Pubdate: Fri, 01 May 2015
Source: Maple Ridge News (CN BC)
Copyright: 2015 Maple Ridge News
Contact:  http://www.mapleridgenews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1328
Author: Phil Melnychuk

CITY WANTS SAY ON MEDICAL GROWS

'Location of properties should be made public'

Cities and the people who live within them, should be able to have a
say in where medical marijuana operations set up within their
boundaries, says the mayor of Maple Ridge.

"It should be a formal requirement that Health Canada make the
location of these potential sites known to the public and hold a
public meeting and consider the comments of our citizens in
determining if such a facility should be considered for licensing in
our city," Nicole Read said in a release Friday.

The mayor wrote to federal Health Minister Rona Ambrose pointing out
there's no formal public process relating to locations of medical
marijuana facilities in Maple Ridge.

Maple Ridge is currently dealing with community opposition to a
medical marijuana plant being built in Whonnock on 272nd Street over
protests of the neighbours.

"The situation in Whonnock highlights the issues around the failures
in the current Health Canada process.

"Our citizens expect to have a robust public process around the
location of these facilities, yet there is none," Read said.

"To be very clear, we understand that there is a market for the
medical use of marihuana, and the goal is to establish a national
network of licensed growers."

But Read said the city is concerned about the process that
involves.

"We will continue to vigorously press the federal government to
establish a public process relating to the location of medical
marijuana production facilities."

She said in her letter that Maple Ridge is getting more than its share
of medical marijuana applications.

In March, the City of Maple Ridge sought the opinion of the Office of
the Information and Privacy Commissioner in Victoria to see if it can
tell the public more about plans for a dozen possible medical pot
productions in the city.

Anyone who applies to Health Canada for a medical marijuana grow
operation must inform the city, fire and police of their plans.

However, privacy laws prevent the city from disclosing any of that
information, such as location, to the public.

Medical marijuana facilities are permitted uses within the
Agricultural Land Reserve and can't be prohibited by cities.

Final arguments are wrapped up Friday in a court challenge of the
federal government's move to ban home growing of medical marijuana by
doctor-approved users.

A win by pro-pot advocates would blow a big hole in the new federal
system imposed last spring that outlawed previously legal home grows
and tried to force all patients to buy only from new commercial
producers. Those companies will have the exclusive right to grow and
sell if Ottawa prevails.

Abbotsford lawyer John Conroy told Judge Michael Phelan the new system
means higher medical marijuana costs for thousands of users who until
now have been able to grow their own and who have a court-enshrined
right in Canada to reasonable access to their medicine.

In December 2012, Federal Minister of Health Leona Aglukkaq announced
the new program called Marijuana for Medical Purposes Regulation at a
media conference held at Maple Ridge's Fire Hall No. 1.

The regulation encouraged large-scale commercial medical marijuana
facilities while phasing out personal medical grow permits.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Matt