Now that the day many of us have waited for for decades, legal marijuana, has arrived, how should it be regulated???

The current state of play in cannabis cultivation has developed without regulation, often with negatives ranging from house fires, environmental degradation, and public nuisance such as odors....

How should it be regulated? What's the right balance to strike?

Although I can see that it creates a hardship to many growers to come out of the shadows and move their operation to more appropriate and safe locations, I think this is the right thing to do. Growers need to be good neighbors.

The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors is going to take up the issue on Tuesday.

Here are some excerpts from good article in the PD that highlights some of the issues. Note that Efren is quoted as saying he is maintaining “an open mind” on the measure.

Barry



Sonoma County to take up pivotal decision over medical marijuana regulation
GUY KOVNER
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT | December 3, 2016

... After a series of clashes in public hearings at the county’s Planning Commission, rural residents and marijuana growers are gearing up for the Board of Supervisors’ first hearing Tuesday on a proposed zoning ordinance that will determine where medical cannabis can be grown for profit. The move is also intended to lay the groundwork for the county’s regulatory approach to marijuana cultivation under Proposition 64, which legalized adult recreational cannabis use.

The flashpoint lies in the county staff recommendation to allow so-called “cottage” cultivation — 25 plants outdoors, 500 square feet indoors or 2,500 square feet in greenhouses — on rural residential lots of at least two acres, a standard only 30 percent of properties meet.

Commercial cultivation of up to an acre of marijuana outdoors and up to 22,000 square feet indoors would be permitted in agricultural, industrial and rural resources zones.

The proposed land-use measure also allows residents to grow six plants or up to 100 square feet per residence for personal consumption, essentially matching the provisions of Proposition 64.
...

“This about neighborhoods. This is about community,” he said. At one meeting with residents disturbed by pot grows, Gore said he “met 10 families who are screaming for help.”

About 80 percent of Sonoma County’s marijuana cultivation is in the rural residential and rural resource development zones for a reason, he said. “It’s been illegal. That’s the best place to hide it.”

Now it should be located in agricultural, industrial or commercial zones, Gore said.

...

Pot cultivation on rural lands might best be decided “on a site-by-site basis,” she said, adding that some growers might have to relocate to larger properties.

The board, scheduled to adopt the zoning ordinance at a second public hearing Dec. 13, is likely to make changes in the measure, Gorin said.

Supervisor Efren Carrillo, the other ad hoc committee member, said he is maintaining “an open mind” on the measure.

Prohibiting cultivation won’t solve neighborhood issues, he said, contending it would push growers “into the shadows” where they would continue their current operations. A regulatory framework, backed up by county code enforcement efforts, would better address nuisance issues, Carrillo said.

The board’s goal should be to “strike a delicate balance” that allows the marijuana industry to thrive while protecting the environment and neighborhoods, he said.

Supervisor Shirlee Zane wouldn’t elaborate on her stance prior to the hearings. She said she hopes to get growers into compliance with county standards and maintain public safety in rural residential areas.

See full article here