GROW-OPS CAN BE DANGEROUS: OPP

Grow Operations Can Be Dangerous To The Public.

The OPP Drug enforcement Section is alerting people to the increasing
dangers associated with outdoor marijuana grow operations.

The police remind people that every summer people involved in outdoor
grow operations head to rural areas to grow and care for, in some
cases very large plots of marijuana plants. Typically they are
located in swamps, cornfields, wooded areas, along rivers nd rural
rental properties with large acreage.

Marijuana plants are bright green and grow between three and five
feet in height. The leaves have seven jagged fingers and the plants
give off an odour similar to that of a skunk.

Some of the common indicators of a grow operation include; abandoned
vehicles parked along side of a road, people observed walking into
remote areas for no apparent reason, bags of fertilizer, planting
trays or chemicals located in isolated areas, well-tramped trails in
wooded or swamp areas, cleared out areas in swamps, wooded areas or
corn fields and numerous signs indicating no trespassing.

Marijuana crops will be harvested starting in late August up until
the beginning of October. During this time the public should be aware
of numerous safety risks. "These risks include the potential presence
of criminals, weapons and ammunition found on grow-op sites, and
potential for booby traps, rigged by criminals growing these plants
in an attempt to defend their illegal crops from other criminals
known as pot pirates," said Deputy Commissioner -OPP Investigations &
Organized Crime Command Vince Hawkes. "All of these factors could
lead to dangerous confrontations for unsuspecting, innocent people -
including children -who just happen to be in the area of these illegal crops."

Another risk the OPP want to highlight is to the environment. These
criminal operations usually involve unregulated use of many chemicals
and other environmentally damaging products.

If a person discovers or suspects an outdoor grow operation they
should call their local police or crime stoppers as soon as possible.
They should not touch the plants due to potential chemical residue on
the plants. If the person is confronted by a grow operator they
should not confront them, leave the area and contact police. If it is
possible to do so safely they should record licence plate information
and notify the police. Because of the risk of booby traps the public
should not enter a grow area. They should turn around and leave the
same way they came in.

Again this year the OPP Drug Enforcement Section will be targeting
grow operations. In 2008 the OPP eradicated 108,161 plants across the
province during and eight-week period.