Do You Know Whats on Your Weed?

http://www.thestranger.com/pullout/Green-Guide-Spring-2015/2015/04/09/22024989/do-you-know-whats-on-your-weedBefore looking into it, I naively assumed Washington State's
groundbreaking marijuana legalization law had given us a unique
opportunity to do things "right," which meant, to my mind, a crop that's
not only legal but pesticide-free, organic, and eco-friendly. Maybe
we've all already given up hope when it comes to fruit and vegetables
grown by giant agribusinesses, but weed, given all the tree-hugging,
organic-food-eating, GMO-avoiding hippies who love it, must be
different. Right?



Wrong. What I discovered was that legal weed is most certainly not
pesticide-free, although to be fair, there are severe restrictions on
the kinds of pesticides recreational marijuana growers are allowed to
use. Pesticide use is so commonplace in agriculture that the question
becomes one of degrees rather than absolutes. In a storybook version of
reality, we would be smoking pesticide-free fatties with the Lorax and
satisfying our munchies with unsprayed apples 100 percent of the time.
But as glorious as that would be, that doesn't reflect the economic or
ecological reality of agriculture.






When the Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB) was inventing
rules for pesticide use on recreational marijuana plants, they turned to
the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) for some expert
advice. The WSDA studied pesticides typically allowed on hops (a close
cousin of cannabis), tobacco, and food products. The rules in place are a
result of that work.






The state appears to have done a good job at regulating a previously
unregulated and unstudied area of agriculture-a plant the federal
government still classifies as a Schedule I drug. All pesticides used on
any crop in the state of Washington must be registered with the
Department of Agriculture, and the list of approved pesticides is
available via the Pesticide Information Center Online (PICOL), a
database operated by Washington State University. There are, by my
highly scientific estimate, a metric shit ton of allowed pesticides in
our state. How many of those pesticides are recreational pot growers
allowed to use on pot that ends up in your body? Two hundred and
seventy-one.


That number is not nearly as upsetting as it may sound, given a
little context. At a recent meeting of state and local officials working
with the recreational cannabis industry, one attendee voiced concern
that 271 legally allowed pesticides seemed like a large number. In
response, Erik Johanson, the WSDA's special pesticide registration
program coordinator, offered this sobering bit of information: "If we
were talking apples, the number would be 1,000."



When it comes to regulating recreational marijuana pesticides, the
WSDA did what government agencies do best when faced with uncertainty:
They played it safe. They chose to only allow pesticides that were
exempt from any tolerance level requirements-thresholds established by
the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that dictate the amounts at
which pesticides become harmful when consumed, inhaled, or otherwise
encountered. Being exempt from those requirements is the EPA's way of
saying a substance is so benign, they didn't feel it necessary to study
it further. Also, thanks to the popularity of edibles, the WSDA chose to
consider the harvested buds as a food product-though they are not
technically classified as such by the legislature-disqualifying a bunch
of nasty stuff intended for use only on ornamental plants or otherwise
inedible crops. This led to that relatively small list of 271
pesticides. It is primarily composed of the type of essential oils that
might lead you to overpay for a bottle of shampoo.


Many of the allowed pesticides with scary names aren't even that
scary: azadirachtin is an extract of neem oil, potassium laurate is just
soap, and bacillus subtilis is a bacteria with antifungal and probiotic
properties that occurs naturally in our gastrointestinal tract. None of
them are listed on the Pesticide Action Network's list of "bad actors."
Is each and every one of the 271 legally allowed pesticides something
you would feel comfortable gently misting over a field of adorable
puppies? No. I found two somewhat troubling substances on the list:
pyrethrins and their trusty sidekick piperonyl butoxide (PBO). Pyrethrin
is listed on PAN's "bad actors" list, and while PBO is not, it is a
chemical synergist for pyrethrin, working to enhance its effects. The
duo is most commonly found in fogger-style bug bombs with brand names
like Doktor Doom and X-clude.




Those two ominously named brands are not on the PICOL list, though
they are still available for purchase at your average gardening supply
store, a clear indication of their popularity. Doktor Doom and X-clude
may not be on the PICOL list, but other fogger bombs with the same
active ingredients are. (The PICOL list is organized by brand name, not
active ingredients.) Pyrethrins are classified by the EPA as a botanical
insecticide, being the active chemical ingredients of pyrethrum, an
extract of chrysanthemum flowers. Pyrethrins and PBO are, given their
inclusion on the PICOL list, exempt from residual tolerance requirements
and thus safe for human consumption in any amount, according to the
EPA.



But if you've ever used one of these foggers, you know they're some
pretty heavy shit. Before you use one in your house, you have to cover
all exposed food products and remove yourself and your pets from the
area for at least several hours. In the context of growing marijuana,
they cannot be sprayed directly onto a plant or the plant will die. Most
growers agree they should not be sprayed onto plants at all. "It leaves
a lot of residue on plants," said Dustin Hurst, head grower at Monkey
Grass Farms in Wenatchee, explaining that it's especially risky to use
these products late in the plant's flowering stage when the flowers
begin to enclose into buds, potentially trapping pyrethrin residue
within. Daniel Curylo, "lead instigator" at Cascade Crops in Shelton,
concurs: "You don't want to be spraying all sorts of crap on your
product, because the residue-I don't care what anybody says-that stays
on there."

Indeed, a 2002 fact sheet from the Journal of Pesticide Reform
cites a study in which pyrethrin residues were found in carpet dust
more than two months after application, which is a bit unnerving when
one considers the crystal-encrusted tendrils of a flowering pot plant. A
later study, published in 2013 in the Journal of Toxicology,
found that up to 69.5 percent of pesticide residues can end up in
flowers at the point of inhalation. So, if pyrethrin/PBO foggers are
being used at any point during the flowering stage of the plant's
growth-which would not explicitly violate any of the WSLCB's
rules-you're likely smoking some of it.




How big a problem is that, health-wise? The Journal of Pesticide Reform
cites concerns about pyrethrin ranging from disruption of hormonal
systems to the chemical's EPA-granted status as "likely to be a
carcinogen by the oral route." The EPA's own human health risk
assessment of pyrethrin suggests that long-term inhalation of pyrethrin
in significant amounts can cause "respiratory tract lesions" in rodents.
Scarier still, the JPR factsheet notes that pyrethrins are absorbed by humans most rapidly via the lungs.
If you're curious about what may be on the marijuana you get in a
recreational store, ask. Every pot grow operates differently, but under
WAC statute 314-55-087, growers are required to keep accurate records of
all pesticides applied-when, how much, by whom, etc. The WSLCB's team
of inspectors can check these records to ensure proper use at any time.
And every grower is required to make this information available to
recreational stores that carry their products.

What Kinds of Pesticides Are Recreational Marijuana Growers Using?

So why would any pot farmer worth a damn
want to use the stuff on their plants? Because weed farmers have to deal
with pests like any other farmers do. "I think you could bleach
everyone and everything, and [spider mites] would still get in," Hurst,
the Monkey Grass Farms grower, told me.



"Everybody gets it-spider mites, stuff like powdery mildew, it's
everywhere," said Curylo from Cascade Crops. Spider mites, which appear
as little black dots on the bottom of a marijuana plant's fan leaves
(the part of the pot plant most likely to be superimposed over Bob
Marley's face on a T-shirt), are the bane of growers, along with mold
and bacteria. Left unchecked, these infiltrators can ruin an entire
harvest. Getting rid of them is a constant battle, and growers have
typically employed a wide variety of weapons, most benign but some less
so, like pyrethrin.




But pyrethrin does have legitimate uses. According to various
gardening supply store managers I interviewed, if growers are using it
right, it's primarily as a "reset button" between grow cycles when all
the plants have been removed from the grow room. Given the surfaces
available for pyrethrin to cling to in the absence of fuzzy budding
plants, it's not likely to linger. Regardless, most of the growers I
spoke with-both licensed and unlicensed-indicated that they preferred to
use lower-impact pest solutions anyway, for both economic and ethical
reasons. Most relied heavily on AzaMax, a brand name of azadirachtin.
Azadirachtin, as I mentioned previously, is just an extract of neem oil,
an age-old Indian cure-all and a very hot seller during scabies
outbreaks at Evergreen. Curylo said he planned to stop using even
AzaMax, because he has found it cheaper and just as effective to mist
using a diluted hydrogen peroxide solution.



To keep growers from using products even nastier than a fogger bomb,
the WSLCB maintains the authority to pull, at random, a sample of any
grower's weed to run a comprehensive pesticide residue panel on it. If
any unapproved pesticides show up, growers face a $2,500 fine and 10-day
license suspension to start. The penalties for repeat offenders
escalate rapidly, culminating in a permanent loss of license.

There are, of course, recreational marijuana consumers who will argue
that all weed should be subject to pesticide residue testing before
sale. That was certainly my first reaction when I discovered that the
residue test was not part of the required panel of tests that all pot
goes through on its way to market. But the system of randomized testing
seems to provide a significant enough disincentive for growers to ensure
compliance. Given the amount of time and money most people have
invested in their operations, a 10-day suspension is a pretty serious
deterrent.


I asked Phil Tobias, who runs Sea of Green Farms in Seattle, whether
randomized testing motivated him to stick to the approved list, and he
replied, "Yes. One hundred percent. We would get fined if we were to use
something else, and we can't risk that." His primary methods of pest
control? Ladybugs and ionized water. (Ladybugs think spider mites are
delicious.)






Hurst, from Monkey Grass, concurred: "If there's someone there
watching over your shoulder, you're gonna make sure everything is
perfect."


Nick Mosely and Bobby Hines, from pot-testing lab Confidence
Analytics in Redmond, were also quick to praise the PICOL list. Hines
said the existence of the PICOL list "absolutely" put weed grown under
I-502 a cut above everything else. "It's not just the penalty," added
Mosely, "but also that there's a resource they can look to that guides
them toward healthy alternatives." And indeed, a booklet distributed to
regulators and enforcement personnel from various state and local
agencies includes a section on encouraging integrated pest management, a
holistic method of pest control that attempts to avoid the use of any
pesticides at all. Mosely also suggested that many of the bad practices
being employed were not due to maliciousness so much as an absence of
education. "A lot of [underground growers] just don't know that Avid is
so poisonous. They just know their buddy told them it works," said
Mosely. "If they know that Avid is dangerous-it's not on the list, but
here's a list of things that do work-then they'll go to that."


Mikhail Carpenter, a spokesperson for the WSLCB, says the agency's
inspectors have the power to decide what constitutes improper use of a
pesticide, and can immediately shut down and quarantine any grow
operation that they feel to be unsafe, pending appeal. He also stressed
that the WSLCB's enforcement officers, when checking grow facilities,
will be examining these records closely to ensure accurate
record-keeping and responsible usage. He assured me that if they were to
find a grower using pyrethrin bombs dangerously close to harvest, they
would put the kibosh on it. So while responsible use of foggers may not
be specifically codified into the WSLCB's myriad of regulations
regarding legal weed, it is subject to the (hopefully) expert oversight
of the WSLCB's inspectors.



If the thought of any pesticides of any sort, no matter how benign,
freaks you out, simply avoid growers who use them. There are plenty out
there who don't, and there is even a third-party organization-Certified
Kind-that certifies weed as organic in the absence of USDA
certification.



As far as pesticide disclosure goes at our local shops, Uncle Ike's
is ahead of the game, offering a small printed card listing all their
suppliers and the substances applied to their products. Ganja Goddess
isn't far behind. I spoke with someone there identifying himself as Al
Green, who did not serenade me with his rendition of "Can't Get Next to
You" but did assure me that, while they did not have a list printed up,
they would be able to provide the required information to customers upon
request. The gentlemen I spoke with at Cannabis City and Ocean Greens
were both "not really sure," though I have no doubt they'll amend that
uncertainty once their bosses remind them it's required.






The liquor control board hasn't performed any pesticide audits yet,
but Steve McNalley, senior microbiologist at cannabis testing lab
Analytical 360 in Sodo, confirmed that his lab was setting up to perform
the audits and expects to do so in the "next couple of months." He
suspected that the WSLCB likely hadn't performed any audits yet because
they wanted to let growers get up and running before introducing any
potential fines. Hines and Mosely told me that calibration for pesticide
residual tests was also quite expensive and that screening for all the
disallowed pesticides that might be out there was an arduous process,
something like looking for a "needle in a haystack of needles." Arduous
but worthwhile, according to the WSLCB. Carpenter indicated that the
agency intended to scan for as broad a range of pesticides as possible,
and will be shouldering the expense of the tests, at least initially.


What Kinds of Pesticides Are Medical Marijuana Growers Using?

You might be wondering: Why make all this
fuss about the finer points of pesticides under I-502 if most growers
play it safe? Well, because legal growers are facing extremely stiff
competition from the unregulated medical and underground markets. The
fact that legal recreational weed is verifiably free of mold, bacteria,
and harmful pesticides is perhaps recreational stores' most serious
competitive advantage over the black market and the medical marijuana
market. This distinction is a pretty important one, given the stakes,
and I'm a bit surprised legal growers and retailers haven't publicized
it more aggressively.


A couple months back, I interviewed a few black-market marijuana
growers about their take on the cannabis landscape in the wake of
legalization, and one of them, Darryl, said something that stuck with
me. I asked him why, if legal weed was tested to ensure it was free of
mold and harmful pesticides, he nevertheless insisted that black-market
weed was better. He replied, "Well, the black-market growers are much
more boutique. It's more of a craft market. They've been doing it
longer, they've got more experience, and they don't have the same
restrictions the legal growers do as far as overhead and regulation."



Now, I believed Darryl when he told me he is personally dedicated to
organic, additive-free growing. But something about his answer didn't
sit right with me. He was essentially claiming that the black market
didn't need testing or any governmental oversight whatsoever because
consumers could just trust the experience of seasoned growers. That
would be a great argument if the black market (and the medical market,
which was not affected by the passage of I-502) were entirely composed
of responsible, experienced growers. But...



I've witnessed questionable practices firsthand. I've heard countless
tales of growers who are just in it for a buck, turning to harsh
chemical pesticides for the quickest, easiest solution. Ian Eisenberg,
the Ike of recreational marijuana store Uncle Ike's, told me of buying
weed at medical shops and listening to the budtenders extol the organic,
locally grown pot they were selling, only to see those same budtenders
buy pot from a guy who just pulled a black duffel bag out of a car with
California plates.



When I asked another black-market grower, Josh, if he'd ever seen
questionable growing practices, he replied: "Definitely. People using
household pesticides out of Lowe's or Home Depot. I've heard some wild
stories."






And Chase, an all-natural home grower who also works at a larger
medical grow, had a similar tale to tell. "It's more common than you
think, unfortunately," he told me, in regards to usage of sketchy
pesticides in the black and medical markets. "You can go into a
[medical] shop and they're not going to tell you, 'Oh, we had to spray
that one last week.'" He also added that in certain urgent pest
situations, his boss at the medical grow had instructed them to use
stronger pesticides that would definitely not pass muster under I-502,
though Chase did not specify which ones.


Not knowing where your weed came from or what's on it is pretty scary
when you start to delve into what's out there. The worst pesticides
that I've heard of being used on weed are all still available for
purchase, as many of them have legitimate uses on the type of plants you
look at but don't eat or smoke. Aqua Serene, a gardening supply store
in Fremont, sells both Forbid, an insecticide that was instantly
described to me as "horrible," and Eagle 20, a fungicide that received a
rating of "gross" from Markia Gwara, the store's manager. I wanted to
know why, exactly, they would still sell these if they wouldn't use them
in their own garden. She told me that there is still a market for
them-albeit a shrinking one-and their store is, after all, a business.
She was quick to emphasize that she does her best to steer people away
from harsh pesticides in favor of natural methods, but regardless,
they're for sale. Most of the people asking for them were, according to
her, "not as savvy of gardeners or old-timers who have stuck to their
ways."



Would banning these products from stores help? Probably not. All of
the worst culprits-Avid, Floramite, Forbid, Eagle 20, and their ilk-are
available online for those who really want them.


Rick, who was working the counter at Hydro 4 Less in Tukwila when I
stopped by to ask about the pesticides they stock, said that he
occasionally gets customers in the store asking for the heavy hitters,
which they don't carry. He noted that often the same customers come back
but don't ask again, which he reads as a sure sign they're getting it
elsewhere-either online or from other shops.






And, harsh chemicals aside, there is always the possibility of mold
when buying from untested sources. Much of the weed not legally
sanctioned by I-502 is grown in dank basements, hung up to dry in dank
basements, and trimmed in dank basements. "The stuff that comes out of
people's basements is often riddled with mold. Basements are moldy and
it's Seattle and it's wet," McNalley, the microbiologist from Analytical
360, told me. "Basement molds are stuff that you really don't want in
your lungs." He continued, "I would recommend smoking the legal stuff as
opposed to anything that's unregulated. I'm for regulation. Having that
limit [on microorganisms] is going to keep things safer overall. You
could go to a dispensary, you could buy a nug, and it could test in at
only 120 colony-forming units, but that doesn't mean anything if you
don't get the test done. And no one's getting the test done." This could
change-in Seattle at least-under the mayor's proposed rules for medical
shops, but until then it's still the Wild West.


If You Aren't Sure, Get It Tested


Getting weed from a medical shop or "the
guy" will almost undoubtedly be cheaper than going to a recreational
store, because unlicensed growers operate without the burdensome
expenses and taxes involved in I-502 compliance. Testing is expensive.
Rachel Cooper, from Monkey Grass Farms, estimated that the tests they
run on their marijuana cost around $3,000 per month.



Of course, weed that's been tested is much safer to consume. This
quote, from a paper entitled "Testing Cannabis for Contaminants" by the
BOTEC Corp., a California lab testing company that advised the WSLCB on
its pesticide rules, sums up the situation in the unregulated market
nicely: "As a high value crop, cannabis will no doubt prompt some
growers to use any and all measures to maximize yields, regardless of
burdens or risks placed upon employees, customers, or their
surroundings."


It is an unfortunate truth that, in the absence of regulation, some
people are going to cheat in pursuit of wealth. For every 10 medical
growers who are dedicated to growing beautiful, organic weed and are
willing to send their product in to the lab on their own dime, there's
one guy with dollar signs in his eyes spraying his plants down with Avid
because it's easier and passing it off as "all-natural." Provided he's
got his medical authorizations in order, there's currently no way to
stop that guy from using any pesticide legally available.



Beyond the fact that it still feels weird and amazing to be able to
walk into a clean, brightly lit store and purchase weed, it feels even
cooler to know that the weed you get from that store is pretty much
guaranteed to be free of harmful pesticides and mold. People have made
much of all the things that I-502 screwed up-and that list is not a
short one-but it's heartening to discover something it got right.


So unless your medical shop or your "dude" is willing to require
suppliers to run testing through a certified lab, like Confidence or
Analytical 360, and provide you with a list of pesticides used on their
product, it's probably worth paying the premium at the recreational
store if you're at all concerned about the purity of your pot. A
sandwich board with a green cross and the word "organic" painted on it
guarantees you nothing. A dude weighing out a sack on a cluttered coffee
table while Phish videos play in the background is not a safe source.
When it comes to weed safety, I think Uncle Ike put it best: "I don't
want to take someone's word of honor, I want my shit tested."