The Humboldt Growers Association is a cannabis growers trade association. Their mission is: To promote a safe and sustainable cannabis industry throughout Humboldt County that will serve as a national model of success.
This ordinance will finally regulate collective outdoor medical grows in Humboldt County, bring in much needed revenue to the county, and lay the framework for Humboldt to compete in the coming legal market.

Pot growers introduce draft ordinance; proposed regulations would govern outdoor grows

Thadeus Greenson/The Times-Standard
Posted: 10/14/2010 01:24:27 AM PDT



Before a panel of experts and a host of high-ranking Humboldt County officials, the Humboldt Growers Association unveiled its proposed medical cannabis cultivation ordinance on Wednesday.
Proponents of the proposed ordinance say it would be a huge step toward protecting one of the county's primary industries and could also potentially bring in millions of dollars in revenue to the county.
”The cannabis industry in this county is as important as the fishing and timber industries were, and we don't want to see it suffer the same fate,” said HGA board member Joey Burger.
Wednesday's workshop -- titled “Leading the Way: Humboldt County and the New Economy,” sponsored by Humboldt County 4th District Supervisor Bonnie Neely and presented by the five-memberHumboldt Growers Association -- featured a panel discussion with some local officials and industry experts and culminated with the group unveiling its proposed ordinance.
While it would only govern the growing of medical marijuana, Burger said HGA's proposed ordinance would be easily convertible to a larger marijuana industry if the law changes.
As proposed, the ordinance would regulate outdoor marijuana grows with canopy areas larger than 100 square feet through a permitting process that lays out requirements for both applicants and farms.
According to the proposed ordinance, applicants would have to be at least 21 years old, a resident of the county for at least two

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years and not have any violent crime convictions on their record.
In order to get a permit under the proposed ordinance, applicants would have to submit to site inspections, estimate water usage and a water source for the garden and provide proof of land ownership. The permits would be up for renewal every year and would allow the cultivation of not more than 40,000 square feet of canopy space, an area roughly equivalent to one acre.
No permits would be issued to allow larger gardens and, while growers could obtain multiple permits, the sum total of their garden space could not exceed 40,000 square feet. Permit holders would also be required to provide access to their cultivation sites and water resources to inspectors at all times.
The permits would also come with fees, which could pad county coffers, according to some.
Under the proposed ordinance, the county would charge a nonrefundable $1,000 fee for applicants looking to grow on less than 400 square feet and $2,500 for larger spaces. If approved, permits would cost $800 for spaces ranging from 101 to 400 square feet and $800 for each additional 400 square feet of grow space. Permits for spaces smaller than 100 square feet would be free.
Under the ordinance, a permit for a quarter-acre garden site would cost $20,000.
Max Del Real, a medical cannabis lobbyist with California Capitol Solutions, estimated that if the county issues 500 permits for quarter-acre sites, it would bring in $10 million annually.
”This is real revenue, people,” said Del Real.
Burger said he grew up in Humboldt County and has seen growers support volunteer fire departments and hospice centers. Now, they want to help fund schools, roads and local law enforcement.
Others on the panel spoke of the need of the county to be proactive on a changing landscape with state voters possibly poised to legalize marijuana in November. They said the county needs to take advantage of its already robust brand name, and envisioned a time when cannabis-related tourism would thrive, and the county would be flush with tasting rooms and farm tours.
”Humboldt County has an international name, and it's synonymous with the finest outdoor cannabis on the market,” said Kristin Nevedal of the Cannabis Certification Company Inc.

This is a great medical cannabis ordinance for our community and could serve as a very good framework for many other cannabis growing communities in the North State. It will bring in much needed revenue for the county and easily be adopted to a commercial cannabis industry once legalization (maybe prop 19) comes. We are so fortunate to have county supervisors here in Humboldt that support the cannabis industry. This ordinance promotes small scale sustainable farming while at the same time discouraging big money from outside the county from taking over.

[binaryfission]

here comes the terroir!!!!! This is the first step in marijuana fixing the worlds problems.

Imagine if a bunch of farmers in Afghanistan did this? or Jamaica? or Morocco? or Mexico?

Its going to happen people will follow suit. I can't wait to be able to buy imported hashish from a dispensary.

[hydromaddicted]

Way more questions? than answers.Has anybody done an EIR in Humboldt on a 1/4 acre or more grow yet?

THIS IS AWESOME!!!!!! This is exactly what growers need to be doing IMHO. I now fully believe that Humboldt will set the standard for cannabusiness in Cali. Oakland schmokland! Growers everywhere throughout Cali need to be doing this same thing. If you don't have $$$$$ to work with, band together until you do. If you don't have the drive to put together and then propose legislation to your local officials, then band with somebody who does.

I'm sorry I'm acting so giddy, but this is very exciting to me. This is the growers doing it right. Playing within the system, these will be the guys who succeed. now we just need to get prop 19 the green flag and the new world order begins. I love that they are restricting garden sizes to an acre and promoting the local product and allowing people to play at lower volumes... this is, in my mind, the reason for the looseness of the commercial legislation in prop 19. Hopefully Humboldt will embrace this concept and set the standard for other counties and cities throughout Cali. The fact that this is being written to work under 215 or 19 is a great move as well.

So do we get to see the actual proposed legislation? More out of curiosity for me... the biggest thing in my book is that growers are banding together and putting things in front of officials that work for them and work for the county.

HumboldtLocal, I don't know if you are a part of this group or not and I certainly don't expect you to say, but if you are or if anyone here reading this here is then I want to say Thanks. Wonderful news.

Jed

[binaryfission]

Who will they use to certify organic crops? or the terroir?

I for one would pay more for SFV Kush, Mendo Purps, Arcata Trainwreck.

Originally Posted by binaryfission

Who will they use to certify organic crops? or the terroir?

I for one would pay more for SFV Kush, Mendo Purps, Arcata Trainwreck.

This is the kind of thing I would like to find out by reading the actual document. I would love to see labeled standards for region, grow style, potency, type of effect... That may be overkill at this point to do all of that, but I am curious how they are proposing that kind of thing be handled.

Jed

[Hydrosun]

WTF this is some of the lamest shit ever. Must be a resident of the county for two years?

Do you think that is fucking legal with doctors, teachers, attornys, accountants, etc.

Why the FUCK does a MEDICAL patient need to be regulated?

What gives them the right to deny anything to ANY resident on their first day living in the county.

We are supposed to be in a free country. This is not fucking county welfare or food stamps we are talking about. This is MEDICAL MJ. If you move from Virgina or San Diego to Humboldt you have to live there TWO years before you can be a part of their club?

Go fuck off Humboldt Growers Association!

Humbolt will be my choice to vacation when i visit Cali. i cant wait to stay at a Bud n Breakfast where my window overlooks the garden and the aroma of all the flowering buds in the air.

advertising, branding and reputation is the key to any successful business and Humbolt County and the Emerald Triangle already have a huge advantage even before the passing of prop19 so i see them as the big winners.

way to open up and embrace a legal Cannabis market while protecting the ones who built the reputation the county is known for.

Originally Posted by Hydrosun

... This is MEDICAL MJ. If you move from Virgina or San Diego to Humboldt you have to live there TWO years before you can be a part of their club?

Go fuck off Humboldt Growers Association!

dude, go smoke a bowl b/c your mistaken.

this is not about Medical MJ......its about LEGAL Cannabis and i think the 2 years is a responsible way to look out for those who have been there a while.

if you dont like their proposed regulations then dont move to that county.

i expected Humbolt and the Emerald Triangle to look out for the locals while rejecting large corporations but i thought they would have been a little more liberal with the size of gardens.

no fee for 100sq ft or under is better than 25 sq ft.

Originally Posted by Hydrosun

WTF this is some of the lamest shit ever. Must be a resident of the county for two years?

Do you think that is fucking legal with doctors, teachers, attornys, accountants, etc.

Why the FUCK does a MEDICAL patient need to be regulated?

What gives them the right to deny anything to ANY resident on their first day living in the county.

We are supposed to be in a free country. This is not fucking county welfare or food stamps we are talking about. This is MEDICAL MJ. If you move from Virgina or San Diego to Humboldt you have to live there TWO years before you can be a part of their club?

Go fuck off Humboldt Growers Association!

I got the feeling they were talking about permits, and that none would be needed for under 100 sq feet. I would think a guy could make a nice living running a 1 man op with 100sq ft, and then expand a couple years later. That would probably be the smart thing to do anyways until things loosen up assuming the passing of prop 19. 100 sq ft should be able to produce a good 4-6 lbs per month, no? I know cost of Living in Cali is high, and the price of herb is down, but that has to be a shit ton better than managing a Micky D's! Especially for a business that you can have in your basement or spare bedroom and has minimal overhead. To say nothing of the ease of being able to do it with the blessing of the local gov. I'm sure that wording is to prevent large corporations from coming in and underselling/over producing locals and slapping the Humboldt name on it.

Hydro, you are such a Negative Nancy.

Jed