Private land the new frontier for pot wars
By Robert Townsend, California Watch
A little-spoken-of war is taking place behind California’s fences and property lines: Trespassing marijuana growers are setting booby traps, resorting to violence and vandalism, and spoiling the land by stealing water and spraying dangerous chemicals that leach into streams.
As the federal government focuses on stopping illegal marijuana crops in public parklands and U.S. forests, sheriff’s and state drug enforcement officials face the persistent and potentially dangerous problem of pot growers commandeering private land for their crops.
While some land owners fear violence, others face environmental havoc.