cannabisnews.com: B.C.'s Top Commodity: Marijuana





B.C.'s Top Commodity: Marijuana
Posted by FoM on July 07, 2001 at 08:24:29 PT
By Chad Skelton, Vancouver Sun 
Source: Vancouver Sun
New police statistics suggest marijuana has become one of B.C.'s largest industries -- even bigger than logging -- with annual production valued at $6 billion. If the new estimate, produced by the Organized Crime Agency, is correct, that would mean marijuana has become the most valuable commodity produced in the province -- eclipsing annual sales for construction ($5.7 billion), logging and forest products ($5.6 billion), mining ($3.7 billion), manufacturing ($3.4 billion) and agriculture ($2.1 billion). 
Those estimates of legal industries, produced by BC Stats, do not take into account the "spin off" benefits industries like forestry have in wages and support industries. But the OCA's estimate of B.C.'s marijuana trade is also a measure only of the "wholesale value" of the marijuana produced in the province each year, OCA spokeswoman Detective Anne Drennan said. The marijuana trade also has economic spin-offs in, for example, the purchase of hydroponic equipment and the employment of gardeners. OCA's new report estimates that in the Lower Mainland alone, the size of the marijuana trade has doubled over the past two years -- from $2.2 billion to $4.2 billion. The agency also believes there are anywhere from 15,000 to 20,000 growing operations in the Lower Mainland now, up from its previous estimate of 7,000 to 8,000 two years ago. Drennan said the huge increase is due in part to improved intelligence-gathering by police. But she said the agency believes there has also been a significant jump in the amount of marijuana produced in the province over the past two years. The report, completed last week, was developed by a team of senior drug officers across the province known as Project Emerald. Drennan said the OCA believes 85 per cent of the marijuana production trade is controlled by outlaw motorcycle gangs and Vietnamese organized crime. Earlier this month, a national poll by Leger Marketing found 52.4 per cent of B.C. residents support the legalization of marijuana, compared to 46.8 per cent nationwide. Only Quebecers were more in favour of legalization, at 52.7 per cent. But while police have cracked down recently on marijuana production, many forces still take a lenient attitude towards marijuana use. Statistics show only 17.2 per cent of all reported incidents of marijuana possession in B.C. lead to a charge, compared to a high of 70.8 per cent in Ontario. Even in Quebec, the province with the second-lowest rate of possession charges after B.C., 55.2 per cent of reported incidents end up in court. Most cases of marijuana possession in B.C. are handled outside the court system, usually through "no-case seizures" in which police seize and destroy the marijuana they find and write up a report, but do not lay charges.Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC)Author: Chad Skelton, Vancouver Sun Published: Saturday 7 July 2001 Copyright: The Vancouver Sun 2001Contact: sunletters pacpress.southam.caWebsite: http://www.vancouversun.com/FTE's Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmCannabisNews Articles - Canadahttp://cannabisnews.com/thcgi/search.pl?K=canada
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Comment #4 posted by Cannabis Crusader on July 07, 2001 at 13:01:02 PT:
Enlightened Canadians
You really have to admire the Canadians. They seem to be the most logical group of people in all of the Americas, and much more logical than the vast majority the US population. Regulation is the way to go, not decriminalization and definitely not prohibition. Cannabis is initially the staple income (look at the value of the cannabis trade in Canada, $6,000,000,000 – yes that is 9 zeros) for organized crime due to its illegality and vast popularity. If there is no means for obtaining cannabis legally, decriminalization will do little to nothing to mitigate the violence and profits associated with the illicit drug trade. In actuality, decriminalization of cannabis could possibly promote the growth of organized crime. The reduced risk resulting from decriminalization would almost definitely make Canada look dreadfully attractive to criminal organizations which are a much greater threat to society than any type of drug use. The Netherlands recognized this and compensated for this side effect by allowing “coffee shops” to legally provide the herb. In my opinion, and I very well could be wrong, the possible side effects of decriminalization and prohibition should be a huge factor when deciding whether cannabis should be regulated, decriminalized, or completely prohibited. Please don’t get me wrong; absolutely nobody should be made a criminal just because they use this relatively harmless plant. I am just saying that regulation addresses this problem as well as effectively removing an enormous amount of money from the hands of organized crime. Apparently, 46.8% of Canadians have the right idea. If the other 53.2% value their personal liberties and don’t want to live in a police state like us here in the US, they should re-examine their positions on this issue. Here in the US, it is becoming far too common to read about a completely innocent citizen losing their life due to a SWAT team raiding the wrong residence. Prohibition has proven over and over again that it creates many more problems than it fixes. Even though it is completely obvious that the US drug policies are wreaking considerable harm on society, the US government continues to flex their economic muscles to force more and more countries to adopt this colossal failure called the “Drug War.” My advice is to be extremely intolerant of propaganda, evaluate the facts rationally, don’t allow yourselves to become another casualty of the “Drug War,” but, most of all, don’t allow your options to disappear, as so many other countries have, due to a dependency on US funding. If the US government obtains control over your pocketbook, they can easily control your decisions by threatening to deny the funds. For your own sake, do what is best for Canada and leave the US government out of the equation.By the way, obviously you growers in Canada know how to produce some truly outstanding marijuana. I haven’t had the luxury of sampling any, because I’ve never had the opportunity, but when the opportunity arises I will most definitely partake. From what I have read, you should be extremely proud to be the best at what you do. One day when cannabis is legal, the world will view Canadian marijuana just like Cuban cigars, Persian rugs, and Italian cars. Keep up the outstanding work.
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on July 07, 2001 at 11:44:40 PT
BC Bud
I know when I watched the program on MSNBC about B.C. Bud the gardens they showed were pretty. All I can say is go Canada! 
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Comment #2 posted by Dan Hillman on July 07, 2001 at 11:22:39 PT
BC growers deserve much praise.
For the excellent quality of weed they produce. After sampling the fare there recently, I'd give BC bud a 9.9 on a scale of 10.
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Comment #1 posted by R.Earing on July 07, 2001 at 10:16:44 PT:
Way to go BC Growers!
Thats a number we can all be proud of.And all that without advertising or government handouts-so called "big business"should try that sometime. 
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