Sustainability needs to be at the heart of every business. When we think of the cannabis industry, we may assume it is a “green” industry, perhaps images of growing a potted cannabis plant in our backyard comes to mind? But in fact, cannabis, like other commercially-grown agricultural products, can have a negative impact on local ecosystems.
So it’s exciting to see this new industry thinking about how to comprehensively address the environmental impacts of cannabis production.
Principles for the Responsible Legal Regulation of Cannabis, a new report by the International Drug Policy Consortium tasks regulators with looking at the cannabis industry from 20 different perspectives ranging from human rights and social justice to gender and inclusive and equitable trade.
Cannabis, if not properly regulated, could be harmful to the planet according to the report. But with the right land and water management practices, the cannabis industry can become sustainable.
As a crop, cannabis is water and nutrient-intensive. When farmed outside, it leads to clearing of forests and fields, high water use, poor disposal of waste, and pollution such as pesticides entering watersheds and poisoning wildlife.
Indoor cultivation does not solve all of these problems and creates a new one: high energy use. According to the report, “ the power density of indoors cultivation facilities is equal to that of data centres. In 2012 alone, the energy consumed by cannabis cultivators in the US was estimated to amount to a 1% of the total national electricity use.”
The report goes on to caution, “Unless a formalized legal market is established, growers are unlikely to follow environmental regulations. Public officials can be inconsistent in enforcing environmental norms on illegal or semi-legal plantations.”
To address these concerns, the report proposes that governments establish regulations in two important areas.
First, in a legal market, regulations should include environmental protections that all producers have to meet. To help them make their businesses more sustainable, governments should offer financial incentives to bridge the gap while farmers transition to more sustainable practices.
Secondly, governments should impose ecolabelling that helps consumers identify which companies are practicing sustainable cannabis farming. This certification would especially benefit small- and medium- businesses enabling them to better compete for customer share.
The full report can be found here: http://fileserver.idpc.net/library/IDPC_Responsible_Leg_Reg_1.0.pdf