Pubdate: Thu, 10 Sep 2015
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2015 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Authors: David Migoya and Ricardo Baca

COLORADO LAUNCHES PROBES OF GROWS

Two Firms That Were the Focus of a Post Report Face Scrutiny.

State agriculture officials have opened an investigation into a 
marijuana grow operation named in a report by The Denver Post about 
pesticide residues, and they confirmed a second business named in the 
story was already under scrutiny.

It is unclear which of the two companies - Mahatma Concentrates or 
Treatments Unlimited, both in Denver - was already under scrutiny, 
and officials with the Colorado Department of Agriculture would not elaborate.

But the agency said investigations into the businesses' use of 
pesticides is the focus of its probe.

"The CDA has one ongoing investigation with one of the growers, and 
based on the information supplied in the article, we have opened a 
second investigation into the other named grower to determine if 
their pesticide use is in compliance with" the Colorado Pesticide 
Applicator's Act, CDA spokeswoman Christi Lightcap said in an e-mail.

Penalties on the growers could range from a simple order to stop the 
prohibited conduct to fines of up to $1,000 for each violation. Under 
the act, repeat offenders' fines are doubled and chronic offenders 
face potential license sanctions, Lightcap said.

Although laws require marijuana businesses to test for pesticide 
residues, that rule has not been enforced because only one facility 
is certified to do that analysis. Colorado Marijuana Enforcement 
Division rules show marijuana that tests positive for unapproved 
pesticides and other contaminants must be destroyed or decontaminated.

The Post on Tuesday reported that two of eight lab tests it 
commissioned on marijuana extracts found three unapproved pesticides 
in products made by Mahatma.

Although Mahatma labels indicated the tainted marijuana used to make 
the extracts came from its own grow facility, documents showed the 
cannabis actually came from Treatments. A Treatments co-owner 
admitted that the company had used products that contained the 
unapproved pesticides.

Treatments, which operates a pair of Altitude The Dispensary shops in 
Denver, was one of 11 marijuana growers to have about 100,000 plants 
quarantined earlier this year by Denver health officials over 
pesticide concerns. The city allowed most of the plants back into 
commerce, including those grown by Treatments, when levels of 
pesticide residues dropped to the lowest amount allowed on food 
crops. Two other businesses destroyed the plants rather than wait for 
pesticide test results.

CDA's announcement on Wednesday came a day after the Denver 
Department of Environmental Health issued a broad recall of Mahatma 
products following a visit to that shop. Inspectors were expected to 
be at Treatments' growing warehouse on Wednesday.

Retailers with recalled products were instructed to remove them from 
store shelves and either destroy the products in compliance with MED 
regulations or return the products to the manufacturer, said Dan 
Rowland, spokesman for Denver's office of marijuana policy.

Consumers should either destroy any recalled product they have or 
return it to the store of purchase, Rowland said.

"This information of potential pesticide misuse is concerning," 
Lightcap said in announcing the investigations. "The CDA has 
identified a list of products that can be used on marijuana, and it 
has been available to growers for well over a year."

Pesticides on marijuana is a controversial topic because no science 
exists to say which products are safe for consumers. Although several 
pesticides are approved for use on some fruit and vegetable crops, 
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency cannot say whether they are 
safe on marijuana because the plant is illegal under federal law.

CDA has compiled a list of pesticides - some of them so nontoxic that 
they do not require federal registration - that can be used on 
marijuana based on their label restrictions, not on their safety.

It is a violation of federal law to use any pesticide contrary to its 
label directions. CDA has chosen those products whose label 
restrictions are so broad that using them on marijuana would not be a 
violation.

But CDA officials have consistently said they do not recommend using 
pesticides on marijuana, nor will they say those products that appear 
on its list of approved pesticides are safe to consumers.

"We are in a completely new business here, and we're building a space 
shuttle that's not been done anywhere else," Colorado agriculture 
Commissioner Don Brown said.

Other states, including New Hampshire, have restricted pesticides 
allowed on marijuana only to those so nontoxic that federal 
registration is not required.

Colorado nearly did the same, but the industry argued that nontoxic 
pesticides - mainly organics such as neem, cinnamon and peppermint 
oils - weren't nearly strong enough to combat effectively the pests 
and mildews that most commonly attack their crop.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom