POT POTENCY

To The Editor:

The Dec. 10 Watertown Daily Times article "Marijuana Found in Lisbon
had Little Potency, Police Say" exposes the futility of the war on
drugs in terms of wasted man power and equipment on a plant with no
psychoactive value. At first glance the Sept. 10 Prey road incident
in which 75,000 to 80,000 marijuana plants were found seemed to be a
huge bust. However, most area residents saw through the newspaper
hype and knew the plants were the infamous Lisbon wild pot.

A recent report from Dr. Samir A. Rose of the National Center for
Natural Products research at the University of Mississippi found the
plants had an average of 0.14 percent of Tetrahydrocannabinol. This
strain of cannabis presents no threat to public safety because it
contains too little THC to intoxicate users.

Now, this spring the sheriffs department plans to spray the area with
herbicide in an attempt to eradicate the perennial weed. This may
seem humorous but this on going battle on the Prey road has not only
cost taxpayers in dollars but it could cost them their health. Can
the sheriff guarantee that there will be no impact on humans, wildlife
or other native plant species with the aerial applications of
chemicals on Lisbon's ecosystem? I think it is time to focus
law-enforcement on to true crimes such as murder, rape, robbery and
sexual molestation of children.

Lee Monnet