Andrew who? That's the question I'm asked when I knock on doors in my area to inform voters about the District 2's upcoming election. On June 3 the Board of Supervisors race between Larry Wahl and Andrew Merkel will boil down to money. Yes, I said money. Marijuana money. Money earned from huge grows in the foothills that have frightened the longtime residents there. Wahl is willing to stand up to these often threatening and aggressive growers, who want to keep their thriving businesses alive while dumping nitrates and pesticides into the creeks and soil of the foothills. Their illegal grading into the sides of mountains in the foothills has got to be seen to be believed. (Go to www.bsane.org and see.) [continues 107 words]
In the April 25 issue of the E-R is an editorial about the current medical marijuana referendum. The editorial states that "They're sociopaths with guns and vicious dogs," in reference to pot growers in the "marijuana industry." That is a horrible generalization and is borderline libelous. Yes, there are criminal elements and cartels growing huge gardens for profit. Yes, there are unruly growers with guns and dogs. There are also growers who are good people with guns and dogs to protect their property and legal garden from criminals who would rather steal than work. [continues 81 words]
The Butte County Board of Supervisors has conspired to place on the ballot an ordinance for governing the illegal production of marijuana, an acknowledged violation of federal drug laws. To violate federal drug laws is not a ballot choice matter, any more than illegal production of heroin or cocaine in Butte County would be. The only logical, reasonable choice is "one nation, one law" for equal rights to all Americans. We are 50 united states, not 50 individual, opposing countries. Email your congressional representatives to repeal federal marijuana laws and legislate one nation, one law, for all today. Stick a federal tax stamp on them baggies, plus state and local taxes, and help lower the national deficit too. - - Phil Foto, Magalia [end]
In November Butte County voters once again will be asked a rather bizarre question: "Should a noxious industry be regulated?" Why does that question even have to be asked? But once again, we may well offer up the equally bizarre answer: "No." And that's all because the word "marijuana" will appear in the ballot measure. There's something about seeing that word on the ballot that makes the soberest of people vote like they're stoned. The view seems to be that it's just pot. Or, it's medicine. Except it's not. It's a multi-million-dollar industry unregulated and untaxed, and emboldened by the fact the state's laws are so vague as to be worthless. [continues 561 words]
Until the Vote Current Ordinance Is Suspended OROVILLE - Butte County supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to put on the November ballot the dispute over the most recent iteration of the county's restrictions of cultivation medical marijuana. The vote was the reaction to a petition drive launched after the Feb. 11th vote by the board to approve new pot growing rules. The new ordinance, among other things, put limits on the allowable growing space within a marijuana garden. Depending on the acreage of a parcel, the prospective grower could have a garden of 50 square-feet to 150 square-feet. [continues 521 words]
Referendum Certified; Butte Supervisors Can Rescind Rule or Put Question to a Vote OROVILLE - A referendum petition aimed at blocking Butte County's most recently enacted marijuana cultivation rules has been certified as having enough signatures to be valid. The referendum targets parts of the cultivation ordinance passed in February that limits the size of a marijuana garden. The rule allows gardens from 50 square-feet to 150 square-feet depending on the size of the parcel, and also sets minimum setbacks between the garden and the property line, again depending on the lot size. [continues 326 words]
I agree with letter writer Garry Cooper's call for banning lobbying by prison and police unions. However, they aren't the only groups interested in maintaining our draconian and unenforceable drug laws. Republic Reports website ranks police unions around the country as number one in contributions, followed closely by the pharmaceutical corporations, who certainly don't want marijuana legalized and taxed. Republic Reports goes on to say private prisons corporations "make millions by incarcerating people who have been imprisoned for drug crimes, including marijuana. ... Prison companies have spent millions bankrolling pro-drug war politicians and have used secretive front groups, like the American Legislative Exchange Council, to pass harsh sentencing requirements for drugs." [continues 95 words]
Alcohol prohibition's historical complaints included: exploding stills, drunk waterfowl, children showing up to school drunk, drive-by shootings, and general disrespect for law. These issues largely resolved with the end of prohibition. Ask a centenarian if they think things got worse after legalization. The present prohibition's complaints include: stinky gardens, degraded environment, children using adult substances, black-market thuggery, and general disrespect for law. If our past is any guide to our future, these issues will resolve with legalization and regulation. If our governance is more just, more citizens will happily consent to being governed. Legalization is the only way out of this box canyon that we've been stampeded into. - - Jay Bergstrom, Forest Ranch [end]
I've noticed a disturbing trend lately in all of the anti-cannabis letters to the editor in that they seem to be getting more and more disrespectful. I'm talking about the use of the words "dopers" and "potheads." I'm talking about putting the word "medicine" in quotation marks when referring to cannabis, as if there is still some kind of question that cannabis is a life-saving medicine. I'm talking about this latest letter by Everett Gremminger that tries to convince us that the election of Andrew Merkel, and the rejection of Larry Wahl, will be the "beginning of the end" of Butte County. The fact is, the opposite is true: Wahl and his maniacal prohibitionist policies will, if implemented, be an economic catastrophe to this county. All Merkel is trying to do is defend our rights, under Proposition 215, as voted on by the people of California. Wahl wants to take those rights away, to reflect his outdated and erroneous view of things. [continues 79 words]
Your editorial about the "entertaining election" was spot on. However the election also could be devastating to the county. The District 2 supervisors race between incumbent Larry Wahl and admitted dope user Andrew Merkel could be the beginning of the end for Butte County if Merkel is elected. At the numerous supervisors meetings on the marijuana issue the potheads put forth that Butte County could become the nation's No. 1 pot growing county. Much like Napa Valley with wine and Silicon Valley with computers - Butte County could be No. 1 with pot. Isn't that just great? I would think that Butte County would better be known for olive oil, almonds, walnuts. The last thing anyone other than a dope user would want for our community is to be recognized as the pot capital. This could happen if Merkel gets elected. [continues 116 words]
Apparently it's true, from all the studies that have been done by doctors and scientists, that long term marijuana use,causes memory loss. I never used the word "beat down," as Andrew Merkel alleged in a letter. Merkel himself, only four weeks ago at the supervisors meeting Feb, 11, said: "Are you ready for a beat down?" He did not ask "do you want," as he states in his letter. You see when you are running for elective office, as in supervisor of a district, you have to have an excellent memory. [continues 125 words]
Goal Is to Abolish Existing Ordinance OROVILLE - Opponents to Butte County's recently passed medical marijuana cultivation ordinance delivered petitions with 12,262 signatures on them in hopes they will lead to the abolition of the rule. The petitions, which were brought into the Butte County administrative office in Oroville, arrived just two hours before the 5 p.m. deadline Wednesday. If the petitions had not arrived by the deadline the entire drive would have been voided. If at least 7,605 of the signatures are certified as valid, the petitions will force Butte County's supervisors to either on their own vote to rescind the ordinance or to place the referendum before county voters. [continues 362 words]
In response to your March 5 editorial about Gov. Jerry Brown's marijuana comments, I would like to say that we, the medical cannabis community, are sick and tired of these negative stereotypes. We are not lazy potheads who have no attention span, who will weaken our state/nation. We are everyday average people, from all walks of life, who have found in this plant a way to a much healthier, happy life. If ingesting harmful, toxic, addictive pharmaceutical pills works for you, then go for it. But please stop this useless, unnecessary "beat down" on those of us who have chosen a different path. [continues 138 words]
While I admit to asking Bonnie Masarik if she wanted a "beat down" during a Board of Supervisors meeting, your recent editorial took my comments out of context. Masarik, has, in the past, characterized the 2013 ordinance developed by the ad hoc committee as a "beat down" by the growers. That is simply false. Here are the facts: The June 2012 referendum election had proved that the ordinance the Board of Supervisors had adopted in 2011 was out of step with the majority of the voters. In late 2012 and early 2013, five months of negotiations between county officials and parties from both sides resulted in a fair compromise. [continues 144 words]
It's not often we find ourselves agreeing with Gov. Jerry Brown, but we think he perfectly stated some of the same concerns we have about the legalization of marijuana. As an added bonus, he did it on a national stage. That's important, because the viewpoint is something everybody nationwide needed to hear - - and we hope it sparks a spirited discussion. Brown was being interviewed on a national Sunday morning news program, NBC's "Meet the Press." He was asked about the possibility of California, a pioneer with medical marijuana, following in the footsteps of Colorado and Washington and legalizing marijuana for everyday, nonmedical use. [continues 424 words]
The letter written by Rebecca Finn about another election is right on. The people of Butte County voted five district supervisors to represent the majority of the voters in Butte County. Supervisors voted for tighter restrictions so, if you have five acres, you are only allowed one 5-foot by 10-foot area to grow. That amounts to two each very small plants. They are not thinking. Bugs kill many plants. The board is also inconsiderate to people who don't own five acres. How do they obtain or grow their medical marijuana? [continues 85 words]
Read the newspapers, listen to the radio, watch television. Almost every day another crime is committed in our community by none other than recreational marijuana users, sellers and thieves. This month, in a car chase from Chico to Magalia, officers found marijuana and meth. A probation officer arrested a probation violator and found a marijuana honey oil lab. He was on probation for assault with a deadly weapon. An Oroville man was charged with murder after a marijuana theft "gone bad." [continues 153 words]
Helen Harberts' letter challenging my letter was a perfect example of the law enforcement community breaking out the big guns to continue the drug war and the expansion of the law enforcement industry's key role in it. Harberts is a political operative for the law enforcement industry and its powerful unions. She has been a prosecutor and probation person for 25 years. She knows well that in California, for instance, that the prison guard union alone is the second largest political power in the state and when combined with the other law enforcement/prosecution political action committees, that they have more influence and contribute more money to their causes, including drug policies, than any other political power in the state. She wants you to believe that these poor little unions have no influence whatsoever. People of her like mind, and the financially powerful law enforcement unions that she advocates for, is why we are in this mess in the first place. [continues 97 words]
In response to Rebecca Fine's Feb. 16 letter regarding the marijuana referendum, the problem is not the supervisors wasting our money - it's the growers who are robbing us all. I support the legalization of marijuana in California. Once this happens, marijuana will become just another agricultural commodity where the state can license growers, issue permits, regulate water and pesticide use, and raise revenue from taxes for local governments. However, at this moment, most large grows in Butte County are illegal. Over half of these illegal grows are run by drug cartels. This means no regulation on water and pesticide use, geographical restrictions nor tax revenue. [continues 153 words]
Have you seen the card tables at Target, Wal-Mart and Raley's? Petition drives, leading to passionate talk about the marijuana growing in Butte County. Who's right, who's wrong? I'd never looked at the people who live in the foothills before this month. Good, honest residents of the county are scared. They're scared of the "growers for profit." These growers have used the 99-plant ordinance, passed last year by our Board of Supervisors, to fund this new referendum that overturns stricter regulations passed Feb. 11 by the supervisors. The growers' strategy uses the referendum process to delay these safeguards. [continues 147 words]
The recent letter by Garry Cooper regarding the "epic battle between good and evil" regarding marijuana is misleading. Cooper can have his own opinions, but he can't have his own facts. While Cooper rails about imprisonment for marijuana, the simple fact is that in California, possession of marijuana is an infraction. It is a traffic ticket. As Cooper rails that the federal prisons are full of drug offenders, he implies that this is cannabis only. That is wrong. He uses poor or zero facts to justify his comments. The true facts may be found in a fact sheet called "Need to Know" from the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (www.nadcp.org). [continues 141 words]
As usual the county supervisors meeting Feb. 11 was filled with the usual, rude, rowdy bunch of pot growers, users, buyers, sellers, traders, all unwilling to hear the other side. We have to live next door to their stench. We have said all along, we are fine and it's OK if individuals are growing a few plants, for their own personal use. It's the large "legal" grows that are causing all the problems. The organizations for large grows are out in force again with their petition, which in itself is very confusing. They want to repeal and replace last year's ordinance, of December 2013, which actually allows 99, 66, 48, plants. Go figure. The large growers get their own way and still they are not happy. [continues 101 words]
Why is the Board of Supervisors so willing to squander taxpayers' money for a second election on an issue previously voted on? In 2011 Butte County had a special election after the Board of Supervisors passed an incredibly restrictive ordinance on growing medical marijuana. Butte County residents showed their distaste with a referendum, and voters agreed by denying its passage. In the smartest move I had seen yet, a committee was formed made up of both advocates and opponents to come up with guidelines that brought compromise to a contentious issue. [continues 167 words]
Personally, I don't smoke the stuff, but having lived in the Oroville foothills for over 13 years now, I can tell you crime will be absolutely rampant if these new medical marijuana growing restrictions are passed. As it stands, there's safety in "cooperatives," where several patients grow on one parcel. I know people who have been beaten up for their plants, and if they limit the number of plants to the extent they are discussing, these "pot bandits" will just get nastier and bolder, hopping fences to get what they can, by whatever means necessary. Older people who seem to find relief from the medicinal properties of marijuana, for ailments such as arthritis, cancer, etc., will be the easiest targets for what can be some very vicious robberies. Some may not even be able to cultivate their own marijuana. [continues 89 words]
In the early morning of Jan. 15, law enforcement responded to an explosion at a residence on Cold Creek Lane in Oroville. It was the fourth explosion caused by butane honey oil in recent weeks in Butte County, according to authorities. Butane honey oil labs are becoming a frequent and undesirable discovery for the members of the Butte County Sheriff's Office's Special Enforcement Unit. The practice of refining marijuana into a honey-like consistency has been going on for more than 20 years, but it has recently become popular, SEU detective Doug Patterson said. [continues 924 words]
OROVILLE - A woman was placed on four years probation Tuesday on marijuana and child endangerment charges for conditions at her Concow-area house in 2011. Butte County Superior Court Judge Robert Glusman handed down the sentence for defendant Daisy Jean Bram, 33. Terms included 78 additional days in jail, completing a child abusers treatment counseling program and restrictions on drug use, including medical marijuana. Outside of court, Bram said she would take her licks, but asked what the benefit was of additional jail for a first-time offender to herself, her children or the public. [continues 599 words]
In 1978, as I was just beginning a career as a police officer in San Diego, my mother, who raised five kids and took care of my father who had severe job-related back injury and could not work, contracted melanoma cancer in her chest. The strong woman who never drank alcohol, smoked or uttered a profanity in her life could not overcome the deadly curse of cancer. She went through every treatment known but was losing the battle as we sadly watched her shrivel up into a skin-covered skeleton. Nothing, even massive doses of medications, could ease her pain. My family would have done anything to help her and if we knew then that marijuana would have helped ease her pain, we would have done just about anything to get her some. After suffering with the disease for too many months, she passed away. The saddest day of my life. [continues 105 words]
The proposed new marijuana restrictions are a natural reaction to an industry that took advantage of voters' benign nature. We've been arguing for months that Butte County needs to do more to protect rural landowners from the dangers and other impacts of large-scale marijuana growing. Last week, the Board of Supervisors did just that. In fact, the supervisors went far beyond any restrictions we advocated or imagined. They went from one extreme to another, from an immensely lenient policy to a very restrictive one. [continues 437 words]
OROVILLE -- In an entirely unexpected move, the Board of Supervisors preliminarily passed amendments to Butte County's marijuana cultivation ordinance Tuesday that drastically tighten restrictions on growers. On a motion by Chico Supervisor Maureen Kirk, the board unanimously voted to limit marijuana gardens not by the number of plants but by square-footage. Where the property is greater than a half-acre but less than five acres, the garden can be no larger than 50 square feet. On a parcel greater than five acres but less than 10, the garden must be no larger than 100 square feet. On land over 10 acres - no matter how much larger - the maximum garden size is 150 square feet. [continues 473 words]
Deliberate obfuscation of the truth is a lie in reality. In recent weeks, there have been several attempts to paint County Supervisor Larry Wahl's position on the growing of marijuana as less restrictive than the county ordinance voted on in December because he voted no on the latest amendments. The county's latest amendments did not restrict the number of plants that can be grown. It merely upped the fine that can be imposed ($500 for the first offense), allowed anyone to file a complaint, and required a "house" on the premises that conforms to county building codes. But it kept in place the number of plants that can be grown & up to 99. [continues 145 words]
Kudos to Supervisor Bill Connelly for clearly elucidating his position regarding marijuana in Butte County. I hope his call for reform at the federal level is heard in Washington. I would wish that the entire board supplicated before the feds in the form of a resolution. If they'd get off the pot, we could go ahead with reasonable regulation. Our century-long experiment with prohibition of cannabis has yielded results: Turns out that the prohibition idea is not a good one. - - Jay Bergstrom, Forest Ranch [end]
Recent articles make it important for me to clearly state my position on medical marijuana as a Butte County supervisor. To be clear, I do not support the total legalization of marijuana and I am skeptical there are beneficial uses for medical patients. I have stated in the past and currently stand with four points regarding marijuana. One, as currently grown, there is a real threat to personal and family safety. Marijuana is valuable and prone to violent theft. Two, if you live near a marijuana grow, there are intrusions on you and your family including traffic, dust, noise and odor. Three, generally, if there is a marijuana grow near your property, the property value goes down. Four, many of our county's problems with illegal marijuana grows originate from the difference in state vs. federal law. It is illegal across the nation, but quasi-legal here. That is confusion. I have stated marijuana laws are creating the same problems as Prohibition did with alcohol. The federal government needs to drop marijuana from a class one narcotic and regulate it from grow site to licensed sales facilities. [continues 75 words]
OROVILLE - A jury has convicted a woman on marijuana and child endangerment counts for a grow and conditions at her Concow-area residence in 2011. The Butte County Superior Court panel of four men and eight women took about six hours before reaching a verdict today in the trial of Daisy Jean Bram, 33. The jury found Bram guilty of felony counts of cultivating marijuana and possessing it for sale. Investigators found 95 marijuana plants and 7.1 additional pounds at Bram's Yellow Wood Road residence on Sept. 29, 2011. [continues 425 words]
In his letter about the damage to society caused by marijuana, Robert Fay instead illustrates the terrible consequences of criminalizing marijuana. We have created a massive, dangerous criminal industry - and a corrosively huge prison population - by exiling marijuana's cultivation, sale and use away from lawful society. If we want to eliminate drug violence and the incentive to deal drugs, we need to transfer the profit motive away from criminals, towards legitimate enterprise. Marijuana should be legalized, regulated, taxed and daylighted. There's no magic bullet - the criminal industry wouldn't disappear overnight. The current unworkable patchwork of medical marijuana laws is just an awkward first step. [continues 64 words]
OROVILLE - Butte County officials are predicting a marathon session for Tuesday's Board of Supervisors meeting, when the panel considers possible revision to the county's medical marijuana cultivation ordinance. Paul Hahn, Butte's chief administrative officer, said he expects a standing-room-only crowd when the timed item comes up at 10:30 a.m. Hahn also said if things go as they have in the past when medical marijuana cultivation rules have come before the board, the public comment could go on for hours. [continues 379 words]
HIT - It was the perfect example of big bank versus little bank this week. Chico got slapped down by its own financial institution - a big bank - that said it could not help with the city's search for temporary cash. In steps the little guy, Golden Valley Bank. A community bank that's seven years old with one branch, Golden Valley said it could cover the financial gap, which was only for a short time until money due the city actually arrived in the city's accounts. [continues 522 words]
OROVILLE - Illegal pot grows and water issues dominated the discussions at the Oroville Area Chamber of Commerce Legislative Series conference Monday, although whiskey was also mentioned. Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) and Butte County Supervisor Bill Connelly addressed a room full of people in City Council Chambers who came to hear how federal and county legislation and regulations impact the area. Illegal marijuana cultivation LaMalfa co-authored legislation for sentencing people convicted of illegally growing marijuana. Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA) and Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) introduced the Protecting Lands Against Narcotics Trafficking Act, called the PLANT Act, to the house in July. [continues 737 words]
CHICO -- Butte County and a Concow marijuana grower are in the midst of a legal battle that the grower asserts is about what's growing in his garden, while the county says it's about grading. In early May, Dan Levine, who identifies himself as president of "LLL Ranch," received a letter from Mike Crump, Butte County director of the Department of Public Works, saying grading on the property had moved 2,750 cubic yards of soil, and the county requires a grading permit anytime an individual moves more than 50 cubic yards of soil. [continues 598 words]
FOREST RANCH -- Roy Wallis and Nick Hoekstra are Butte County code enforcement officers who recently have spent much of their time investigating alleged violations of the county's medical marijuana cultivation ordinance. The officers, who are not police and have no law enforcement power, recently took an Enterprise-Record reporter and photographer on their rounds. As a precondition to joining them, the paper agreed not to give precise locations of the gardens or the names of the growers without the grower's specific consent. [continues 554 words]
Butte County's citizens have died from drug-induced death at a rate 3.5 times higher than the state average, according to the California Department of Public Health. The majority of these deaths are from prescription drug use. In 2012 only 3 of the 72 overdose deaths were attributed to alcohol directly, but frequently overdose victims have used alcohol with other drugs. According to Butte County Public Health, in 2010 through 2012 drug overdoses in Butte County killed 254 victims. This equals 85 overdose deaths a year. Someone dies every 4.3 days on average or almost two victims per week. [continues 171 words]
The days of the happy hippie growing marijuana for himself and a few friends has been replaced by a "free-for-all," wildlife managers said. Motivated by profit, people from other states are moving to Northern California, where there are wooded areas, not enough law enforcement and pot-friendly communities. While one pot garden isn't a problem, having many grows in one area adds up, wildlife watchers said. The public has heard horror stories from the worst scenarios - where people hike into the back woods, haul backpacks filled with chemicals, then hope there isn't a raid before harvest. Often, Mexican nationals are arrested. [continues 965 words]
CHICO - One of the most public and vocal advocates for medical marijuana says there are "bad actors" who are growing cannabis in reckless and polluting ways, but he also says they are not the norm. Andrew Merkel of Chico, who chairs the board of Western Plant Science Association, a medicinal cannabis advocacy group, says growers who tear up the countryside, pollute the land and waterways are not the individuals who are growing for their own needs or in collectives. He said that this year, "There was this rush for everybody to get out there. It was like the Gold Rush." [continues 374 words]
SACRAMENTO - An agreement has reportedly been reached between the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board and the Butte County Sheriff's Office that will result in state water agents, escorted by sheriff's deputies, going into marijuana gardens to investigate pollution charges. The agreement came out of a closed door meeting earlier this week in Sacramento between water quality officials, Butte County Sheriff Jerry Smith, representatives from Gov. Jerry Brown's office, and Assemblyman Dan Logue, R-Loma Rica. In a telephone interview, Logue said Pamela C. Creedon, executive officer for the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, agreed to let her staff go into the marijuana gardens to test soil and other things for pollution concerns. [continues 361 words]
Regarding the Thursday article by Roger Aylworth on pot garden pollution, Assemblyman Dan Logue is quoted as saying it's not a Proposition 215 issue, it is an environmental issue. I believe the real issue here is hate. It appears that the same folks that hated the hippies now hate the pot growers. Furthermore, it seems that some of this crowd have money enough to get "their man" running the county supervisors. Yes, I believe that chemicals are being used, and that they are running off into the creeks. The worst damage being done, though, would be to those smoking these chemicals with their "medicine." [continues 143 words]
A surge in heroin abuse in Butte County is thought to have hit because a growing number of people addicted to opiates are unable to afford or buy prescription medication. Jeff Smith, commander of the Butte County Interagency Narcotics Task Force, has seen a lot of opiate pill abuse since he arrived to the county six years ago. Now, there are fewer people on pills, but more heroin use, he told the Enterprise-Record. It can be attributed to the fact that heroin is cheaper and readily available. [continues 821 words]
Rather than doing something about pollution from marijuana plantations in the hills, a task force was formed. After months of emails and letters grow increasingly testy and unproductive, sometimes it's better just to get everyone in a room and hash things out - unless you're in the government. Put a bunch of bureaucrats in the room and it's a sure sign that nothing will get accomplished, in part because some agencies - state agencies like the California Highway Patrol, California State Parks and Department of Water Resources come to mind - have an aversion to admitting fault. [continues 413 words]
Your headline in the Saturday newspaper, "Three men named in litigation over alleged grading for pot up in arms," defies all journalistic integrity, but I bet it does sell papers. Your not-so-subtle linking of pot with weapons creates a wrong and dangerous presupposition and exposes your political, non-journalistic attitude. Nothing in the article mentioned weapons, so why do you even subtly suggest their involvement? You owe your readers an apology in at least as big a type as the headline. - - Thomas Groarke, Yankee Hill [end]
I have been reading recently about the Butte County Board of Supervisors reaching out to the Water Quality Control Board, a letter asking the water board to use its enforcement authority when it comes to surface and groundwater pollution as a tool to fight against marijuana grows. You have got to be kidding me. I think our Board of Supervisors was well informed about the concerns and dangers of unlawful pesticides, rat poison, fertilizers, etc., by the many comments from the opponents of marijuana grows. The board chose not to listen. And now look what has happened. Suddenly Bill Connelly is concerned - about our water, not the quantity, though, that the pot growers use 10 times as much as non-growers, but the quality. [continues 133 words]
SACRAMENTO - What began as a Butte County request that state water regulators take part in fighting pollution generated by marijuana growers, has resulted in the creation of a task force to formulate statewide policy on the issue. Today Butte County officials, representatives of Gov. Jerry Brown's office, the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, and the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, gathered in a meeting orchestrated by Assemblyman Dan Logue, R-Loma Rica, to discuss ways to avoid what he called a potential environmental "catastrophe." [continues 527 words]
OROVILLE -- A meeting Tuesday on how water quality regulations could be used to fight problem pot gardens ended with the participants saying the discussion was "frank and useful" but revealing few details about what was said. At its core, the discussion was about what the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board staff could do in the fight against water pollution that is a result of both legal and illegal marijuana gardens in Butte County. The question reached the level of public discussion in May when Butte County Supervisor Bill Connelly of Oroville, who chairs the board, sent a letter to Karl E. Longley, chair of the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board. [continues 373 words]
