MEDICAL CANNABIS INDUSTRY LOOKS TO THE FUTURE

With much of the state engaged in discussion over legalization, the
local medical marijuana community is taking steps to develop Southern
Humboldt into what they hope will be a center for sustainable outdoor
medical marijuana grows.

Medical marijuana advocates met Saturday night in Garberville to
discuss creating health and safety regulations and to encourage
education for sustainable growing. The panel discussion ranged from
marijuana growing education at 707 Cannabis College, a newly formed
institution in Garberville, to a proposed dispensary for the Southern
Humboldt Community Hospital, to creating new policy around medical marijuana.

Syreeta Lux of the newly formed Humboldt Medical Marijuana Advisory
Panel --an organization created after a forum in March about what the
marijuana industry will do if pot is legalized -- said local growers
have to collaborate to keep up with the rest of the industry.

She said there are growers in the Bay Area who are organizing and
Humboldt should do the same.

"Regardless of what happens in the fall, we feel as a group it's time
to move forward with marketing legal marijuana," she said.

The group is also hoping to create industry standards, work that is
similar to the Bay Area-based Medical Cannabis Safety Council.

Sierra Knolle, a member the Medical Cannabis Safety Council and a
Southern Humboldt resident, said the council is trying to implement a
safety-based production process that could be proposed to
policymakers. The council is looking at many elements, including
contaminants, water quality, sanitary practices, and industry models.

The council has members who are mostly a part of the urban growing
industry, and Knolle encouraged more Southern Humboldt growers to get
involved so they're opinions could be heard.

"To see the difference with the urban growers to the country growers
- -- it's night and day," she said.

Michael Geci, a longtime emergency room and holistic medicine doctor
from Montana, discussed the science behind medical marijuana. The
founder of the Montana Botanical Analysis Lab, Geci performs tests on
medical cannabis at his lab in Montana to identify potency and
determine the optimal strength for individual patients.

He said medical marijuana needs to be treated like other medications.
Geci said there needs to be more research on what is optimal for
medication, not just an optimal high.

"There are a lot of people who don't want to be high," he said.
"There are a lot of people who don't want to smoke pot -- people want
an option."

Montana Public Radio commentator and lobbyist Kate Cholewa talked
about how to bridge the gap between the medical marijuana community
and policymakers.

She encouraged advocates to reach out to representatives and remember
that they are trying to create policy for a product that doesn't fit
into any existing model. Cholewa recommended reaching out to
supporters of organics or environmentalists -- groups that could see
the value of outdoor, sustainable growing.

"We get to create this -- this is a whole different way of doing
politics," Cholewa said. "We're not trying to change something, we're
trying to create it."