POT GROWERS LEAVE DEVASTATING MESS

More Than 200 Sierra Nevada Gardens Require Clean Up

Last Wednesday 1,422 marijuana plants were eradicated in the Ahwahnee
area after a raid by the Madera County Narcotic Enforcement Team, the
U.S. Forest Service, SWAT and Campaign Against Marijuana Planting.

It wasn't the biggest raid of the season and no arrests were made, but
the harsh reality of the destruction caused by the marijuana gardens
was evident.

"For the last 10 years I've been telling people the forest damage is
far worse than the marijuana," said Kevin Mayer, criminal investigator
for the U.S. Forest Service.

"Forest streams are being diverted and large water pits are being
built which are death traps for animals. They (the growers) poison the
animals so they won't chew on the marijuana plants or the watering
hoses. Skins have been found in the camps. This year we have found (in
the abandoned camps) a ring-tailed cat, skunks, snakes and deer
hooves," said Mayer.

When growers abandon camps they leave everything they brought behind,
which includes cans, pots, sleeping bags and fertilizers. "The trash
problems attract bears so (the growers) try to trap and kill bears and
mountain lions," said Mayer.

Herbicides, pesticides, poisons and chemicals being used are also
harmful to the environment.

Brad Dorr, a MADNET detective, said some chemicals used by growers are
banned for use in the U.S. Those chemicals are not only being used,
but are becoming part of the food chain. "Chemicals go into the water
that feed animals and the animals are consumable by humans."

The forest service is working to clean up the eradicated gardens.
After plants have been removed, the forest service, including
volunteers, comes in to clean up. They remove foreign objects,
pesticides, herbicides, drip irrigation, trash and fill the holes that
were made.

However, the forest service can't keep up with the number of areas
needing to be cleaned up. "Every year we get between 20 and 30 areas
cleaned up but it's hard to get them all. We are doing what we can to
deal with the problem but aren't staffed enough and not properly
funded," said Mayer.

He said it costs between $5,000 and $10,000 to clean up a site
depending on the size. The biggest cost is usage of a helicopter.
Helicopters cost between $1,000 and $1,800 an hour. Two hours is just
enough to fly in, look at the area, pick up nets of trash and fly back
to drop off the nets.

It also takes a minimum of six to eight people to clean a site. The
cost for employees, once you add pay, benefits, vehicles and gasoline
and mileage will run between $300 and $400 a day. Volunteers cost
about $100 a day with gas and mileage.

"We can only get back to so many sites due to budgets, time and
personnel," said Mayer. "We still have roughly 200 sites in the Sierra
Nevada to clean up that date back to 2001. I have to prioritize the
worst ones."

Last week's raid added to the already record-breaking season for
marijuana eradication in Madera County. Recent numbers from the Madera
County Sheriff's Department add up to more than 121,800 plants
confiscated this season. The street value of this season's confiscated
plants, if allowed to grow to full maturity, would be more than $365
million.

"I'd like to say we're getting most, but I have no idea. We can't be
that effective because they keep coming back," said Madera County
Sheriff John Anderson, referring to the growers.

Anderson said the drug cartels keep returning to the same grow sites
because their options are limited and they need water and sunlight.
Water is the most important reason for revisiting old gardens," said
Anderson. "The gardens are mostly in the lower mountains (rather than
the high country) because of the faster grow season due to the hot
weather."