Article Assignment #5 

Illegal Pot Growing Devastating California Public Lands

Christi Turner

Rating ****

‘Illegal Pot Growing Devastating California Public Lands’ is an online journal entry about the destruction of forests in California due to the marijuana industry.

In 2012, 315 000 feet of plastic hose, 19 000 pounds of fertilizer and 180 000 pounds of trash were found in California’s forests.  Authorities are not even worried about the fact that is marijuana being cultivated; they are worried about the toll it is taking on the environment. The illegal growers are killing animals, trashing forests and destroying the water supply.  There are volunteer groups in place that go and shut down the marijuana plantations, but unfortunately this is not enough.  The volunteers believe that stronger measures need to be taken in order to protect California’s wildlife, and that the government is the only way to put an end to it. 

I strongly agree with the opinion of the writer. It is not right that the natural beauty of California is compromised merely for human pleasure.  The marijuana planted in that region is not for medicinal purposes so, quite frankly, there is no need for people to be growing the herb on such a large scale. 

This article definitely caught my attention and made me aware of a problem that I previously had not known about.   

Turner, C. (2014). Illegal Pot Growing Devastating California Public Lands. Adventure Journal.  http://www.adventure-journal.com/2014/05/illegal-pot-growing-devastating-california-public-lands/