If anyone in Santa Barbara County, other than the cannabis industry, starts a business, say a cooler for processing vegetables and fruit for shipment to market; a large manufacturing operation; a housing development; or even the construction of a single-family dwelling, the developer/property owner is required as a condition of approval to provide all the infrastructure upgrades, including improvements to the electrical system for their business. It doesn’t matter how much it costs.
As Noozhawk reports, more than 3,000 people in the Carpinteria Valley have filed complaints concerning the nuisance, annoyance and discomfort caused by month’s long skunk-like odors drifting from cannabis grows into their homes and neighborhoods.
But the county staff wants to excuse the cannabis industry from odor control requirements. Why?
According to a Noozhawk report, they say that “installing carbon scrubbers could be cost-prohibitive because of electrical upgrades needed.”
Maybe the staff should do a little research on the subject to determine who is responsible for controlling cannabis odors.
They could start with Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District Rule 303 which states:
“A person shall not discharge from any source whatsoever such quantities of air contaminants or other material in violation of Section 41700 of the Health and Safety Code which cause injury, detriment, nuisance or annoyance to any considerable number of persons or to the public or which endanger the comfort, repose, health or safety or any such persons or the public or which cause or have a natural tendency to cause injury or damage to business or property.”
The California Health and Safety Code says the same thing.
If cost is an issue, why aren’t these same regulators and politicians concerned about the costs of electrical distribution system upgrades for the mandated total electrification of cars and trucks, buses, and farm equipment in the coming decade? Who is going to pay for that?
In Lompoc we had similar odor problems with Greenies Management, LLC, a company based in Cypress, California, which grew cannabis in the county area less than a mile east of Lompoc.
For two years this place had serious impacts on the quality of life; we couldn’t open windows to take advantage of natural ventilation, or exercise outdoors most of the day and night because of the stink.
Our electrical utility cost associated with operating in-home air filtering and ventilation system to improve air quality increased dramatically.
The site now appears to be abandoned. The Department of Cannabis Control website indicates they have surrendered their license.
I and others made numerous complaints about the apparent violation of APCD and Health and Safety Code violations while they were in operation; no action was taken by the county regulatory agencies charged with protecting the public.
Meanwhile cannabis processing operations licensed by the city of Lompoc were creating odors as well; in this case, though, the city was the regulatory agency, and they took swift and decisive action to require the operators of these facilities to contain odors within the property boundaries.
The people of the Carpinteria Valley and any other area of the county deserve the same level of support from the county government. To my knowledge, there is no exception to the rules for any industry.
As Noozhawk reported county Supervisor Laura Capps has long been a critic of enforcement of the cannabis ordinance. She said neighbors have been suffering from foul odor for six years.
“The ordinance calls for the best available technology to mitigate odor, and right now it is clear by the study and experience that it is carbon scrubbers,” Capps said. “The delay tactics are flimsy and tiresome. It shouldn’t be such a struggle to do the right thing.”
Capps knows firsthand how the odors impact her constituents; the other four supervisors should listen to her and require the cannabis industry to comply with the same state laws and county regulations as every other industry in the county does.
Who should pay for cannabis odor control? The industry should, it’s called “the cost of doing business,” and should have been included in their business plan.
References:
Santa Barbara County Planners Suggest Carbon Scrubbers are Too Expensive for Cannabis Growers | Local News | Noozhawk
APCD Rule 303: https://www.ourair.org/wp-content/uploads/rule303.pdf
H&S 41700: Law section (ca.gov)
Department of Cannabis Control: 22 Results found for Greenies Management (ca.gov)