GROUP PUTS OUT GROW-OP SPOTTER'S GUIDE

A group keen on busting marijuana grow ops wants you to narc on your
neighbours.

The Edmonton Stop Marijuana Grow Ops Coalition yesterday released a
brochure designed to help people spot potential pot factories.

The coalition - whose partners include city hall, cops, Capital
Health and others - is asking Edmontonians to report suspected drug
dens to police. "They don't have to know, or be 100% sure there's a
grow-op," said Edmonton Det. Darren Derko, a member of the combined
Edmonton Police Service and RCMP drug-busting Green Team. "All
they're doing is reporting suspicious activity. From there police are
going to have to conduct their own investigations."

Derko said the number of grow-ops in the city is on the rise, and the
pot factories are increasingly being run by organized crime.

In 2002, Edmonton police seized $14 million worth of pot plants. That
ballooned to $31 million last year, according to police figures.

Despite the jump, Derko estimated cops are shutting down only 5% of grow-ops.

RCMP Cpl. Lorne Adamitz, also with the Green Team, said the drug dens
can create fire and health hazards, and excessive moisture from the
operations can cause significant structural damage and create huge
mould problems.

"The biggest trend that disturbs me ... is that individuals flip
these grow houses as a means to avoid detection," Adamitz said. "If I
come along and wish to purchase a house, I'm totally blind to what
activities have occurred there."

Some 350,000 brochures were printed at a cost of $10,000. The
Edmonton Real Estate Board, another member of the coalition, is
picking up the tab.

The fold-out document outlines ways to spot homes that may be housing
a grow-op. Clues include covered windows, heavy condensation on
windows, the sound of electrical generators or fans, lights much
brighter normal, "skunky" smells and "unusual" traffic at odd times
of the day or night.

The brochure will be included in utility bills and is also being
distributed through the Edmonton Police Service, Capital Health and
other organizations.

Anyone with a tip on a potential grow-op is asked to call Crime
Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.