ISLAND MARIJUANA CROPS GO TO POT

This year's illegal marijuana crops have gone to pot, say Vancouver
Island police.

The number of plants so far seized and destroyed by police this year
has reportedly dipped to 10,000, compared to a high of 30,000 in the past.

Officers from the federal RCMP drug enforcement branch, Vancouver
Island RCMP and Victoria and Saanich police departments noticed the
decline as they undertook their annual helicopter patrol of remote
Crown land on the Island in an effort to weed out the crops.

But it isn't merely that there are fewer plants; police have also
noticed that plants are on average smaller than in previous years. In
addition, the size of individual grow-ops averages out to fewer than
100 plants per site, which is also smaller than in years past.

Police attribute the 'doobious' crop showing in part to a lack of
sunshine and reduced temperatures at the start of the growing season.

But the poor bud showing is also due to repeated hits to the grow-ops
over the past 10 years, said Cpl. Darren Lagan, spokesman for the annual cull.

"Last year, for example, we took over 30,000 plants out," Lagan said.
"To anyone who suggests that taking 30,000 plants out didn't make an
impact, I think, would be remiss."

"When you make an impact that large in an illegal activity such as
this, . you are definitely impacting the bottom line and the
profitability of that activity," he added. "We don't want to take all
the credit, obviously, [there are] other factors always at play. But
year after year for an entire decade, we've been going back and doing
the same work, hitting them year after year."

The exercise, made possible through helicopter assistance from CFB
Comox, generally covers an area beginning in Duncan and heading north
up the Island.

However, the search usually focuses on more isolated terrain further
away from populated centres.

"The Comox Valley, for example, has some of those more remote,
forested areas," Lagan said. "You know, you've got a significant
amount of Crown land, there's not a lot of development in the
outlying areas. You have, obviously, your core areas of Comox and
Courtenay and Black Creek, but . relatively close to the inhabited
areas are these somewhat remote settings where you can access and
make these grows."

Lagan also said the grow-ops are generally positioned on slopes and
close to natural irrigation sources, to maximize sunlight and water access.

While the air patrol portion of the patrol has concluded for the
year, Lagan said local RCMP detachments would handle any remaining
growops accessible by land.