotia Early Psychosis Program and a psychiatry professor at Dalhousie University. "Regular cannabis use can actually have a significant impact on brain development up until about your mid-20s," he said in an interview Thursday. [continues 265 words]
To say that Canada is in the midst of opioid crisis is, tragically, a gross understatement. This is an emergency. Some 3,000 people, or about eight a day, are expected to die of opioid overdoses this year in Canada. Another 16 others are hospitalized each day. To put that in perspective, 44 people died in the SARS epidemic of 2003. So Health Minister Ginette Petitpas Taylor's announcement last week listing new measures to fight the opioid crisis could not have come soon enough. But, distressingly, as bold as the new measures are, they don't go far enough to ward off the epidemic of deaths caused by these highly addictive drugs. [continues 587 words]
