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Vancouver maryjuana shop
subject to police raid

» Westside dispensary raided after community concerns

Alex Stanton
Staff Writer

Foowns a month-long
investigation after public
safety concerns involving minors,
on April 29, Vancouver marijuana
dispensary Weeds Glass and
Gifts—located at 2916 W. 4th
Avenue in Kitsilano—was subject
to a raid by the Vancouver Police
Department (VPD).

Although Weeds Glass and
Gifts was generally tolerated by
the community and the police
in the Lower Mainland, the VPD
revealed in a media press release

March after multiple complaints

: were made concerning public

: safety. Most notably, a 15-year-

: old ended up hospitalized after
: allegedly purchasing an edible

: product at the store. After

: reviewing this, among other

: allegations involving minors,

: Vancouver police gathered

: evidence and obtained a search
: warrant to enter the dispensary.

The release states that the

: staff was placed under arrest and
: the customers were detained

: while the police searched the

: building and, according to

: Weeds’ owner Don Briere, seized
: evidence, which included the
that they began investigating it in :

shop’s entire stock of marijuana.

: Everyone was later released

: pending further investigation.

: Although the VPD found

: that they needed to take action,
: they stated that “our priority

: remains focussing on violent drug :

: traffickers and those who prey on
: the youth and the marginalized

: in our community.” They went on
: to remind the public that these

: stores, while arguably tolerated

: by the City of Vancouver, are

: nonetheless still illegal, and

: that they will continue to

: investigate all complaints and

: take enforcement action against

: dispensaries when needed. In

: the past 18 months, the VPD has

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: obtained search warrants for nine :
: dispensaries, Weeds being the
> latest on that list.

The VPD used their press

: release to remind operators and
staff that they could be subject to :
: criminal charges; additionally, the :
: property owners and landlords

: could be forced to forfeit any

: assets related to the illegal

: business. Briere, speaking to

: CBC, threw his support “100 per
: cent” behind the VPD, agreeing
: that whoever had been selling

: edibles to minors should be fired, :
: arrested, and charged.

During the last half of

: April, the federal government

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Photo by John Lehmann, The Globe And Mail

expressed its disagreement with

: the way Vancouver handles

: marijuana, with Minister of

: Health Rona Ambrose criticizing
: Mayor Gregor Robertson and

Vancouver City Council for
looking into new regulations

: for dispensaries. These include
: mandatory distancing from

: certain community locations

: anda $30,000 licensing fee. In

: her letter, Ambrose expresses

: her concern with the proposed
: regulations and reminds Mayor

Robertson that “Marijuana is not

: an approved drug or medicine,
> and Health Canada does not
: condone its use.”

 

National Energy Board audits Kinder
Morgan response program

» Emergency pipeline policy reviewed in lieu of English Bay fuel spill

Mercedes Deutscher
Y Staff Reporter

n early April, the grain ship

MV Marathassa spilled at least
2,800 litres of fuel into English
Bay. While considered a fairly
small spill, it took six hours to
identify the spill and 12 hours to
notify the City of Vancouver.

Vancouver Mayor Gregor

Robertson tells CBC that
Vancouverites are appalled at
how the spill was handled. “We
don’t know what the total impact
will be on our environment.
We don’t know how much of
that toxic substance sunk to the
bottom and will be a longterm
hazard in our waters.”

Some residents are

: demanding a response and action
: from the federal government,

: who closed down a Kitsilano

: Coast Guard base in 2013. Many

: predicted that if the base would

: have remained open, responders
: could have been on the scene of

: the spill immediately.

In the aftermath of the fuel

: spill, the National Energy Board:
: (NEB) has decided to review what :
: course of action would take place
: in the event of an oil spill from

: the Kinder Morgan pipeline.

“Their company has a good

: plan in place, and we're pretty

: confident about the plan, but we
just don’t want to be complacent,”
: says Peter Watson, the CEO of

: the NEB, ina Vancouver Sun

: interview.

The review is expected to

: takea year to conduct, during

: which time the NEB will review
: Kinder Morgan’s policies,
practices, transparency of

: employees, and safety.

Ona previous ruling made

: by the NEB, they gave Kinder

: Morgan permission to allow

: some of their emergency plan

: to remain secret. In this case,

: the findings of the audit will be
: made available to the public, a

move that will attempt to further

integrate the NEB into the public :

: sphere. The NEB is also trying to

: further involve municipalities by

: increasing education about the

: pipelines. :
It is a move that has garnered :

: criticism from Premier Christy

: Clark, who has expressed

: discomfort with how much

: information is being released.

: Watson says that he understands :

: Clark’s concerns, but asserts

: that it is necessary to obtain this
: information so that BC residents
: are more informed about the :
: safety plan, and they can evaluate :
: what is and is not necessary in
: sucha plan.

 

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“T know full well the public

: has to have confidence that there
: isa good emergency response

framework in place and we want

: them to get the information they
: need,” assured Watson.