Police seek public's help in curbing growing problem
Halton police are asking residents to keep their eyes open for signs of outdoor marijuana grow operations during the warm months of summer.
Over the past several weeks, police say they have responded to multiple calls related to outdoor grow operations, which can be a local problem well into September.
Police said this time of year marijuana growers select rural areas that may include swamps, cornfields, wooded areas and rural rental areas with large acreage.
The owners of these properties may not even be aware their property is being used to grow the marijuana.
To start and maintain the operation, police say, the growers may bring large bags of fertilizer, shovels, chemicals, pails, generators, pumps, and marijuana plants to the outdoor location.
The plants are put in the ground and maintained over the summer months, requiring infrequent visits (once or twice a week) by the grower due to the heartiness of the marijuana plant.
In September or early October the growers return to harvest the plants, leaving the roots and waste behind.
Marijuana plants are bright green, the leaves have seven jagged fingers. The plants grow between three and five feet tall and give off an odour similar to that of a skunk.
Telltale signs of an outdoor marijuana grow operation include:
• Abandoned vehicles parked on side roads or trails.
• Repeated attendance to remote locations.
• People observed walking in remote areas for no apparent reason.
• People trespassing onto fields on foot or by off road vehicle.
• Bags of fertilizer, planting trays, or chemicals located in remote areas or dumped at the side of the road.
• Well trampled trails in wooded or swamp areas.
• Cleared out areas in swamps, wooded areas or cornfields.
• No Trespassing signs, which appear out of nowhere within forests, cornfields etc.
Anyone who discovers an outdoor marijuana grow operation should call the Halton Regional Police Service Drug Unit at 905-465-8732 or contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), or text SMS# CRIMES (274637) or by visiting Crime Stoppers online at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com.
If the matter is urgent members of the public are directed to call 905-878-5511.
Police also advise the public:
• Not to touch marijuana plants due to the chemicals that may have been used on them.
• To leave the area, record licence plates and call police if confronted by a marijuana grower.
• Do not approach outdoor grow operations due to the low percentage of operations that are booby trapped or guarded.
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