IOWA DRUG CZAR SAYS POT STILL A BIG CONCERN

DES MOINES - Methamphetamine dominates the headlines, but Iowa's top drug
policy official said marijuana remains a major problem around the state.

Marijuana concerns me simply because the purity is skyrocketing," Marvin
Van Haaften, the director of the Governor's Office of Drug Control Policy,
said during the taping of Iowa Public Television's "Iowa Press" program.

Our (number of) people in addiction treatment (for marijuana) is going up.
It is to the point now where I think we have to take a real serious look at
marijuana again for its addictive qualities," he said.

Van Haaften said Iowa investigators are regularly seizing and testing
potent marijuana varieties that contain 24 percent tetrahydrocannabinol, or
THC, the substance that produces the drug's effects. Some plants being
developed, he said, that contain up to 37 percent THC.

Parents who may have grown up in the days of weaker marijuana may not fully
understand the threat posed by today's brand of pot, he said.

When I was in the Army in 1963 in Fort Riley, Kan., it was at best 2
percent pure," he said.

Stronger pot is more addictive, Van Haaften believes. He said 23 percent of
Iowans receiving substance abuse treatment are trying to kick a marijuana
habit, compared with 16 percent who are addicted to meth. Alcohol addiction
tops the substance abuse list, afflicting 52 percent of those in treatment.

And while efforts to keep alcohol and tobacco away from young people are
yielding results, marijuana is still easy to get in some communities. He
did say, however, that a recent Iowa Youth Survey showed a 3 percent drop
in overall drug use.

Some of our students do not have access to cigarettes because of 'We Card,'
he said, referring to a retail business awareness program. "They do not
have access to alcohol because you have to show an ID," Van Haaften said.
"Some of the school counselors are saying it's easier for our students to
get marijuana than it is to get cigarettes or alcohol. It's a scary thought.