Full Notification

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contacts: Sonoma County Ag & Open Space: Amy Ricard
Cell: (707) 486-5064 | Email: [email protected]
Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office: Sgt. Spencer Crum Ph: (707) 565-3941| Email: [email protected]

Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation & Open Space District and Sheriff’s Office Address Illegal Cannabis Grow at District-owned Calabazas Creek Open Space Preserve

Agencies destroyed over 3,000 plants spanning approximately half an acre

Santa Rosa, CA. (May 26, 2017) – The Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation & Open Space District (District) and the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office have teamed up to address illegal cannabis grow operations on District-protected lands. The District is committed to working with law enforcement to address these illegal trespass grows as they have severe negative impacts on the water, wildlife, and natural areas protected by the District with public funds.

“The County is committed to protecting our vital natural resources and the community’s investment in our wild and scenic open space lands from the environmental degradation that comes from large-scale illegal cannabis grows,” said Supervisor Susan Gorin, whose 1st District includes Calabazas Creek Open Space Preserve. “I’m proud that our County departments are working together to stop the spread of illegal grows on lands protected by and for Sonoma County residents.”

On Wednesday, two District representatives joined with an eight-member SWAT team from the Sheriff’s Office to assess a suspected grow area at the District-owned Calabazas Creek Open Space Preserve – a 1,290-acre preserve near Glen Ellen. More than 3,000 individual plants were found and destroyed. The grow operation was under canopy cover and consisted of rows of planting wells sculpted into the hillside fed by irrigation line, accompanied by an unoccupied camp site. The team estimated the extent of the grow site to be just over half an acre. As soon as the District became aware of this particular potential grow site earlier this spring, staff contacted and worked closely with the Sheriff’s Office to organize Wednesday’s site visit.

“Large-scale, illegal cannabis cultivation severely threatens our water, wildlife, and the natural landscapes we value here in Sonoma County. We are grateful to the Sheriff’s Office for thoughtfully taking action to eliminate this particular grow operation on one of the District’s most pristine and wild properties – Calabazas Creek Open Space Preserve,” said General Manager, Bill Keene. “We have been extremely impressed at how dedicated the Sheriff’s Office has been and continues to be in protecting the community’s natural resource and scenic open space lands.”

The Sheriff’s Office is committed to assisting the District to ensure that these eradication efforts can be done safely. “Many times these grow operations are tended to by armed suspects and we don’t want anyone to get hurt as these operations are dismantled,” said Sgt. Spencer Crum, a spokesman for the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.

Illegal cannabis cultivation has tremendous negative impacts on water, wildlife, and natural systems. The District is particularly interested in removing cannabis grows from its properties because they pose a significant threat to our protected natural lands. Toxic chemicals from pesticides, rodenticides, and fertilizers taint the soil, and run off into creeks and streams at great peril to salmon, steelhead and other aquatic species. Our precious creeks and streams also suffer tremendously from water diversion and the creation of fertilizer mixing basins to irrigate the cannabis crops.

Further, growers often clear large swaths of natural, native vegetation to make way for the plants, and frequently leave behind large amounts of trash and debris in abandoned camps.

About the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District

The Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District permanently protects the diverse agricultural, natural resource and scenic open space lands of Sonoma County for future generations. The District is responsible for the perpetual protection of over 111,000 acres of land throughout our region. These agricultural and open space lands are protected through a quarter-cent sales tax approved by voters in 1990 and reauthorized in 2006. For more information, please visit www.sonomaopenspace.org.
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