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By Michael Shepherd mshepherd@mainetoday.com
State House Bureau
AUGUSTA — A state investigation of Maine’s largest medical marijuana dispensary group has revealed “a laundry list” of violations of state law and program rules, including pesticide use on marijuana plants, the Department of Health and Human Services said Monday.
(FILE) Wellness Connection of Maine’s Portland marijuana dispensary, located at the end of an alley off Congress Street behind the Local 188 restaurant. Photographed March 29, 2012.`
Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
Wellness Connection Consent Agreement: terms and conditions
Patient notification with list of pesticides used
Wellness Connection of Maine also lacked proper security and sold an illegal marijuana derivative, according to findings from the investigation, released Monday.
The group will be allowed to continue operating its four dispensaries and sell the marijuana that was treated with pesticides, even though a state official said he doesn’t know whether it could harm patients.
The DHHS said Wellness Connection of Maine, which runs dispensaries in Portland, Hallowell, Thomaston and Brewer serving about 2,400 patients, committed 20 rule violations in its cultivation facility in Auburn and other facilities.
Through the second half of last year and all of this year, nine types of pesticides were used on medical marijuana dispensed by Wellness Connection, said
Article source: http://www.kjonline.com/news/State-Marijuana-supplier-used-pesticides-violated-rules-.html
Published Date
Written by Craig Lyons
Advocates for the legalization of marijuana in Portland called on the city’s residents to take action and follow the lead of Colorado and Washington to approve decriminalization measures.
Representatives from the Portland Green
Article source: http://www.portlanddailysun.me/index.php/newsx/local-news/8942-advocates-roll-out-iniative-to-legalize-marijuana-use-in-portland
By Kevin Miller kmiller@mainetoday.com
Washington Bureau Chief
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep Chellie Pingree, D-1st District, has signed on to a bill that would legalize marijuana and regulate it like alcohol at the federal level.
Chellie Pingree
Pingree is one of 14 House members who added their names to a bill by Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., that would drop marijuana from the federal government’s list of scheduled drugs.
Polis’ bill, H.R. 499, would remove the federal Drug Enforcement Agency from the equation when it comes to marijuana and instead would put the drug under the auspices of the Food and Drug Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. In fact, it would rename the ATF the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Marijuana, Firearms and Explosives.
The odds of the bill getting anywhere in the Republican-controlled House appear slim to none.
However, two states — Colorado and Washington — voted to legalize pot last November, and a Maine lawmaker has sponsored a bill to do the same in the Pine Tree State. The Portland Green Independent Committee also is working on a petition to legalize marijuana in that city. Medical marijuana is already legal in Maine.
The odds of the bill getting anywhere in the Republican-controlled House appear slim to none. However, two states — Colorado and Washington — voted to legalize pot last November, and a Maine lawmaker has sponsored a
Article source: http://www.onlinesentinel.com/news/pingree-adds-name-to-bill-to-legalize-marijuana_2013-03-21.html
By Kevin Miller kmiller@mainetoday.com
Washington Bureau Chief
WASHINGTON – Maine Rep. Chellie Pingree has signed onto a bill that would legalize marijuana and regulate it like alcohol at the federal level.
Maine Rep. Chellie Pingree has signed onto a bill that would legalize marijuana and regulate it like alcohol at the federal level.
John Ewing/Staff Photographer
Pingree, a Democrat, is one of 14 House members to endorse a proposal by Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., to drop marijuana from the federal government’s list of scheduled drugs.
Polis’ bill would remove the federal Drug Enforcement Agency from the equation when it comes to enforcing marijuana laws. It would instead put the drug under the auspices of the Food and Drug Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
In fact, it would rename the ATF the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Marijuana, Firearms and Explosives.
The odds of the bill getting anywhere in the Republican-controlled House are slim to none. But two states — Colorado and Washington — voted to legalize pot last November, and a Maine lawmaker has sponsored a bill to do the same in the Pine Tree State.
The Portland Green Independent Committee also is working on a petition to legalize marijuana in the state’s largest city. Medical marijuana is already legal in Maine.
Pingree’s position on the issue
Article source: http://www.onlinesentinel.com/politics/Pingree-Legalize-marijuana-nationwide.html
AUGUSTA, Maine — A call from an employee of one of the state’s medical marijuana dispensary operations sparked an investigation that found pesticides were being used in violation of rules governing cultivation of the plants, according to a state official.
An employee of Wellness Connection of Maine called the state earlier this month to say pesticides were being used on plants cultivated at the group’s Auburn facility, and investigators found pesticides and more than 20 other violations of rules governing medicinal marijuana.
The state’s medical marijuana rules ban the use of pesticides. Kenneth Albert, Division of Licensing and Regulatory Services director, said the state shared the results of the investigation with Wellness Connection officials on Monday who agreed to stop using pesticides and to make several changes to address the state’s concerns. They will be allowed to continue to sell the plants grown with pesticides but must inform patients that chemicals were used in their growth, he said.
“The state is unable to decide if [the pesticide-treated marijuana is a health issue] because of the lack of research in the industry to know the risks associated with igniting pesticides on cannabis,” Albert said Monday night.
Albert said a death linked to pesticide-treated medical marijuana has been recorded in California, but he did not say when or where that occurred or if the pesticide used in that case is among the nine types found in use in Maine. He described the pesticides found at the Maine
Article source: http://bangordailynews.com/2013/03/25/news/state/maine-marijuana-cultivation-center-used-pesticides-state-official-says/?ref=latest
By Michael Shepherd mshepherd@mainetoday.com
State House Bureau
AUGUSTA — A state investigation of Maine’s largest medical marijuana dispensary group has revealed “a laundry list” of violations of state law and program rules, including pesticide use on marijuana plants, the Department of Health and Human Services said Monday.
(FILE) Wellness Connection of Maine’s Portland marijuana dispensary, located at the end of an alley off Congress Street behind the Local 188 restaurant. Photographed March 29, 2012.`
Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
Wellness Connection Consent Agreement: terms and conditions
Patient notification with list of pesticides used
Wellness Connection of Maine also lacked proper security and sold an illegal marijuana derivative, according to findings from the investigation, released Monday.
The group will be allowed to continue operating its four dispensaries and sell the marijuana that was treated with pesticides, even though a state official said he doesn’t know whether it could harm patients.
The DHHS said Wellness Connection of Maine, which runs dispensaries in Portland, Hallowell, Thomaston and Brewer serving about 2,400 patients, committed 20 rule violations in its cultivation facility in Auburn and other facilities.
Through the second half of last year and all of this year, nine types of pesticides were used on medical marijuana dispensed by Wellness Connection, said
Article source: http://www.onlinesentinel.com/news/State-Marijuana-supplier-used-pesticides-violated-rules-.html
AUGUSTA — Patients obtaining medical marijuana in Thomaston, Hallowell, Portland and Brewer were possibly inhaling, injesting or absorbing not only THC, but residues of pesticides and fungicides spread under the labels of Doktor Doom and Monterey Garden Insect Spray.
As a result, Wellness Connection, the nonprofit responsible for growing and distributing the marijuana, must clean up its cultivation practices, as well as the conduct of its board of directors.
On March 25, the Maine Department of Health and Human Services Division of Licensing and Regulatory Services signed a consent agreement with Northeast Patients Group, doing business as Wellness Connection of Maine. The agreement followed inspections on March 4 and 6 of the Wellness Connection Auburn cultivation site, and the March 14 inspection of the Thomaston cultivation site, as well as the nonprofit’s four dispensaries. The Thomaston dispensary is at 149 New County Road.
“Based upon these inspections, the department determined that Wellness Connection was not in compliance with the Act or the Rules,” the consent agreement said. That referenced act is the Maine Medical Use of Marijuana Act, as approved in 2009.
“For several months, marijuana plants that had pesticides applied were utilized to produce various medical cannibas products, including tinctures, baker’s mix, and all strains of medical marijuana dispensed by Wellness Connection of Maine,” the state said in its violation notice. DHHS stipulated that Wellness Connection post the violation notice at its dispensaries and distribute to patients.
Northeast Patients Group, or Wellness Connection, was established as
Article source: http://www.penbaypilot.com/article/state-tells-thomaston-medical-marijuana-dispensary-stop-using-insecticides-fungicides/11783
Published Date
Written by David Carkhuff
Becky DeKeuster, executive clinical director at Wellness Connection of Maine, responded to a state investigation of the medical marijuana provider by emailing a message to patients explaining some of the investigation’s findings.
A
Article source: http://www.portlanddailysun.me/index.php/newsx/local-news/8980-wellness-connection-pesticides-used-to-provide-clean-and-safe-medicine
Published Date
Written by David Carkhuff
Proponents of marijuana legalization say they have “traction” in Maine, as a Portland legislator’s bill to allow recreational use of marijuana awaits a hearing in committee.
Pressure is coming to bear, although not everyone favors the state legislation.
By Erik Altieri, NORML Communications Director
This week, Representative Diane Russell (D-Portland) formally introduced LD 1229: An Act to Tax and Regulate Marijuana into the Maine legislature. This legislation would legalize the sale of as much as 2 1/2 ounces of marijuana per week to people 21 or older at licensed retail locations. It would also permit for the cultivation of the plant in private settings. The measure has been assigned to the Joint Standing Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety, but has yet to be scheduled for a hearing.
In a previous session, an earlier version of Russell’s legalization measure was rejected by House lawmakers by a vote of 107 to 39. States Rep. Russell: “I think there’s been a major culture shift since I introduced this bill in 2011. What we’ll see is a lot more folks ready to talk about this issue.”
This cultural shift is readily apparent in the groundswell of support this legislation has already generated. LD 1229 was introduced with the backing of 35 co-sponsors from across the political spectrum. Those supporting the bill were 2 tribal representatives, 28 Democrats, 3 Republicans, and 1 independent. The previous version of this measure only had 4 co-sponsors.
NORML is pleased to support this historic legislation that would make Maine the third state to tax and regulate the adult use of marijuana. This is common sense legislation that would put Maine
Article source: http://www.theweedblog.com/marijuana-legalization-measure-formally-introduced-in-maine-with-35-co-sponsors/
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