Editor's Note: You can read the Initial Letter of support from the Emerald Growers Association ("the voice of California's cannabis farmers") here.
Sacramento --Â The North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board has issued a draft of a marijuana cultivation waiver that would allow growers to come into compliance with state water regulations, regardless of the legality of marijuana under state or federal law.
The proposed regulations containing provisions for a waiver is in a 30-day public comment period. If the proposal is finalized as drafted, sometime this year all private property growers, with more than six plants, must apply for this waiver if their operation could impact water quality. This process provides a pathway into compliance for growers in an otherwise totally unregulated industry.
The program creates a three tiered system based on environmental impact and size, with escalating levels of scrutiny, mitigations responsibility and potential fines.
