cannabisnews.com: Drug Strategy Before Pot Factories 





Drug Strategy Before Pot Factories 
Posted by CN Staff on March 06, 2003 at 21:57:21 PT
By Dan Hilborn, Record Reporter 
Source: Royal City Record 
Canada needs a national drug strategy before any more legal marijuana grow operations are given approval to open their doors, says New Westminster city councillor Casey Cook. "We need a broad discussion on what our nationwide drug strategy is going to look like," Cook said after The Record revealed last weekend that the Marijuana Factory has now opened three 'legal' marijuana growing operation in the city.
Cook, who chairs the city's community and social issues committee, said his main concern is that city and police officials are having difficulty protecting the city because of the rapidly changing rules and regulations around marijuana. "It's the same thing with prostitution," he said. "We have a very incoherent set of laws, and it's very difficult for municipalities to deal with." The whole problems started when the Supreme Court ruled that access to marijuana was a 'reasonable expectation' for somebody facing a debilitating disease, Cook said. Since then, Ottawa has opened an Office of Cannabis Medical Access and is now issuing licenses to both grow and possess the narcotic. "Basically, Ottawa as allowed for legal marijuana grow operations to exist, but it's not prescribed any standards for them," he said. "And as a city, we're not advised where these grow ops exist, and that causes a whole other set of problems. "This is not a question of whether or not there should be medical marijuana. That is not the point," Cook said. "The point is, we need to have a discussion. If these activities are going to take place, what are the circumstances under which they will operate? "How do we deal with the safety issues, and how do we deal with standards?" "You've got legislation crafted to deal with an isolated situation, and what's being done is not well thought out. It just doesn't fit into the larger picture." "If the Supreme Court of Canada says a person has the legal right to medical marijuana, it's not too difficult a reach to expect the federal government to prescribe a process that is safe for everyone. Thus far, that just hasn't happened." Surprisingly, at least some of Cook's comments are supported by the operators of the Marijuana Factory. "I just wish more local politicians would get on the bandwagon and start asking Ottawa those questions," said Yoram Adler, the person who holds the grower's license for the Queensborough-based operation. "We're on the same team. we'd like Ottawa to have a fully comprehensive policy on cannabis and other soft drugs. Adler noted that federal justice minister Martin Cauchon has promised to table draft drug legislation this spring. Source: Royal City Record (CN BC)Author: Dan Hilborn, Record Reporter Published: Thursday, March 06, 2003 Copyright: 2003 Lower Mainland Publishing Group Inc.Contact: editorial royalcityrecord.comWebsite: http://www.royalcityrecord.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Cannabis News Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmMedical Pot Helps Him Cope With Pain http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15658.shtmlPot Factory Sprouts Two New Locations http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15642.shtmlChecking Out The Pot Factory http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15634.shtmlB.C. Marijuana Factory Opens To Produce Pot http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14308.shtml 
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