THE HIGH COST OF GETTING HIGH: CLEAR-CUT FOREST

Forest Officials Destroy More Than $16 Million Worth Of Plants Covering 30
Acres Of Endangered Species Habitat.

ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST -- Marijuana plants with a street value of more
than $16 million were destroyed after forest officials found 30 acres of
the plants growing in an area rich in plant and animal life.

The area, which is off the Angeles Crest Highway northeast of La Canada
Flintridge in the San Gabriel Wilderness, is a riparian habitat home to a
wide variety of plant and animal species, said Randi Jorgensen, forest
spokeswoman.

The plants were discovered in routine flyovers of the land July 13 and July
27. Workers removed more than 6,000 plants from two repository gardens,
Jorgensen said. In addition to breaking the law, whoever planted the area
created conditions that pose a serious threat to the flora and fauna in the
wildlife area.

In the process of clearing out the marijuana plants, workers also had to
clear-cut every bush, tree and shrub in the area. "They had to take every
plant down to mineral soil," Jorgensen said.

Forest officials also removed a significant amount of pesticide, rodent
poisons, herbicides and fertilizer from the riparian area -- an area that
feeds into a stream bottom. Workers found one bottle of pure concentrate
that could be diluted to make 200 gallons of extremely powerful pesticide.

"It is a prime habitat for a number of animals in the forest," Jorgensen
said. In addition to the mountain yellow-legged frog, which has been
proposed as an endangered species, these types of chemicals pose a serious
threat to plants and can potentially contaminate the water sources in the
wilderness area, he said.

"We're working very hard to maintain a good quality environment," Jorgensen
said. "It's very troubling when someone comes in and strips away every bit
of camouflage."