ABBOTSFORD RE-INVENTS GROW BUSTERS

Marijuana growers may soon be pulling up roots and getting out of town
if an aggressive strategy to burn out growers proposed by Abbotsford
goes into effect.

City manager Gary Guthrie unveiled the idea for a 90-day "Grow
Busters"-style pilot program Wednesday night at the city's grow-op
information forum. The pilot, designed by the city's grow-op task
force, would use existing laws and be enforced by a team of three city
workers, including one firefighter, one bylaw officer and one building
inspector.

The city would circumvent police warrants to gain access to suspected
residential grow-ops through "non-traditional" means, said Abbotsford
Coun. Bruce Beck, a grow-op task force member.

"We are using the existing powers of the fire department. The police
need a warrant, but the fire department has a right to enter [ a
premises] if there is a risk to public safety," said Beck.

Abbotsford will use existing Local Government Act, Community Charter,
provincial building codes and Fire Services Act laws. Water service
will be cut at grow-ops after a 24-hour notice and won't be
reconnected until the premises pass inspection. Any grow-ops found
during inspections would be reported to police.

The program is expected to help police focus their resources on
amphetamine labs and other issues. Regular patrol officers, not drug
squad members, will be used only as required to serve warrants to
ensure the safety of city workers, said Beck.

The city hopes to meet with Solicitor General Rich Coleman before the
year's end to ask for the $100,000 the task force says it needs to
operate the project for 90 days. The task force wants to begin the
pilot by January and hopes it will be a model for other
municipalities.

Beck said there were three principles behind the idea: that it
shouldn't cost "honest taxpayers" anything, that it would discourage
people from growing pot illegally and to recognize that police
resources are finite.

"We're not approaching this as a moral issue or even a legal issue,
but it's 100 per cent focussed on public safety," Beck said.

Costs for the program can be recovered solely from fines, inspection
fees and service costs billed to growers. The city's Controlled
Substance Property bylaw, beefed up just last week, requires that all
inspections be met before a residence can be re-occupied.

Unpaid bills would be tacked on to the property taxes, and if those
are not paid, the city has the right to take possession of the title.

Right now, the city collects up to $20,000 for costs related to
clearing out a grow-op. Beck estimates the new city grow-op team could
inspect two sites a day.

Information on suspected grow-ops will come from a newly established
tipline [604-864-5512], from neighbours, police informants, BC Hydro
power theft reports and the fire departments heat imaging cameras.

When asked about potential legal challenges, Beck said since police
would not be formally involved, the city would not be acting as an
agent for the police.

"I'm looking forward to the day when a marijuana grower stands up in
court and says the Abbotsford fire department violated his rights," he
added. Vancouver ran a similar program called Grow Busters eight years
ago but dropped it when city lawyers raised concerns about city staff
working as police agents.

The 60 people at the forum also heard from panel members about the
risks that fire fighters, police and neighbours face from the
estimated 700 grow-ops in the city's residential areas. The task force
also released a brochure with information on how the public can
identify grow-ops and meth labs.