California is globally synonymous with cannabis, but the plant’s distinctive smell has become a major headache for people across the state.
From Northern California to the desert to the coast, California residents have been complaining for years that the smell of legal cannabis farms is destroying their quality of life. And in some places, local governments are beginning to take action.
In Cathedral City, a small enclave near Palm Springs, the city council approved a moratorium last week that will block any new cannabis businesses from opening or expanding after years of complaints over cannabis odors. The moratorium was aimed directly at Cat City Cannabis Co., a massive indoor marijuana cultivation facility that has generated complaints for years from nearby residents who say the facility emits a “disgusting” smell.
Mayor Pro Tem Raymond Gregory said during the meeting that the moratorium would stop the facility from expanding further.
“That won’t affect what we’re going to be continuing to work with on the current issue, but it will stop them building a whole ’nother building,” Gregory said.
David Bernard, the COO of C4 USA, which owns the facility, said in an emailed statement to SFGATE that they are actively working with the city to develop an “effective odor management solution” but that they are also pushing forward with their phase 2 expansion. It will add 168,000 square feet of space to the existing 325,000-square-foot facility, which is already the largest indoor pot farm in the state, according to the company’s website.
“Though the moratorium has impacted our timeline, we view this as an opportunity to work collaboratively with the city and the local community to develop a long-term, effective odor management solution,” Bernard said.
The Cathedral City action comes after the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission unanimously recommended last month that all greenhouse cannabis growers install carbon filters within a year. The area near the coastal town of Carpinteria is a major hub for greenhouse cannabis growers, and residents have been complaining about the “sewer-like” smell of cannabis for years. The recommendation still needs to be approved by the county’s Board of Supervisors before it becomes law.
Some of the greenhouses have already installed the filtration systems, which can cost millions of dollars, while others have installed misting systems that attempt to camouflage the smell of fresh marijuana, although those systems have been panned as making entire neighborhoods smell like laundromats.
Most agricultural companies are protected from neighborhood complaints over nuisances like odor through so-called “Right to Farm” laws, but most local governments, including Santa Barbara’s, have exempted cannabis farms from receiving those protections.
Some California residents are saying the smell of cannabis is more than just a nuisance and that it could actually be causing health problems. The Sonoma Neighborhood Coalition, a group that is critical of cannabis policies, has been pushing for the county to ban outdoor cannabis farms entirely because, according to the group, pot plants release toxic chemicals including beta-myrcene. In December, the group warned against allowing outdoor cannabis farms, saying allowing pot farms would be “assaulting your right to defend your home from businesses that spew carcinogens into your yard and your house.”
Beta-myrcene is a naturally occurring compound found in thousands of plants. Studies have shown it can have carcinogenic effects when exposed at high levels, but SFGATE was not able to independently verify if cannabis farms would ever produce enough of the chemical to meet those toxic levels to nearby residents. Hops also produce the compound, and there do not appear to be problems in Yakima Valley where over 50,000 acres of hops are planted every year.
In Cathedral City, the smell of cannabis has tainted what was originally a genial relationship between the town and the pot industry. Locals were ecstatic when plans for the Cat City Cannabis Co. facility were first announced in 2018, with the planning commission unanimously approving the project and local neighbors telling the Desert Sun that they were happy a long vacant lot was becoming a job creator. The facility, which ballooned in price to $120 million, traded hands before opening under its current ownership.
Now, the mood is decidedly angry. Debbie Price, a local resident, told the council that “we are all flipping trapped” and called for an injunction to cease operations immediately until “there is no smell.”
“Is Cathedral City slated to be another Salton Sea area? You may laugh, but you know what, so did they,” Price said.
Gregory, the mayor pro tem, said that the council would have acted differently in 2020 if they knew about the smell and directed the company to end the odor.
