The City of Victoria just got some help from the courts in reining in the Wild West of marijuana shops in the municipality. At least 32 cannabis shops have popped up all over town in the past few years, and in 2016, the city brought in regulations to try to bring some order to the frontier. Other municipalities took a zero-tolerance approach, shutting them down whenever they appeared. Whether one saw Victoria's attitude as caving in to lawlessness or acknowledging reality, it wasn't clear if the rules would stick if they were challenged. [continues 117 words]
Tell people how to produce pot safely: Health unit If the federal government will let people grow pot in their homes, Health Canada had better explain how to do it safely. That's one of the pieces of advice from Ottawa Public Health, months before marijuana hits the legal retail market and the federal government relaxes cannabis laws across the country. The feds will allow adults to grow up to four marijuana plants in their homes for personal use. Vera Etches, the acting medical officer of health at OPH, wrote to Health Canada earlier this month as the federal agency collected feedback on the proposed cannabis regulations ahead of legalization this summer. [continues 239 words]
More than $200,000 has been collected from dispensaries since May. Langley Township has collected more than $200,000 in fines from unlicensed marijuana dispensaries since last spring, in what a former dispensary owner calls bullying. Four medical marijuana dispensaries were operating in the Township, mostly in Aldergrove, in recent months, said interim head of bylaw enforcement Bill Storie. "We've been actively, as they crop up, pursuing them," he said. The Township won't give a business licence to a dispensary. [continues 704 words]
It could have a dramatic effect on those who rely on the medical product Canadian patients who rely on medical cannabis and the organizations that represent them are frustrated with the federal government's proposed "sin" tax on their medicine. In November 2017, the Liberal government revealed a proposed excise duty framework that would see recreational cannabis taxed at a rate of $1 per gram (or 10 percent of the producer's sale price) when it is legalized in July. While most Canadians expected the duty would apply to all fresh and dried cannabis, cannabis oils, seeds, and seedlings, many patients, physicians, and members of the industry were appalled to learn that it would also apply to the sale of medical cannabis. [continues 717 words]
Cannabis to be available in only nine NSLC stores provincewide The Nova Scotia Liquor Corp. has chosen its Sydney River outlet as the only location where you can buy legal recreational cannabis in Cape Breton. Justice Minister Mark Furey and NSLC CEO Bret Mitchell announced during a news conference in Halifax Tuesday that nine liquor stores across the province will be renovated to accommodate pot dispensaries. Furey defended the government's decision to limit the number of stores, which leaves large swaths of rural Nova Scotia including the Strait area, the Annapolis Valley and the South [continues 838 words]
Responses from survey questioned Ohsweken - If you ever thought the legal pot thing would go down nice and mellow anywhere, from Salt Spring Island to St. John's, or Six Nations in between, what were you smoking? Case in point. Sunday's gathering at Yogi's Barn, 2318 Chiefswood Road, Ohsweken, to discuss the results of a recent survey about cannabis use and regulation in the Six Nations community. The survey in question shows massive support (in the 80 to 90 per cent range, based on answers from 731 respondents) for the availability of marijuana in their territory and for the "sovereign right" of the Six Nations people to "determine their own path and choices regarding cannabis." [continues 587 words]
With legalization right around the corner we seem to be in a state of fog and confusion as to what it means. It is very strange that when pot/marijuana was illegal we didn't even look for it or test for it in drivers. Suddenly we seem to think there will be a huge increase in usage and that there is money to be made by an all out ban on a soon to be legal substance, even though impairment can't be proven or measured? [continues 161 words]
A recent illegal cannabis grow operation in North Delta, busted by Delta police, is highlighting the challenges law enforcement will soon face when new marijuana legislation comes into effect later this year. Chief Neil Dubord updated Delta police board members last week on the illegal operation police raided in late November. Dubord said a complaint was received by the mayor's office on Oct. 17 regarding concerns over a potential cannabis grow operation in a home. "Upon investigation, it was learned that Health Canada issued a licence dated Nov. 28 allowing 93 plants to be grown at that location," Dubord said. "Although licensed, drug investigators continued with the investigation due to evidence that suggested the operation was not consistent with 93 plants." [continues 339 words]
Nelson's top cop is preparing for the legalization of recreational marijuana The woman waiting in the reception area of the Nelson Police Department spots Chief Constable Paul Burkart and calls his name. "Hi Paul," she says. The chief smiles and leans out through the open door, asking, "What can I get for you?" The woman tells him she needs some volunteer security clearance forms. Burkart speaks to an officer in the front dispatch area and asks him to assist the visitor. [continues 657 words]
Bank of Montreal is open to more deals with cannabis companies, as long as those firms can get past "traps" in the lender's due-diligence process, chief executive Darryl White said. The Toronto-based lender became the first major Canadian bank to arrange a stock sale for a company tied to cannabis this month when its capital-markets unit helped lead a $200.7-million equity financing for Canopy Growth Corp. In his first public comments about the deal, Mr. White called the marijuana producer "a bona fide business operating within the boundaries of the law." [continues 530 words]
Includes cannabis purchased for medical and recreational purposes IT'S official, according to Canada's government statistics agency: Canadians spent a ton of money on weed last year. To be exact, Statistics Canada estimates 4.9 million Canucks between the ages of 15 and 64 shelled out $5.7 billion for marijuana in 2017. For comparison, Statistics Canada offered 2016 household spending data for two other popular drugs - $22.3 billion on alcohol, and $16 billion on tobacco. The $5.7-billion figure, released Thursday morning, covers cannabis purchases for both medical and recreational purposes. More than 90 per cent of that spending was on cannabis used for non-medical purposes. [continues 823 words]
Marijuana is moving in. Big time. So here's something to ponder: Will a flood of prolific, easy-to-grow pot mean fewer exciting plants for we gardeners to grow? Could be. Right now, we're accustomed to taking our pick from a wonderful selection of inexpensive offerings, mostly because they're raised in Ontario greenhouses and no longer imported from other countries. Think of fabulous Phalaenopsis orchids (once rare and pricey, yet now so common and inexpensive, we're actually getting tired of them); perfect Christmas poinsettias; a cavalcade of mums in fall; potted spring bulbs all winter; pansies, petunias, plus many other colourful annuals; In spring, heavenly hellebores; exotic offerings such as anthuriums and alstroemerias. [continues 600 words]
StatsCan can tell you the answer to that Albertans are paying just under $8 a gram for marijuana on average, according to a new Statistics Canada report. The Cannabis Economic Report ranked average prices of medical and non-medical cannabis between provinces and found Alberta is slightly above the national average and the highest of the Prairies at $7.67. The national average is $7.48. Manitoba has the cheapest weed at $6.69 per gram, while the territories rank the highest at $9.58. [continues 106 words]
Medical cannabis patients who use the plant to treat conditions ranging from eczema to cancer are coming together this Friday from 10 a.m. to noon in front of Finance Minister Bill Morneau's downtown Toronto constituency office at 430 Parliament St., to call out the government's proposed plan to increase the already unfair and burdensome tax on medical cannabis. Unlike medical cannabis, most prescribed medications are not taxed, creating a situation where patients are choosing medications based on financial options rather than harm reduction and efficacy. [continues 408 words]
Niagara Falls may consider the possibility of licensed cannabis consumption lounges once recreational marijuana is legalized this summer. Coun. Wayne Thomson said he's notified Niagara Falls Tourism, of which he's the chairman, the provincial government is considering allowing such establishments, and is asking the public to weigh in on the idea. "I've already sent it to Niagara Falls Tourism to get the feedback from some of the hotels, whether they feel that they're comfortable with this, or they're not," he said. [continues 542 words]
The Saskatchewan Medical Association (SMA) is hoping the provincial government will consider the effects of marijuana on brain development when deciding on the legal age for purchase. Though the provincial government has announced recreational marijuana will be sold through private retailers and regulated by the SLGA, they say they are waiting to decide the legal age until the new cabinet and premier are in place. The majority of provinces are restricting the purchase of marijuana to those 19 and older, SMA president Dr. Joanne Sivertson says limiting access to people 21 and over would make Saskatchewan a leader in protecting the brain development of young adults. [continues 231 words]
Police chief warns shop owners they could be raided at any time Regina's police chief is warning that officers could move against marijuana dispensaries at any moment, potentially charging operators and confiscating their weed. It's Evan Bray's most immediate threat yet against Regina's 19 or so pot shops. He said the police will soon send official warnings to owners - but that's just "a courtesy." The law is "black and white," he said Wednesday, and dispensaries are already breaking it. [continues 515 words]
Langara journalism students attended the Jan. 18 Vancouver Police Board meeting When I'm not searching for the truth, or driving my sports-crazy kids around the Lower Mainland -- or deciding whether my tea of the day should be "super green matcha" or turmeric and ginger - I sometimes impart my semi-mad journalism skills on Langara College students. And sometimes, like last Thursday, those students join me on the job. We attended a Vancouver Police Board meeting, where we heard Insp. Bill Spearn of the VPD's major crime section tell us that overdose deaths in the city are still at a crisis level - at least 335 people are suspected of dying in 2017, with more than 80 per cent of the deaths connected to fentanyl. [continues 598 words]
The City of Vernon, said Coun. Dalvir Nahal to the overflow crowd of more than 70 people who crammed into Vernon council chambers Monday, has a responsibility to taxpayers, business owners and children to make sure what the city is doing in regards to marijuana dispensaries is being done. The city held a public hearing Monday on a zoning text amendment bylaw that is not intended to close down dispensaries that were in operation before Nov. 14, 2017. The bylaw is to bridge the process that will allow dispensaries to continue to operate provided certain conditions are met. [continues 718 words]
Owners weigh options as nation moves toward legalization in July Cuong Nguyen will lose his job in three weeks. He might even lose it sooner, if the city police tell Regina Green Cross Medicine to stop selling marijuana before February 15. For now, that's the date his bosses plan to close up shop - and everything must go. "It's kind of crappy, to be honest," he said. "Now I have to look for a new job." Last Tuesday, Regina Police Chief Evan Bray warned cannabis dispensaries that they're breaking the law. He hinted at possible enforcement action in the coming weeks. [continues 700 words]
