Category: Information

As legal pot farms expand, so do air pollution worries

Colorado plans major study of emissions from indoor growing facilities BOULDER, COLORADO—Atmospheric scientist William Vizuete grew his dozen pot plants in a garage here, on shelves tucked between some bicycles and a lawn mower. The researcher at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill wasn’t looking for a high—just data. His team aimed to…
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‘No-go’ zones: Cartels setting up marijuana farms in US

Jorge VenturaUpdated: JUL 12, 2023 / 06:30 PM CDT (NewsNation) — The sheriff’s department in Riverside County, California, is waging a war on so-called “no-go” zones in the rural desert, where drug cartels are paying cash for land and setting up illegal marijuana farms. Coined by the residents in the area, these zones are run and protected by Mexican…
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Statewide Cannabis Enforcement Taskforce Conducts Massive Central Valley Operation on Outdoor Grow Sites and Nets Over $42 Million of Illegal Cannabis

Highly coordinated, multiagency operation serves 51 search warrants on illegal outdoor cannabis sites in just two days Continuing its strong first quarter momentum, the Unified Cannabis Enforcement Taskforce (UCETF), conducted a highly coordinated operation in Kern, Tulare and Kings counties on May 11 and 12. The extensive multiagency operation served 51 search warrants on 52…
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Man barred from smoking medical weed after neighbor sues – due to stink

Following a three-year long legal battle, a Washington, D.C. judge banned a man from smoking medical marijuana in his home after his neighbor filed a lawsuit claiming the smell drifted into her home and made her sick. Judge Ebony Scott ruled this week that although Thomas Cackett has a license to purchase medical marijuana “he…
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Managing California’s Cannabis Industry Requires Vigorous Law Enforcement

Corruption Pervasive Across California Cannabis There are roughly 5,000 greenhouses illegally cultivating marijuana in Siskiyou County, Calif., according to the county’s Sheriff’s Department in March 2023. (Courtesy of the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Department) By John Moorlach May 11, 2023Updated: May 14, 2023 Commentary Let me confess that while I served in the California State Senate, I…
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Doubt the Drought? Rules For Thee but Not for Me

By Adina Flores, May 11, 2023 In recent years, Californians have been instructed by Governor Newsom to conserve as much water as possible due to drought conditions. The question at hand is if this same advisory applies to individuals across the board. According to a 2021 confidential investigative report compiled by Insight Group, Inc; stakeholders within…
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Corruption in California’s cannabis industry has become widespread and brazen.

March 23, 2023 Corruption in California’s cannabis industry has become widespread and brazen. There have been pay-to-play schemes, including a demand for cash in a brown paper bag for a pot license, threats of violence against local officials, and city council members accepting money from cannabis businesses even as they regulated them. Those problems and…
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Bay Area cannabis grows linked to Chinese organized crime

Lester Black, SFGATE March 23, 2023 Overseas Chinese organized crime groups are behind many of the illegal cannabis operations in Northern California, officials say. “The [California Department of Cannabis Control] has reason to believe that Chinese triads have been participating in illegal cannabis cultivation for several years in Northern California,” David Hafner, a DCC spokesperson, said…
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Cannabis Cartel: Weeding out Local Farmers

Mercy Wellness opened the first and only cannabis consumption lounge within the County of Sonoma By Adina Flores, May 8, 2023 As of December 2022, Santa Rosa-based Sonoma Lab Works has officially closed their doors. Just before Christmas, employees were laid off with virtually no notice. According to Green Market Report, “the lab’s owner, businessman Darius Anderson,…
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Cannabis workers face death and exploitation. California is stepping in after Times investigation

By Paige St. JohnStaff Writer  WEAVERVILLE, Calif.  — Workers including this man were recruited to a licensed cannabis farm in Trinity County and said they felt trapped on a freezing mountain, working behind locked gates without heat, water, shelter and, in the end, their pay. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) Acknowledging growing…
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