Pubdate: Tue, 14 Feb 2012
Source: Pueblo Chieftain (CO)
Copyright: 2012 The Pueblo Chieftain
Contact:  http://www.chieftain.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1613
Author: Patrick Malone

HEMP LEGISLATION PASSES COMMITTEE VOTE

Measure Wants to Use Hemp to 'Heal' Contaminated Soil

DENVER - For the past few years the Colorado General Assembly has 
been debating the merits of marijuana as a pain reliever. On Monday, 
a legislative committee took up whether hemp, pot's less intoxicating 
cousin, has healing properties over contaminated soil.

The House Local Government Committee unanimously passed Rep. Wes 
McKinley's bill that would establish a pilot program to determine 
whether drugless hemp mitigates toxins in the ground where they're grown.

"We're not sure exactly what it does," McKinley said. "That's the 
idea of this study."

He said the study would be of a small scale, possibly a few acres, at 
a site or sites determined by the state. It would begin with indoor 
experiments.

Witnesses in favor of HB1099 said pesticides on farmlands, heavy 
metals and other toxins have been proven in other studies to be 
absorbed by plants such as sunflowers. They testified that hemp could 
be a superior alternative because it takes virtually no additional 
water than what is naturally occurring.

Despite the overwhelming vote to pass the bill, lawmakers posed some 
serious questions about its feasibility.

A legislative researcher testified that growing hemp - even the 
drugless variety - remains illegal under federal law. A dispensation 
from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration would be necessary to 
move forward with McKinley's plan.

Rep. Keith Swerdfeger, R-Pueblo West, pointed out that the medical 
marijuana industry has had trouble banking, because many institutions 
will not accept money from those types of businesses because 
marijuana is illegal under federal law.

As it is written, McKinley's bill would require the seed money for 
the study to be banked at a federally recognized institution for 
tracking purposes. The legislative analyst said banks could object, 
but would not be turned off to the extent that they are by accepting 
medical marijuana proceeds because the study would generate none.

While hemp products ranging from garments to purses and even foods 
are readily available in many stores, none of the hemp that supplies 
them is produced in the United States. McKinley said attaining hemp 
growth to an extent that would change that is not the first aim of his bill.

Next, HB1099 faces a hearing in the House Appropriations Committee.

"They're going to try to kill it," McKinley said.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom