INSPECTORS COME, GROW-OPS GO

Evidence Of Former Or Current Grow-Op Found In 50% Of Inspections

A pilot program in which fire and electric inspectors target
residences with unusually high electrical consumption is forcing
marijuana "grow-ops" to pack up and move on, according to a report
that sums up the program's first six months.

Whether the grow-ops are actually seeking greener pastures in
municipalities that don't have an Electrical and Fire Safety
Inspection Program remains to be seen, however.

It's possible that the grow-ops are relocating to commercial or
industrial buildings - which aren't subject to inspections under the
program - or to homes in Richmond that aren't showing up on B.C.
Hydro's high-consumption list because those setting up the new
grow-ops have learned to bypass electrical meters.

On Tuesday (March 25) a report by Kim Howell, deputy chief of Richmond
Fire and Rescue, came before Richmond city council.

The report detailed EFSIP operations from August 2007 to January
2008.

Over that time, EFSIP teams conducted 126 inspections (an average of
21 per month).

In 64 of the residences, inspectors uncovered evidence that a
marijuana grow-operation had been in place at some point.

In some cases, said Howell, the grow-op had likely just moved on,
based on the fresh paint and recent repairs inspectors spotted.

The remainder of the residences - fully half of those inspected -
showed no evidence of a grow-op. Instead, the high electrical
consumption turned out to be due to normal usage, including cases
where there were an "unusually high number of major appliances" in the
home, typically because the building included an illegal suite.

The bad news for those property owners was that a report of the
illegal suite was turned over to the city's community bylaw department.

Under the program, residences red-flagged by B.C. Hydro as having
unusually high electrical consumption rates are visited by a fire
inspector and RCMP officer.

On the first visit, a notice is posted, warning residents that an
inspection is required within 48 hours.

The inspection typically takes place a day or two after the notice was
posted.

By the time the second team - consisting of a fire inspector,
electrical inspector and two RCMP officers - returns, the grow-ops
typically have been dismantled.

Of the 64 residences in which evidence of a past grow-op was found, 30
were declared unsafe and were posted with "do not occupy" notices.

At the remaining 34 residences, inspectors ordered owners to make the
necessary electrical repairs within seven days.

Two-thirds of the former grow-op residences were single-family homes,
while the remainder were multi-family dwellings.

None appear to have been converted back into grow-ops after the
inspectors left.

Not one of the 64 residences appeared a second time on Hydro's list of
abnormally high electrical consumers, said Howell.

The former grow-op residences ranged from "old run-down" homes to
"something where you go in and it's absolutely spotless," said Howell.

She noted that the number of high-consumption Richmond addresses being
provided by B.C. Hydro is already declining, just six months into the
program. This is also the case, she added, in the other cities that
have EFSIP teams.

Those growing marijuana, however, are using new tactics to combat
monitoring by B.C. Hydro. Bypassing the hydro meter, for example.

"We've noticed we're investigating more thefts of electricity over the
past several months," said Richmond RCMP Corporal Nycki Basra. "So
that may account for Hydro's claims that their high-consumption rates
in residential areas are decreasing."

EFSIP teams are currently operating in Abbotsford, Coquitlam, Langley
Township, Pitt Meadows and Surrey, which was the first to launch its
program in April 2005. Teams are also being launched this year in
Chilliwack, Langley City, Mission and Port Coquitlam.

In Surrey, where two teams average 28 inspections per month, RCMP last
fall noted a 39 per cent drop in grow-op complaints for 2007, as
compared to the previous year.

Here in Richmond, RCMP "take down" one to two grow-ops each week, said
Basra. Richmond has a five-officer "green team" specifically dedicated
to investigating marijuana grow-operations.

Basra said grow-ops can be found in any type of building imaginable -
single-family homes, apartments, and commercial or industrial
buildings. But 90 per cent of the grow-ops uncovered by police in
Richmond are in residences.

"There's no particular pattern or neighbourhood that they're going to
be in," said Basra. "We've seen them everywhere."

One recent example, she said, was particularly worrying - a grow-op
with more than 1,000 plants that had been set up in a vacant office
above an autobody shop in central Richmond.

"It was just a fire waiting to happen - a total hazard," said Basra.
"Especially with the chemicals and flammables the autobody had right
underneath them."

The biggest risk of a grow-op, she added, is the fire hazard it poses,
but violent "grow rips" by criminals trying to steal from
grow-operations can endanger neighbours as well.

"They're armed, they'll use violence," said Basra.

Richmond's EFSIP program is being paid for, in part, by billing the
cost of the inspections back to the owners of residences in which
evidence of a past grow-op was found. A total of 58 invoices for
$3,500 were sent out; 43 of these had been paid by the time Howell
drafted her report.

In the case of those who didn't pay within the 30 days allowed, the
$3,500 fee was added to their property taxes.

In a handful of cases, owners were able to get the fee waived by
proving that they'd only recently purchased the property. They
successfully argued they shouldn't be liable for criminal activity
that occurred on the property prior to them owning it.

Owners of properties that were not former grow-ops are not charged the
inspection fee.

The Electrical and Fire Safety Inspection Program will be evaluated
again at the end of its one-year pilot period.