Redmond marijuana talk features variety of views

The marijuana industry is expanding in Central Oregon, and that has brought a host of issues to the forefront, many of which were discussed at a Redmond forum Monday night.

A panel of eight people addressed topics such as water usage on grow sites, law enforcement presence, education and tax revenue at a gathering of more than 65 people held by the Redmond Patriots group.

Among those on hand were Deschutes County Sheriff Shane Nelson, county Commissioner Phil Henderson, the co-founder of Celebrate Cannabis, Jennifer Clifton, a rural marijuana grower, Andrew Anderson, and Mandi Puckett with Clear Alliance.

They fielded questions regarding the amount of irrigation water used on marijuana plants, has there been an increase in impaired driving, have the number of illegal grow sites dropped, and what sort of education efforts could be done.

Those skeptical of marijuana use said they don’t want grow sites near their farms, rural areas are “under attack,” and too much water is being used on the plants.

One of the speakers, Monika Piatt, appealed a marijuana grow site’s approval to keep it away from her and her neighbors’ property.

“There are pesticides, rodenticides, and herbicide fertilizers that are going into the soils, the water, and then people are, this is of course outdoor recreation areas, so people are cycling, horseback riding, running, and they stumble across an illegal grow,” Piatt said. “Those people stumble across an illegal grow, and their lives are in danger.”

On the other side of the spectrum, Clifton said she wants to highlight the positive impacts of marijuana. She said the new industry is bringing jobs and businesses to Central Oregon.

“It’s said to grow to be a $50 billion industry by the year 2021,” Clifton said. “We have an opportunity to participate in that, as well as innovation (with) the things they are discovering through research and development.

“This is a plant that has healing properties that haven’t been studied in years and years and now we are finally getting an opportunity to do that. So we are discovering so many different things about that plant.”

Anderson, the marijuana grower, said he believes most illegal grows are going out of business and said he doesn’t use pesticides on his plants.

Henderson mentioned that most rural areas in Central Oregon voted against marijuana a few years ago.

Nelson said illegal markets still exists in Oregon and people need to be mindful of the rural residents who are affected by the sound and smell of marijuana grows.

“The Oregon Liquor Control Commission has 23 inspectors for 1,700 licensed locations,” Nelson said. “Now, I understand the math there, a lot of the enforcement is done, like Andrew said, by video surveillance (…) Oregon produces three times the amount of marijuana that it can legally consume within its boundaries. That’s according to the U.S. attorney and several other sources.”