Letter Writer Decries ‘44,000 Square Foot Mega Pot Grow’
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“Right where those deer are grazing is where Steven Luu wants to put a mega-grow,” says Mr. Bootier.
Remember opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect that of Redheaded Blackbelt nor have we checked the letters for accuracy.
Humboldt County Zoning Administrators Office, with ZERO notice to anyone further away than 350 feet from this proposed project, is making plans to unleash a 44,000 square foot mega pot grow on Kneeland, which is already suffering – along with the rest of the planet – from global warming, drought, punishing smoke and ash from regional forest fires and the threat of fire. He is planning on installing sixty 5,000 gallon rain catchment tanks, which would likely be the death knell for wells and springs in this neighborhood, which includes, but is not limited to; Cross Creek, Foss, Paddock, Tim Mullen, and Barry roads. Everything from here to the ocean would be affected. From Cross Creek to Bell Creek to Lawrence Creek to the Van Duzen River, to the water-impaired Eel River and out to the Pacific Ocean.
I first bought property on Cross Creek Road in 1984 when I was in my late 30s, before there was a Cross Creek Road. I’ve seen a lot, but is this what’s in store and then on to someone else’s neighborhood?
This project DEMANDS a COMPREHENSIVE Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and reimbursement liability for adversely affected property owners, who will suffer from this water catchment impound that the project manager from out of state proposes, visual blight, increased aggressive traffic on narrow dangerous roads, the near constant smell of growing and drying of thousands of square feet of this mega grow (44,000 sf with two harvests annually).
The vast majority of us have nothing against cannabis – many of us use it ourselves – I know my wife and I both use it to help us sleep. It works! It’s mega-grows from out of town that are squashing the mom and pop growers who grew up in this area that we have a beef with – and the ones that want to take all of our water.
Even if you don’t live on any of the above listed roads, PLEASE call your supervisor and express your concern, before the zoning commission approves a similar or larger commercial grow/threat, in your neighborhood/viewshed.
Here is the schedule for the BOS, Planning and Zoning Commissions: https://humboldt.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx
And here is our petition: https://chng.it/9pP9yfHjQ2 We already have over 600 signatures!
Earl Bootier
Join the discussion! For rules visit: https://kymkemp.com/commenting-rules
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With the price crash and no federal legalization in sight who in their right mind still thinks that investing so much cash and time is still a good idea? The price will not come back, the window has closed, the door has slammed shut. Steven Luu needs to do a simulation and see if his plans will succeed at a price point even lower than it is now. Say 300$ per Lb. maybe less. One solution is to let him fail. Let him invest his wad and lose it.
3-500 a lb is a great margin for many crops, commercially speaking.
I’m sure many savies can profit at 150-200.
It’s at least 100/ lb to trim and the state taxes 160/lb. Not counting the many other costs associated, that’s 260/lb. Anybody savy at math knows that you are way off in your assertion.
// “Anybody savy at math knows that you are way off in your assertion.”//
Not really — trimming cost are WAY less than that through a trimmer where most legal dispensary weed is trimmed. It’s around $20-30$/lb with some hand touch up and can be as low as $10/lb if you just tumble trim the fuck out of it (done regularly)
As far as the cultivation tax goes, it’s becoming pretty standard that the Distributor covers that as they are responsible for the remittance to the State of such anyway.
Generally when cultivation costs and margins are discussed, the cultivation tax is left out of the price and only hard, internal costs are included. I’m not saying this is always the case (depends on distributor), but commonly.
If I tell someone my production costs are $120/lb it doesn’t include the cultivation tax.
Show me where trimming is $10 or even $50 a pound. You clearly are not in this business so go stay at another holiday in express and convince yourself you are an expert in something else.
Get with the new world buddy (and this is now sort of a medium sized machine.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KV-5c5U3HI
Over 100lb / hr (dry weight) capacity now.
https://17j0gpxz0ov1xou173gnrigk-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/TZERO-PRO-Tri-Fold-Brochures.pdf
Get out more.
//Get with the new world buddy (and this is now sort of a medium sized machine.//
Ahhh, I see JB. Yes, that machine works really well when you feed it those corporate buds that somehow don’t have sticky Trichomes yet test at 30+% THC. We tried to use that machine on our buds, surprise, it don’t handle well grown weed very well and requires constant cleaning and maintenance. It took the supposed proffessional operator 3 hours to run 1 of our pounds. The end result was shit and required one of our skilled trimmers to clean it up proper.
That’s the corporate way though seen time and time again. You don’t have to make the best product to dominate an industry. You just need a product and have the outlets to move the product. Like Taco Bell they make the shitiest Tacos on the planet yet the make billions. This is the lesson small mom and pops legal growers need to understand. Ya gotta sell direct to the customer if you wanna succeed or even just survive.
It’s pretty simple all that needs to be done is have a weekly cannabis farmers market in San Diego, Los Angeles and Orange County. An event permit with an honest distribution and transport license to allow cultivator of 10k and less to show and sell their product. I don’t mention the bay or capitol areas cause they been fucked up in their negotiations/price reduction of product on the traditional market side since legalization, so, they can go fuck themselves and grow their own!
Totally agree. We’ve tested every mechanical trimming method there is and there simply isn’t a way to do that which doesn’t just mow down the trichomes.
Your Taco Bell analogy is spot on. Budweiser — same.
Your ‘sell direct’ markets would literally save the small farmers (so it won’t happen).
We’re on the same page more than we’re not. 🙂
One year I developed a mini-auto-hand-trimmer via a dremel and 1.5″ of fishing line.
It needed a cooling mechanism for the dremel and a leaf guard/catcher/vacuum.
But it was my mini-weed-whacker…
Back in the day stuff.
AAA doesn’t get trimmed by machines. Works great on your mids, I’m sure.
What a bunch of garbage weed. This is whats wrong with the industry and why poinds are 500 this year. Put this next to handtrimmed propely cured . This is what people are flooding the market with and should be boycotted.
100%
saw two machines at the last conference that would tumbled a pound in 30 mins. Not gonna look like a hand trim but there are many that dont GAF.
Agree .
With big sq/f and automatization even 300$ can be very profitable.
Also you guys understand that legal market doesn’t not exist right ?
All those big companies are one the black market . All those deals 70/30 and offers are mainly scams nd etc .
Not experienced farmers are getting screwed more on the legal then on the illegal market .
The system is not made for COD bc of testing , distributors nd manufacturers are taking the product nd then farmers beg them for money .
Other trick is collect products and liquidate the company .
Correct on basically all fronts. The Distribution market currently is largely the equivalent of mob run racket.
The number of farmers I know who got screwed and were paid next to nothing for last year is sobering.
So let me get this straight. First you argue that you can trim for as low as $10 a pound ( um, never gonna happen). Then you agree with Name 223, an unreadable, gibberish comment. And then you mention all the farmers that get taken for everything. Not sure what your stance is but you def don’t sound local to me.
// “So let me get this straight. First you argue that you can trim for as low as $10 a pound ( um, never gonna happen)”//
Jesus Christ dude — what do you think it costs to put 100lbs per hour through a massive tumbler with no human touchup? At $10, that’s a grand per hour for fuck’s sake. Do you think they feed Benjis into the machine so they can spend more money?
My goodness. I’ve consulted on giant farms in Santa Barbara county that have 3 of those things humming with only two people minding them. Crap tumbler trim job? — sure, but that’s what you get for $250/lb and the market is drinking it up.
// ” Then you agree with Name 223, an unreadable, gibberish comment. “//
Here, let me translate for people like you who have to be spoon fed the legal side:
// “With big sq/f and automatization even 300$ can be very profitable.”//
Translation: The triangle is fucked — mainly because people like you can’t imagine how cheap a big corporate farm can produce mids with a crappy trim job.
// “Also you guys understand that legal market doesn’t not exist right ? All those big companies are one the black market . All those deals 70/30 and offers are mainly scams nd etc .”//
Translation: Those distributors that are cutting percentage deals with the grower to get them to market are mostly going to take you to the cleaners (see Flow Kana and others).
// “Not experienced farmers are getting screwed more on the legal then on the illegal market .”//
Translation: The legal market is harder than the traditional market – especially for the less experienced.
// “The system is not made for COD bc of testing , distributors nd manufacturers are taking the product nd then farmers beg them for money .”//
They won’t pay you for your product up front because they have to take it and hold it for testing and it could fail. This forces you to give up your product and then be at their mercy for getting paid later — often MUCH later (or never).
// “Other trick is collect products and liquidate the company .”//
Given that the Distribution license is the easiest of all to get (bordering on trivial), shitty folk will get ‘burner’ licenses and collect a bunch of product, sell the product and then fold — leaving the farmer holding the bag.
See how easy that was if you use your head and actually know the business?
// “but you def don’t sound local to me.”//
Not anymore — I could see the Triangle legal market collapse way ahead of time and put the mess in my rear view mirror and moved to more fertile ground. Proud NorCal marijuana outlaw since 1985 however with the multi-year Fed cultivation incarceration to prove it.
I don’t need to be an astronaut to know that people go to space.
🙄um…ok?
For sure. I’ve spent years in the horticulture industry and there is money to be made way below 300 a lb. tomatoe growers make it and so do cucumber pepper lettuce etc at far far lower margins. MJ was a golden egg. The chicken has been bred though and now the eggs are not that valuable
2019 stats CA Production
Cannabis
29,800,000 pounds
Tomatoes
22,600,000,000
There’s a pot glut.
There’s no tomato glut!
Point?
Apples n oranges
We’re going to see what happens next just stick around!!!
That 29,800,000 lbs is a total US production number (estimated by Frontier Data), not CA number.
Frontier estimates CA grows 58% of that or 17,300,000 lbs
JB
What’s great about corporate weed is that they do not need to make any money! You see…how it works is they use $$$ they made on other grows or other businesses and sink it into new weed grows. Then when they lose money that year- price drop, etc- they get to write it off on their taxes as a business loss. So they do not really “lose” the money, they just pay less in taxes! See how that works? Now…if you have a bad year or the prices even drop below cost of production why don’t you just do the same? Oh- you don’t have another huge profit from a different business under your corporate umbrella?!! Well you should have planned ahead! Ha ha ha- You are all so totally fucked by this corporate “legalization” and still some of you do not understand. They can actually starve you out over a few years and it does not cost them anything. They can sell cannabis for UNDER the cost of production and not suffer at all. Can you do that? Oh- well then…you are toast. Enjoy your “legalization” and remember how “free” and “safe” you are now!
Just think of all of the land that’s going to be up for bid.
AAarrrgg it’s upsetting when you think about what’s happening to us who lives here
Been happening for awhile.
Look at all the now vacant clear cuts in rancho sequoia or around Dinsmore. Haven’t been to visit my associates in Trinity Pines but I’ll bet there are some deals on land over that way. Fo sho’
That is standard business practice in any USA industry, the big companies with deep pockets drive out the small companies by selling product at artificially low prices. They will also systematically narc out illegal growers and subsidize the cost of the raids generated by their narc-ing.
I was just offered a pound of beautifully manicured Peanut Butter Kush for a measly cord of split Fir firewood. California needs to place a cap on the amount of commercially grown cannabis.
The board of supervisors have deaf ears and dont really work for there constituents in case you haven’t noticed. There ears are stuffed with money so they cant hear. Good luck.
But hey come election time make sure you check the same boxes you have been.lets keep re electing and expect positive change.lol
REX BOHN showed up at the community meeting. He has no business on our hill. What business does he have with Luu I wonder?????? He is a corrupt liar to anyone with their eyes open.
If there’s money to be made, Bohn will do his best to have his grubby little fingers in it. But- as was stated prior, he will be re-elected. The lowliest scalliwags usually are.
Mr. Nepotism is not wanted on your hill…
the B.O.S.’s definately deaf,to say the least&constituants is a great descriptive word.it’s also so far fetched it’s ridiculous.they can care less what goes in your neighborhood as long as it’s not someone they have a problem with.small town bs with small town brains.they loving seeing things crash they’ve waited decades for the im the most important person monopoly ego the i told you so scenario.a few years ago one of the county engineers was “rumored”to be bringing in around 300k a month on ill push yu rite through deals.im sure people have a hard time believing but who believed the people claiming to have been robbed by the law also?now look at just the tip showing from big bad bruce&co.i just want to say thanks for ruining my attempts to go legal.it was a perfect attempt,maybe it made them mad that they didnt expect it&cant grasp reality because they never went to college&were the bottom of there class in 71etc,etc..eventually i’ll have to state facts&characters when they huff&puff&blow not my house down.after selling a black market kilo to an undercover his paid cop told him pull out so he sold the bar&went into gas business so on&so on.some day people will wonder how they made it so far.im amazed by how greedy&selfish they are compared to the original growers who were “to greedy”..anyways the sixty 5,000gal water catchments will look so stupid out there i’de consider moving.i grew up out there know the area very well.kneeland is sacred,lots of history&very peaceful unique,that”ll be gone if this goes through..im sure the golden rule will prevail.hopefully the expire time sets n.this place is starting to really make me dissapointed.sad even for what were loosing
Good luck Mr. Bootier.
There is lots of money for the corporate green rushers and California is just doing what other states are doing in trying to remove the small operators of the industry.
http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/for-profit-canadian-firm-acquires-highly-profitable-arizona-medical-marijuana-businesses-9018218?utm_sq=g21ei18xcb
Unfortunately in my opinion it’s to late to get any county to listen and the only way to beat them is on the street.
https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.6185145
Just grow Humboldt and saturate the market they cannot compete if the per pound price drops below 800 a pound. They will go bankrupt as more and more investment firms drop them from their portfolios because of the millions and millions they have lost.
LL,
Sorry bud, it’s over.
It’s already saturated, every street from America to Bulgaria.
Its over.
Buy from JB.
lol, I ain’t gonna stop growing but if it’s as good as mine for cheap I will become a buyer. Another factor in this war that no one will expect. Much more to come TRB we ain’t even close to it being over. Yes, it’s hard on the under 10k legal cultivator and it’s really fucked up how they are being treated. Bottom line is if you can move your product directly to the customer nothing can stop you legal or traditional market. I will point out the traditional market is estimated to be 70+% of the weed industry as of 2021, clearly we dominate.
Let’s not forget we can move a lot of product into key areas strategically and put those delivery and retail outlets out of business. The more corporate pushes the price down the more product we have at our disposal to saturate their market right in their own backyard. Corporate backers such as JB talk of sales figures increasing but fail to mention operational losses. Wall Street will not tolerate the heavy losses and as one fund covers another fund the cannabis pyramid scheme will eventually unravel.
You can doubt what I say but facts are facts. A few key families provided the strategy in certain locations specifically targeting companies funded by Marlboro. Neither of those companies operate in California anymore. To ensure they wouldn’t come back we saturated their other state they were given permission to operate. Two months later the were bought out through somewhat of a hostile takeover by another cannabis company. The war is far from over and we continue gain more support from our beloved peers. Cheers to a bountiful harvest and let the war rage!
// “Wall Street will not tolerate the heavy losses “//
So give me the scoop? What percentage of legal growers, etc. in CA are funded by Wall Street?
You’ve really got to learn more about efficient farming LL. My per/lb cultivation expenses still allow me to make Ferrari money at $500lb.
For some reason you keep bringing up investment firms — those are ‘story companies’ (selling stories to investors), not cannabis companies. The people that are making bank on the legal side are not out selling stories, they are too busy selling mids. LOL
The investment firms is who is funding the dispenceraries. Saturating a market around a dispensary or going one on one cultivating does no good, we learned. Better results come from attacking a corporates market in their market taking that customer away. Not all the way they still buy pre-rolls and edibles from the corporate overlords.
I am glad you understand business to make a great product around $500 a pound profitable. Necessary to make sure you survive but realize we just need a seed and we make those. The standard blood, bone and poop with a few other seasonings is just a few dollars per plant. The product we make is outstanding and difficult for the consumer to pay double even triple for something touted as better. It’s why we have 70+% market share and by the way sales are up for us as well.
I know one thing JB selling our weed at $50 an ounce directly to the consumer will devastate the legal market. Right now the industry has nothing to worry about cause the majority who I collaborate with currently believes we do not need to take to that level. I disagree, I feel we got the industry back on their heels cause when I ask if their outlets have stopped buying or are trying to renegotiate prices the answer is no. Then again we are all not really in the California market just a smidgen but as more and more talk of $700, $500 or $300 a pound increases the more it favors my approach.
Blessings and hope you are entering the ca state fair competition. I will be there cause I see that as an opportunity for the triangle’s growers.
//”The investment firms is who is funding the dispenceraries.”//
Have you downloaded the dispensary license data base? I do it regularly.
What percentage of dispensaries do you claim are funded by investment firms?
Yes, JB I have and over 80% are funded by corporate. Just like SISU here you have to have an individual in name but the paperwork identifies thier corporate overlords. The Oakland dispencerary being touted as a non-profit is also receiving funding from corporations. Easily hidden like Flow Kana relation to Altria which is owned by Marlboro who also owns Chronos cannabis. Shell games my friend all to destroy the competition, that’s you and I.
Oh god LL — you can’t be business naive enough to actually think that because a corporation owns the dispensary that this means an investment firm is behind it. Tell me you know business better than that.
My business is incorporated and I am the biggest shareholder — one guy. Family/friends own the rest of the stock. You look my license up and it comes up with a corporate LLC name. All internally funded. No outside capital. No debt.
You simply have zero data regarding investment fund data. ZERO. You’ve heard there are a few (Kana, etc.) but you are just pumping out crap on the rest.
I repeat — incorporation doesn’t mean “big corp” or “Investment firms” or “Wall street”. That information simply isn’t available to you. You merely see “LLC” or “XYC Corp” and cry foul. If you don’t incorporate when you go into this business, you’re an idiot plain and simple.
You mean companies like this who assist people incorporated like you when you need funding. Interesting how they contacted my friend soon after she was awarded her dispensary permit. Look at what happened to Colorado and Oregon cause it is going to happen here in California. This is just one JB many more shells like in California City especially.
Innovative Industrial Properties Inc. Headquarters: San Diego, California
Stock ticker: IIPR
Market cap: $5.02 billion
Revenue: $163 million
Net income: $74 million
// “Blessings and hope you are entering the ca state fair competition. I will be there cause I see that as an opportunity for the triangle’s growers.”//
I’m hoping for some good Triangle results there as well.
I’m not currently in any top shelf tier that would warrant entry into something like that. As you would know, changing locations and environments takes time to breed and select for those conditions and this is why I’m not branding (or bragging) currently. I’m not going to brand until I have a selection of consistently top shelf products. You and I would definitely call what we have currently ‘mids’, but we’re improving every crop which is all I can expect or ask.
Best wishes for you and my many traditional Triangle friends a great year.
My first year with my own farm I grew some killer weed for $40/pound.
The county has its head up its ass. Mega grows all over former ranching lands are destroying Humboldt and the rural lifestyle many of us seek. Does it make sense to grow a legal crop way up a hill, far from distribution points? Perhaps it was when the crop was illegal and the name “Humboldt” grown mattered. Not anymore. Fans humming, water pumping, plastic tunnels forever, imported soils and nutrients, lights at night….. what a shame.
Humboldt was built by our black market, and to this day It is still the backbone of every small community here and helps us reaffirm the strength it gives back to us and pays for alot of our communities..if you believe that it is not the truth you are obviously not from here it’s been 12 generations here for me and mine.
It’s because it was a cheap 40acres and luu doesn’t have the nuts for a scene in Alderpoint or Blocksburg. So he comes to our safe backyard to screw it up for families in a safe community. LUU, YOU ARE A FOOL
“sixty 5,000 gallon rain catchment tanks, which would likely be the death knell for wells and springs in this neighborhood?”
Can someone explain how this would be true? Pretty sure the majority of rain that falls ends up in the ocean, no? And more directly while rainfall obviously recharges the water cycle, it’s my understanding that *over pumping* is the greatest threat to the health of any aquifer.
300,000 gallons (a conservative 800 gallons per day, per year) caught up in rain catchment tanks is not going to make or break the springs and wells in any neighborhood.
While I don’t support giant 40k grows- especially now, when even with federal legalization the handwriting is pretty much on the wall for all but a tiny fraction Humboldt cannabis farmers -IMO there must be a stronger argument than alleging that filling a handful of tanks with rainwater is “taking all your water.”
Water cycled through nature going to the ocean is differet from wate capltured ,contained and mixed with fertizerand pesticides.
So 1, you can’t have pesticides on legal weed. Cross that off you list. 2, Cows pooping there might also count as “fertizerand”. And 3, rain catchment, or any winter collection is vastly better than pumping all summer, which you cannot do anymore on a legal grow.
Ok let’s do some math. I’ve been surprised how little people seem to understand about water. Let’s say we have a low water year, with 72 inches of rain. The 80 acre parcel above me, about half of the creek’s watershed will collect, store, and flow 165,120,000 gallons of water. (One hundred sixty five million, one hundred and twenty thousand)
Like it or not, a weed farm has the highest level of regulation of any form of agriculture. If they wanted to graze cows there, they could simply tell you to fuck off.
If you don’t like what your neighbor is doing, I understand. However, It undermines your argument if your points have no merit.
Finally someone says it. I can understand a community as a whole not wanting something, that’s another story. But the argument that this proposal is egregiously risky to the environment and a “mega-grow” is demonstrably false. Even in this years drought, Kneeland (general area) got 38.4 inches of rain (AgACIS). The watershed that contains the 40 acre parcel produced 938,450,000 gallons of water in this drought year. The proposed project would remove 00.03% of total rainfall from the watershed, and that’s prior to infiltration.
Growers still pump all summer don’t be facetious.
They all do? I only used what I said I would, and just did one run. However my neighbor got an inspection late in the day, and claimed he had tanks up on the hill. They were too lazy to go check. So he is on his way towards a second run on 20,000 gal. of storage! We’ll see what happens as he pushes another 20,000 SQ.ft….
Great comment! Unbelievable how much it rains here during rainy part of year. If we are efficient at capturing a small part of that rain, we will have plenty of water during dry season.
When you calculate how much water/$ of plant revenue mj needs, it has to be lower than almost all other agricultural produce.
I do think most people want mj agriculture moved out of the mountains to agricultural lands for environmental reasons.
As HSU grows, I guess it will be more influential on Humboldt county environmental issues, which may not be good news for a lot of growers.
If those tanks are indeed the rain catchment variety, they Each only have about 50 square feet of rain catching surface area. At 7.48 gallons per cubic foot, 12 inches of rain would only bring in 375 gallons into the tank. Kneeland has an average rainfall of 56 inches. So if 5 feet of rain fall in a very wet winter, that will only that will only put about 1880 gallons into the tank. 3020 x 60 = 181200 gallons. That’s probably the water they are concerned about being taken.
Comment from “Just saying” is absolutely spot on!! This is exactly what is happening in the hills, our sensitive Oak woodland habitats are without a doubt being impacted by these grows. Really not a question of the size, any grow in these remote areas are having an impact on the wildlife, water, drainage, etc. Especially significant since they are occurring on historic mountain prairies (Oak woodlands) that are critical to maintain. Maintain for aesthetic and environmental conditions.
These Oak woodlands have been described recently as being as critical or perhaps more critical than old growth forests.
Where are the local environmental groups when these type of operations are being continuously permitted in sensitive habitats? EPIC, EarthFirst, NCEC, Klamath Environmental Law Center, CAT, are all hypocrites for not stepping in and doing something about these industrial scale operations in our scenic and sensitive hills.
Where are they, you ask? My guess is a lot of them are involved in legal weed.
Two harvests also implies some intense light pollution from supplemental lights. Does the county also consider that impact on neighbors and local wildlife?
Humboldt Regs:
// “cultivators using artificial lighting for mixed-light cultivation shall shield greenhouses so that little to no light escapes.”//
Another ‘reg’ that is NOT enforced, like pumping during summer, and selling on the black market.
It’s illegal for a licensed grow to emit light after sunset. So yes to your question of if it is considered. Obviously that doesn’t mean bad actors and lazy operators won’t allow it. Call and report them. I do it all the time.
Pulling two harvests requires LIMITING the light on plants midsummer to 12 hrs. Some growers blow out alot of money on lights, generators to light them up for a week or two, but that’s a waste of energy, if you can time it right. It’s not necessary, but if an LA Commando heard that’s what you HAVE to do…money will be spent. A clone nursery requires some light, but should take up less space.
That’s an easy one. Natalynne was the EPIC director while the county was coming up with the rules. Once they passed it, Natalynne jumped over to represent weed growers and formed HCGA. Great little piece of playing both sides there.
Oh and Noah Levy, a weed consultant and planning commissioner has been on EPIC’s board the whole time, and still is there. So at least for that environmental group, seems pretty simple what’s going on…
Natalynne was involved in big grows WHILE she worked with EPIC. That bust in Fieldbrook was no small mom n pop…I used to work w EPIC back in the 80’s. I was very impressed w/ the original group that blocked the logging at Sally Bell Grove, pushed for sustainable logging practices and always Richard Gienger was an honest eco-warrior. But something slipped later on and this EPIC became a harbor of elitists and yuppies. I’ll stop at that. But like much around here the “good fight” for Mother Earth devolved into egos and material riches cloaked in spirituality and yoga poses. So weird….
This sounds like another one of those organized crime operations with a name like Steven Luu. Could be Chinese mafia. Look what they’re doing to the community in Shasta county right now. Same will happen in Kneeland. They’ll bring in their forced human trafficking labor, crazy foreign chemicals and poach all of the animals in the area. Forget about having deer or rabbits or anything run freely again. It will be a ecological dead zone. And forget about fish in the river once they pump the river dry and all their chemicals and human waste washes into the watershed. Then they will ship all the weed to China for $20,000 a pound and make billions of dollars. Good on Earl for taking a stand against international organized crime!
I think extrapolating that someone is a member of the mafia from their name…sounds very much like racism.
It’s not racism… It’s reality. The woke need to learn the difference.
Really?
All people with Asian last names are members of a mafia? Does that even slightly make sense to you?
It’s just a realistic likeliness considering many situations(not all) around here. People start to make reputations for their selves with their behavior. Kinda like the Bulgarians built a reputation for being greedy cartel growers. I guess us whites have built a reputation for being “privileged oppressors” … Everyone of us.
Sorry.. accidentally used 2 names on the same story.
Can’t you edit?
Somewhat..it doesn’t give me the option to edit the title once it’s already posted.
I think you can do that if you log in. But for now posting underneath the post probably works.
Also that all Asian aren’t Chinese. The only Luu I have known in the last 50 years was Vietnamese. A boat person, all those years ago.
You worked yourself into a frenzy over a hypothetical!. The name “Luu” has been in CA longer than my last name. (Once again, you can’t pump from the river, or use pesticides or even use an outhouse on a permitted grow).
Ok let’s assume that any Asian name equals Hmoung. Now look up America’s secret war in Laos. Who fought and died for us? Who did the dirty deadly work? How long ago was this? Could a family driven from their traditional lands, immigrate to the USA, and have an American, Californian child 40 years ago? Do they only issue hunting licenses to pink faced blonde guys?
Not true unless Scott Ward Consulting has done something different, but there are outhouses right in my backyard on our storm drain along with over 20 storage tanks for water, numerous run down RVs running generators at all hours. Our view and property value has never been as great as these dope growers made it in 1 year. No respect for the community period. Go back to North Carolina. Who from California helps people from North Carolina start a grow and claim they help the community. THESE CONSULTANTS ARE ALL A SHAM.
Report them. you should not have to put up with that. You cannot live in an RV on a grow and there are decimal limits on generators. The only way to stop this is to file a complaint. Please do it
https://www.lakeconews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=58419:steven-luu-major-use-permit-for-commercial-cannabis-cultivation-license&catid=46&Itemid=700
The Asian community that grows weed in Shasta are Hmong. Do you know the difference between Hmong and Chinese people? This is one of the craziest posts I’ve ever seen in this comment section.
Where is there any evidence, anywhere inCalifornia, of “Chinese mafia” being involved in cannabis?
God i hope this is a troll
You may want to be better informed before posting. Chinese nationals growing pot illegally in Shasta County. Yes.
https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article251586403.html
Doesn’t stop there. How about Chinese nationals growing illegally in Colorado, or Arizona.
https://coloradosun.com/2021/06/10/marijuana-indictments-chinese-nations/
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-56835897
don, thatguy, didn’t say Chinese…he said “Chinese mafia” which is different. You are showing evidence of people of Chinese descent growing in California but not that they are mafia.
ITs FOR THE PEOPLE!
You think his 300000 gallons of rain catchment is going to kill off kneeland and dry up everyone’s wells. Geeez I’m pretty sure you’ll be ok 🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤣🤣
It is all about the money and most of the supervisors only care about the money and nothing else.
Lol, the county doesn’t give a shit. We’ve also got 2 BOS members that have a vested interest the weed business. Ruining neighborhoods and viewscapes, well, who cares when it generates taxes and fees, right? Let’s just keep adding more and more permits , there is endless water and land, right? Prices have tanked, the already permitted are barely hanging on and the permit-happy county pretends its 2019.
Quit yer snivelin work harder and grow more.. $500/lb is fair price spoiled children
300,000 gallons is not enough water anyway… 200 gallons per 10,000 feet per day? They will be pumping groundwater 24/7 also.
So you’re saying he’ll need 880 gallons a Day for 44,000 sf?
If so his math works pretty well
Umm, no. I’m saying 44,000 sf will use significantly more than 880 gallons per day.
I did fine with 75,000 gal. For 9,000 ft SQ. One run. So that is not too far off.
“I first bought property on Cross Creek Road in 1984”
Well lucky for you.
This is an AG use and that is AG land. I wouldn’t want it near me either but if it conforms to current rules I’m not sure why it wouldn’t be approved.
Can my neighbors demand an EIR if I decide to expand my apple orchard? Seems like harassment to me
Pot farms have additional laws governing them.
I called the planning department because me and my neighbor that border the the Mega grow on the Mattole in Ettersburg were never notified. I only found out when they started building a 12000 square foot Agratec building with 100 lights in it right next to the old growth redwood grove with spotted owls in it. I talked to Delilah in planning who mails notices and she said she mailed out 40 letters to neighboring properties. The only two I know of who didn’t get a notice we’re next next door neighbors, me and another neighbor who would experience the most impact. Now I have a lot of noise everyday. I doubt the spotted owls will stick around since a biologist said they like quiet and the fans fill my whole property with noise. The county approved 17 buildings on a 20 acre parcel zoned for one residence and was once a beautiful family retreat along the river. The planning department is full of corrupt inept liars trashing everyone’s property.
Welcome to the incessant sound of greenhouse fans. So many people’s peace and quiet has been forfeited for a permitted grow. Why is it that so many permitted growers are plopped down in the middle of neighborhoods and the people have to just eat shit and put up with them? Why do so many permitted growers think that their noise, smell, traffic trumps a neighborhoods peace and quiet? There’s some very wrong with this picture and the county entities don’t want to address it.
Let’s look at the actual numbers here:
Size:
It’s called a “mega grow” in this letter. Is it? This is a one acre grow (43,560sf per acre). Before the corporate lobby got hold of it, 1 acre was to be the Prop 64 limit for a few years, so this size fall directly into the limits intended by the voters. One acre is only ‘mega’ to someone who doesn’t farm.
Water:
The local watershed (down to but not including the Van Duzen) for this area is well over 25,000 acres.
The average rainfall for this watershed is over 50 inches per year. In drought conditions it’s half that. We’ll use drought conditions of 2 acre ft per year (24″) in our calculations. The rainfall then for this watershed is ~50,000 acre ft per year in a drought.
Per the letter, the proposal is to store 300,000 gallons of rainwater (less than one acre foot.)
So according to the letter, the proposal is to operate on one acre out of 25,000 in the water shed (one four thousandths of one percent land area) and to store one 8 thousandths of one percent of the rain water of the watershed.
Claims like “death knell for wells and springs” and “take all our water” are patent nonsense. They would be nonsense even if the proposal was for only 1% of the water, but it’s 1% DIVIDED BY EIGHT THOUSAND.
I could give two shits if this project is allowed or not, but for fuck’s sake people — if you want the Triangle to be taken completely out of the legal cultivation game (and perhaps you do), go on making up fantasmagorical (read ‘bullshit’) reasons as to why a very moderate grow, using an insanely small fraction of the shed water shouldn’t happen.
I totally agree but because this is so contentious I just wanna tweak your numbers to be the most accurate.
The watershed that the grow occurs in is approximately 850 acres in size. Total rainfall for this year, a severe drought year, was 38.4 inches (AgACIS). That equates to a total rainfall accumulation of 2,720 acre feet or 886,310,000 gallons. So to humor folks, even if his water use is wrong and he needs say 500,000 gallons a year for irrigation. In this drought year, the pond would have only diverted 00.056% of total rainfall from the watershed. This is demand as a percentage of available water during a drought year…
In the name of science and informed land management, some of the objections to this project are demonstrably false.
In the name of transparency and ethics, perhaps you should disclose your financial ties and relationship to the applicant?
Why don’t you tell me where his facts are false first?
Ok, none
Independent professional analysis or paid propagandist? If your nearly-dry spring was immediately downstream of this monstrosity, you would sing a different song. Guaranteed.
I doubt you’ll believe me, but my motivations are founded in the fact that I prefer land management to be done based on science, regardless of type of use. Independent professional analysis. My goal is to empower ya’ll with the knowledge to do better.
Drought conditions we are experiencing now are likely related to cumulative impacts from current land-use. In this watershed that generally means cattle grazing and timber management. Here we have a watershed without existing cannabis, experiencing impacts from the drought. So the folks that have springs drying up this year, should look into water conservation and ask what they can do to improve conditions in their watershed.
Yay! Thanks for empowering us all to do better as you lobby for your business associate Luu and pretending to be an independent scientific resource. I remember Maxxam’s paid scientists coming up with all kinds of similar justifications as to why the rivers were full of silt; it was never the logging, right?
The drought conditions in the very top of this watershed have almost nothing to do with current or past land use, they have everything to do with the lack of precipitation that is entirely driven by climate and beyond our immediate control. There is no timber management, because there is no timber. What little grazing has occurred on those properties is doubtful to have significantly altered the hydrology. You can’t have cumulative impacts from something that hadn’t accumulated, much less happened at all, eh? Your argument might apply to some degree downstream of the noted activities, but it isn’t applicable here.
What will improve watershed conditions is having Luu grow cannabis somewhere with abundant water – not the tippy top of Kneeland, smack in the middle of an established $1mill plus residential estate neighborhood that has an erroneous legacy zoning of AG because it was subdivided out of some hard-scrabble grazing ground.
I don’t think Luu will like it up here anyhow. Perhaps Dinsmore, Trinity Pines, or Palo Verde would be more to his liking?
There are literally dozens of permitted timber harvest present within 1 mile of the project. And those have only occured since the passage of the Forest Practice Rules (1995ish). You’re completely blowing smoke. Land management is best done based on data, not feelings.
You should try collecting rainwater.
These environmental science types sure crow a lot about climate “crisis” and over consumption. Almost makes them seem a little disingenuous. The great thing about a degree in environmental science is how wildly inaccurate and theoretical so much of it is. Ask me how I know. Great soldiers for our burgeoning bureaucracy
He/she is correct. Maintaining anonymity does not change that. Very few folks would like this project right next door, but made up bullshit objections don’t make very convincing arguments.
Your quips are lazy. Being a homeowner with a family is a valid and convincing reason not to accept a drug production facility being shoehorned in next door. Or an earthmoving business. Or a strip club etc. Instead, the Supes are here to sell us out. Look what happened to Cave Junction and South County. Dopers spread like venereal disease.
Lazy or not…stars is correct.
Cave Junction where majority of grows are cartel run or funded ILLEGAL grows.
If the neighboring property is Zoned for the use, then a permit is obtainable if all permit conditions are met.
Your objections are reasonable but may not be legally valid to restrict a neighboring property owner from exercising their rights as a property owner.
Welcome to the USA!
// “Being a homeowner with a family is a valid and convincing reason not to accept a drug production facility being shoehorned in next door. Or an earthmoving business. Or a strip club etc. “//
That’s why we have zoning and land use laws. If you don’t want to have a earth moving business shoehorned in next to you, move into a residentially zone neighborhood. It’s protected for a reason.
Same with Ag or cannabis. I can tell by the pictures on the OP that this one acre facility isn’t being ‘shoehorned’ in any way. It’s in the middle of fucking nowhere in the middle of an empty fucking space on land properly zoned.
Your language betrays an unrelenting bias. Perhaps it’s more about the plant than the activity? Your family lives in an AG zoned area. Weed won’t stomp and kick them like a cow.
I can solve this. I will buy the property. I will plant an acre of cabbage. There. problem solved. More legal than legal weed. No water regulation, just like your house. Thats only an acre. I will raise a herd of fire goats. 200 of them. they won’t be there ALL the time. There. unassailable, socially acceptable activities to make a living off ag land.
I have an unrelenting bias against a lot of things. It goes along with having principles and integrity. Your comparison doesn’t hold water for locals- truly just an embarrassing false equivalence. Do better,my (hopefully) very young friend.
Oops. My bad.
Raspberries. And little miniature ponies.
// “The watershed that the grow occurs in is approximately 850 acres in size.”//
Not the way I defined it (I was clear). The letter author included creeks and rivers all the way to the ocean but I cut it back to included only down to the Van Duzen.
// “Total rainfall for this year, a severe drought year, was 38.4 inches (AgACIS).”//
I didn’t pull these numbers out of my ass. The Kneeland RAWs station shows around 24” so far this year. I know — I checked it before writing my post.
// “That equates to a total rainfall accumulation of 2,720 acre feet or 886,310,000 gallons.”//
Again, it depends on how you define the watershed and the author expanded your definition by MILES beyond Cross Creek to even include the Eel. I took a more reasonable middle approach to what the author was claiming.
JB
Totally, I really didn’t mean to be a “well actually” person, just knew folks were gonna argue with you so wanted to add detail. I’m with ya JB.
795 pounds of plastic per tank x 60 tanks = 47,700 pounds of plastic. The tanks will only fill 50 inches high, so a little over half full. The tanks will have to be topped off with another source each year to achieve the 300,000 gallons which is 6.9 gallons per square foot for an entire season of forbearance so not really rain catchment. I wonder if they have other sources of water they are planning on using to supplement the lack of water.
// “The tanks will only fill 50 inches high, so a little over half full.”//
Why only half full? — my 5,000s go full to the brim.
JB, most of the time I appreciate your perspective.. but what your failing to address is that grows like these are fairly large for it’s placement, and ill suited for the environment they are in. Look at the picture, people live fairly close to this grow. Maybe it is “Ag” land. However cows don’t poop plastic. Besides, there would be definitely a huge difference between grass fed loosely sparked cows and a feed lot or massive dairy. Big differences. On a smaller scale, its compatible. On larger scales like this it’s definitely questionable. Same with cows. Grass fed beef thrives in areas such as this. And there is a certain number of cows that would be sustainable. And there is a number that’s not.
The water situation.. supposedly water catchment .. who is checking..
No pesticides.. yeah right. Again Soo easy to get around obviously. T+T is a joke..Besides it’s not just “water usage” affecting the River.. it’s MAJOR fertilizer run off. Cannabis is a HEAVY fertilized crop. I seriously doubt grows this size are Organic.
I enjoy farming Cannabis, but it’s not quaint. Especially deps. Please have some respect for the community and geography your referencing.
// “JB, most of the time I appreciate your perspective.. but what your failing to address is that grows like these are fairly large for it’s placement”//
Oh for fuck’s sake, it’s barely 200ft x 200ft. Get over it. If you can’t have a 200ft square patch of green vegetation in that picture there’s no place you can.
Having said that, if I were owner of this proposed project and the local resistance was strong, I would move on. Even if the reasons are silly, I’m not going to set up shop where I’m in a battle every day.
It’s not a patch of green. It’s a patch of plastic and metal, with acres more of scraped land and roads. And noise of generators and fuel to heat because it snows up there. And supplies being sent up roads that can not handle large trucks from any direction. And temporary people coming and going with their waste disposal, garbage, fuel use and bad behavior.
There’s Agriculture then there is industrial farming. Not the same thing.
1 acre is very fkng far from Industrial Farming.
It’s 200ft x 200ft of fucking plants and some accoutrements.
You make like there’s gonna be convoys of tractor trailers and 6,000 workers.
My god you folks are such fucking drama queens.
Soo.. witch is it JB? If four tiny plants is enough to get someone ABATED.. then YES! 200×200 is completely massive! Hello!!
If the preverbial powers that are.. are willing to terrorize peoples homestead.. and raid them with guns… literally to children’s heads for less a fraction of that size.. THEN YES.. absolutely..40,000sq foot is a fukking giant shit show of a grow. HUGE UGLY SHIT SHOW.. Call it what it is JB..
Sorry if YOU JB consult and make big Bucks pushing these massive meadow killing grows into communities that don’t want them.. but that doesn’t make them any less of a giant ugly shit show scene..
Neon Nitrogen green is actually a hella a sharp contrast to the golden meadow that will be ripped to shreds for this project! But guest is right.. it’s not a Hedge of green.. its large industrial glowing hoops.
I could get over it.. but I don’t have to LIVE next to it and look at it or hear it every day!
Drama Queen PLEAZZE? My ass..Your comment takes the Drama Cake, And puts a whole new layer of bullshit frosting on top.
Asking politely to be respectful to the neighbors and sensitive habitat is DRAMA?? Don’t think so..
Incidentally.. a large number of hyper neon light up green houses?? Visible to the neighbors?? Yeah.. I would say that is on the industrial spectrum. It’s definitely not your grandma’s Petunia‘s..
Your grandma’s petunias grow in her residential neighborhood. This is fucking AG LAND. Zoned precisely to grow shit. If they wanted to put of an acre of greenhouse for commercial petunias no one could do a DAMN thing about it.
The fact that it has cannabis it in is the only valid argument against it. Water arguments are bullshit. Greenhouse arguments are bullshit. Traffic arguments are bullshit. All of these are totally allowed without even public comment … IF it’s not cannabis.
Read the letter and how it’s going to dry up and impact water all the way to the ocean. There’s your “frosting”. That farm isn’t even a rounding error to the massive watershed described in the letter. You couldn’t measure the difference that farm would make to the Eel River if your life depended on it and you were handed the world’s most sensitive instruments. Drama fucking queens.
Btw, I have said repeatedly in these comments that putting a business where the neighbors are going to fight you is just bad business. I specifically located mine so that I wouldn’t have that issue and I think it’s a stupid business move to do otherwise. I’m just calling what it is on the cries — nonsense NIMBY cannabis crap.
Hmm… everything is bull shit? Just because you don’t find it to be a problem? A one acre hog farm would be equally a problem. As would be a one acre chicken house. Or for that matter a one acre feed lot. Just because it’s agriculture doesn’t mean it’s just fine. Some things have a history of being bad neighbors. A justly earned reputation. And cannabis is one of those in spades.
Smallfry…
1. Abatement is Code Enforcement…not Law Enforcement.
If 4 plants are Abated it’s for 1 or more of specific reasons.
Usually that the parcel is to small to meet the setback requirements for outdoor.
Or no locking fence.
Etc.
Irrelevant to this scenario.
2. Code enforcement does not put guns to anyone’s heads.
That would be Law Enforcement…i.e. Criminal Raids
3. 1 acre is not Mega.
Ever seen a 600acre orchard?
Or a 25,000+ acre field of wheat or corn?
How is my 1acre vegetable garden mega sized or a huge shitshow?
4. If you want perspective on what is DEFINED as Industrial AG go to the Central Valley or look at GH growing of flowers and vegetables in the Netherlands.
5. Neons???
Any idea what the differences are between different types of lighting?
Say HID vs LED vs Neon?
Neons have never been used for AG/Horticulture by anyone that knows what they’re doing.
Light leakage is not acceptable and is against all cannabis permit regs in CA.
6. The drama is all the emotional reactionary nimby crap spewing out coming from a limited myopic view that is not based on facts.
JB has several times here mentioned it being bad biz to move into a neighborhood where not wanted. Duh.
You’re welcome to your own perspective but not to redefine words and concepts without a basis.
To attack without listening to what’s said and trying to understand the very real details is the drama.
Continuing to do so is out of order and also a form of grasping at straws exhibited by the reactive fervor of your comments.
And yet.. another layer of Bullshit frosting.. NonFiction.
My first reply was absolutely polite, My response was to JB’s Ad hominem attack.. that of course was conveniently overlooked.
4 plants being unjustly abated.. and small family scenes being raided at gunpoint violently..
While excessively large and ugly in your face scenes proliferate.. something is inherently wrong with the “process”..
So are you saying that 4 abated plants had the same weight of impact this largely contested grow does? I don’t think so.. Not even close. This scene is also way close to road.. shouldn’t it then also be made to put up some huge ugly containment. Somehow.. I think that would make it much worse and even more ugly.
So which is it then.. Small family farmers that are labeled the scourge of the environmental world because of so many stated inflated impacts? All of which are suddenly negated and excused when it comes to putting in LARGE grows like this?
And just for a geographical reference.. just incase you missed this one NF.. where is this scene? You got this.. It’s in Humboldt. Humboldt is NOT the Central Valley. It’s large in relation to the environment it’s in.
So don’t explain to me like I am 2 The size relation to large agricultural. I in part grew up on a very large farm. My family was historically noted for record breaking yields of their time. They went from farming the land with horse plows, to using some of the first tractors ever invented.
The myopic irony comes when “facts” are skewed.. and applied to what ever side your argument takes. What ever “size” relation, Scenes like this are intensive agriculture. Intensive AG.. is often hard on the land, and the communities they occupy.
Is this grow in your backyard? NF
Why are people arguing for throw up some loud ugly scene they won’t ever have to live next to, but this community does. Seems again disingenuous. As the cannabis industry try’s to establish itself as a “good neighbor” throwing up ugly unwanted scenes like this isn’t helping. The “Drama” comes from off handed rude behavior. So “professional”.
And to clarify, the neon green is in reference to over fertilized plants.. not lights.
// “My response was to JB’s Ad hominem attack.”//
You need to look up the definition of the Ad Hominem fallacy – that wasn’t it.
Had I said that all these water (etc.) arguments were invalid *because* they were made by drama queens, THAT would have made it ad hominem. THAT would be me attacking them rather than the argument.
No, I was the very first on this thread to refute those arguments with DATA. I went straight to the heart of those arguments with valid information that not a single person has even ATTEMPTED to refute (because they can’t).
I’m calling them drama queens because the ‘sky will fall’ water arguments are so silly and easy to debunk they even they can’t possibly believe them themselves.
“suffering from punishing smoke and ash from regional wildfires”
Do pot grows produce smoke and ash as a matter of course?
If the owner wanted to smoke big blunts, thus punishing you with smoke and ash, they would be liable for paying the sales tax on the product consumed on site.
I live on Kneeland and thought about buying that property to put up a couple hoops and a yurt. I considered for about 5 seconds and came to the conclusion I wasn’t going to take a dump on my community in an open, beautiful area that already has too many ugly pvc caterpillars. It already smells like dope up there. The traffic it brings is low class. Crime follows,always. I miss the 90s when it was a secret in your garage.
Here’s what I really want to know. WHY THE HELL was that quintessential scumbag REX BOHN in my backyard pushing his corrupt political belly into my community at the Kneeland school meeting, where I graduated 8th grade decades ago. This guy is a grifting good old boy loser and has his nose right in our butter up here. His bear mace kid is a scumbag, he is a scumbag, and all you rednecks down south think he’s got your best interests in mind. I was outraged the way he was grandstanding about being a phone call away to one up the other Supe. Get off my mountain Rex. I ain’t having your paid off fat ass pushing your dope agenda. GTFO. Why is it your bear mace kid gets off the hook and magically has the legal dope hook up? You are a corrupt, lying scumbag and you know it. We know it. You know we know it. We know you know we know.
Conflict of interest. Bushnell also. Am I missing something or are Conflict of Interest laws just ignored in these modern times?
Official Handler. He wanted to be sure John Ford didn’t step out of line.
Bohn is a used car salesman. Of course he personable and “nice.” You can’t stick your thumb in someone’s tailpipe while they’re not looking and get away with it unless you’re a “real nice man of the people” kinda guy. My tailpipe is closed for business Rex. I wonder if its time for a little mileage on your tailpipe?
You forgot the last part…
Bohn knows you know but he gives zero fucks that you know.
You obviously don’t like him, but Supervisors actually should be at public meetings (even if you don’t want them there).
Buddy why don’t you pay attention to the public meetings he shows up to and more importantly the ones he doesn’t. Zero fuc$s given is what got this county where it’s at.
But HEzekiah Said….
Hilariously best comment in this thread! Ha Ha ha!! Let me add that “Hey, man California Cannabis Voice-Humboldt (CCV-H) assured us it was cool, man….”
Lol
I’m surprised the neighbors all getting screwed over in Humboldt, Mendo & Trinity don’t just plant a bunch of male hemp all over to flood the air with pollen. It grows quite easily and produces a lot of pollen, easily enough to deter these green rushers from blowing up more remote land.
Because they don’t want to ruin their own 6 personal. Don’t blame them.
It will probably get abated. Then you’ll get fined from the Waterboard if you watered them. COME ON! Think of the children
Even the supervisors own numbers do not support anymore commercial grows. State produces approximately 7 million pounds annually and only consumes 3 million.
CA Cannabis production
29,800,000 pounds
That’s from CA department of ag
Is the 3 million you say just flower consumption or does that include pounds used for hash production, edibles,salves,balms, etc. Way more than 3 million.
Many here say “call your Supervisor “ REALLY?. wtf good is that going todo when Michelle Bushnells many pot grows are even bigger than this one . She’s got 50,000 sq ft at her home property in Blocksburg, and 50,000sq ft in Garberville by the airport. (On Her same property in Connick creek where the murder took place , the people she had staying there killed the guy, dumped the body by the Community Park, and set the trailer on fire and almost burned up the neighborhood. NCJ has report) this doesn’t even count all of her indoor illegal grows. With her obvious conflict of interest, Bushnell should not be voting on ANYTHING about marijuana , nor should bushnell be able to use her position as supervisor to get the Garberville sanitary district to supply water to her mega grow in Kimtu, that’s corrupt.
Murder on Bushnells property : NCJ: On 04-19-2014 at about 12:30pm, a citizen dialed 9-1-1 after locating a deceased male body just off Kimtu Road, Garberville. The body was in the water near the river bank. Sheriff’s Office Detectives, who were in the area immediately responded to the scene. Sheriff’s Offices Detectives assisted by the California Department of Justice processed the crime scene. The Humboldt County Coroner Office responded to the scene to take possession of the body.
The male victim was identified by the Coroner’s Office as Zackery Jacob Chapman age 36 from Redway. Chapman appears to have died from the result of a gunshot wound. An Autopsy is scheduled for later this week.
On 04-19-2014 the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office along with Humboldt County Arson Task Force and the California Department of Justice processed the homicide scene, which was located on a piece of property off Conic Creek, Garberville. A trailer on the property had been burned down after the homicide in an attempt to conceal evidence where the homicide occurred.
The Sheriff’s Office is advising the public if they see the suspect Benjamin Jasper Carter to immediately contact law enforcement and do not approach Carter, who is considered armed and dangerous. They are being advised to dial 9-1-1.
But hey. She wasn’t the evil conniving Estelle Fennel, who, who did some stuff…uh, went to that meeting over the, uh water-lake thing? And was out of line when…CA passed prop 64. Yes ruining Humboldt and MY WAY OF LIFE.
Funny how I always see comments blaming small farms for killing the river but now everyone is an expert claiming megagrows won’t make a dent in the watershed.
Which is it?
You do know there are multiple people writing comments right?
When you see the same person blaming small farms for killing the river and then claiming a one acre grow won’t make a dent in the watershed, let me know.
That’s which it is.
We really should define “mega grows”. If someone is cultivating less than 1% compared to the larger existing licenses in the state, is that mega?
Exactly. Mega my ass.
Before the corporate lobby took the regulations to the cleaners, Prop 64 forbid large grows until 2024 (5?). They defined large grows as anything over an acre (not “mega” … merely “large”).
This one acre grow is anything but “mega” and is in fact a very small grow compared to it’s competitors.
People will just make emotional shit up when they don’t want something. Nimby. IT’S A MEGA GROW WHICH WILL DRAIN ALL RIVERS IN THE STATE AND TORTURE PUPPIES ENDLESSLY. Meanwhile it’s 200ft by 200ft and uses a mere droplet compared to the surrounding watershed.
Humans are weird.
Lol
You said it pretty good and true.
dang dood
the whole legal cannabis world is so messy and complicated.
STEVEN LUU is professional, detailed, and non-shady.
STEVEN LUU is super “by the book” and is an excellent qualified professional.
STEVEN LUU is also relatively new to our community (~5y)
NIMBY and non-NIMBY PEOPLES need to realize that they are only showing up now at the 4th quarter with only 2-minutes left in the game. Years of human work, time and effort have already been spent on project development and environmental evaluation.
NIMBY and non-NIMBY PEOPLES lack a basic understanding of what the legal cannabis regulatory system entails and need to educate themselves.
LEGAL CANNABIS CULTIVATION is complicated and extensive.
LEGAL CANNABIS CULTIVATION is so regulated that it probably doesn’t even qualify as an “agricultural activity” because it is so regulated.
LEGAL CANNABIS CULTIVATION is 1000 times more regulated than the Cattle, Dairy, and Timber Industries.
LUU blew it. He obviously has no idea about the community on Kneeland or he would never have wasted his time. This won’t be worth it, and he will realize that soon. He is a fool. And unless he is from out of town(which makes sense cause most of you dopers are) he is also a moron for thinking it would be worth it to, if you will pardon the pun, cross the kneelanders on cross creek rd. The biggest showing of one’s ass I’ve seen in a while. Sell your land and beat it.
He probably didn’t realize that if he pissed off the wrong people they would bitch up a storm in the comment section of a local news site. He must be terrified.
Look pal, thats a pretty hot take, but there is no reading between the lines here. Try moving to a neighborhood that vehemently dislikes you with a plan like luu luu’s. You might as well fire up a Quinceanera in an over 55 gated community. It will start an unbearable legal battle. If he had any common sense or real money, he would have gone somewhere else. This is obvious. Buy that 40 for sale in Whitethorn and save yourself and everyone else the headache.
On this we agree — putting a business where you are not wanted is just bad business and doesn’t lead to good things.
👆🏾This 👍🏽
Oh man. Best comment of the day
Agreed! Look up the 8000 new “emergency regulations “ the state have recently added to the already beyond extensive cannabis grower Bible ! It’s cray cray !
Another true statement
I’m not involved in any way, but I’m confused on how rain catchment tanks would “spell death” for wells and creeks in the area as the original poster says?
All other issues or concerns aside for the moment…
Can someone explain how a 44,000 square foot grow is a ‘MEGA’ grow?
That’s just over 1 acre.
Acre = 43,560sqft
I think Santa Barbara and Covelo have MEGA grows
Does he drive a silver spruce limited f450 dually hahaha. I was doing work out there last week and saw this guy driving back and fourth soooo much.
Elected officials f#*ked the county, screwed the state, and are destroying nation!
Either ignorance or your vote doesn’t count
I’m sympathetic to your problem, but just looking at the math I don’t think you will gain much traction on the issue of water diversion. In an average rainfall year Kneeland gets 56″ of water, so sixty 5000 gallon tanks represents about 8600 square feet of catchment, or about 2/10ths of an acre total. And of course, rain harvesting is entirely legal now.
There are plenty of other more tangible environmental impacts that should be scrutinized, like view, noise, light pollution, pesticides, etc.
Using averages for an entire watershed, or even a section, doesn’t acknowledge the more tangible problems created for nearby neighbors in the close surrounding acres. If you’ve built a road/installed culverts, this is immediately apparent. You might get a permit and do everything “right,” but it doesn’t mean you won’t create sedimentation/erosion/various water quality issues etc for one or more neighbors. It’s yet another lazy, rubber stamp argument that ameliorates the average uppity lefty prole, but pragmatically speaking doesn’t hold a lot of water, if you will. State parks, homeowners and commercial properties are constantly upgrading and rebuilding roads/retaining walls/drainage etc because, believe it or not, the “math” is no substitute for experience and the ever changing nature of our environment. I move dirt and install drainage etc as a living. The people commenting on here rent a skid from dons or graduate from HSU and they have zero practical experience with unintended consequences. Let’s calm down with the careful selection of “expert” opinions.
Okay I hear what you are saying and yield to your first-hand experience, but the issue I was addressing specifically is the argument that a 300,000 gallon rain catchment system would have a detrimental effect on the watershed by depriving it of such a large amount of water, to wit:
Leading with that argument will get the entire complaint dismissed because it just isn’t credible. It would be more productive to concentrate on other environmental impacts like the ones you allude to.
I see what your saying, and the math might bear out your point, and I agree that it might not be the best lead;however, putzing around with water is very serious business. It should never be taken Luu lightly.Unintended consequences are a true nightmare with water. See “Butterfly effect”
Well, that you’ve been reduced to the “butterfly effect” argument is the sign you’ve got nothing, because the entire point of that term (Edward Lorenz coined) is that it’s impossible to predict the following outcomes. This by definition means it’s as likely to be a good outcome as bad.
Perhaps that 200ft x 200ft grow is exactly what the world needs to turn things around. 🙂
Hey, it wasn’t me who brought it up.
I keep getting moderated for not being kind enough I guess. But I feel like it’s important to note, jb, that luu is just getting his foot in the door “with a small grow” like all the other legal dopers. He will increase the size of his grow. You know this so please just spare the small grow argument for people who haven’t seen this circus from the beginning.
Also, you’re not doing the local mom n pop grows any favors with your bellicose rhetoric. It just reinforces the stereotype of disrespectful tough guys willing to force themselves on the community. I’m not a fan of most dopers but I have always left the outlaws alone and have done a great deal of work for “mom n pop.” I’m not naive enough to think they aren’t the life blood of the community.
You keep getting deleted for using racist imagery. If you continue, I’ll ban you.
It’s a play on words. Stop looking for racism under every rock. My mom is Asian.
Whether you are willing to denigrate your mom and her race is not the question. The question is if I allow racist statements on my website. I don’t.
You know that’s a pretty salty thing to say to a guy but it had a nice snap to it. Touche’.
I gotta real zinger for you. Kym Hemp. Gotcha.
Childish & further delegitimizes your uber reactive nimbyisms
Nimby is a fake news term made up by marxist-leninists that don’t own their own back yard, and have no skin in the game. I agree my luu comment was childish; it was not racist, though.
Show us the proof on that claim.
Or better yet accept facts and respond directly.
I first heard NIMBY used by republican greedster pseudo politicians pushing industrial destruction and toxification on poor folks in the early 80s.
I didn’t mention the moderation of your racist content till now.
If Kym deems you imagery as racist I’ll defer to her judgement as she has shown herself to be very fair minded. Fair doesn’t mean that intolerant crap will be tolerated though. Fuck rascism…regardless of what race produces it.
If you need racist imagery to make your point then it shows the lack of substantiation and transparency of your argument.
Why can’t you make a fact based argument without denigration or stooping low?
My argument stands on its own regardless of whether I’m running naked through town shouting at the sky. If you were at the meeting, you would have seen the entire community agrees. Luu owns a cannabis consultant company and has enough money to buy raw land and blow up a scene that will absolutely have to be expanded to make a profit. This guy isn’t above reproach or elementary jokes, regardless of whether or not the school marms around here must clutch their pearls and swoon.
Clutching away…but I got to say you aren’t winning any friends and influencing people.
I got enough friends. Do you care to share your opinion on how much weight the local community should have ? Luu has already started building- so it appears, ostensibly, that he knew he had the green light before bothering with local sentiment. This pattern has repeated ad nauseum throughout humboldt. Money and power wins. I might be an asshole, but I think we need more assholes in a time like this. The other way isn’t working.
You obviously think Luu is an asshole.
Seems hoping for more got you one that won’t easily go away.
Where’s your reference for the origin of NIMBY?
Try this
https://wordhistories.net/2018/08/02/nimby-origin/
Your marxist-leninist trope is total and complete bullshit.
Just put the D down.
Seems the only viable part of your argument is that you don’t want the scene there.
The rest of your argument has all been flayed to pieces and shown to be non-viable.
Maybe law and logic just isn’t your thing. Idk
Lol you would probably fact check a fart joke. You legal dopers are your own worst enemies. You have become hated and deeply resented in your own community, and yet you only push harder to get your way. You’re not homesteaders or folks trying to make a living in the country. You have to pay other people to do all of your electrical/plumbing/decent carpentry. You guys are city slickers larping with a cash thumper and a house in town.
The last two days have made it seem as if you do have a problem with stereotyping, the cousin of racism.
Our family makes our own wine (just harvested the grapes), has bees, chickens, built most of the buildings including the house I’m sitting in typing this, grow gardens, can veggies, heck I often make my own bread. And yes, we’re legal cultivators.
Our beloved fire chief is a legal grower and so are many other folks in our community. Most of us in our watershed care whether you are a good neighbor not whether you have a piece of paper from the government.
Look, without knowing much about the situation other than this letter I was sympathetic to the neighbors, its hard to have your life upended by someone putting up buildings and taking apart meadows that you love.
But your focus on the ethnicity of the owner and attacks on legal growers starts to make this look less like a real concern about life impacts and more about xenophobia. I still don’t know enough to make a decision one way or another but if you want to have any hope of influencing the community and the board to back you, you need to focus on actual problems not just push out distrust based on jobs and race.
That’s what you call an exception. Stereotyping and prejudice are as genetically hardwired as sexual attraction. This tool helps us analyze threats quickly, among other things. It’s not going away, and it might save your life someday. I would be more circumspect about crying racism or connecting opposing views tangentially to racism. It waters down the conversation and is a disingenuous rhetorical device. I would say that if you would accuse someone of racism, you should be required to leave the evidence up for others to see. Your antennae is picking up static in the racism department, but it’s a good way to make the opposition look like bigoted rednecks.
I know your site has a strong selection pressure for views that are different than my own, which is why I feel it’s important that there’s at least some voice of dissent crying out from the wilderness. By the way, I noticed you didn’t share your opinion about locals and their sentiment. Maybe that’s a hornets nest for you, but I bet you wouldn’t have done the same thing to your neighbors if 100s of them were upset. Yet another problem with the out of towners who have no roots here and have more LLCs and attorneys than calluses.
In my neighborhood, we are not the exception.
As to “locals and their sentiment” I should be working. I looked quickly and can’t find the question. Ask again and I’ll try to answer. But I’m willing to bet that the reason I didn’t answer is because I just don’t have the information to have a sensible judgement.
Fair enough. Honestly I think you are confusing my name with someone else or have misinterpreted my grade school jokes. I have not brought up Luus heritage, because I don’t care.
If truth be told I would prefer Asian neighbors, and that is racist also.
Thanks for taking the time to reply.
Just calling you out for the bullshit you continue spewing and pointing out the ignorance of certain statements….i.e. Trope blaming commies for what the US nuclear industry did….Empty bullshit fluff.
A turd is still a turd even if you polish it.
Nope, not a legal doper.
I create real and viable long term assets in our communities, daily….raising property values.
Can design and build any on or off grid homestead in the Mt West; from basic cabins to massive advanced highly fire resistant lodges, etc. and full widespread ranch development.
I would only hire drafter, engineer, GenA, subs for the concrete finish, & drywall work.
You?
My bet is you would need our services for many phases of construction as the vast majority of non-pros don’t know near as much as they think they know.
You have a very clear problem with presumption and defamation.
Along with an inability, or unwillingness, to address any of the facts and reason presented to you without reacting by making false equivalencies, tropes, and attacking the character of people of which you know NOTHING….Poking holes in your own baseless cheesecloth arguments.
You get an idea, an albeit incorrect one, based on a sliver of what’s said, which is misunderstood by you, and then you hold real tight & run with it, then make leap after unfounded leap, sprinkly some more aspersions along the way.
Just plain Foolish.
You clearly have little concept of
others and seem to like it that way.
You don’t seem to realize that your foot is still in your mouth.
After having been pointed out numerous times, lby numerous people, leading to the point of
evidencing willful ignorance.
Please get a grip.
Crying and screaming bullshit won’t sway the board of supes.
They’ll need well founded & reasoned arguments to be swayed from what’s otherwise legal.
See how far you get casting aspersions on them during public comment.
I don’t care what you do for a living. I’m sure you’re very competent and well respected and handsome.You are clearly very very literal.
The board of supes will continue to do what they have always done. I’m not a beggar at the supes feet. The commentary is for the rest of us unwashed.
So this shit is just for fun?
“Lol you would probably fact check a fart joke. You legal dopers are your own worst enemies. You have become hated and deeply resented in your own community, and yet you only push harder to get your way. You’re not homesteaders or folks trying to make a living in the country. You have to pay other people to do all of your electrical/plumbing/decent carpentry. You guys are city slickers larping with a cash thumper and a house in town.”
Wtf? For real?
Just joshin?
BS
Own your shit dude
// “Also, you’re not doing the local mom n pop grows any favors with your bellicose rhetoric. “//
Oh the irony.
JB
Prices for decent deps are $800+. The problem isn’t that there’s no profit to be made on an 800 pound, the problem is growers are use to making more profit. There is plenty of money to be made on an 800 pound. Remember when they are crying about the prices, that also reflects the tax being paid for them, not by them. Numbers don’t lie. It’s real hard to listen and watch some of these farms be all , boo-hoo and at the same time continue their lavish lifestyle. They still spend big bucks eating out at the more expensive restaurants. They still take multiple vacations a year. They still buy new $75,000 rigs, every year. They still money like it grows on trees. They still have money in the ground. Nothing has changed much except a lot of boo-hoo, the poor farmers. Please, stop with the front. Stop crying for help. Just stop pretending to be a victim. Be thankful this county was so lenient on you all these years.
If that is so, why are so many truly small mom and pops quitting, selling their property and moving.
So true, lots of grower real estate for sale, often with a house and hoop houses, etc.
Because they are still stuck in the 2500 a lb dream they were living. They may be seeing that they have more time than money now. If your 65+ and have been growing for even a decade and just went through the pandemic (this is a real big contributor). You may be reevaluating life and seeing the current challenges aren’t for u. Let’s face it it’s warmer And sunnier just about anywhere south of here. If your flush it may be time to bail.
I bought rentals and won’t bother trying to wether through the storm. I can collect rent and repair leaks and be happy taking three vacations a year. Already leased my lands to a family member for a song.
Simply put, I don’t know. Everyone’s situation is different. When someone says “mom and pop”, I think of an established homestead that’s been doing this for a while. These older, small farms should have much less overhead and a smaller garden which should translate into a higher quality product and less money going out. What size farm is a “mom and pop”? I don’t know any decent grower that is packing up and selling the farm, not one. Maybe the ones selling are newcomers with a big mortgage still owed. Maybe they don’t grow quality cannabis. Maybe they were never meant to be growers and they simply had illusions of grandeur. It’s not cool what is happening, that I do know.
You’re very incorrect on your assumptions. Currently price average is 500 per Lb . And with the “Big and Smalls “ situation, a 400 lb run is sifted and now becomes a 200lb run of Bigs, 200lb of Smalls . Smalls, which cost an equal amount for trimming and taxes, are selling at approximately 200 per lb . You may not see it now, but small farmers are taking an enormous financial hit ! Humboldt will soon be feeling it !
Please with this. Pounds are not $500 and who is only growing 400 pounds for the year? If pounds are selling for 500, they are most likely only worth 500. Quality sells. There are literal tons of just decent cannabis, so of course it doesn’t have any value. Gotta rise above on the quality.
Are you a grower ? Because you are apparently waaaay out of touch with the current market. A lot of Distro’s aren’t even accepting product because they’re flooded. Trim is once again being thrown away as it was back before legalization, and only to add to the shitshow here comes Oregon with their latest flood of harvests, willing to sell thousands of lbs for a VERY nominal price!
I am a grower and distribution is picking up material. Matter of fact they left my place and were in route to pick up from two other farms. So, who is spewing bullshit cause I got a manifest to prove it. I also spoke with the driver (know him) and he states that he is picking up more product than he did last year around this time. Perspective is correct about the price as well, same as last year. So, again, who is spewing the bullshit! Gonna start posting pics of product cause I am curious as to what is the difference, I can tell ya what mine moves for and with a pic might be helpful for the rest. Lastly, Perspective is correct about Quality, it moves, if grown, dried, cured and trimmed (we still hand trim ours proper not like the shit hand trim I have seen lately, old school trimming) and it moves (this is key)!
I know we’ve disagreed over a lot of canna stuff here on the site.
But I gotta give you kudos for holding the quality bar high and using care to limit excess ferts.
The best quality canna will always come from the hills n mts and grown organically.
Still haven’t seen but a handful of people able to produce the kind of clean super strong buds that flow from the Salmon and Mid Klamath.
Most of the triangle has always produced high end mids or low end of the high grade.
Now is mostly mids.
Most people have no idea how to cure or recognize the concept or need.
1 warm day after cutting and most of the hard work of producing trichomes just evaporates. Turns high grade into low mids real quick.
I also wondered and it is why I was interested in growing legally last year. I wondered if properly grown weed that is correctly dried, cured and trimmed would get a decent price. It’s in the books (metrec) that my outdoor OG strain sold for $1250+ a unit through SISU. I don’t really know any other way to grow it other than amending the soil with blood, bone, poop and a few other organic additives. We get really good yields roughly 3/4 lbs to a pound per plant growing on the wrong side of a mountain facing the wrong direction. Helping a Humboldt OG save his home and land because going legal has made him damn near bankrupt. He deserves to be a part of this industry and I am damn determined that he will. As of this moment we seem to have accomplished all of our goals and with this harvest set him on a course to be a part of this industry for the remaining years of his life. Not gonna say we accomplished it until my boots are back in Trinity for good.
I like the opinions of others and respect good debate. I learn and what I have learned most of the time is I am not correct as much as I think I am. So thanks for the comments it helps me be a better person. Blessings.
// “Helping a Humboldt OG save his home and land”//
I like you a LOT.
JB
I have manifests as well my friend. Last year, from Sisu, 1600 per Lb, all season. This year, 500 per lb . And yes of course we hand trim, always have . Talk to your salesman from the distro you sell to. Ask for the real story , it’s not good.
SHI*TIN ON DA GAME YO 🙂
Blah Blah Blah, on the weed talk! I’ve tried vape pens, and they are not worth a shit. I have swack weed from 2 years ago stronger then any of the resin I’ve smoked. Where are they selling the good stuff?
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