GROW OPS BEHIND SOIL SUPPLY THEFTS

A local tree nursery is stepping up security after losing supplies to area
thieves.

Pacific Regeneration Technologies nursery superintendent, Burt Fleming,
suspects the thieves are involved in other illegal activities and that's
what is prompting them to break into the tree farm.

"Basically what the intruders have been taking is soil media supplies or
components that we've purchased in order to manufacture our own soil, which
involves peat moss, some fertilizer additives and Perlite as well," he said.

"Obviously, these intruders are stealing this stuff in order to make their
own soil (for marijuana grow operations).

PRT has suffered from at least two break-ins in the last eight weeks, the
latest on May 21 when thieves made off with eight 5-foot tall bags of
Perlite - the white bead material added to soil to assist in aeration and
drainage.

In previous break-ins, thieves also took 40-pound bales of peat moss and
grow lights that the company uses to alter and enhance the growth of their
seedlings. They also stole an electronic scale that can weigh accurately to
2/100ths of a gram.

"So, again, all of these things together add up to grow operations and
that's what the RCMP are putting their resources towards," said Fleming.

Up to this point the break-ins have not had a huge financial impact on the
company, said Fleming.

"Normally when we look at the value of items stolen versus what it would
cost to deter those thefts, it's always been a cost that we just absorbed
ourselves," he said. "But the frequency of the break-ins now are to the
point where we can't take that attitude anymore, that we have to go to the
next level in terms of security and we're prepared to do that."

PRT does have a security process in place, but they are looking at
improving their coverage to ensure the break-ins stop.

"We're prepared to pay the extra costs because we think the problem is big
enough to warrant that," said Fleming. "In the end, it's going to increase
the cost of the product that we produce and our consumers will have to bear
that cost."

PRT is a wholesale producer of forest seedlings that supplies the
reforestation industry.