POT BYLAW MAY BE REDUNDANT

Provincial Legislation Already Exists to Recoup Costs of Busting Grow-Ops

Orillia wants to create a bylaw to help recoup costs from dismantling
marijuana grow-ops, but Niagara Falls has been doing it without one
for years, The Packet & Times has learned.

Legislation to do it already exists, said Jim Jessop, an inspector
with the Niagara Falls Fire Department.

"All the tools we need to deal with it, we have now," he said.

Using the Ontario Fire Prevention and Protection Act, as well as the
Building Code Act, Niagara Falls officials have been able to recover
most costs involved with dismantling marijuana grow-ops.

Over the last three years, police and fire officials, city staff and
regional prosecutors have been working together in Niagara Falls to
get buildings formerly used for grow-ops rehabilitated.

Initially, unsafe-building orders are issued so no one can occupy the
house until the owner cleans it. The orders are also registered on
the property's title so prospective buyers are aware of the history
when a search is conducted.

Once the site is cleaned, officials from the building and fire
departments inspect the premises before removing the order.

The Niagara Falls Review reported a number of houses have been left
contaminated with black mould, as well as high concentrations of
fertilizer, pesticides and herbicides.

Houses have also been found with dangerously high levels of carbon
monoxide and faulty electrical wiring.

If the building isn't brought up to code, or if the order is
violated, the house could be demolished.

In the last six months in Niagara Falls, two houses have been
destroyed, said Jessop, and more are slated to suffer the same fate.

"We don't need a bylaw to do it," he said, adding costs can be
recovered under the Building Code Act. "We have the right under the
building code."

Another piece of legislation, Bill 128, amended the Municipal Act to
ensure a building is inspected after police notify the municipality
in writing that it contained a marijuana operation.

The act also authorizes municipalities to help recover costs by
passing a bylaw imposing fees for services like attendance of
inspectors, policing costs and hydro inspections.

Orillia council adopted a report Oct. 23 suggesting staff work with
the police services board to prepare a draft bylaw. Such bylaws have
already been enacted in Brampton and Mississauga, but Jessop insists
costs can be recouped without one.

In fact, he has been involved in educating other municipalities
around the province about how Niagara Falls is doing just that.