Pubdate: Tue, 09 Jun 2015
Source: Province, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2015 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact: http://www2.canada.com/theprovince/letters.html
Website: http://www.theprovince.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/476
Author: Nick Eagland
Page: 10-11

HASHING OUT NEW REGULATIONS FOR POT

Council's Public Hearing Will Get Wide Spectrum of Opinion on 
Marijuana Dispensaries

The fate of Vancouver's 90-plus pot dispensaries will be the subject 
of a contentious debate Wednesday as city hall hosts a public hearing 
on their potential regulation..

So far, 87 speakers have signed up for a marathon hearing that will 
pit those in favour of implementing rules, business licences and 
zoning requirements for "marijuana-related businesses" against those 
who want them left alone, on one hand, or shuttered entirely, on the other.

But one group against regulating dispensaries will boycott the 
hearing altogether.

Pamela McColl, a director with Smart Approaches to Marijuana Canada 
(SAMC), said she is concerned her group will be a target for 
criticism at the meeting for speaking out against pot.

"I was told by a private investigator that I should be extremely 
careful, that I should maybe not speak at city hall," McColl said.

McColl also accused Mayor Gregor Robertson and city council of 
"aiding and abetting" the sale of an illegal drug.

"We have laws in this country and this civic government needs to 
recognize that this issue is a Canadian issue," she said.

"This is not a City of Vancouver issue, and we expect to be safe and 
protected by our police force. If they can't do their job, then the 
RCMP's going to have to step in."

The proposed regulations include an annual $30,000 licensing fee, a 
requirement for employees to undergo criminal record checks and the 
closure of shops close to each other, schools and community centres.

But McColl said the regulations fail to consider their proximity to day cares.

She's concerned they won't limit the number of dispensaries and will 
enable them to sell what she called "dirty drugs."

A spokesman from Robertson's office said legalities around the public 
hearing process prevent the mayor and council from commenting on the 
issue before hearing from the public.

However, the mayor has spoken about regulation in the past.

"The proliferation exists because of the federal landscape," 
Robertson said in April.

"As a city we can't continue allowing these shops to be all over 
town. They're allowed to exist, but we can't let them operate in a 
vacuum. We want to be sure there are good, solid guidelines here."

Many dispensary advocates said they will speak in support of 
regulation, albeit with amendments to what the city currently 
proposes, which could shut down as many as two-thirds of them.

"I think most of them welcome regulation," said Jamie Shaw, a board 
member of the Canadian Association of Medical Cannabis Dispensaries 
(CAMCD) and spokeswoman for Vancouver's oldest dispensary, the B.C. 
Compassion Club Society (BCCCS), which opened in 1997.

"Even with this new boom in dispensaries, most of them are still 
doing it for the right reasons. Most of them are doing it to help 
sick people access cannabis and so they're willing to break the law 
to do that."

At the hearing, Shaw will represent BCCCS, which she said may have to 
close its shop on Commercial Drive and relocate if the regulations 
aren't amended, because of its proximity to a private school.

Because BCCCS is a non-profit, she believes a $30,000 fee would force 
it to scale back low-cost health services, such as massage and 
acupuncture, that it provides to more than 3,000 clients.

CAMCD and Sensible B.C., a group advocating the decriminalization of 
cannabis, have helped some 100 people prepare "from the heart" 
speeches for the hearing, Shaw said.

She said they hope the mayor and council will be moved by personal 
stories about the positive impact cannabis has had on patients' lives.

Karli Thiessen, a board member of the Victoria Cannabis Buyers Club 
dispensary who uses medicinal cannabis to treat her cancer, has also 
signed up to speak.

"The biggest concern is that we all want this to be regulated," Thiessen said.

"We don't want there to be just a free-for-all, that's not what we 
want. It has to be some sort of regulation."

But with the proposed regulations, she fears patients with mobility 
issues will lose access to their local dispensaries and to edibles.

She laments a regulation that would prevent access to patients younger than 25.

"I need to believe (the city will) do the right thing," she said. 
"And the right thing is to let cannabis be people's medicine."

Neil Magnuson of the United Cannabis Activists Network said he'll 
speak about six "deal-breakers" within the regulations: zoning 
requirements around proximity to other dispensaries and to schools; 
employee criminal record checks; the $30,000 licensing fee; the ban 
on edibles; and discussions around the sourcing of cannabis.

"(Dispensaries) welcome the idea of reasonable regulations that bring 
them into the mainstream and give them official status," Magnuson said.

"What we don't want are unreasonable regulations that continue to 
discriminate against our community, that stigmatize and continue the 
stigmatization that's been happening because of 'Reefer Madness' over 
those years - and we don't want anybody harmed," including dispensary 
owners who may lose their businesses.

Magnuson said he hopes those who oppose regulation consider the 
impacts of industries such as alcohol and tobacco, which he feels 
pose a greater threat to society.

Mark Haden, adjunct professor for UBC's School of Population and 
Public Health, won't speak at the hearing but submitted a paper he 
co-authored exploring regulation of the marijuana industry based on 
lessons learned from the alcohol and tobacco industries.

Haden said the public health approach to the regulation and control 
of cannabis is to make the drug "boring."

"It needs to be available to adults, but they don't need that many 
(dispensaries)," he said.

"I think that a lot of people are getting into the business now 
because they see that regulations are coming in and they want to be 
grandfathered in, so I understand that from a business model, but I 
don't think business should be driving this. I think that public 
health should be driving this."

To make cannabis "boring," Haden proposes making limited quantities 
of the drug available for adults over the age of 19, in a range of 
products in varying concentrations and strains.

Dispensaries wouldn't be visible from the street under such a model, 
he said, and they wouldn't advertise and be "waving the flag about 
how important" cannabis is.

A Vancouver Coastal Health spokeswoman said the health authority 
hasn't taken an official position on the city's proposed regulations, 
but Dr. Patricia Daly, chief medical health officer, has said 
legalization and strict regulation are the "best way" to reduce 
associated harm.

"I think the federal government needs to acknowledge their 
mishandling of the medical marijuana issue has led to the growth in 
outlets," she said in April.

"Taking a regulatory approach is actually the best way to reduce the 
harm associated with marijuana use. We know that trying to shut these 
places down will just drive distribution of marijuana back into the 
illegal market and organized crime."

Const. Brian Montague of the Vancouver Police Department said that 
regardless of the city's decision, the VPD's stance, policies and 
procedures will not change.

"We will continue to go into these illegal stores if they become a 
public safety issue," Montague said. "They remain illegal regardless 
of whether or not they're licensed."

Asked if there are any investigations into affiliations with 
organized crime or gangs, Montague said: "I won't specifically say 
that, but we follow up on any information we receive. If we receive 
information that there's links to organized crime, it would be investigated."

Montague said nine dispensaries have been the subject of enforcement 
since 2013 by way of an investigation and search warrant, and charges 
were recommended in all of those cases.

The public hearing starts at 6 p.m. on June 10 at Vancouver city hall 
at 453 West 12th Ave. Those who wish to speak can sign up by  or by calling 604-829-4238.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom