Pubdate: Thu, 12 Mar 2015
Source: Oshawa This Week (CN ON)
Copyright: 2015 Oshawa This Week
Contact:  http://www.durhamregion.com/oshawa-on-news
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1767
Note: Please specify Oshawa This Week as source in LTE

MARIJUANA EDUCATION HELPS IN BYLAW DISCUSSIONS

In recent years the issue of marijuana has changed. Where once it was 
considered a prohibitive substance, an illegal drug, today its 
medicinal purposes are being praised as more and more Canadians are 
prescribed the drug to ease suffering.

Health Canada estimates as many as 50,000 Canadians were permitted to 
use medical marijuana in 2014 for conditions such as chronic pain, 
epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, arthritis, anxiety and people 
undergoing cancer treatment. Oshawa residents Ben Fudge and Marko 
Ivancicevic are among those 50,000 permitted users and addressed a 
medical marijuana working group to educate councillors on issues 
related to the drug. Together they outlined the history of medical 
marijuana in Canada and highlighted some of the issues that affect 
municipalities, including zoning for legal marijuana production 
facilities and the licensing of vapor lounges.

Oshawa has received one proposal for marijuana production in an area 
with agricultural zoning and that prompted much discussion from 
councillors. Mr. Ivancicevic pointed out there is no consistency 
among municipalities with regard to zoning. In Leamington, a medical 
marijuana production facility operates under the agricultural 
greenhouse zone while Clarington slots it in as a processing plant 
under industrial zoning. It will be up to Oshawa council to determine 
how to formulate its own zoning bylaw.

Councillor Nancy Diamond also raised concerns, including whether 
people should present proof of a Health Canada permit at a potential 
vapour lounge. She said it seemed illogical to license vapour lounges 
given that they could be the site of illegal activity if there is no 
way to test that visitors to the lounge have permits.

However, due to privacy rights a municipality cannot ask for proof. 
All that's necessary is a prescription to use.

"In all honesty no one needs to be privy to that information," Mr. 
Ivancicevic said.

Eventually councillors will have to establish zoning bylaws dealing 
with medical marijuana so this working group was a good start at 
understanding the complexities of the issue. It gave all involved 
more information so they can use what they learned when dealing with 
Oshawa's future zoning bylaws. The federal government legalized these 
operations but it will be the City that's responsible for where 
they're located and the enforcement of them.

Long gone are the days when marijuana was an issue dealt with only by 
the police and the courts. Today it's moved into the mainstream and 
the better our elected representatives understand it, the better able 
they will be at formulating bylaws governing its use.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom