Nouveau California Pot Growers Are Sowing An Environmental Mess

Cartels and domestic entrepreneurs are damaging private and public lands, diverting millions of gallons of water, taxing water tables and applying massive doses of pesticides, in some cases highly toxic products that are illegal in the United States, to satisfy what has become a multi-billion dollar market. There has been some pushback from the old school, and some are targeting what they call “pollution pot.” Meanwhile, estimates are that indoor marijuana production now accounts for nine percent of California’s electricity use.