CREEKS FOULED BY POT FARMERS

Diesel Generators Used By Humboldt's Indoor Growers Leak Toxic Fuel.

Diesel spills on country roads, motor oil containers strewn among the
trees, the drone of generators where there used to be owl calls: Such are
the signs of a growing problem in rural parts of Humboldt County. Indoor
marijuana plantations here - tucked inside nondescript buildings on private
land or state parks - are often fueled by poorly rigged diesel generators
that can cause leaks, noise pollution and dangerous fires.

"If (generators) are not properly contained and stored in a safe place, it
can have harmful environmental impacts, affect aquatic species and affect
public health," said Melissa Martel, senior hazardous materials specialist
with the Humboldt County Environmental Health Division. "It's definitely a
concern for us."

Fish can die in a stream when exposed to just one teaspoon of diesel fuel
in 25 gallons of water, Martel said. Humans can get sick from drinking
contaminated water or from eating fish that have been exposed to diesel.

The diesel generators that supply power for the 1,000-watt growing lights
used by pot farms can be as big as a small pickup truck. They are often
installed without the required containment base, so that leaks spill
directly onto the ground.

Some are rigged with plastic water tubing instead of fuel lines. They are
often placed in dubious locations, such as right beside creeks because the
depth of the terrain and the surrounding trees help to muffle the machines'
drone. The placement greatly increases the potential for contaminated water.

Then there's the motor oil used to lubricate the generators. It must be
changed and, by law, disposed of properly. Instead, it gets dumped or
buried in the ground.

Law enforcement personnel say they stumble over the problem on a regular
basis, but the nature of the operations makes them less than optimistic
about the potential to educate scofflaws.

"Indoor marijuana cultivation is not environmentally friendly, but if
you're committing felonies, why do you care?" asked Humboldt County
sheriff's Sgt. Wayne Hanson, head of his office's Drug Enforcement Unit.

He said he sees more contamination and attributes it to the increasing
popularity of indoor pot farms.

"The indoor problem in 2005 is like the outdoor problem was in 1983," he said.

It can be difficult to prosecute growers, because they have to be found
first, Hanson said. The landowner may not be the guilty party - though he
or she is responsible for cleanup costs.

The issue is a touchy one around laid-back southern Humboldt County where
pot growing is rampant. The traditional mom-and-pop growers who put down
roots in this area 65 miles south of Eureka are tolerated, but residents
say the large indoor growers seem to be different.

The mom-and-pop tradition is "about doing things right and respecting the
environment," said Willie Bosco, 60, a longtime Garberville resident who
called into the local radio station last week during a forum on the diesel
dope issue. "But for every one of those, there are probably 50 or 100
idiots," he said during an interview.

Neighbors, he said, are reluctant to confront anyone who they think might
be growing pot irresponsibly. "They don't want to say anything, because
these people have dogs and guns, and people are afraid to get shot."

Large-scale pot operations started to move indoors after the state's
Campaign Against Marijuana Planting helicopters buzzed rural parts of the
county en masse beginning in 1983, finding huge outdoor weed fields.

Growing indoors not only gives cover to the illegal activity, but also
increases its potential profit: Indoor pot farms can produce three or four
crops every year, Hanson said.

Humboldt County now ranks No. 1 in the state in marijuana seizures from
indoor operations with 40 percent of all such busts, he said.

One of the reasons the issue is getting attention lately may be because the
smaller pot growers don't want law enforcement sniffing around, said Larry
Bruckenstein, the warden in the Garberville office of the state Department
of Fish and Game, who has responded to a number of diesel spills affecting
streams.

"If you've got a little grow going on," he said, "the last thing you need
is the cops showing up in the area."