Distrust Grows as State Officials Conduct No-Notice, Armed Inspections of Legal Cannabis Farms in Southern Humboldt
Marijuana flower. [Stock image created by Kym Kemp]
Early last week we received information that legal cannabis cultivators in Benbow and Dean Creek were subjected to no-notice inspections. Frantic phone calls were initiated inquiring what prompted them, legal cultivators worried what the latest move may mean in the perilous process to “go legal”.
Licensed cannabis cultivators agree to inspections of cultivation sites and buildings used in cannabis production when they enter the regulated commercial cannabis industry, one of the scarier hurdles legacy cultivators agree to after decades of not trusting government officials. Although the state is legally allowed to conduct no-notice inspections based on code 17800-4(d) which states, “Prior notice of an inspection, investigation, review, or audit is not required,” many cultivators believe state officials have to give them at least a 24-hours notice before an inspection. Most local cultivators have previously been given notice of an inspection; the recent no-notice inspections have come as a shock to the cannabis community.
In 2018, the DCC, previously Cal Cannabis, notified cultivators of upcoming inspections both through broad announcements such as the one below, and with direct communication with cultivators prior to the inspections. At that time they stated,
We are notifying licensees through email or a phone call of their scheduled inspection date and four-hour appointment window.
Please note that, per Title 3 of the California Code of Regulations section 8501, we have the right to inspect your site any time between 8am and 5pm, Monday through Friday. Although not required, we are providing advance notice of our visits as a courtesy. Future inspections may not be announced. Failure to allow access for an inspection is a serious violation, with fines ranging from $1,001 to $5,000 per incident.
In addition to the surprise element of the inspections, the number of state officials and scope of their inspections have many in the community questioning whether these are inspection visits or enforcement operations. KMUD News Director, Lauren Schmitt was able to confirm with one of the CDFW agents performing inspections, that he was in fact, armed.
We spoke with a licensed cultivator on Elk Ridge Road in the Redwood Creek watershed who received a call first thing yesterday morning from state personnel informing the cultivator that they were at the gate to the resident’s property.
The cultivator was dismayed and fearful though they knew that their farm was in compliance with state regulations. The cultivator arrived to find five vehicles at their gate, with officials telling the cultivator that they had to give permission for the SWRCB and DCC agents to come on the property. The cultivator complied although concerned as this inspection felt reminiscent of a raid compared to the much less invasive two inspections they had had already just this year, the last being just three weeks ago.
The presence of a CDFW agent in full gear also concerned the resident, a legacy farmer who has lived in the Emerald Triangle throughout the War on Drugs era that pitted law enforcement against cannabis cultivators. The cultivator, although a legal cannabis cultivation license holder, chose to remain anonymous for fear that speaking with the media may result in harassment from state officials.
The cultivator said that although they could show that they had no violations on their site and were not engaged in any water theft or diversion, it felt to them that the officials “were trying to catch us doing something wrong.”
Notably, the cultivator said that three weeks ago during a routine visit, the inspectors had marked water levels on the site’s water storage tanks. During yesterday’s visit, officials compared those marks against the current water levels, presumably to make sure the water levels had not risen as cultivators are not allowed to divert water this time of year. Additional water levels marks were made to the storage tanks with an ominous, “expect a call,” from the DCC official.
Water levels in Redwood Creek seems to be the impetus for these inspections. We reached out to the DCC asking why local cultivators were receiving no-notice inspections. The DCC responded to our questions with a statement written by the Deputy Director of Public Affairs, Maria Luisa Cesar:
In partnership with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and the State Water Resources Control Board, DCC staff conducted compliance inspections on Aug. 24th and Aug. 25th. While these inspections did not include notice to licensees, our intent is to work with cultivators in the area to identify opportunities for water conservation methods and conduct routine compliance checks.
These followed the cannabis technical assistance workshop and community presentation on the Redwood Creek Watershed on Aug. 18, 2022 hosted by the CDFW, DCC, and the State Water Resources Control Board. The technical assistance workshop offered cannabis cultivators, consultants, nonprofits, and local tribes an opportunity to speak to cannabis regulatory agencies about projects, request technical assistance, and learn about CDFW’s cannabis grant program opportunities to assist cultivators in pursuing sustainable cultivation practices.
The Redwood Creek watershed is home to many threatened and endangered species and is, unfortunately, experiencing severe drought conditions. Many aquatic species in this watershed need cold clear water in the late summer months for survival. Compliance with state laws is more important than ever to protect our natural resources and we are working proactively with licensees to help ensure that outcome. We are grateful for licensees who see compliance as a shared goal toward protecting natural habitats and are working cooperatively with our inspection teams.
However, many believe that licensed cultivators are being unfairly targeted for the decreased flows in Redwood Creek when other agricultural operations within the Redwood Creek watershed are also not privy to no-notice, armed inspections. Additionally, there does not appear to be any efforts to determine if illegal cultivation sites are pulling water from Redwood Creek, a move that feels punitive to some licensed cannabis cultivators that have to adhere to strict regulations regarding water diversion and storage.
A cannabis cultivator we spoke to said this move by state officials makes them believe that they would be better off if they had chosen to remain in the traditional cannabis market.
Others spoke of growing mistrust after stepping out of the green closet, one saying, “I’m frustrated and sad for the people [including myself] that have gone through all of [the hoops and fees] to be treated like this.”
For many, this feels like an insult to the efforts they have made towards building relationships with state officials, unburying deep-seated mistrust of state officials planted in the decades long War on Drugs that witnessed family homes raided in early-morning hours by armed law-enforcement; Livelihoods were destroyed, properties seized, and cultivators were imprisoned. With the passage of legalized cannabis in California, many hoped to end the trauma perpetuated during the War on Drugs, choosing to become license cultivators to spare their children the same traumatizing experience they endured themselves growing up in the Emerald Triangle.
Reminiscent of days past, one cultivator in an interview with KMUD News, said that she left her home early in the morning to avoid any possible visit from the state officials. Although she would be required to return or face hefty fines, old habits and fears die hard. It was common practice by many cultivators, pre-legalization, to leave their homes for the day if marijuana eradication efforts were focused in their area.
Phone trees are actively buzzing with the whereabouts of the convoy of state officials, gates are being locked and cultivators are making themselves scarce as the feelings of being targeted churn in the soured bellies of a community already facing financial hardships due to the economic collapse of the cannabis industry.
As the no-notice inspections continue in Southern Humboldt, frustrations and distrust of state officials grow among the licensed cannabis cultivators. As one cultivator said, “We are legal and we’re vulnerable.”
Earlier: Convoy Headed Up Perry Meadow West of Redway
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Please define “legal” and “licensed” cultivators as used in this article.
Do they have State certification or County only, and were they verified by RHBB?
These cultivators are being inspected by the state and are in the state’s permit program. However, in order to cultivate cannabis legally, a farmer must have, at the least, a temporary permit from Humboldt County AND from the State of California.
Note: “In partnership with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and the State Water Resources Control Board, DCC staff conducted compliance inspections on Aug. 24th and Aug. 25th.” The state is self-reporting these are permitted farms.
Great coverage Kym! RHBB is easily the best news source in the triangle.
Lisa Music is a wonderful addition to the team.
Oh my gosh I feel so sad for the dope
Growers….
Thanks Kym, I just wanted to hear that these weren’t simply County permitted farmers.
I imagine that within 6 years this type of behavior by armed officials at legal pot grows will abate itself.
Pfffttt… legal pot grows are gonna be no different than a tomato farm in 6 years, (with real similar yields and returns) but you’d best reconsider why you voted Democrat for these vermin to tax the &$@! out of you one year and then be raiding you the next.
It get a bit convoluted as I recall, but the state and Trinity call the cultivation permission slips licenses. Humboldt, SWRCB and CDFW call them permits.
In any case, licensed or unlicensed, the water in question is on these properties. Unlike your toilet/hot tub/hydroponics water that was diverted from the Mad River. You see, the Mad River water is magical! It doesn’t count like Redwood creek in silly So-Hum. If Redwood creek water didn’t want to be bad, it shoulda fallen to the East closer to Ruth.
Umm, inchoate and nearly incoherent. Please try again in full sentences.
Uum (sp?), [Your sentence structure is] inchoate and nearly incoherent. Please try again in full sentences.
There can be no doubt that these agencies want to punish the legal farms for the past sins of other farms. Coming back three weeks after the last inspection is not a coincidence and coming back with armed goons shows they are expecting to find or make trouble.
Of course the true problem, if you want to believe the agencies, is the low water levels in the creeks. Since they can’t actually prove who is taking all the water, might as well start with the easiest targets: licensed farms they recently inspected whom are unlikely to physically fight back.
Why aren’t they also going to the unlicensed farms? What about the other large water users like vineyards and orchards? Oh that’s right cannabis is so much more harmful than those ag endeavors.
CDFW and NCRWQCB have both conducted instream flow studies to determine if licensed cultivation is impacting water levels. Guess what they found? Nothing, because they don’t know what all the other (the vast majority) parcels are diverting.
Yes that’s right: they know full well the issue is predominantly not coming from licensed parcels. But since they don’t have easy (no warrant needed) access to those parcels, well they will just focus on the farms who actually pay for these enforcement activities with license/permit fees and excise taxes.
In Hayfork the NCRWQCB conducted a in stream flow study around 2017. It found cannabis cultivation which was allowed to still divert during the growing season (this was pre-state waterboard general order with forbearance) was statistically insignificant compared to other diverters.
Who were the other diverters? Oh, the Rourke and Murrish properties which grow alfalfa and raise cattle. And the best part is the study was never officially released for some reason… hummm maybe because it didn’t fit the agency goals? I still have a copy of the study somewhere in my files.
Why aren’t they also going to the unlicensed farms?
They are. I think you know about the 40 search warrants in S. Trinity.
But there were also cut downs in the Pines, AND little known but verified cut downs in Douglas City, near Top o the Grade on 299.
There was the idiot property right next to B Bar K on Highway 3, they got the get-out notice too.
Saxon has been on it.
Incorrect. There were zero cut downs in the Pines this year, only a few abatement notices handed out. Business as usual.
To Hayforker, say it where it matters like at a BOS meeting.
Great point about the BOS meeting!!
The 40 search warrants in southern Trinity were led by DFW WET team, the sheriff rides along on their operations on private property. The citations on Post Mtn were nit chop down, but civil fines. And give me a break, Saxon has done almost nothing since his election, not to say previous seriffs were more effective.
The few code violations issued on Post Mtn represent about 5% of the illegal grows. Damn near every parcel is happening, except for the few where the folks walked away this year, leaving an ungodly mess.
The 40 search warrants in southern Trinity were led by DFW WET team, the sheriff rides along on their operations on private property.
I didn’t remember that being the case, but I frankly don’t remember the case specifically.
There were quite a few cuts in the Douglas City area though, led by TCSO.
lets not forget that cdfw have been involved in many armed & extremely hostile raids that were actually robberies for profit.steve white for example.sounds extreme but in reality they are it happened to me in 2017.thanks steve white your a great example of why theres no respect or trust in your fake jobs.water diversion,money laundering send the product aqquired during raid to hawaii,buy real estate to get money on mainland.warrant sign it when were there nandor vandos lets us use his name we’ll use an impound sheet for the inventory sheet.if they holler we’ll have the feds prosecute there dopers.meanwhile county officials running multi million dollar extortion&embezzlement vices.what a solid foundation of leadership.adults acting like bullies and above others.black asphalt if you are going legal desert snow if they want your money.relentless,more like pathetic
kym kemp if you ever wangt to do a story on all the agencies&officials that robbed me rite before zeek flatten contact me.ive been hushed&locked up to keep silent,people deserve to know&see the truth&the agents deserve to be exposed
https://m.facebook.com/peaceharmonyinmendocino/photos/a.322677918334103/693577304577494/?type=3
I hear they’re going after the Salinas Valley farms next, even though the Salinas river has such robust flows, essentially a recreational Eden of wildlife habitat. No, just kidding.
I’ve got an idea! Far be it from me to suggest they shouldn’t get to dress up like cops, but there is an administrative solution:
https://kymkemp.com/2022/08/18/project-trellis-local-equity-program-to-provide-955000-in-services-to-cannabis-community/
If you qualify you are permitted, if you need tanks still, you’re busted! Simple, elegant!
Well spoken people like you need to run for office. I really hope some of the people who have the opportunity choose to do so. We need locals not beaurocratic puppets with agendas in office. What’s the real source of this witch hunting ? Legal farms are doing their best to keep their heads above water, paying taxes and employing local families.
I really hope the community can come together and find a middle road. These people are taking tax money that should be going back into the community and paying themselves. How do we organize in a meaningful way?
Thank you for sharing this intriguing perspective!
It’s time to protest at the office in Eureka. HCGA organize it
When none of you sell a single gram on the black market and truly start selling legally, I will support you. While you get subsidies and tax breaks meant to prop up your failing industry while the rest of us get none, while you continue to play both sides of the coin, selling to both markets and then complain about inspections, all you get is laughed at.
Go lay in your beds, you made em.
Funny thing is they didnt think this through ive been trying for a year to get into a shop its not gonma happen unless you know someone its all a fail
As alicense holder im out there trying however the legal market is shady too they want one legal and rest out back… For those of us trying its just not a working system
its the same all over the country I know shop owners from Sandiego to Sandwich Mass. Its 90% backdoor crap and 10% in the front door.
That’s okay because I still will fight for you. I will still speak about the injustice to mom-and-pop growers forced out of participating in the permit process. The best growers in our county and our history and culture are left out of the story. I will still speak on behalf of people being thrown in jail or properties fined for growing a plant. I never supported prop 64. But I also couldn’t stand all the rednecks scalping the environment and pouring avid into our streams. The shit thing is they are who the supervisors pushed permits through for and supported the most. You’re right. We made a mistake by signing up. Were we lied to and bait and switched? Hell yeah. But I’m not going to argue we made a mistake. But right now, we have an agency as an arm of corporate monopoly. They are just here to kill the competition. I’m not asking for your support im mad, too but im not your enemy
Decent response right there. Not all permitted people suck just almost all the ones I know. I wish you the best in your endeavors…
I can say the same thing. Left and right, the people you wouldn’t want getting permitted were. It’s another game of “who you know”. That will never change here, however. I’ll believe it when I see it.
Have you been paying attention? It’s not worth it to go legal, especially when the government still treats it like they did in the ’70s. The dispensaries don’t pay enough to cover expenses within 5 years of certification. Most businesses fail within the first 2 years. I’ll stay hush-hush in the hills like I’ve been doing for decades and keep selling my pounds out-of-state.
Did I mention anything about unlicensed cultivators?
I agree i want to stand up so bad bit fear state and county will pick on me itvwill take us all
That’s valid they might. It feels damn good to be honest with the inspectors, though. I feel like the DCC is getting scared. The inspector seemed pretty downtrodden and worried when they inspected us. They know there jobs are on the line too. Granted, we were honest and are pretty on point with records. Despair in the hills never ends well though.
I appreciate your perspective. I hope things go well for you and your farm. Please keep offering us your incite!
I was there when only one other person wanted to stick up for those with less than 5 acres.. No one else out of 100+ people spoke up. That’s how it all started.
Ya’ll aren’t legal! Ya’ll are selling most of your product on the black market! You signed up to go legal and none of you are in compliance because ya’ll still sell weed on the black market. I get you would go out of business if you tried to sell completely on the white market, but ya’ll signed on the dotted line!
Don’t worry, Biden’s 87,000 new IRS agents won’t give you any warning either!
They have no clue of what’s coming their way. The irony, more likely than not it’s what they voted for. The IRS loves Google Earth.
Yep. The majority voted for exactly what they are getting and now they are complaining about it! They have satellite imagery going back to the early 2000’s, they don’t care if they wait till you are 80 to come get ya!
Oh my goodness dude ! Nothing like being a douche bag. I’ve never hoped for ANY fellow farmer to have troubles, legal or not. That’s not our code . Karma …….
Statute of limitations Pal!
You are wrong on that aspect. I know people on indictments going back to before they were born. It’s called conspiracy.
For example it reads like this “beginning in 1949 this DTO”
There is no statute of limitations on tax evasion
no way, it was all cbd flower. sorry try again.
Not me you’ll have to convince. Besides the question isn’t whether the weed contained THC or cbd. The question is did you pay your taxes on the money you made off the plant you grew?
You don’t have a clue. If unregulated sales could be proven, they would have had warrants and charges; foundational aspects of our judicial system they are skipping with these harassment raids.
You mean like hunters laptop
Lol aint no one buying black market weed for more than $400.. it’s not even worth trying to do that anymore
Traditional Market weed is still goin for $800 to $1600 for those who been distributing long term. I know of a few batches that even went to Santa Barbara and Ventura for $800 and that was recently. Honestly, if you’re only offered $400 you can hustle two to three times that much just yourself in any city. Probably have a shit ton of fun doin it as well. I say go live and yes we still do and it’s worth it.
I still see them driving passed my house with totes of soil! They don’t realize that there are far easier minimum wage jobs out there!
Boo hoo, these growers are crying because they are now part of the regulated in the state! Good grief what a bunch of pansies, wake up this is California! Regulations to do anything in this state are over the top and have been ever since the Democrats have run it( which has been for decades). That’s why so many people are leaving.
Welcome to the business world.
And great job LEO’s please keep it up and just maybe we will get our critical oak woodlands and remote areas back.
it has become the day of reconning. They (growers) are now subject to the same type of regs’ that other tax paying businesses have been struggling through.
The regulation faced by the permitted cannabis industry is unlike any other industry that doesn’t produce toxic or physically hazardous material.
It’s significantly more extensive, intrusive, and expensive than any other agriculture business.
and more than likely brought on by past experiences and abuses of the industry. All it takes is one, or in this case hundreds over the decades ….. you know the rest.
No one was abusing regulations in the past. There were no regulations in the past. There was just an immoral war on one of the most valued plants in human history that was rooted in racism, corporate greed, and the ceaseless thirst for power from the state.
Darn tootin! Nothing says “Outlaw on the loose” like self reporting, and shoveling fees, and taxes to dozens of agencies. After spending 100 grand, and filling tanks in February, I bet they just can’t wait to spend all the growing season stealing water from a seasonally dry creek on their property using loud gas pumps. This is not about making a profit with these folks, they want to scam the Water Protectors in this driest of California’s regions.
Of course the cops are going to just show up un-announced to make sure people are not diverting most of their crop onto the black market or using water out of the creek. It always seemed like pretty sketchy idea to go legal and then be diverting water or selling lbs out the back door.
This is not a surprise and comes rather late. It was in the paperwork. If you have a farm you agreed to it
Tucked in the paperwork. It’s still disingenuous, and unnecessary. There’s no need for the SWAT costumed intimidation. If you wanted to meet with a business owner over official business and inspect the business a day or two notice seems more practical. They’re butt hurt nobody came their silly seminars. Permitted growers didn’t go because they already have to know to get permitted.
It’s hardly “tucked in” took me all of 5 mins to read through then paperwork and tell my bosses what they are in for . They had no clue like most absent minded property owners .
Lucky the people who figured out how to afford to pay you to work for them found somebody so smart.
Somebody cut and paste the easy to find clause from the regs. When were these specific new regs published?
“Personnel from the Department of Cannabis Control (DCC), California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) have been performing no-notice inspections in Southern Humboldt County as early as last week.”
And… Soon to be joined by one of the 87,000 new armed IRS agents.
Yes, those are Fox’s scare tactics. Does it make sense that IRS will be going after the little guy? Is that why mega corporate media is sweating? If you wanted lumber, would you go to a bamboo forest?
I elieve the new IRS agents are going to be used to audit corporations and the rich. It takes a lot of brain poser to uncover all the cheating that has been going on with them
Agreed!!
Are they marking the water tanks levels to make sure more water is not going into them, or are they trying to confirm or making sure that water is actually coming out of them to water the cannabis or not?
They’re making sure you aren’t filling them now.
Why not do a no-notice raid on the alfalfa guys diverting canal loads from the Shasta river today, right now? I’d bet the flow being diverted in the canal TODAY is equivalent to all of Redwood Creeks flow.
That makes sense, and I understand that…
But, if they aren’t being drained, they aren’t watering the cannabis…
And something is…
So the water has to be coming from somewhere…
If you catch my drift.
Oh jeez us. Keep doing the mental gymkhana:
Since the DARE program told me my mommy and daddy were bad, these people must be stealing water. There’s no way that these farmers would use the tens of thousands of dollars spent on storage tanks for storing water, when you could experience the thrill of potentially running out, and getting penalties, and fines. Why pump out of a tank when you could pump from a dwindling creek? At night. You’ve brought up a good point: these so called legal farms aren’t in it to grow weed, so much as extirpate the steelies. Fish have creepy little unblinking stares.
A mature redwood tree can use upto 500 gallon of water per day! A pot plant is more like 1-5 gallons.
Well, should of expected this kind of behavior. It is a war and when the enemy is down 5 billion for Aurora, 7.5 billion for Madmen, 4 Billion for Tilray they tend to get upset. They send their murse carrying army in their Mercedes ML420’s to the capital to complain!!
FYI, we kicked their asses so bad Aurora is switching to vegetables, lol. Say hi to them at your local farmers market, lol. Fuck Legal!!!
That right there is a beautiful thing to see. 5.4 billy lost. Haha fuckin jackasses. Industrial cannabis is suited to isolates, seeds, and fiber. Industrial scale flower (not cannabis) cultivation only works because of the use of aggressive insect and fungal toxins that are very dangerous if consumed.
Quality cannabis production will always be the purview of small specialty producers. These clowns better hope consumers don’t lose the taste for fake terpene carts
Spot on, yes, the kiddo’s do love them carts. In my travels I have noticed they like the smaller sized ones that look like a geenie bottle (somewhat). They also like them in a metallic colored finish. Papaya is the rave apparently at the moment.
Growers in the triangle should plan to produce a high value niche product for the developing market and size their operation accordingly. Consumers like cheap and we’ll never be able to compete on cheap. Produce the best, and don’t waste time or resources producing more than you can sell for a good price, and there’s lots of legs left in this industry
Agreed, they just need to keep goin. I know it’s rough out there but they really got em all scared. The testing proves that indoor/DEP is an inferior product.
So, if it’s harvest season for light deprivation why is there NO fresh herb at dispensaries? Everyone is selling old weed unless it’s indoor. These “legal” growers are crying, but they’re still selling all of their good weed on the black market. Once “legal” grows actually act legally maybe the cops will leave them alone. Go to any dispensary in Humboldt County and try to buy summer 2022 greenhouse light dep cannabis. There is non available. So you guys are crying, but at the same time your lying! You’re never going to have a profitable “legal” farm if you keep selling all the tops on the black market then sell the rest for biomass. The outdoor legal weed scene is a joke. The best thing Humboldt has going right now is legal indoor weed. That’s the ONLY good weed at ANY dispensary in Humboldt. Check it out. Kym is selling bulk last years outdoor for nothing at HPRC. I’ve done the research. The legal weed scene is a freaking joke for the greenhouse light dep scene. Seriously non of it ever makes it to the dispensary. So I say bust all the crooked growers trying to play both sides of the field/game. Just go old school and be a traditional black market farm if your not going to sell your good weed to dispensaries……
Greenhouse weed at a dispensary is called indoor weed, that is the whole point of the greenhouse.
//”Greenhouse weed at a dispensary is called indoor weed,”//
That may be true in NorCal. In SoCal you won’t get away with that for long.
The SoCal conniseuer catered to by those fancy retail outlets are getting their butts kicked by the baggie brigade, fyi.
Which has zero to do with the observation that in SoCal dispensaries, greenhouse product is generally differentiated from indoor product.
Do you ever just address the topics at hand, or do you only brag?
Brag? I am stating reality. A perspective the “cannabis” world seems to avoid.
//”I am stating reality.”//
No, you’re not — you’re stating opinion. Let’s look at your statement:
//”The SoCal conniseuer catered to by those fancy retail outlets “//
You’ve clearly established who you’re talking about — the person in SoCal who voluntarily chooses to go to what we’ll call a ‘Rodeo Drive’ style dispensary and pay a significantly higher price for product and EXPERIENCE than from the traditional market.
Perhaps they do this because they want to be seen as ‘upscale’ or ‘trendy’ — just like shopping at any “fancy retail outlet” you find in LA. Perhaps they want tested product. Perhaps they are brand loyal and want the latest Jungle Boys creation that was harvested recently and is bang on fresh (as they can tell by looking on the mandated sticker). Perhaps they like the tribalism feel of supporting the local homies.
//” are getting their butts kicked by the baggie brigade, fyi.”//
Now explain to me how IN FACT (not opinion, FACT) that this above consumer is getting their metaphorical “butt kicked by the baggie brigade” in their purchasing experience.
Go on … … … (remember what’s important to them).
Do they get to be seen dropping by the fancy ass dispensary in their new Porsche while buying from the baggie brigade? No.
Do they get to represent their favorite brand by buying the latest overpriced and stylized font ‘Jungle Boys (LA farmers since 06)’ hat and flashy ‘Banana Animal Mints’ jacket? No.
Do they get tested product that the state mandates has no pesticides and a regulatory entity enforcing such? No.
Does the baggie have a ‘born on’ date which shows when it was harvested and packed and thus they can go on and on raving to their new GF about how fresh this shit is and how special they are to know where to find it? No.
Do they get the same ‘us vs them’, NorCal vs SoCal, city boy vs country bumpkin tribalism pride rise (the kind that you and I likely despise together) from the baggie brigade purchase? No.
You see LL. In your hatred for the legal market, you forget that there are things that others value that you do not. Some things that you can NEVER replace in this particular market.
Your brag is empty as it relates to this consumer you reference, because this consumer CHOOSES their experience in a way you can’t relate to. THIS consumer values a different experience than you value or can offer. You don’t stroke their (very big) ego the way the Jungle Boys purchase does.
As it relates to the consumer you reference, if any butt kicking is going on between the Jungle Boys dispensary and the baggie brigade, it’s YOUR side that is getting kicked. They have figured out how to serve a market (ego) that you can’t, make a particular group of consumers very happy and make a shit ton of money in the process.
And btw — the Jungle Boys (and others like them) also grow some damn good weed. Ivan comes from way back and made his name in the traditional market and is one of the few who has been able to scale a tight cultivation ship to preserve quality.
You continue to focus on the massive and many failures of the Chads and fail to understand that there are folks in the traditional side that have pivoted and created solid business models with high consumer satisfaction, loyalty and the financial returns associated.
You can hate those entities all you like, but it might be better to understand that your hate won’t change the facts of their hard earned success.
Blessings, you are a good soul. I stand corrected. I have not forgotten those that have pivoted. I support (litterly) more than you can comprehend. Agreed, my frustration is apparent of the chad’s and brad’s but I saw with my own eyes in SLO, DHS and Long Beach. Thanks for balancing me.
I fucking love you two! Hahaha! The banter is so entertaining! We should all sit back and smoke a joint sometime and talk shop. LL, you might as well stop by one of these days on your way up the hill. You’ve actually described the location of my hoops here in the chat before. You might as well burn one and talk with me if you’re going to talk about me haha.
I’ve wondered if a regular podcast with LL and myself my just take off.
Probably not (I’ve never thought I was that interesting), but perhaps the chemistry would be right and the obvious opposite takes might do well.
We’ll call it “Grower and the Felon.” Market it as insights to the weed and cannabis industry. Our first story will be on AB-2691 Temporary Event Licenscing and how corporate cannabis lobbyist continue to fuck with our 10k and under legal farms!
I like it.
lol, I might. I get concerned if I gotta pull over and take a whiz don’t wanna, ya know, “over fertilize” your pretty tagged plants.
I haven’t seen that to be the case in the few dispensaries I visited in the North State.
I made a claim about the way SoCal markets their product. Not sure if you’re disagreeing with me, or “Umm … hello?” who made the original dispensary claim.
Sorry to be unclear. I was agreeing with you and disagreeing with Legal Lettuce.
All good. (see my topical response to LL above).
You are as clueless as a Texan.
Just to be clear. We don’t do dep. We are 100% outdoor, from seed, grown in the sun naturally and our crop is still in the ground and will be for over a month. Not to insult folks who feel differently (and we’re not judging them) but for us, the thought of using all that plastic made us sick. My son and I decided that if that was the only way to make our farm profitable, we’d rather quit.
You could do deps sans plastic, but it’s a helluva investment.
Think garage/shipping comtainer but instead of cars coming in and out it’s a tracked flatbed of plants.
You can do that, but … it’s not any more friendly for the environment – gotta dig up, haul, melt down, shape, weld, process and ship all that steel all over the world before it gets to you to ‘save’ the plastic.
I completely respect Kym and her family’s decision to grow the way they do. I’m sad how it’s turning out for all those who share their commitment.
(while respecting the commitment, I’m not at all convinced that growing small batches back in the woods is any more ‘environmentally friendly’ than properly thought out larger grows on ag land.)
//(while respecting the commitment, I’m not at all convinced that growing small batches back in the woods is any more ‘environmentally friendly’ than properly thought out larger grows on ag land.)//
I know a few growers that disagree. No way any Ag land grow could come close. Again, 20% (now maybe less) of the legal weed industry is a narrow vision of the true weed industry that has been running for 50+ years! Growers do not stop grow’in.
//”I know a few growers that disagree. “//
Only complete actual data will convince me – not a few growers opinions.
//”No way any Ag land grow could come close.”//
Nice unsupported assertion — didn’t convince me.
It’s like the assertion that the Manhattan resident living in the high rise apartment is the ecological nightmare — as made by the guy living 30 miles out in the woods. Generally no.
lol, well I guess not much I can say in response. Not like you and I can go around to a bunch of scenes and then go check the big Ag cannabis growers to compare. If we did I think you’d be surprised. Sorry they don’t write stories of “we busted that illegal grow but damn they were environmentally impressive! “
//”Not like you and I can go around to a bunch of scenes and then go check the big Ag cannabis growers to compare.”//
Well, it’s not like YOU can – leave me out of that statement.
Turns out as a consultant to some very large ‘stacked license’ entities in SB, I’ve been there, done that. And as an ‘I’ve done my federal time’ oldie, I’ve seen the other side since ’85.
My channel. My private video. 210 stacked license farm.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CGPtFkUXb8
The landowner in the blue jeans 3 seconds in has *another* application in for *another* 38 acres currently. That’s another 150 stacked or so.
//” If we did I think you’d be surprised.”//
One of us has the goods on both. One of us has to use a hatred fueled imagination. I have no reason to be surprised.
BUT — none of that matters all that much because I wasn’t stating (by any means) that you can’t find ‘big ag’ offenders environmentally. What I said was this:
Me:
//”I’m not at all convinced that growing small batches back in the woods is any more ‘environmentally friendly’ than properly thought out larger grows on ag land”//
Notice the words “properly thought out”.
There is simply no reason that larger grows on ag land need be inherently environmentally dangerous. None. Conversely, it’s a simple matter of economies of scale (fact) that ‘properly thought out energy use goes down as scale goes up. This fact has the support of a century of mechanized farming to back it up.
It’s plastic fantastic, thanks for the horrorshow
But then what if we played “Grow Swap” and then the ag guys grow in the hills and the hill folk grow in the flats for a year? Who would grow the better dope? I’ve worked on hills all over the county and have seen several acrosss the country, no 2 are the same. I’ve seen some broke as a joke McGuyver types with amazing weed and some seriously loaded guys growing the weed equivalent to bathtub crank. And vise versa too.
On a slightly different note, JB and LL, what’s the tallest weed plant you guys have ever seen?
15’ 2” was the biggest I’ve tended to. And the real kicker about that plant is that 95% went to compost due to bud rot. The dude kept saying, no we can’t harvest that one yet, it’s the biggest plant I’ve ever grown and I need to take some pictures. That went on for about a week in the pouring rain until the colas the size of your whole arm melted into snot. I almost cried as i had put so many hours into that plant for 7 months.
//” Who would grow the better dope?”//
The folks who have been growing the fantastic weed for decades. Experience matters.
//”JB and LL, what’s the tallest weed plant you guys have ever seen?”//
I’ve never measured, but sounds like yours was quite the tree.
The multi-generational growers who know how to make there own composts and fertilizers and truly feed the soil. Not people who have depended on bagged dirt and store bought nutrients.
I’m not at all convinced that growing small batches back in the woods is any more ‘environmentally friendly’ than properly thought out larger grows on ag land.
I’m really in agreement with that.
There’s no sense in cutting hilltops and mountainsides for what should (and likely will) be on flat ag full sun.
Don’t be sad, divide and conquer seems to be working !
Of course, there are other ways.
https://fullbloomlightdep.com/product/light-dep-gutter-connect-greenhouse/
Starting at $126,000.
Humboldt growers can’t do math
Those gutter connect greenhouses use plastic deprivation curtains — just inside the greenhouse rather than outside.
Damn. Is there a non-plastic dep-GH that you’re aware JB?
Nothing that I know of. Hard panels are heavy and hard to move so everyone uses something soft, light and flexible – plastic in other words.
As you point out with your container example, there are ways of getting it done — I’m just not sure it’s much of a gain environmentally (or practically).
I have heard of people using heavy fabric. I’ve would be surprised if the fabric used were completely plastic free but it’s hypothetically doable.
The compromise that we have come to at the farm that I work at is to use systems that extend the life of the plastic we use. We expect to get a decade out of our base clear plastic and at least that much out of the blackout cover.
As to the broader issue, I think there are plenty of properties in the hills that can support cultivation without deforestation. I also don’t subscribe to the notion that cannabis cultivation needs to be any more impactful than a homestead orchard
//”The compromise that we have come to at the farm that I work at is to use systems that extend the life of the plastic we use. We expect to get a decade out of our base clear plastic and at least that much out of the blackout cover.”//
Yep. It’s amazing how long the current agriculture films last. If done properly, it’s not the environmental disaster that it used to be. Change happens.
//”As to the broader issue, I think there are plenty of properties in the hills that can support cultivation without deforestation. I also don’t subscribe to the notion that cannabis cultivation needs to be any more impactful than a homestead orchard”//
Totally agree. I hold that it can be done well high or low.
It’s called Fall, aka Autumn
Hey, I frikin love outdoor!
For 3 months, maybe 4.
But, like food, I enjoy FRESH produce.
Please don’t tell me you want to go back to the 1920s of food and only see tomatoes for 2-3 months of the year in Grocery aisles.
What outdoor can do once a year, indoor or deps can do 4x a year.
That’s F-R-E-S-H.
Last September’s stuff? Yellowed.
If people dry, cure, and store their product right and process it over time instead of all at once then you can have very good outdoor into July at least. Unfortunately most people rush their outdoor and process too much of it at once so that it goes stale faster.
I tried some 2 year old outdoor back in May (harvested fall of 2019) that was stored untrimmed in a cool dry environment, and it was very nice. Definitely showing some age but that’s like 30 months old
I wish consumers would understand that untrimmed cannabis maintains its flavor longer than trimmed.
Consumer education is the missing piece for the survival of traditional Northern California product.
There’s a whole generation of smokers (younger than me, but many in my generation too) who grew up exposed to cannabis through visual media exclusively. A particular appearance is held in highest regard by many of these younger consumers, and (from my perspective) it’s not an appearance that actually conforms to the best quality smoking experience.
I’m not a social media person, but I hope that our community has competent social media users working to expose people to the wide range of appearance that can accompany top quality smoke
I have some 13 year old jack herer cannabis in a UV safe jar.
My brother never got to finish growing it due to a motorcycle wreck.
It still holds flavor, though barely.
I’m smoking mine from last year, as you stated untrimmed (till jar is emptied) and cooled as good as could be off grid.
It’s all good.
But if I can spare some $ for some fresh I do, and I will.
Fresh is great.
Wow, 13 years is pretty remarkable.
And yes, I agree that fresh is great. Harvest season is special because there is a certain character to very fresh weed that just doesn’t last long. A certain cerebral buzz that I find in very fresh weed.
To me, January/February is the best time of year because the late harvested deps are still in a great place and the outdoor is just coming into its peak quality (assuming proper storage and handling on both fronts).
Honestly, the management of the supply chain as we enter this new world of constant harvest, year round, production is one of the things that I’m most curious to see play out. It’s a puzzle the traditional emerald triangle market never had to address and its well beyond my pay grade. But I look forward to a future when a discerning consumer might enjoy flower from different regions of the country at different times of year
Well then go on with your bad self!
The best produce comes from your own garden.
There is a whole big world out there beyond the fog of Eureka!
If you are a licensed grower, then you agreed to these terms. Just like when you get a license to drive a car, you agree that you may be stopped at any time and may have to take a sobriety test. Restaurants get health inspections without prior notice. It’s still a schedule one drug federally, of course there is going to be a little checking up, I would think.
Is the government coming to restaurants with multiple agencies and armed wardens now?
Sometimes they do. Google “restaurant raided by” It depends on what the restaurateur is suspected of doing and if they threatened previous inspectors.
Hmm… Sounds like the same complaints Trump had to his recent “inspection.” Just think how virtuous you will feel if nothing is found.
this would be one of those WTF moments
Is the government coming to an Amish farmers farm in Pennsylvania with fda swat teams and harassing him for selling raw milk. Why yes, yes they are. And the Amish farmer is selling perfectly good raw milk which is safe and delicious but the government doesn’t like people who resist, now do they, claiming raw milk will kill you because of ecoli. Wrong and predictable because the bureaucrats making the rules have never been on a farm as most come from big cities and reside there; know nothing about the outdoors life; think raw milk will kill them and cows are causing global warming; and generally do not understand anything but raw power to be wielded against the Amish serf man and his herd of black and white milk cows. Vote for real people like your dog or DeSantis/Gabbard for President in 2024.
So, why don’t the Amish have food sovereignty?
They sell in their own private club.
The Tribes get support (rightly so) and the Amish get armed goons, fines, and threats of jail time.
I was totally with you, until you ruined it for me with the last sentence. Mmmm love raw milk
Do you mean the health department? if so that is a very bad fallacy to use. How many “restaurants” are known for being armed to the teeth with firearms? Does your farm have firearms to protect your cannabis from thief? Law enforcement does not inspect restaurants, but law enforcement does eat at restaurants and I bet they are wearing their side arms, while also wearing a ballistic vest under their uninform. I guess there are pro’s and con’s for conducting business as a cannabis cultivator, legal or not. Were the rights of the growers involved in this article violated in any way? Did any of the law enforcement involved pull their weapons?
It’s this type of dramatic hysteria that gets these desk jockeys all ginned up on playing dress-up!
Here’s something to digest:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuart_Alexander_(murderer)
You’ve obviously never tried to steal summer water while carrying an AK. When you bend over to steal the water your gun slides around and into the creek, you get blue PVC glue all over the stock. Has anyone else been trying to do a METRC transfer, and had your .38 slide out out and accidentally highlight the wrong selection,creating a package tag for 4500 clones instead of grams? I know huh!
When you are pulled over by law enforcement for a traffic stop, do they leave their sidearm in their car as they approach your car?
Ed, just so you are clear…these people haven’t even been accused of doing something illegal let alone observed doing something. This is roughly like the Sheriff’s Department deciding that people who haul jet boats are all criminals and stopping every one they see driving for no reason and then holding them for 3 hours from conducting their regular business while the deputies inspect the jet boats.
You HAD to bring jet boats into it
snort
Kym, your fallacies are getting weaker and weaker. As stated in the article:
“Licensed cannabis cultivators agree to inspections of cultivation sites and buildings used in cannabis production when they enter the regulated commercial cannabis industry”
Although, any law enforcement can stop you on the water using your “jet boats” and do a Coast Guard safety inspection of the vessel without warning. They also conduct the same random safety inspection as you are launching your boat at any state or county boat ramp. Law enforcement can also conduct sobriety checks on the water without warning.
And, didn’t you oppose a cannabis site applying for a permit with the Planning Commission earlier this year, because of past violations thru permit inspections near your place?
Ed, your conflations are odd.
Just because in order to be able to legally grow cannabis, people had to sign an agreement to something that should be illegal, doesn’t mean that it is right that the government forced them to do so or that the government should continue to ask them to do so.
That’s why people protest illegal or immoral actions by the government–to make for a more just society.
As to your point about jet boats, according to the educational material for boaters, “Enforcement officers have the authority to board any vessel where the officer has probable cause to believe that a violation of the law exists.” https://www.boat-ed.com/california/studyGuide/Who-Enforces-Boating-Laws/10100502_27860/
I am not arguing that growers should be above the law. I’m arguing that they should be only subject to the same rules as everyone else. Officers should only have the ability to pull someone over in a boat if they have probable cause to believe a crime is being committed. They need to be able to articulate that perception of crime. In the same way, the government should not be able to come with armed officers to private property to inspect it without prior notice if they don’t have evidence of a crime.
And yes I, along with 15 other of my neighbors, opposed a permit on a site with multiple egregious violations over the years. Our neighborhood had tried to work with the owner for years before opposing their permit. During that time they were raided at least twice by law enforcement and there were multiple accusations of illegal behavior and environmental crimes including a pond that collapsed onto the neighbors, stealing water from our land, several fires on the property etc.
Again…I am not saying growers should be allowed to commit crimes. I’m saying that before the government comes onto a person’s private property bearing weapons with no notice, they need to have evidence of the property owner breaking the law–whether the property owner is legally growing cannabis or whether they are driving a jet boat on the water or whether they are a private home owner relaxing in their hot tub.
Wow Kym, all I can say is whoa. You sure know how to make a iceberg out of an ice cube. I hope you never need to call law enforcement for help!
You object to growers having the same rights as everyone else?
I don’t hate law enforcement. I loved your dad. I’ve met a lot of officers I like (and a few I thought were jerks) in the course of my life. And, literally, less than 12 hours ago I just was on the phone with an officer I respect asking for help understanding the rights of our community. I believe that law enforcement as a whole is a stabilizing force for good in the community. For Christ’s sake, I got some sort of award from Sheriff’s Office a couple of years ago.
However, in the case of the people in this article, asking that a class of farmer not be subjected to armed inspection without reasonable cause is literally asking for growers to have the same rights as other farmers. That’s all.
I’m surprised that you find that hard to grasp. You have a lot of unpopular opinions. I can’t imagine you would be comfortable with an armed officer of the government inspecting your property–not because you are doing anything wrong, but because it is intrusive, intimidating, and doesn’t treat you as a good citizen but rather as a suspect.
Just to be the devils advocate, growing cannabis is still federally illegal, and it’s widely known that most cannabis grown here legally is destined for black market sales, so a little enforcement is understandable from a law one order perspective. If you are doing everything correctly then nothing to worry about right? The writer of the article does attempt to throw ‘illegal’ grows under the bus for being the source of low water flows, so if that’s fair game then it’s ok to point out, I believe, that most ‘legal’ growers are not actually all that legal.
Sorry Kym, its the price of doing buisness as a licensed cannabis cultivator in California, what else can I say. They did agree with the terms of the license they obtained, I don’t think anyone twisted their arms or put a gun to their head (no pun). If you don’t like the laws, as a industry, lobby to amend it! It seems to me, this whole issue from this article is about water or the lack thereof. It seems these regulatory agencies do not trust the cannabis industry, the industry as a whole has a vast track record of evading the laws, correct? It just seems to me, there is a conflict of interest with your point of view and you cannot reasonably or objectively discuss this issue without taking sides. Thank you for loving my Dad, as I did with both your Mom and Dad, I miss him very much. Get off you pity-pot and enact new laws, e.g.
“petition the Government for a redress of grievances”
Or I can express my opinion that the government is acting in error here. Which I’ll keep doing.
Do you sell every single gram you produce legally and on the white market? Taxes paid? If not, then you ma’am are an illegal drug dealer and when authorities show up to an illegal drug dealer’s house/property, they usually do so with proper attire and guns. Just because you signed something doesn’t give you a pass for breaking the same laws you always have been. What makes you so special?
To be clear…The complaint is not over officers responding to accusations of illegal behavior. The concern is when armed officers show up on inspections where there is no accusation.
And what or where will that get anyone, actions speak louder than venting on a blog. Make a change by changing the rules and how the game is played my making it a equal playing field. You think my ranting about instream gravel extraction on Wild & Scenic Rivers in Humboldt County changed anything, NO! It took changing the rules and regulations through laws. You think bringing down Benbow Dam only happened with talking about it, NO. It took a lot of change with regulatory agencies and fighting to save threatened & endangered species on a Wild & Scenic River by amending laws to protect public resources for its own sake. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it. And if it was not for you, I would not have had a platform to speak from, Thank you.
You do realize, Ed, that someone else likely called law enforcement for “help” for these cannabis producers, and it wasn’t this cannabis producer, that called for help, don’t you?
See the difference?
Would you be ok with armed law enforcement inspecting your home and/ or business on a whim, compromising your schedule and deadlines, and ability to do your job, because someone else called, (likely your competitor), and not you, you know, just in case your fire extinguisher wasn’t fully charged, or your new customer is their old customer, because you have undercut your competitor in order to stay in business, and they want their old customer back, or they at least want to put you out of business?
I hope that doesn’t happen to you.
The disruption of losing just one day, when you are barely able to juggle all the tasks involved in living and working, and you’re already on the fine, sharp edge between the black and the red, can be the deciding factor, that turns success into failure.
That can be costly, and if you’re running a
slim margin, it can be a back breaker.
I know the feeling.
Kym has described it very well before…
Frantically, (my word, not hers), juggling numerous tasks and responsibilities at your utmost limit, because it’s make it or break it, and it’s at that point, (of course), that you get the unexpected knock on the door, from the proverbial last straw, (in this case the regulators), and they aren’t going away, so somehow you open the door with one foot, and they insist on adding to your tasks, kicking dust and dirt in your face, and the whole thing comes crashing down, either all at once, or slow, but sure, and it’s just due to some intrusive, demanding, inconvenient, and unnecessary imposition, initiated by a competitors petty, vindictive, complaint.
And they come with guns, if it wasn’t unnerving and intimidating enough…
Then they tell you everything that your doing wrong…
And then they demand that you pay.
Fun Fun Fun.
I am of the belief that government agencies that are supposed to facilitate your ability to perform your task, like the planning department, or agricultural inspectors, should be doing exactly that, not spending all of their time making it more and more difficult and costly for you, especially while armed and on your property.
Maybe I’m just old fashioned…
Officers have the right to stop any vessel at any time.
your not growing potatoes.
Restaurants don’t sell dope.
Growers sell a legal product as do restaurants, bars, and wineries.
Hmm… Is there money to be made by illegal restaurants? And as for wineries, they get regulated up the ying yang by the Feds who have a whole bureau- ATF. True they now focus more on guns , even legal manufacturers, but that is because they pretty much took care of moonshiners. Still (lol)
https://www.cbs17.com/news/north-carolina-news/illegal-distillery-busted-250-arrested-in-nc-alcohol-crackdown/
I feel like you aren’t understanding the point. I have no objection to growers being treated the same as everyone else. My argument is that in most cases the government needs evidence of a crime before coming onto private property. AND in the cases where they are doing inspections without prior notice and no evidence of criminal behavior, they do not bring armed officers.
So do I. Feel you missed the point that is. I said it before but it disappeared with your comment disappearing. Most times frankly a lot of industries ARE subject to surprise inspections routinely. Lots of examples supplied. Even to Obama’s expansion of the Food Safety Modernisation Act without any need to get a warrant or imply criminality. Just because you demanded to be treated like resaurants. Frankly you assume that this unscheduled inspection some sort of accusation of criminality and you resent it far in excess of the reality. I think you are basically thinking of yourself as a home and not a business. And thinking that a historically dishonest businesses becomes sanctified by getting a license when everyone’s experience is that it has not done that. In fact so many people here have said right out they only applied for licencing for covenience and had no intention of changing what they did. Lay down with dogs, get up with fleas.
You offer so many comments that are contradictory. You don’t object to inspections but want them scheduled- even though scheduled inspections are just as much not done under warrant as unscheduled ones. So warrants are not really the issue. You compare it to a warrantless invasion of your home but I suspect no one come into anyone’s actual home. Only the business areas of the grows and water systems pertaining to it. Then you got your business licence by agreeing to it. Growing pot for sale is not a fundamental civil right protected by the Fourth Amendment.
The government will certainly argue the drought makes it reasonable and a warrant is not required. They will and can reasonably argue public safety.That others than pot growers violate the water restrictions is moot. Not everyone agreed to it and creates an easily misused product. Guess what? Licensing is all about getting access to another’s property. From dog license’s to patents. Heck, even a non conforming septic system is licensed based on the right of inspection. And that is clearly protected by castle laws.
I can understand the resentment but suspect that once legal pot growing has lost it’s outlaw mentality and numerous violations cease to be so common, government will be whittled back. And I suspect that a group of people who routinely announce the morality of ignoring any law that they think is unfair will go to court over it. And will likely win something. It reminds of the usual criminal outrage that the police violated their own laws when arresting them but never mention their own crimes. This all seems like an oversized outrage.
To the best of my knowledge, I’ve not deleted any comment of mine. I’m tired but I don’t see anything in the trash either.
It was a reply to one of your own postings. When that disappeared, so did my reply. I have no idea shows when that happens.
To the best of my knowledge I did not delete any comments nor are there any recent comments of mine in the trash. The last comment I deleted of mine was almost ten days ago.
Oversized outrage! The extent of these presumed violations is outsized. That’s the point that offends people. Weed growing is as boring as growing tomatoes. A successful weed farmer doesn’t want drama or trouble! Nobody wants a murder or ripoff, especially back when the very act of growing it was illegal.
Ok, maintaining defensible space is important, affects the safety of your neighbors and yourself in a much more serious way than a weed plant, but CalFire law enforcement doesn’t enforce laws on the books by sending in personel dressed up in SWAT gear.
Sideshows are dangerous, and a law enforcement priority in some cities, but you don’t see police or CHP dressed up in tacticool gear checking licenses at car shows. It’s an intimidation tactic out of line with the risk or seriousness.
Yeah and if wineries and bars sell their product out the back door won’t be black market they get raided by the ATF with guns drawn. Same as what happens to growers selling their product out the back door and black market. See? You aren’t actually treated any differently at all! Welcome to the world of legal business, wake up and smell the coffee, it’s not all unicorns and rainbows!
Once again…these grows have not been accused of illegal behavior. This is supposed to be an inspection not an enforcement.
And the enforcement officers told you all the details as to why they chose to go to these said grows to check for said compliance?
According to those we spoke with and the response from the DCC, the inspections in the Redwood Creek area are prompted by the low flow of Redwood Creek. However, they are not inspecting every property in the Redwood Creek area, or even all the agricultural businesses in the Redwood Creek area, or even all the cannabis grows in the Redwood Creek area. They are ONLY going to licensed cannabis farms in the Redwood Creek area.
It is like officers only pulling over a specific race of people after a bank robbery with no description of the suspects. Or only specific cars, etc. Assuming that the low water levels in Redwood Creek must be coming from licensed cultivators is prejudiced and not using logical thinking.
Licensed cultivators that divert water from lakes or streambeds have to have adequate storage for their square footage, water usage that is reported to the SWQRCB.
If the CDFW is convinced that the flows of Redwood Creek are not a naturally occurring result, they could walk the creek bed (totally within the CDFW’s scope) where they could find water lines and/or pumps. They could, if they’re really concerned, take a trip at night if they’re concerned the theft is under the cover of darkness. Instead, they’re spending thousands of dollars in taxpayer money to harass licensed cultivators with zero evidence they are to be blamed.
There are people out there that do not care for our environment, licensed or not, non-cannabis ag or not, but the vast majority of the people I know in that watershed are land stewards who have volunteered time and resources to protecting the very watersheds they’re accused of depleting.
The dangerously low levels in Redwood Creek should not be ignored, but if trying to discover illegal water diversion, the state should not be singling out any one group. To do it under the guise of a no-notice, armed inspections show how far we have to go before cannabis cultivation is truly legal. The War on Drugs continues even as the state collects their cut.
Thank you for the concise summary of the issue here Lisa. Hopefully this shorter explanation can clear up the apparent confusion of some about why this behavior from the regulatory agencies is frustrating for those who have willingly entered into regulation
Good lord…I have no idea why I can’t clear you from moderation. I’ve tried everything I can think of.
Just admit it Kym, you just want to make sure you don’t miss any of my stupendous contributions ?
LOL.
??That must be why I’ve spent so much time on moderation, too…?
The illegal ones continue to be regulated by the sheriffs and satellite abatement program. Legal growers are regulated by the DCC like ya’ll signed up for. You just traded one kind of enforcement for another. You thought legalization meant you could grow a plant in the hills and be left alone? Ha. It’s called regulations.
We obviously dont go to the same Taco Bell…
Game Wardens do not inspect restaurants!
Nor should they inspect legal cannabis grows.
I think they should check legal cannabis grows, as there may be a crop on that land which is not permitted. If you are doing nothing wrong, no foul.
No one is saying not to inspect the properties. They are asking for 24 hour notice to make sure the owner isn’t sunbathing nude or having an orgy or picking his nose when the inspector shows up. And…no…you can’t remove evidence of any substantial garden in 24 hours.
And to be clear, the government has access to live satellite to look for evidence of illegal gardens.
And if you don’t mind the government coming to your home and entering without a warrant to search for evidence of crime even if they have no reason to particularly suspect you of a crime, then you are in a minority and you do not agree with the founding fathers.
I had to fight like hell (very diplomatically, of course) to get a 24 hour notice agreed to by CDFW in my LSAA. I agreed that they could come unannounced if they were doing an ‘enforcement action’, which, as I understand the above, would not apply to these raids. Not ‘enforcement’ but ‘inspection’, right?
That is what they are claiming.
Didn’t get a license for my house giving permission for that.
No one has the legal right to come into your home without your permission or without a warrant. And in order to get a warrant they have to have a reasonable suspicion of criminal activity.
Again, I am not arguing for no inspections. And, I am not arguing that in cases of alleged criminal behavior the government should not be able to check.
I’m saying there should preferably be notices. And, on the rare occasion the government feels compelled to make non announced inspections, they should not be bringing an armed officer unless there is a warrant.
I’d agree it would be “preferable.” Aren’t all Wildlife inspectors police and carry guns? IDK about the others but I suspect that not carrying guns is not respectable.
You create the issue by placing your business which is subject to inspection without a warrant or warning on the same property as your residence that needs a warrant. Maybe draw a red line that they shall not pass? Or move your business so it doesn’t share your residence.
About 12 years ago I knew of a grower who turned the whole place into a plant nursery in 1 day. He had like 20 trimmers working when the Trinity county sheriffs showed up on his road. They didn’t have a warrant and we’re trying to come in. He managed to deter them, but knew they would be back. He literally dug up a barrel of money, paid everyone out, and bought a semi full of nursery plants. He paid a handful of trimmers to unload the plants into greenhouses and moved anything cannabis to his neighbors property. When the sheriff came back and cut his locks, he was grinning ear to ear when they were walking around and couldn’t find any weed. Probably couldn’t do that nowadays since weed isn’t worn $2k+ and I would guess there are alot less barrels of cash buried in the hills these days.
But within 1 day, a person could pull water lines from creeks, update and hang up current paperwork, tag all of their legal plants, cut or move extra personal plants, hide their chemicals, and have their foreign trim crew take a day off.
That’s pretty impressive. Probably way beyond what folks I know are capable of. But you are probably right that some folks who were committing criminal actions could minimize their behavior if given notice.
BUT the whole point is, that the insult/the treating growers differently comes when the government assumes that the legal grower is going to need to hide things–the assumption that they are criminals. They don’t treat the logging companies in the same area the same way. (They don’t go after the illegal growers that way because no warrant would mean it would be thrown out of court.) The government only assumes criminality because the farmer is a cannabis grower. A local apple farmer or sheep rancher is not going to have a multi agency task force with an armed officer descend on them even if they are believed to be breaking some codes–let alone if they don’t have any reason to believe the farmer is acting in bad faith.
patience. Your looking for equal treatment in an industry that is riddled with crime. Patience and good practice over time will pay off.
You forgot to add that one of the ways to get equal treatment is to be the squeaky wheel.
If we simply declare tomorrow that food is illegal, then the restaurant industry would then be riddled with crime from there on out.
They do that with various food producers and packagers and restaurants. Not usually armed, but then, it’s not very common for a dog food company or an organic yogurt maker to have an arsenal of guns in the back room either. The weed industry here is also rural, rugged and over a huge and often isolated area. They do use guns in the other industry when the menu is poached or sometimes when the employees are illegal.
They don’t use guns when corn is inspected, but then again, corn is not a controlled substance like tobacco. They would certainly use guns in an alcohol producing situation if alcohol is suspected as being sold on the black market as well as the main market.
I think the biggest difference is alcohol, restaurants and other food producing companies usually have a residence that is further or more separated from the business. It’s been very common for weed businesses to have trimmers etc in the home. Home isn’t always as separate. Also many homes are on the same lot or operating area as the crop.
Kym,
I think you should also point out that giving a 24 hours notice gives the noticee (is that really a word?) the time to rearrange their schedule if they had something planned to do. I used to go to town on Fridays to pick up needed supplies. Every Friday.
This article certainly got people going. It shows the true division in the cannabis industry between growers, legal or not, the non-growers, and people who just want to chime in. Pretty sad state of affairs for those of us who just want some peace and quiet. Sorry; I just watched “Cast A Giant Shadow”. Shalome.
Paul
Very true.
Hard to agree with the founding fathers as they are all dead.
A lot of people don’t have their business at their residence and if you do then that’s on you. You are just setting yourself up for that every time you are inspected and crying foul falls on deaf ears. Move your patch if that’s such an issue.
Just to be clear, I’m not defending myself. I was not one of the farms inspected. And we’re so small and natural, I can’t imagine anyone bothering. I just like to take the side of what I believe to be right.
A slippery slope. They could come and inspect your place with guns just to check. No harm no foul, (except in the future books are illegal, so you. are.busted.)4th amendment zone.
Should you be pulled over while driving with no probable cause just in case there’s a dead body in the back? No body, no problem. Why complain?
What if they only pull over red Subarus? I guess that’s the fault of all the people that buy red Subarus.
People are pulled over all the time without probable cause. It’s the game you play.
This comment thread is emblematic of the source of discord in our community.
Most of us that had operated in the cannabis realm prior to legalization perceived legalization as resulting from our govt and society being convinced that the initial criminalization of this plant was wrong and that enforcing those unjust laws was the primary driver of the social harms related to the plant. However, many other people apparently saw legalization as the govt surrendering to the immoral and dangerous dope growers and exchanging the warranted violent suppression of the plant for the economic violence of onerous fines and unrealistic regulation.
The state and it’s agents seem to generally fall into the latter category unfortunately.
There’s also a few that feel that a deal with the government (legalization) is a deal with the devil and any who made it have lost honor…See Farce.
Yes there are those folks as well.
I was speaking more to the broader picture. While many of us thought that legalization involved acknowledging the plant and its products as valuable agricultural products, many other people (including a number in positions of power) saw legalization as a tool to extract financial revenge on an industry they see as inherently immoral.
What many of these proponents of vindictive legalization don’t seem to grasp is that a legal framework that treats permitted growers like criminals but also adds costs to running their business doesn’t do anything other than support growers who didn’t get permitted.
Or perhaps more importantly for the community, the whole community is suffering because an industry is being smothered.
That is a problem we were always going to have to face. I know that I didn’t prepare for the inevitable shifts inherent with legalization as well as I could have and it caused me some pain. I think that I did better in preparing myself, both professionally and mentally, than many others in our community. From the outside, sohum appears to have been caught especially flat footed.
The governments approach has exacerbated this inherent stress from the opening of the market. It’s unfortunate that so many in our community cheer that vindictive behavior by the state without realizing that it only makes the transition our community is entering more painful.
To be clear, I would say the most vindictive and prohibition minded aspect of legalization is the tight strictures put on retail. That is what is killing small farmers and the broader emerald triangle industry and it is rooted in an attitude born in generations of conflating cannabis with heroin, not in any common sense. These aggressive agency visits are just the poke in the eye to remind us that none of the shit we’re going through is on accident
I don’t think I know a single grower that feels they prepared adequately. We didn’t. We did prepare but not enough.
No doubt, I don’t know if anyone who prepared adequately (other than, perhaps, those who left the industry or moved their operations out of the triangle).
And in retrospect you think you didn’t?
Yes they will, if they suspect that the restaurant is selling recreational take fish or wildlife…
I know where it has happened with abalone…
But they definitely suspected them of doing something illegal…
Sorry but yes game wardens do inspect restaurants they inspect them when they believe they are selling buying or serving poached fish and game.
I never said that Game Wardens do not inspect restaurants, but like you say they should if serving poached fish and game to customers.
You never said that “Game Wardens do not inspect restaurants”?
Really? Seriously?
You might want to rephrase that…
Or maybe just retract it entirely???
You seem to be contradicting yourself, and making outlandish claims…
??Who are you, and what have you done with Martin??
Here is a link to your previous comment, from just yesterday,where you claimed exactly that…
https://kymkemp.com/2022/08/27/distrust-grows-as-state-officials-conduct-no-notice-armed-inspections-of-legal-cannabis-farms-in-southern-humboldt/#comment-1553859
“Martin”
“1 day ago”
“Reply to Kym Kemp”
“Game Wardens do not inspect restaurants!”
And then, today, you say…
“Martin”
“13 minutes ago”
“Reply to Antichrist”
“I never said that Game Wardens do not inspect restaurants…”
https://kymkemp.com/2022/08/27/distrust-grows-as-state-officials-conduct-no-notice-armed-inspections-of-legal-cannabis-farms-in-southern-humboldt/#comment-1554373
Hmmm…
SMH…
What a difference a day makes?
Are we dealing with more that one “Martin”?
But, but, but, the bureaucracy is my friend——————right???
Here’s the main problem. What is cannabis? It’s plant matter. It’s flowers. When you go to buy flowers do you buy fresh flowers or flowers that are old from last year. Cannabis is is like produce. When you go to the farmers market today do you want peaches ? harvested this year that smell and taste great and are juicy and the water runs down your face or do want old peaches from last year that are aged, oxidized and have no smell or flavor? You want fresh peaches. You want fresh flowers. You want FRESH cannabis. Indoor cannabis is fresh. They harvest every month. Local LEGAL indoor growers produce and sell fresh cannabis year round. The legal outdoor growers are stuck in a mindset that they have to sell all their old nasty weed before they can sell the good stuff. This has KILLED the Humboldt outdoor brand. I’m a former Legacy grower who’s still grows 6 plants and buys cannabis products at local dispensaries every week. It really sucks being a retail consumer trying support local outdoor farms. Jesse who writes on Lost Coast Outpost Cannabis Conversation and who I have worked with on legal farms in the past has stated light deps have been coming in for the last 2 months and they started out getting good prices, but now the price dropped. My question is who are the buyers? None of that herb he’s talking about got sold to local stores. The ironic thing is the local dispensaries don’t even know what the light deprivation /black box harvest is. They don’t even know its a thing. They think harvest is in October. How is that so? How do none of the local dispensaries even know its been harvest time for fresh outdoor greenhouse since July? Because none of it gets sold legally. It all goes black market. The whole Humboldt greenhouse scene is a scam!
The market will correct…..and I’ve never bought a peach from the farmers market grown under LED, hyrdoponically, with salt nutrients. That’s okay you buy your preference. I personally don’t understand how anybody can smoke a THC crystal nug with zero terps. The effect is meh. I like a long cure cool so my throat doesn’t dry the fuck out from harshness and so the terps are preserved to perfection. Hash when aged is better and herb needs time to mature its flavor. Also care how the f my veggies and herb is grown and who grows them. Imagine if Safeway had a stand at the farmers market. Ha! But if you want to listen to a business major about the intricacies of what makes a farm special and how to create a unique experience when they grow as a mini mega grow, do you boo? I also know the farm you speak of, and they use predominately illegal labor so yeah you guys should be worried the most about pop inspections
It takes about 2-3 months for the chlorophyll to die and to properly cure weed. Not 6 months or a year. Fresh dep harvested in June or July should be ready by august or September and would be dried and cured properly. There are a lot of greenhouse scenes that go year round and should have continuous production of good cured flower after they take the time to do the first round right. There is none of that.
Excuses are like assholes, everybody has one.
None of them know huh lol sit down
Everyone knows, the question is why is it all old? If you look at the package dates it’s all disappointing, whose fault is it? Is it the dispensary holding fresh product back from the consumer or the grower holding fresh product back from the dispensary?
It’s all old because of how inefficient and backlogged the distribution system is. It’s the distributors that are insisting on getting their old weed our before selling the fresh weed. If the farmer doesn’t own their own brand (an expensive and time consuming project of its own) they don’t have a lot of control over how quickly their flower moves through the distribution system.
If farmers could sell direct to consumers or direct to retail stores there would be more fresh product on shelves
Being unable to sell directly to consumers is going to break the small farms. If we could explain the value of our product to the people who use it, we believe enough would choose to have the sun grown flavors and healthy terpenes of a natural product that it would support the small costs of our farm.
Yes, totally agreed Kym ! Now that the state 160$ per lb tax has been eliminated , has the farmer seen an increase in their price per lb ? N0 ! The middle man strikes again ?
Tax savings should accrue to consumer, not producers or distributors
You know what else is frustrating? You can’t find any fresh mink vests or swim trunks in Humboldt. All you see is old mangy thrift store coats, and this faux fur crap. All these so called “Small Family mink farmers” are selling in this free-for-all free market economy. It’s as if anything goes! Perhaps all this stolen water from our watersheds (other than the Mad and Main Stem Eel) is preventing local mink farmers from thriving.
https://lostcoastoutpost.com/2022/aug/23/local-tribes-demand-immediate-action-after-upstrea/
Redwood creek probably is the worst watershed in our county to be growing anything .The irony that the county and state permitted the majority of So-Hum farms in the most impacted watershed in the county is ?. I Imagine now the state agencies have to actually inspect the mess they created!
One last comment on the topic. If you own a restaurant in Arcata and the health inspector shows up unannounced what do you do? Do you lock the door and hide in the cooler? Do leave out the back door? Or do you simply let them in because you have Nothing to hide? Legal businesses have open doors and aren’t afraid of inspections. Why should legal farms be any different. If you’re afraid of an inspection you must be doing something wrong that you have to hide. If you’re really legal anyone should be able to come to your farm at any time without it being a problem. That’s how the real world works. Like I said we have a bunch of criminals acting like they have a legitimate business……
When the ag guy shows up with a clipboard for an inspection, I don’t imagine folks will be too bent out of shape (though if you are going to drive 2 hours into the hills, it makes sense to be sure the farmer isn’t gone for the day). A farm isn’t like a restaurant with posted hours (also unannounced inspections in restaurants don’t come with armed wardens and a half dozen government employees.) A farmer might be gone for a couple days.
Last week when we got an email notice about an inspection, I called right away to see if we could reschedule, as it was our daughter’s first day of school. The guy said sure, no problem. We could do it in the afternoon or a day sooner? I chose the afternoon time slot. They were easy to work with and the inspection went just fine.
That is exactly how a legal business should be treated.
The article is pretty clear that this was not a routine inspection. It was based on an extraordinary water situation , which explains the lack of advanced notice and presence of multiple agencies. If they find few illegal water diversions, you can better express righteous indignation. But it might be better to wait as I suspect not a few violations will be documented.
Can you explain why this extraordinary situation didn’t lead them to investigate the non-legal cannabis properties in the same watershed? And why an armed officer needed to attend?
Or do legal growers just have to accept being profiled in a way that isn’t acceptable in any other situation?
Yes… For the moment, it’s part of the product being legal. Besides, the FDA does surprise inspections in other industries too.
“But a surprise visit to an unprepared craft brewery from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration can be far worse. ”
https://www.craftbrewingbusiness.com/featured/fda-guidelines-craft-brewery/
And no one is picking especially on pot in this regard- the FDA can do unscheduled inspections on a variety of industries from pharmaceuticals to meat packers.
“Routine inspections: These are required by law and inspectors are not obligated to tell a company when they are going to show up. However, the inspector is required to announce their presence upon arrival. This means they can’t go undercover, but can still catch a company by surprise.”
https://www.sbdlegalworks.com/blog/product-liability/what-happens-fda-inspection/
I suspect the realisation the pot growing is a real world business has yet penetrated the grower consciousness.
Oh? The Craft brewery inspectors brought guns? I didn’t see anything about that. Did I miss it?
That a disingenuous remark. What was being discussed was unscheduled inspections. They were also unlikely to inspect for water diversions from creeks or illegal earth grading. So you would be okay with unscheduled inspections as long as the inspectors didn’t have guns?
I’m not thrilled about unscheduled inspections. But I can see the necessity at times. Though I think it should be rare–just for their own sanity. Driving out to a farm in the hills could result in wasting everyone’s time if the farmer is gone.
However, I don’t ever see that there is ever the necessity of an armed officer at an inspection (at an enforcement action is different, of course).
There is clearly a gross imbalance in inspections and enforcement…
The powers that be are laser focused on the equivalent of a slowly dripping water leak, as they simultaneously totally overlook and ignore the illegal diversion of literally half the entire flow of the Shasta River, for a week…
https://lostcoastoutpost.com/2022/aug/30/ranchers-tribes-state-officials-clash-over-shasta/
“In a single day in mid-August, the Shasta River’s flows dropped by more than half and stayed there for a week, which could jeopardize the salmon and other fish that spawn there.”
“Klamath river tribes were outraged, and California water regulators sounded the alarm. The State Water Resources Control Board ordered the Shasta River Water Association, which serves roughly 110 farms and ranches in central Siskiyou County, to stop pumping. Fines would start at $500 per day but could rise to $10,000 after a 20-day waiting period or a hearing.”
“The unlawful diversion sets a terrible precedent that irrigators can egregiously violate state water rights and impact listed and tribal trust species,” said Jim Simondet, Klamath branch chief for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s fisheries division.”
_____________________
Half the flow of the Shasta River was illegally diverted, and all they did was threaten to fine them $500.00 a day?
That’s so limp!
That’s probably less that it costs for one truckload of water…
That Shasta water flows into the Klamath, and is crucial to far more Chinook Salmon, etc. than the Redwood Creek water that they are trying to regulate on will ever flow by or sustain…
They need to get their priorities straight…
A farmer is never gone for a couple of days, way too much work to be done on a farm! Growers are gone for a couple of days at a time though.
Bullshit. I know farmers and ranchers. I grew up here. And I have family that ranch in Idaho. All of them have to do some squeezing here and there but almost all get a way for a few days.
And okay, just forget vacations. Many of the legal small growers I know have other jobs and are away from their grow at their other jobs at least part of the week.
As someone raised on a farm with an extended midwest farming family, this assertion of yours is just plain old nonsense.
Certain animal husbandry ventures (dairy, etc.) require daily attention, but most agriculture operations have resource spikes and lulls and absolutely can afford trips away for several days at a time.
And the one dairy farmer I know made arrangements and took vacations.
Yep. 1911 is just trying one of his vacuous digs and looking silly in the process.
Lots and kettles.
Real farmers these days have a Gulfstream jet to zip over from the beach house in Santa Barbara to the farm in Kern if anything comes up.
You have clearly never run a farm. Also, growers is a term used for producers of all sorts of agricultural products. Again, it’s clear you aren’t involved in agriculture of any sort and are speaking purely from biased assumptions
Hahaha. You so funny buddy.
Or you have a bunch of families with other jobs and children. Who might need an extra 24hours to make sure all there paperwork is current. Honestly my farm did fine on our DCC inspection but if they had not called I would have been dropping kids off at school. No everyone sold out to investors. What are you a legacy house grower? . Not everyone has a rich daddy from silicone valley or sold their soul to Marlboro. Criminals? how about the distros which still haven’t paid their farmers they procured product from and are vertically integrating? Those are the real criminals
While the threat of a zero notice inspection may be in one of the agreements cultivators had to sign to proceed, in the normal world, there is precedent set precluding government agencies from conducting inspections of routine practices and premises without 24, or 48 hr notice, or without a warrant. A case went to the Supreme Court involving a Hair Salon somewhere like Jacksonville, or Dallas…
I’m gonna try and look it up..
https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/436/307/
One only need read that case a few paragraphs in to see that it doesn’t apply in these cases.
Sure, these glorified melon gardens are an example of activities that require the extra level of scrutiny they refer to. Like uranium mining or behavioral rehabilitation camps for Christian youth. I’m sure there are examples of zero notice inspections at tobacco curing sheds, and firearms manufacturing facilities too.
Sun Valley Floral Farm had an ICE raid a few years ago, but that came with a warrant presumably.
//”Sure, these glorified melon gardens are an example of activities that require the extra level of scrutiny they refer to.”//
Yep — as demonstrated in case law since 1978.
If you’re gonna quote case law, you’ve got to take the good with the bad.
True, but what we’re determining is normal or abnormal business is based on a social construct. It is fairly arbitrary. Replace the botanical species with something else, and an inspection like this would look silly. I mean sillier.
It’s a moot point because of the agreements you sign. It could also be pointed out though, the conditions in the various agreements are not negotiable, nor were they specifically presented to voters to parse out back in 2016. If you don’t sign, it’s stop right there, don’t continue.
I have been hearing of many instances where a disgruntled ex employee or anyone that someone has pissed off getting onto the DCC website filing a false complaint on the licensed farm and then comes the no knock inspection. There are so many illegal grows left out there producing 500-1000# a year still completely untouched, it’ll be interesting to see if their plan they unveiled last month to tax the property owners of these grows comes to fruition.
It’s was in the new proposed regs that came at the beginning of 2022 that no notice was going to happen. I just try my best to keep up on everything. So I’m not sure if it would matter if there is a complaint or there just saying stop with the bs and selling out the backdoor. This is why it’s essential to read the emails. Also treat your employees well and you don’t have that kind of an issue.
Ex-employees are snitching on their Chad employers because they are not getting paid and the employers are always operating openly illegally. These licensed grows are So far from actually being legal that they can’t hide the illegal activities from their employees. Everybody knows what could have happened if you didn’t pay your workers but now they’re only recourse is formal complaints and lawsuits.
Sleepy joe,gruesome,and the rest of the deplorable democrats are building back better I thought! Lmao! Only thing these losers are doing is destroying the country and trying to create socialism!
no one is coming 2 humboldt like they used to. These morons are destroying the humboldt brand with insane inflation! Wake up and vote Republican!
just because the REAL PRESIDENT TRUMP hurt ur feelings it’s time to put the bs aside and get OUR COUNTRY back!
The grower who said “it felt to them that the officials “were trying to catch us doing something wrong.”” yes, that is exactly what they were doing, did you think they came out to give you tips on fertilizing your crops?
roflmao….
You win the internet today
I can’t speak for the grower in the article but I can say that when we’ve had inspections on our piece, it felt like the inspectors were there to help us come into compliance and understand what was expected. I felt like we were partners trying to achieve a good outcome for the environment and our community.
I didn’t feel like they were trying to catch and punish us for something we didn’t know we were doing wrong.
The cultivator was describing the difference between the inspections they’ve had in the past versus the no-notice inspection.
Why would the state assume they were doing something wrong? They had no probable cause to believe they were doing something wrong. They did not find them having any violations and that particular cultivator does not divert from Redwood Creek at all, instead relying on springs on their property which is also subject to the forbearance period which they comply with.
Would you mind being pulled over without probable cause just in case you had a dead body in your car?
Although it is outside my bailiwick to comment on the cannabis industry, I have long been a student of the Humboldt labor force and businesses that provide our basic economy.
As an outside observer, it is plain to see that all of these agencies that have developed around cannabis regulation are still trying to justify their existence. As the cannabis industry slowly dies the regulation industry is closing in on what is left out there.
I had a friend that said, “as the world comes to an end, there will be two critters last to exist, a coyote and a cockroach, and the coyote will be fat eating cockroaches.” Such is the life of a predator.
Yep. Same with the cannabis program in planning department, without the new grant funds they are allocating, they would have zero reasons to exist.
You’d think Planning Commission Chair Alan Bingo would be upset by these…I’m not gonna use that name…agencies… Who are questioning something approved by the Planning Dept, and holding up their right to operate. Gosh.
Lol right. You would think ..
Just to be clear, in your analogy who are the cockroaches? ?
LOL. I was thinking more of predator and prey. Maybe I should have changed the quote to say “Coyote and Golden Goose.”
The administrative state loves to build its multi-million, billion, and trillion dollar regulatory industries over the carcasses of formerly profitable free markets.
Seems like, as the cannabis market dies, the meth and fentanyl market grows.
If you google anywhere on the map, all you see are hoop houses, most States are growing their own.
Supply and demand, demand is shrinking.
If the people from the government are doing inspections on legal pot gardens, I see no problem with them being armed. I am sure every now and then they run into a crazy legal grower that might feel picked on and respond in a violent way. I don’t want our law enforcement agents to be gun free!
and based on previous encounters requires an adjustment in tactics.
I see by your picture that you are a member of Ducks Unlimited!
Over the last 20 years I have only heard of only a few armed alterations between growers and the govt and they usually involved cartel type grows on public lands. At this point, a licensed legal business does not deserve to be harassed, intimidated or threatened by the very govt that entitled these legal activities to exist. Our cowardous govt need to concentrate their efforts on unpermitted illegal and dangerous operators who still use trafficked labor, steal water and destroy our environment. The system is broken for the Masses and is designed only for the rich to keep getting richer…
Every now and then health inspectors probably run into a crazy legal restaurateur that might feel picked on and respond in a violent way….I’m willing to believe it could happen. Just as I’m willing to believe that an elementary school bus driver somehow somewhere might find themselves in the unlikely position of fending off a hoard of crazed schoolkids. I’m just not wanting to live in a world where we arm government employees to perform routine tasks.
I definitely do not want the government to spend my tax dollars armed and ready to respond to the incredibly slim possibility that a cannabis grower who has invested thousands of dollars in going legal is going to jeopardize that by waving a gun–which would result in him/her losing their license to grow.
To the best of my knowledge, no government employee doing a permit inspection on a cannabis farm anywhere in the state has been faced with a firearm threat.
So you don’t support the Inflation Reduction Act that Biden just signed into law that does nothing to reduce inflation but bloats government agencies with more funding and arms them with guns to come after people like you, right?
The IRS purchases guns and ammunition for special agents in its criminal investigation division, a law enforcement branch established in 1919.
The point legal growers feel bitter about is they are not criminals. There may be individuals who are breaking the law, just as their individual restaurant owners that break the law. But the government should not assume every grower is a criminal just as they don’t assume that every restaurant owner is a criminal.
Nice job not answering the question
I’ve answered it before and thought it was to you. But if you really don’t remember me answering… All the cannabis I sell is legal.
But may I say that someone who hides behind a fake name and then insists someone who doesn’t hide their identity answer a question publicly that I wouldn’t ask my dearest neighbor privately, might want to consider if they are concerned about answers and morality or if they are just wanting to play gotcha.
If you want to attack me, then you’ve got a wide, easy target. Not only am I fat, old, and a lot slower than I used to be but I don’t try and hide my identity nor even that of my family. So swing away. Eventually, you’ll probably find some place that you can point to that I’m a bad person.
But I’ll still provide you a website to do it on even though, in my sense of morality, you just stooped pretty low and still missed.
I was talking about whether you supported the Inflation Reduction Act.
Once again, nice job not answering the question, deflecting to a totally different topic, and getting all indignant and self-righteous while you are at it.
Try rereading my question and actually answer it instead of “swinging away” like you just accused me of doing. Reading comprehension is key.
Talk about missing
I’m sorry. I read these on the backend and I don’t see your comments in context. And the most recent question you had asked me is still one that I think is one that no true Humboldt hill person would ask and one you did ask.
However, do I support the Inflation Reduction Act? Yes, from the limited amount I’ve read on it. But it’s fire season and my out of the area reading gets pretty thin.
How can you support armed IRS agents, who are auditing people just to SEE IF they are doing anything wrong and then have a problem with armed agents coming to see if you are doing anything wrong?
That’s extremely hypocritical.
The armed agents don’t go to people who are being audited generally. Armed agents are for people accused of criminality.
“Justin T. Cole, Director at the Office of Communication at IRS Criminal Investigation, told Reuters via email that special agents investigate criminal tax violations and other financial crimes such as money laundering, bank secrecy, national security and national defense matters.
“There are about 3,000 employees in CI, 2,100 of which are special agents and the remaining professional staff,” Cole said. “Only special agents carry firearms.” https://www.reuters.com/article/factcheck-irs-armed/fact-check-the-irs-is-not-hiring-thousands-of-armed-agents-job-ads-show-opening-for-specialized-unit-idUSL1N2ZT296d
Again, I do not have a problem with armed law enforcement investigating criminal activity going to cannabis cultivators’ property. I have a problem with them going to an inspection where no allegation of criminal behavior has been alleged.
I certainly haven’t heard of any racketeering or mafia type busts lately that would require that size of an armed army.
And I don’t think they’re going to go after the cartels.
The emerald triangle is a goldmine of unpaid back taxes. Lots of people may not have money, but really nice legacy properties and jet boats, jet skis, diesels, trailer, all make fire excellent seizure items. And there is always jail if they can’t pay. If I were an IRS agent I know one place I would start combing through. So much acreage to be subdivided and sold!
You should take a look at local real estate listing if you think that rural legacy grow properties are some valuable commodity that a govt agency would be salivating over
The ones I’m talking about aren’t listed. And they are beautiful mountain properties.
Kim, if you were a police officer I think you would change your mind. I think the bases of your statement is that you do not like guns or folks that own them. I am sorry, but I have to disagree with you 100%.
I think you know absolutely nothing about my personal life and if you did you would retract that statement with a red face. I was the best aim in my NRA class when I was a child.
I really don’t think so! Is so, please prove it.
What? That I love gun owners. You want a pic of my husband?
Wait, this might help. Two of my sons with the older son’s first solo deer.
Why the war paint?
Not war paint. In our family, it is a tradition to, with the first buck, to honor the gift of life it gave us by wearing it’s blood.
Bad ass! I take a bite of fresh elk heart every year when I get one.
Looks kind of dark out to be hunting legally to me.
A young kid who got a large buck in the afternoon might have a bit of trouble hauling it home and might just have to go get a quad to get it.
Notice the head is off? The shot might have happened more than a few seconds ago.
Looking for reasons to attack my young kid because now you look a bit silly for insisting you know about my personal views on guns?
I’d rather you stuck to thinking you know all about me. My apologies for assuming you were the kind of person who would say, “Oops, my bad. I can see you don’t hate gun owners.”
Batting the ball back and forth with you is pointless because you have the final say. I am not attacking your kids in anyway and never have. I just said it looked dark out to be legally hunting, I did not say he shot it in the dark. They only thing I agree with you on is the two small blood smears on his face. That have been a tradition in our family since the 1850’s. It was nice to see it is still being carried on today.
//”Batting the ball back and forth with you is pointless because you have the final say.”//
The problem is not Kym’s final say (I’ve yet to see her insist on such), but that your arguments against her are vacuous. Your position against her is just one of ignorance with nothing to back it up.
It’s your right to have such, just don’t expect the “I can’t win because you have the final word” to win you any points when she continues to let you respond any time you like.
Having a hard time coming to terms with the IRS coming after you next even though you signed up for it? You have some vacuous assumptions as well. Is that your new favorite word?
//”Having a hard time coming to terms with the IRS coming after you next even though you signed up for it? “//
One thing for sure … you don’t have a hard time just making shit up.
I pay my taxes (280e compliant) and the IRS even provides resources to make sure we know how to get it done. There’s nothing to fear if you do it right.
https://www.irs.gov/about-irs/providing-resources-to-help-cannabis-business-owners-successfully-navigate-unique-tax-responsibilities
Years past? I’m talking about all that none of you paid while growing illegally. What? You think you get a pass?
//”You have some vacuous assumptions as well.”//
Feel free to point those out that you consider such and I’ll show you just how you’re wrong.
It looks like he’s been done hunting for quite a while in that picture…..
It looks field dressed to me…
It’s takes time to field dress a buck…
And then to get home…
I was a lot older than this young man, when I got my first buck…
I’d say that he did quite well.
His parents, too.
Thank you. And you are right. He did well.
Your welcome…
It is I that should be thanking you…
You very humbly take no credit…
As I have said before, I have a great deal of respect for your family.
This young man has been very fortunate to have a solid, supportive family of very capable teachers.
I can appreciate how important that is.
You have all done your job well…
And so has he.
Nice picture.
Good grief, Martin.
We got a buck in the late afternoon. By the time we got back to camp to hang it, it was already dark. We used the headlights from the truck to skin and hang it.
You aren’t doing yourself any favors.
And to Kym, that’s a great picture. I understood the blood reference. My granddaughter got her first kill, a pronghorn, with one shot to the heart (that girl is a sniper 🙂 ). She turned 18 a couple years later and got a pronghorn head tattooed on her thigh. I hated the idea of her getting one, as did her Grandpa, but when we saw it both of us agreed it was beautiful and extremely well done. And had spiritual meaning for her.
Happy hunting!
Cute pic! Is that the buck’s blood on his face? Like an honor to the buck’s spirit? I’m not being sarcastic, I think that’s pretty awesome.
Yes to both.
I got 100% on my NRA test when I was a kid. Most of my family are excellent shots. They would give my dad and my two uncles a turkey to leave a turkey shoot, because no one would sign up to compete against them.
I was going to defend your honor, but decided that you could probably do that.
I haven’t shot in over a year. I’m not a marksman any more sadly. My father would be unhappy with me.
According to the article, these were not routine inspections.
I posted it up above too!
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuart_Alexander_(murderer)
Sausage King! Incase you missed it!
Is it legal for cannabis farmers to be armed? This is a serious question.
It’s not legal to be a cannabis farmer at all (Federally).
It’s perfectly legal to be an armed cannabis farmer from a CA state perspective (as long as you meet the same legal standards a pumpkin farmer needs to meet – CA legal guns, etc.
Arguably so, especially if the firearm remains in the residence on the property. Sheriff Honsal has declared himself to be a constitutional sheriff and is OK with growers using firearms to protect their life and the lives of their families in a residence against unlawful intruders. Said so himself.
No , we’re not allowed weapons on a farm .
There are local governing bodies which insist on that (I don’t know where you are).
It’s not a broad position and certainly not one the state insists on. Where we are located we are allowed an approved security plan which involves firearms when justified.
What about black market raids? They still are killing it out here. So pathetic.
Listened to that news segment on KMUD. What a bunch of whining! Pansies and crybabies!! Yes, they have big bad guns on their belts, just like police officers. Did they take them out and point them at you? No. They just did their job and checked out your compliance. Because that’s what you signed up for- remember?! Comparing these inspections to CAMP raids is …well…you’re lying and whining and misrepresenting. You signed up for this! You wanted to make lots of money and be “free” and “safe” and you left your neighbors in the dust to get abated by the county. Now just take your medicine and stop whining! I hope they increase the inspections and get the permitted farms that are out of compliance and take away their licenses. I’ll never forget all your boasting about “stepping into the light” and “I am compliant” ha ha ha. Wah Wah Wah I can hear it already! Oh- and don’t forget about your old taxes being due in September….Who are the Four Biggest Farms (they still haven’t paid their county taxes for years)? Still a guarded secret huh? Those IRS agents are on their way….Enjoy!!
There should be armed inspections of preschools. Because kids have been kidnapped.
Hayforker:
//”Who were the other diverters? Oh, the Rourke and Murrish properties which grow alfalfa and raise cattle. And the best part is the study was never officially released for some reason… hummm”//
I have extremely good data on alfalfa water applications in our valley as I manage the installation and operation of several center pivot irrigation systems in the last 4 years I’ve been here.
On average, the farmers in our valley have just over 7.5 acre ft(af) of surface (diverted) water rights per acre of land owned (a few have nearly double that). For those not familiar with the measure of af, this means that you can apply enough water every summer to drown every acre of your property more than 7 1/2 ft deep. Turns out this isn’t enough as ALL the major farmers in the valley have wells to supplement this ‘piddly’ amount of water (the well on our property produces 6,000,000 gallons per day all day very day during the summer).
The 16,067 acres with deeded water rights in our valley can divert at a combined rate of 251cfs for 245 days straight (March 1 through October). That’s 122,000 acre ft of water (~40 BILLION gallons of water) yearly.
Our license (CA small) only requires about 3-4 af per year for year round operation. That’s 3,000gal per day and about a million gallons per year. The single alfalfa irrigation well on our property can supply our entire cannabis operation for the YEAR by running for only 4 hours (4 hours total per year, not per day).
Do you think the Water Boards visits us for alfalfa or cannabis?
Let’s see… Alfalfa provides milk, meat and pet feed. Yup… Not any where as important a recreational high.
But then maybe these will be industries no longer viable here.
But, But Bill Gates wants you to buy his frozen cricket burgers!
You don’t need the food people have eaten since time began.
Do crickets fart?
Bill “Billy” Gates is now the largest single owner of farm land in the United States. That acreage still adds up to about 1% of the total.
People have been eating crickets for a very long time
Sorry — as I’ve previously noted, all this hay from this valley goes to LA for fancy ass racing horses — you know … for people to wager on recreationally. Critical stuff I know.
(and you’ve missed the clear and obvious point — the only farm in the valley they are concerned about with regards to water use, consumes only 0.0000328 of the water. A drop in the proverbial bucket in other words.
Even more sorry than you know… Alfalfa is not the primary feed for horses, even race horses. They may get some for balanced ntrician or a bit of low weight energy right before a race but alfalfa is creates an acid stomach that horses are not designed to handle.
https://www.toconline.com/publicationsmedia/article-archives-2/equine-health/feeding-racehorses-racehorse-retirement-in-california/#:~:text=Racehorses%20also%20have%20hay%20before%20them%20twenty-four%20hours,hay%20is%20also%20added%20daily%20to%20the%20haynet.
Most alfafa goes to cattle. Their guts thrive on it.
“the demand for alfalfa hay by the state’s dairy
herd, which consumes about 70 percent of the
supply, and by water constrains”
apps1.cdfa.ca.gov/FertilizerResearch/docs/Alfalfa_Production_CA.pdf
Hay is the primary feed for all equines . Most horse owners generally use an alfalfa/grass mix . What else do you determine that a horse that lives in a stall all day would eat ?
Yes … do try to convince me that the hay here that goes for fancy ass horses isn’t be eaten by the fancy ass horses who’s owners buy it.
I really wonder who you think knows more about horse hay — the folks who grow and sell thousands of tons of it commercially or some keyboard warrior.
The simple stat that 70% of alfalfa goes to cattle feed should do it. And a 20 year old paper that goes into the benefits of alfalfa for certain stages of horses like growing and lactating do not mean even she recommends feeding alfalfa all the time. Further in the article you linked it says
“As such, no clear advantage can be assigned to alfalfa hay for its ability to
increase protein and calcium concentration in rations. In the face of the huge energy demand forwork, the slightly higher energy content of alfalfa hay compared to good quality grass hays gives alfalfa hay only a slight advantage.
Many racehorse trainers feed copious amounts of oats in combination with free choice grass hay, and liberally add a variety of supplements. The traditional hay for racehorses is timothy. Timothy imported from out of state to California racetracks is frequently priced well over $200/ton. Its nutritional value is similar to other grass hays. Its advantage, besides its traditional use, is its palatability, even when quite mature.”
It just doesn’t work like you insist. However convincing you is a useless endeavor.
//”The simple stat that 70% of alfalfa goes to cattle feed should do it. “//
Not when 100% of the alfalfa I was referring to goes to feed horses.
It’s your problem that you want to divert and pretend you know the horse/hay business because you have a keyboard.
You’re right — convincing me you know anything about that business is a useless endeavor since every time you post something is doesn’t prove your point.
Oh… I didn’t get that you were only referring to the percentage of alfalfa going only to racehorses. What is that percentage? Have a figure? I mean since most of the hay fed to them is a grass hay, it would be nice to know the percentage you know about.
You really don’t pay attention do you.
As I’ve state previously, the hay in my story is OUR hay and the hay of our neighbors in this tiny valley. Other than small amounts of hay for local horses (pets), all of our hay goes through the same broker and goes to SoCal as a high protein supplement for race horses.
So, to answer your question (again). 100% of the referred to hay is the percentage for horses.
The three commodities you mention are all basically unhealthy entertainment too! Pet food is waste from your buy-any-cow fast food industry anyhow! Your gerbil pellets are nothing. Look up alfalfa exports! Most goes to China and the Middle East.
Ok go back and look at Beigh’s numbers on volume of water diverted.
Yes, China really ratched up import of alfalfa in the last couple of years ago for their own dairy industry- I suspect it will fall for 2022- to about 40% of the hay market. Yet the point remains, while alfalfa does use a lot of water- almost as much as rice- it is for food. Even so it’s less than nonAg use. I suppose it’s a matter of importance. Eating is necessary. Getting high is not.
//” I suppose it’s a matter of importance. Eating is necessary. Getting high is not.”//
Racing horses is not necessary. Do try and keep up.
Silly comment. Racing horses are not fundamental to survival any more than pot is. However the large majority of alfalfa doesn’t go to race horses. It goes to cattle.
Silly comment. Our valley production goes to horses (it’s prized for it’s protein content) and our production is the only production referred to in my story.
You just can’t get over the fact that you made an error and claimed it went for human food when it doesn’t.
Now we know you can’t just say “Oh, I had no way to now what that hay is used for”.
Well in truth I have no idea what percentage that you grow goes where. Nor what percentage of that is the over all alfalfa grown by everyone else. Me, I use the data from the hay brokerage sites and they rarely know exactly what goes to the retail market. So, if you are so opposed to useless racehorses nicking all that hay, why do you grow it for them?
Oh by the way I’ll have to check back later but eagerly await your personal statistics. I got work to do not feeding alfafa to my admittedly useless horses.
//”So, if you are so opposed to useless racehorses nicking all that hay, why do you grow it for them?”//
You have a serious reading comprehension problem.
Where have I said I have any issue at all with our hay going for recreation rather than food?
To be fair to law enforcement, I did get a good shake down in the ’90s by Lake County sheriff’s when they cornered me at a gas station with my door open. I had moved a bale of alfalfa in my station wagon, and had bits of clover shaped leaves in the back. They were convinced it was marihuana!
Really?
I actually got arrested for a pound or so in Ziplock baggies of yerba mate, because the cop was so clueless he was convinced it was weed.
If you’ve ever seen what loose yerba mate looks like in a Ziplock baggie, this should amuse you…
It basically looks like “twigs and dirt”…
And it damn sure don’t smell like weed…
No, most is used not only in the US but in California. Not quite half does get exported- mostly for their own dairy industry. Only in two specific location do alfalfa exports exceed 50% (maybe.) Otherwise it is local.
“The share of US-produced alfalfa that is exported grew from 1.5% in 2007 to 4.5% in 2012 (Figure 4). The equivalent share of Western-grown alfalfa is much larger, at 12.5% in 2012, up from about 5% in 2007 (Figure 5). Although some hay may originate further east, the lion’s share of exported hay is thought to be from the Western U.S. states (Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Washington). In specific regions, particularly the Imperial Valley of California, and the Columbia basin of Washington-Oregon, the percentage of alfalfa and grassy hays exported may be over 50% of production.”
Boy, you’re one big load of agenda, aren’t you? Don’t like meat, don’t like milk, don’t like pets. But pot? ? Besides using water to grow something is not “exporting water.” No one ships wet hay. Silage is not exported. Alfalfa may use a lot of water to grow especially in places it is not good to grow it. But it give a useful return too. If nothing else, it seems back into the aquifer or evaporates to become an increase in humidity. Just like pot. What I suppose alfalfa does export is calcium and other minerals. Whereas pot just offers disease.
They can’t go past the redwood shower curtain⚠️? ??? ?
I don’t understand if they’re legal what the problem is but the problem is a lot of inspections are not given notice restaurants
For every negative there’s a positive. Let’s unpack this a bit, 1. Everything described in this press release was a condition to cultivate legal cannabis that each one of these growers agreed to through a commercial contract, 2. The fears being expressed for past behaviors were the consequences of the risks they were consciously taking for an illegal profit, 3. There is a strong chance their version of compliance is not in accordance to the agreement they committed to. Now, lets look at the positive side, 1. An opportunity to revisit your agreement and do a personal audit on your operations to ensure accuracy, 2. Make those corrective changes to reduce liability, 3. Use your extra time that you have because you aren’t looking over your shoulder everyday to research the market you are in and take advantage of the tremendous upside in a distressed market, 4. If you’re unable to identify the upside and capitalize on the massive growth happening currently in the market, use that realization to create an exit plan immediately, 5. Use the rest of the capital you have left from pulling the plug and walking away to seek therapy and professional support to gain a new perspective on reality. All positive things.
You make a good point.
Better bring a gun if you’re comin around Talkin that shit!
Holy shit! They beat us up with regulations! They drain our financial reserves with fees and requirements! They take control of our natural resources! They lift the cap and completely undermine the smaller & medium farmers, many legacy folks! They make it as difficult as can be imagined, and more so, to ‘get legal’! …..And this, AFTER THEY KNOW THE INDUSTRY IS HURTING, FAILING IN MANY WAYS, THEY ADD THIS DISCRIMINATORY CRAP TO THEIR GAME PLAN!!
TIME FOR LEGACY AND SMALL FARMERS TO RISE UP!!
We likely should start COG up again!
And as I have always said, the cannabis ‘workshops’ are mainly ENTRAPMENT WORKSHOPS!!
I thought that it wasn’t a good plan to continue approving farms in the midst of a drought last year. This year, more approvals were granted…. If the state is now questioning the water useage, perhaps whom ever approved these farms should be there to back their farmers ! “ .On another note, My neighbor over here in Tehama County just got a visit from the water board, and he can’t use his irrigation water for the remainder of the year for his alfalfa fields which in turn feed his cattle. So they may not be directly targeting cannabis farmers, but he certainly didn’t have them arrive on site armed !
They are up here trying to make us look like we waste water while the Kardashians and other famous folks down in Southern California waste millions of gallons of water, per BILLING cycle.
While people fight up here amongst ourselves, those are the real enemies.
Yeah, for real.
Ya all realize that the 87,000 revenuers are feds and cannabis ain’t legal Federally.
Since 2015, Congress doesn’t even allow the prosecution of Federal cannabis laws in the states where it’s state legal IF state laws are being followed.
Cheat on your taxes? — yeah, beware just like everyone else. Break state cannabis laws? — leave yourself open to federal prosecution. Behave? — all good.
https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/LSB/LSB10694
“Show me the man and I’ll show you the crime”,
quote from Lavrenty Beria, Stalin’s head of secret police in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
You don’t have to be guilty of a crime to suffer enormously from a fed investigation/prosecution, many innocent people accept a plea bargain rather than pay for a ruinously expensive legal defense.
Love it!
Well,
Someone doesn’t seem to be to worried about running out of water.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s winery group buys vineyard for $14.5 million
enews.nl.northbaybusinessjournal.com/
How come no fire power is showing up off indianola where that douche bag developer is building a mansion with unpermitted roads in culturally and environmentally sensitive areas?
Man, I read that earlier this week and wanted to barf. Reading this, and the comment section, then thinking about the disparity in conjunction with that 8000sqft “home” project really seems to show who EVERYONE with a stake in local communities should be pissed at.
OKLAHOMA.
It would be interesting to see how many big “corporate” farms, especially ones owned and operated by cops that arrested people fornthe same things they arw now doing. I’ll take a guess, none, not one big farm gets treated this way.
And at the very same time this is taking place, big straws are sucking up water from the flood plains right next to the Van Duzen ans Eel rivers to grow grass for cows.
thug life
LE and various inspecting agents don’t trust growers cuz so many growers were criminals before trying to go legal and that many “legal” growers are still not 100% compliant with the law and are even selling some of their mj on black market. It will take many years to build trust.
Not surprising that sometimes armed LE accompanies the inspectors, there has been a lot of violence in grower community for many years.
Doubtful that there is a bright future for small growers in the forests of our hills and mountains. The ecological issues will not go away and are being used to discredit growers.
California Dem state govt would rather deal with a relatively few big mj corporations that they can unionize, exploit and manipulate and collect contributions, taxes and fees from rather than herding cats with a gazillion small growers (Dem politicians don’t like small business).
The current permitting/inspection process to get legal is grinding down small growers and extracting $ from them while they still have $.
It is easy to construct a completely anonymous informant system that pays snitches (who provide accurate evidence of crime) in untraceable crypto currency.
Govt surveillance of our communications is pervasive. Aerial spying via satellite and drones is pervasive. AI software exists to cheaply analyze all this info.
Bottom line is that it will get tougher and tougher to cheat the state (and eventually feds) out of their taxes and fees.
Maybe the smart thing for growers is to move to more profitable, grower friendly states.
Some of the farms they “visited” are heavily invested in our community.
Commenters, be very careful what you say, or Kim will go full bore attack. It seems to be her way or the highway. I am done commenting when she is involved in the article. And to use a word she put in the beginning of her comment to one person “Bullshit.”
If you can’t handle folks disagreeing with you when you tell them what they think, then you probably didn’t grow up like I did with an appreciation for a good discussion.
Bye pot farmer!
When bullshit is presented, bullshit should be called out (as yours was).
Your claim that farmers can’t take a couple days off is just … … total bullshit. It’s a vacuous and unsupported claim which with the smallest knowledgeable scrutiny fails.
Martin didn’t make that claim. 1911 did.
Correct. My apologies to Martin for that accusation. I got ‘those with vacuous claims’ mixed up.
Substitute in the vacuous claim Martin DID make and my statement stands.
Thanks for the correction.
Be careful or Kym will call you on your bullshit.
BULLSHIT!!!!!!
When commenters degenerate to this level, I stop replying. I don’t delete people’s comments just because I disagree with them or even because they are being disagreeable.
Oh yes you did. You deleted the one where I pointed out using this site to post warning of convoys on the road was not exactly behavior that legal industries do. Or at least I couldn’t find it.
In this thread? I never saw that comment. Nor would I have I deleted your comment if I had saw it. People say that to me all the time. As if many different news media do not consistently report large gatherings of law enforcement.
I screenshot the trash page with the search word “convoy.” There are only two uses–one from a spam site and one that the commenter themselves apparently deleted.
And I searched “Convoy” in the comments that appear on site. There is no such comment as you are referring to.
When you vote for Democrats. you get regulation and taxes. Remember, pot people pushed for legalization. As usual, by the time the Calif. democrats got thru with that request, it was turned into a regulation and tax act,
Have you been paying attention to what’s going on in the republican wonder land of Oklahoma? They are increasing regulation on their cannabis industrty, including introducing metrc into the mix next year.
In general, cannabis is viewed as a free money pit for governments of any persuasion and as am excellent justification for the existence of large police and regulatory bodies.
Looks like we got our asses handed to us, by the same steamroller that is ye public private partnership.
Anti white bigotry for some extra seasoning
Open the books dot com
“Legal cultivators” shouldn’t need to worry about inspections. Right? These comments and this article itself show how many people are not as legal as they advertise. You can’t have it both ways.
I disagree. If you were here during the War on Drugs (which has never truly ended, it is just masquerading as abatement notices) then you know of the many legal and illegal ways in which cultivators were targeted, incarcerated and lost their homes. That trauma does not go away with taxation, as is evident by “inspectors” showing up armed.
On one hand, commenters are saying that the history of the area entitles state employees to arm themselves in fear of the people they’ve licensed, but on the other hand cultivators were supposed to “just get over it” when prop 64 passed. It doesn’t work that way.
Even when doing nothing wrong, the fear of law enforcement interactions is real.
To ease tensions, visits that are inspection-like in nature are much less likely to illicit fear than raid-like visits that include no-notice, threats of monetary fines if you don’t get to the gate within a certain time period, and an armed agent on site.
When people wearing badges with guns are the people you fear the most because they have the power to turn your world upside down. You can argue that it’s the cultivators’ fault bc they participated in an illegal activity but that is now a moot point when not only has the state determined that cannabis cultivation should be legal, they’re actively profiting from it, but also because they’ve acknowledged the damage done from the War on Drugs.
I am not afraid to be pulled over by cops, but some of my friends are due to specific targeting of certain groups. There is similar fear and mistrust that was born during the War on Drugs. CAMP officers could be heard on the scanner targeting certain individuals, saying they should enjoy their house while they could. Do I begrudge them personally for that? Absolutely not. We were set in a system that pitted us against each other. However, for some, their houses were destroyed during the execution of a search warrant, every fabric surface ripped to shreds in the process, leaving thousands of dollars’ worth of damage even when nothing was found. And I know others that were raided, even with the presence of cannabis, to be treated with respect and humanity as the officers did their job. It depended on the officers that showed up or their mood/dislike of you. That’s a lot of power for someone to have over another person, with very little recourse if you were targeted. That’s a small, small fragment of the history that has fractured the relationship between leo and cultivators.
Rational or not, the fear and trauma exists today, the state acknowledges that it exists, so they should be doing their part to repair that damage, not further it by targeting a specific group that has chosen to play by the state’s rules in raid-style visits.
The cultivators I spoke to do not want special treatment, but rather to not have unfounded accusations leveled against them simply because they chose to become a licensed cultivator.
I used to half joke that our community needed a reconciliation process between those who worked in cannabis and local leos.
I had kind of forgotten about that, but stories like this remind me that we have endured a sort of civil war in this community going back several generations. The attitudes, biases, and resentments created and established in that conflict didn’t magically disappear with the institution of a regulatory framework fraught with them.
Perhaps a formal reconciliation process is something worth considering.
this is a death spiral for many legal farmers. the black market will continue to undercut the legal market in price while the legal farmers lose market share and returns. Only the strongest business plans will survive. If the State was serious, they would be hammering the black market with heavy enforcement and maximizing their take of fees and taxes from the legal; just like they do with alcohol and tobacco. legalization sucks. decriminalization would be the best approach.
Never been a big High Times fan, but I think they got this one pretty spot on.
https://hightimes.com/weirdos/craft-the-beating-heart-of-the-cannabis-industry-and-why-the-government-multi-state-operators-and-cannabis-hedge-funds-have-gotten-it-all-wrong-and-are-losing-so-badly-right-now/
Hmm…to hear him tell it, high quality pot didn’t exist before Prop 215. And no mention at all of outdoor, which started it all. And seemingly, no awareness of the law of supply and demand.
This no-knock, no notification inspection stuff is just BS. When I was in business, the fire department would call to schedule the annual inspection. No problem. But to have The Man show up on your doorstep unannounced sounds more like Stalin.
You cannot trust anyone from the government…
Since I’m a small time grower, I said to hell with the government and their ridiculous laws…
Bummer for those who are still beating that dead horse. It’s over.
????SURPRIZE!!!????
SURPRIZED?
????
Icing on the cake.