VANCOUVER KIDS SHARING BREATHING ROOM WITH POT PLANTS

Even the most altered marijuana advocates claim a reluctance to
involve children, yet those growing the green seem not to care at all.

The Vancouver police Growbusters team dismantles marijuana
cultivation operations in the hundreds. And while that may not make
them popular in pro-legalization camps, I'm hoping to set the
legality debate aside for an inch or two.

Young children are regularly found in homes devoted to growing pot.
When they're not, their toys often are. Imagine seeing a tiny swing
set amid a marijuana seedling nursery, diapers strewn among discarded
PVC (polyvinyl chloride) piping, or elementary school books atop high
voltage equipment.

Babies are sharing rooms with marijuana plants across the city. And,
assuming they're not smoking the stuff, these children are exposed to
a variety of pesticides, as well as toxic levels of carbon monoxide
and carbon dioxide.

Marijuana plants require carbon dioxide, and production of CO2 tends
to result in accumulations of carbon monoxide. That's the gas that
makes auto exhaust lethal, and even when it doesn't kill it causes
ailments ranging from anoxia to brain damage.

Typically, houses are sealed airtight, with furnace exhausts vented
back inside to increase CO2 levels. Humidity rises so high that mould
grows everywhere. Spores from these moulds fill household air and
lungs.

Preliminary findings show that moulds and spores common to these
scenarios are malignant indeed. Skin rash creams and asthma
ventilators are found in plantation homes everywhere.

The electricity needed to run these farms is usually stolen by way of
illicit bypass. Electrocution and fire hazards are extreme, even for
a knowledgeable adult playing with that kind of current.

Guns, knives and various weapons are a recurring theme. The profits
involved make home invasions a real danger. Imagine the psychological
trauma a child feels when the front door comes in, even if it's
police, rather than underworld looters making entry.

With the energy now devoted to this kind of enforcement, police raids
are inevitable. Vancouver police Growbusters have dismantled 149
grow-ops in town this year to date, removing over $34 million worth
of drugs.

That said, we've been able to do very little for the children found inside.

The Ministry of Child and Family Services is notified, but the same
laws that bind the police hold ministry workers at bay. For a child
to be apprehended, it must be in need of protection, but must also be
in immediate danger.

It's argued that, once a grow-op is dismantled that immediate danger
has passed. There is no reason to apprehend the child then, the
reasoning goes, especially if the child and his or her parents are
moving to a different home.

Of course, dismantling of a grow-op doesn't remove mould or spores.
These places are found infested with vermin, as often as not, and
rodents rarely move on either.

To heighten the sense of futility, the parents are often pot farmers
by trade. A change of homes simply leads their children to the next
in a series of grow operations.

On the positive, there is a movement afoot, between police and
ministry people, to educate everyone involved regarding the health
hazards in these homes. Once they're identified as "immediate"
dangers, the trick will be to ensure children are moved to
non-cultivation residences.

I can hear the herb advocates, chanting that none of this would be
necessary if cannabis were made legal. While it's an intriguing
argument, it should be directed at lawmakers, not police. Our job is
to enforce the laws we have, and considering the threats these
operations have become, we're still sleeping the sleep of the just.

Most grow operations run in rental houses, and once a grow-op is
discovered, repair costs run between $20,000 to $30,000.

For landlords, the best bet is to check references with prospective
renters, and to inspect your house every month or two -- top to
bottom.

If you've ever run over a skunk, there is no mistaking the smell, and
you're not likely to miss any wall-to-wall forests of green.

Those wishing to report a suspected marijuana grow operation in
Vancouver, or looking for more information can call the VPD
Growbusters Tipline at 717-3456.

Those with a heart for justice can pray for the children.