Santa Barbara Cannabis Wars Simmer Down
After four years, it seems that the Santa Barbara cannabis wars are simmering down – and there may be a lesson there for all of us. The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors “rolled out the red carpet” to cannabis growers in the Carpinteria Valley, according to the Santa Barbara Independent, and there’s been strife ever since.
“[The skunky smell] greets people when they open their front doors, closet doors, car doors, and washing machines. It wakes them up at night. It lingers at schools, beaches, and freeway exits. Many say the pungent smell has caused them to suffer headaches, sore throats, nausea, and respiratory problems,” the article reads. (Please see link to full article below.)
At least two citizens groups have been complaining to the Board of Supervisors. The Concerned Carpinterians and the Santa Barbara Coalition for Responsible Cannabis both asked for more controls on cannabis growers. It was even an issue during a county election, but the pro-cannabis incumbent easily won his seat back.
Santa Barbara Cannabis Wars Have Deep Trenches – LPC
The Santa Barbara cannabis wars have a long history. The Santa Barbara Coalition for Responsible Cannabis complained when Busy Bee Organics tried to launch its cannabis business in the heart of wine country.
“We don’t oppose cannabis,” said Marc Chytilo, the Coalition’s lawyer, at the time. “Categorically, we want to see the county get this right. The process has not worked in this case.”
Busy Bee won that battle. But the war kept going. According to the Independent article just published, Carpinteria Valley residents have filed 913 odour complaints in the last year. Those include the “skunky” smells, but also the “laundromat” smells of natural, odour-neutralizing misting systems to cover the smells.
“I’ve probably sent 60 complaints to the county in the last 90 days,” said local resident Paul Ekstrom. “You’ll either smell the skunk or a cover-up odour. I just want the stink gone.”
But there has been little movement on the part of government to change anything , the Independent reports.
New Plan Makes Better Neighbours – LPC
Despite that fact, the Santa Barbara cannabis wars are slowing down on their own. The Cannabis Association for Responsible Producers, or CARP Growers, have signed agreements with the coalitions. In it, the agreement states that CARP’s 21 greenhouse owners in the area will use the best odour-control technologies available.
“I’ve come to believe that the growers really want to do the right thing,” said Rob Salomon, a coalition board member. “They don’t want to be associated with an industry that has stunk up the Carpinteria Valley and made them a pariah in the community. The contract puts in place a path to technology and protocols well beyond what the county ordinance requires.”
Will this be the end of the Santa Barbara cannabis wars? Maybe, maybe not. But there is a lesson there for Canadian producers as well – and industry in general. Cannabis production can come with its fair share of smells. Reducing the community impact is just as important as reducing environmental, costs, and other impacts as well.
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