GROWING CONCERN

INDOOR POT FARM PROCEDURES COULD GO AGAINST CHARTER

City public safety agencies are taking another look at Abbotsford's
public safety bylaw, in light of a B.C. Court of Appeal ruling last
month that city inspectors who search houses for marijuana growing
operations without warrants violate the Canadian Charter of Rights
and Freedoms.

The local bylaw has helped cut the number of fires from marijuana
grow-ops from 15 in 2003 down to zero last year, said deputy fire
chief Mike Helmer. City safety inspectors will continue to apply the
bylaw, albeit with some adjustments, he said.

The Court of Appeal ruling found that two sections in the provincial
Safety Standards Act were unconstitutional, after a challenge by
Surrey resident Jason Cyrus Arkinstall.

From 2005 to 2007, Arkinstall had refused to allow Surrey RCMP
officers accompany city inspectors into his home, which they
suspected held a marijuana grow-op because of its high power usage.

Inspectors wouldn't go into the home unescorted and later B.C. Hydro
cut off the family's electricity, which sparked a court case.
Provisions within B.C.'s Safety Standards Act had allowed city
inspectors and police to investigate homes with higher than normal
power consumption as suspected growing operations, without obtaining warrants.

Now, city inspection teams will likely need warrants before entering
suspect properties.

How that will affect the way Abbotsford's public safety team is under
review, but so far, it's business as usual, said Gord Ferguson, City
of Abbotsford's manager of bylaw enforcement.

"We are reviewing it with our legal counsel. At this point, it
doesn't look like it will affect it much. We may need to adjust our
procedures," he said.

What those adjustments would be, he couldn't yet say. Currently, a
public safety team consisting of fire and police members and city
inspectors can request entry into a home suspected to have public
safety concern, such as a grow-op.

Owners can refuse the inspectors, but they face fines and a notice on
the property title until the situation is fixed.

Abbotsford's public safety bylaw has been very successful in knocking
down fires caused by marijuana grow-ops to zero last year, from seven
in 2005, said Helmer. Abbotsford saw 15 such fires in 2003. The fires
caused more than $1 million in fire damage, put $5 million of
property and contents at risk, and cost the city more than $150,000.

Since 2006, the public safety inspection team has identified and
eliminated 140 residential structures found to have had illegal
marijuana grow operations, he said.