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Health Critic Calls For End To Pot Mine
Pubdate: Wed, 02 Nov 2005
Source: Reminder, The (CN MB)
Copyright: 2005 Reminder Online
Contact: http://www.ffdailyreminder.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3827
Author: Jonathon Naylor, staff writer
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmjcn.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal - Canada)
HEALTH CRITIC CALLS FOR END TO POT MINE
Federal Health Critic Steven Fletcher is calling on Ottawa to shut
down the nation's most famous grow-op.
"The government-run marijuana grow-op in Flin Flon, Manitoba, has been
a bust. The crop has little medicinal value and may be corrupted by
mine contaminants," said Fletcher, speaking in the House of Commons
earlier this year. "Will the [Health] Minister shut down the operation
or will taxpayers continue to be shafted?"
In a phone interview Monday, Fletcher reiterated concerns about the
project. With alternative methods of using pot as medicine including the
`liquid marijuana' spray Sativex he said the smoking option no longer makes
sense.
"I'm really uncomfortable with the government encouraging smoking of
anything, from a health perspective as health critic . . ." he said.
"It has been shown . . . that [smoking] marijuana is cancer-inducing
and is bad for one's health, and that, you know, is almost common
sense. I know the Physicians for a Smoke Free Canada [an anti-tobacco
group] are certainly not in favour. There are other delivery methods
that can be just as effective."
Many health experts agree that regular smoking of marijuana is just as
dangerous as smoking cigarettes.
Fletcher also suggested dollars could be saved by moving the grow-op
from its subterranean chamber.
"There are all sorts of secure places above ground," he said. "If you
did it in an office building on a secure floor, no one's going to be
able to have access, and it's probably more cost effective than going
all the way underground."
If the underground operation, located at Trout Lake just outside Flin
Flon, were to close, Fletcher said he would encourage the government
to work with the grower, Prairie Plan Systems, to find other
biological uses for the facility.
Flin Flon City Councillor Tom Therien thinks Fletcher is jumping the
gun.
"I don't think they've given it enough time to actually know whether
it's a bust or not," he said. "I think they need to give this
alternate method of health care some time. I mean, every other issue
in health care, they give time to before they either say `yay' or `nay.'"
Therien further disagreed that the location of the growth chamber
represents wasted effort.
"It's a perfect condition down there, from the way I understand," he
said. "You're not worried about any kind of outside elements; you're
not concerned about the weather. Personally speaking, I think this is
the perfect place to have it. It's secret, nobody has access to it,
you can control your growing conditions. I think it's a win-win
situation. I think that's a lame excuse from Mr. Fletcher. I think
he's actually speaking about something he knows little or nothing about."
Christopher Williams, a spokesperson for Health Canada, said the
underground location was chosen not by the government, but by Prairie
Plant Systems.
The growth chamber, he said, allows the company to control growing
conditions and meet the security obligations of the federal contract.
Williams said Fletcher is right to say smoking marijuana or any substance is
unhealthy, but stressed that the product is designed for end-of-life care
and for ill patients for whom traditional methods have failed.
He added that Sativex, which Fletcher mentioned, is designed
principally for people with multiple sclerosis, only one of many
conditions for which medicinal marijuana is used.
Nearly 1,200 Canadians are now authorized to smoke the Flin Flon-grown
product.
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