Pubdate: Mon, 02 May 2016
Source: Record, The (Kitchener, CN ON)
Copyright: 2016 Metroland Media Group Ltd.
Contact:  http://www.therecord.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/225
Author: Jim Bronskill
Page: B4

POT GOODIES POSE HEALTH RISKS TO KIDS, FEDERAL PAPER WARNS

OTTAWA - Bite-sized marijuana goodies such as candies and cookies 
pose "significant risks" to children who might accidentally swallow 
them, warns a draft federal discussion paper on pot legalization.

It flags the public safety concern as one of the many obstacles 
Canada must negotiate on the path to regulating the drug, drawing on 
tragic lessons from Colorado.

Justin Trudeau's Liberal government says legalizing marijuana will 
keep pot out of the hands of children and deny criminals the profits 
of shady, back-alley dealing.

However, the December draft paper, obtained by The Canadian Press 
through the Access to Information Act, notes marijuana is available 
in many different forms - including some especially attractive to 
youngsters - in a number of the jurisdictions that have legalized regimes.

The Liberals plan to introduce legislation next year to remove 
marijuana consumption and incidental possession from the Criminal 
Code, and create laws to more severely punish those who provide pot 
to minors, drive while under its influence or sell it outside the new 
framework.

The government intends to soon set up a task force with input from 
experts in public health, substance abuse and policing to design a 
new system of strict marijuana sales and distribution.

In the United States, Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, Washington and the 
District of Columbia permit recreational marijuana use by those 21 
years or older.

Some 45 per cent of Colorado's marijuana sales involve edible forms 
such as food, drink or pills, according to the U.S. Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention.

Two years ago a 19-year-old in Colorado ate an entire cookie 
containing 65 mg of THC - the principal psychoactive element in 
cannabis - even though the shop clerk advised him to divide the treat 
into six servings.

An inexperienced drug user, the boy didn't realize it takes time for 
a high to kick in when consuming pot in edible form. That evening he 
jumped to his death from a fourth-floor balcony.

Overall, Colorado saw an increase in the number of marijuana-related 
poisonings, particularly accidental ingestion by children, in the 
first year of its new regime, the draft Canadian discussion paper 
notes. "Marijuana edibles often contain significantly higher 
concentrations of THC, are attractive to children and youth, and 
present significant risks and harms to health."

Colorado ushered in new regulations last year limiting THC levels in 
edible items. In addition, Dan Pabon, a Democratic member of the 
state legislature, recently introduced a bill that would outlaw pot 
products shaped like animals, humans or fruit.

"I have a three-year-old son who likes gummy bears," he told the 
Colorado Springs Gazette.

Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould, one of the federal ministers 
responsible for guiding marijuana legalization in Canada, suggested 
recently it was too early to say what kinds of products might be sold.

The task force will make recommendations after considering "all 
different forms of marijuana," and the resulting regulatory framework 
will be "responsive to those issues," she added.

In a recently published paper, the C.D. Howe Institute said it might 
be reasonable to only allow sales of dried marijuana and 
cannabis-infused oil at first - products already permitted for 
medical purposes, and for which government expertise exists. Sales of 
other pot-related goods, such as edibles, could be phased in later.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom