The Oregon Weed Thread -Grows, News and Laws and Whatever

[Robrites]

Oregon fair generates buzz with 1st legal pot display in US

Oregon fair generates buzz with 1st legal pot display in US

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Living marijuana plants went on display Friday at the Oregon State Fair, with organizers saying it's the first state fair in the nation to allow cannabis for public viewing.

The state voted to legalize recreational marijuana in late 2014. Here are a few things to know about legal pot in Oregon and the display at the fair:


The Oregon State Fair allowed a display about marijuana without any living plants last year and it generated no complaints. So this year, the organization took the next step and agreed to let marijuana growers display live plants.

The Oregon Cannabis Business Council, which is sponsoring the display, says it's the first time living pot plants have been open for public viewing at any state fair nationwide.

The council is renting space in an exhibit hall for its tent and selected nine plants for the display at an industry event two weeks ago.

___

WILL FAIRGOERS GET HIGH?

No. While the tent holding the display smells strongly of weed, fair authorities are only allowing immature plants — that is, pot plants without flowers.

Marijuana leaves are much less potent than the flowers, or buds, and it's not yet legal to transport flowering plants within the state anyway.

Donald Morse, director of the Oregon Cannabis Business Council, said his group hopes to get permission to display flowering pot plants next year, but the details aren't finalized.

___

CAN ANYONE SEE THE PLANTS?

No. The exhibit is in a translucent tent and both the entrance and exit are monitored. Anyone entering must present identification proving they are 21 or over.

___

AREN'T STATE FAIRS FOR GIANT PUMPKINS, PIGS AND APPLE PIE?

The way people think about marijuana in Oregon is changing, and recreational grow sites are recognized under state law as farm crops.

The Oregon Liquor Control Commission is in the process of licensing recreational marijuana in much the same way it already controls the sale and use of alcohol.

Fair spokesman Dan Cox says the event must adapt to changing cultural and societal values and allowing the display is one part of that shift.

___

A CASH CROP

Oregonians voted to legalize marijuana in 2014 and the state allowed the sale of marijuana "edibles," such as pot-infused candies and confections, earlier this year.

This week, the state said it had processed $25.5 million in taxes on recreational pot since January 2016.

Anticipated state revenue through June 2017 was recently quadrupled by Oregon's Legislative Revenue Office, from $8.4 million to $35 million.

___

BUT IT'S ILLEGAL, RIGHT?

Recreational marijuana is still illegal in 46 states and is banned by the federal government.

 

[Robrites]

Retailer Cannabis Tracking System (CTS) Training Available

Retailer Cannabis Tracking System (CTS) Training Available

Portland, Oregon – As the Oregon Liquor Control Commission readies to license Recreational Marijuana retailers, the OLCC and Metrc®, the State of Oregon’s Cannabis Tracking System (CTS) provider, are providing a series of retailer specific CTS trainings across Oregon.

The retailer CTS training is a two-hour training and Metrc will offer multiple sessions each day in each location. The in-person training will be available in Salem on Monday, August 29, 2016, in Portland on Tuesday August 30; Wednesday August 31, and Thursday, September 1. There will also be Portland training sessions on Wednesday, September 14 and Thursday, September 15.

CTS retail training sessions will also be available in Medford on Monday, September 12, and in Eugene on Tuesday, September 13.

OLCC Recreational Marijuana retail license applicants are encouraged to register for this training; applicants do NOT have to wait for notification from their OLCC investigator to register for the training.

Applicants can register for the training on the Metrc Oregon website.

Special Lab CTS Webinar

The OLCC and Metrc are also providing a specific webinar CTS session for Labs; this webinar is for new prospective lab license applicants. Prospective lab licensees must take at least one lab specific CTS training course prior to receiving their license.

The Metrc Lab webinar takes place on Friday, September 9, 2016 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Register for the Lab CTS training here.

The OLCC has published a Lab specific CTS guide, which can be found here on the OLCC Recreational Marijuana website.

 

[Aota1]

Metrc has provided a guide for laboratories that is now available on OLCC's website. http://www.oregon.gov/olcc/marijuana/Documents/Laboratory_Metrc_Guide_MJ.pdf









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[Robrites]

Hash oil explosion destroys Medford house

Hash oil explosion destroys Medford house

MEDFORD — A hash oil explosion has sent a man to the hospital and destroyed a house and garage.

The Mail Tribune reports the explosions and fire on Thursday also damaged two nearby homes.

Greg Kleinberg of Medford Fire-Rescue says there were a couple hundred containers of butane in the garage.

Marijuana plants were found in a room.

Butane is used in the process of extracting hash oil from marijuana.

Medford police Lt. Kevin Walruff said illegally producing hash oil is a felony in Oregon.

Property records say Jackson County Circuit Judge Ron Grensky owns the property along with some others in Medford.

He lives in Jacksonville and could not be reached for comment.

 

[ThaiBliss]

Holy Crap... I wish people would stop this. It is ruinous to Cannabis consumer and producer reputations.


1.) Butane hash oil, shatter... whatever... SUCKS! I tried it twice, and I never will again. It probably causes cancer due to the painfully obvious residuals.

2.) Dry sift, kief, or ice hash are a vastly superior products.

3.) It is incredibly dangerous. This is happening all the time.

Ugh!

 

[Robrites]

OLCC: Metrc Third Party Solution Provider Update – MJ Freeway

OLCC: Metrc Third Party Solution Provider Update – MJ Freeway

The Oregon Liquor Control Commission and Metrc™ have approved MJ Freeway of Denver, Colorado as a validated software provider whose products are compatible for integration with the Oregon Recreational Marijuana Program Cannabis Tracking System (CTS).

Validated providers have developed software products to allow OLCC recreational marijuana licensees to electronically transmit inventory and sales data into the CTS, a time-saving step that eliminates the need for additional updating by manual data entry.

Other approved companies include: OMMPOS of Astoria, Oregon, Flowhub of Denver, CO, Greenbits of Portland, OR, Odava of Portland, OR, Adilas of Salida, CO, WeedTraQR of Seattle, Washington, BioTrackTHC of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Leaf Logix Technology of Roswell, Georgia.

All licensees in Oregon’s Recreational Marijuana system are required to use the CTS. Licensees are not required to use POS or inventory management software and can enter their CTS data manually. The OLCC is not endorsing these software solutions.

The validation process only confirms the software provider’s ability to perform the specific functions identified, it does not validate the accuracy or quality of the data being uploaded. Licensees are responsible for ensuring their inventory and sales data is accurate in Oregon’s CTS even if using a validated software product.

A link to the full list of 3rd party solution providers, and their contact information, can be found on the Metrc Oregon website.
Metric Oregon http://www.metrc.com/oregon

 

[PDX Dopesmoker]

Apparently there has been a drop of almost 14% in the number of OMMP card holders since the start of recreational sales at Oregon medical dispensaries

 

[Robrites]

The OLCC has updated the Business Readiness Guidebook for Oregon Recreational Marijua

The OLCC has updated the Business Readiness Guidebook for Oregon Recreational Marijua

The OLCC has updated the Business Readiness Guidebook for Oregon Recreational Marijuana Operations.

http://links.govdelivery.com/track?type=click&enid=ZWFzPTEmbWFpbGluZ2lkPTIwMTYwOTAyLjYzMjc0MDgxJm1lc3NhZ2VpZD1NREItUFJELUJVTC0yMDE2MDkwMi42MzI3NDA4MSZkYXRhYmFzZWlkPTEwMDEmc2VyaWFsPTE3NzU3ODc4JmVtYWlsaWQ9cm9icml0ZXNAZ21haWwuY29tJnVzZXJpZD1yb2JyaXRlc0BnbWFpbC5jb20mZmw9JmV4dHJhPU11bHRpdmFyaWF0ZUlkPSYmJg==&&&100&&&http://www.oregon.gov/olcc/marijuana/Documents/BusinessReadinessGuide_RecreationalMarijuana.pdf

 

[Robrites]

Industrial hemp industry gets kick-start from oil extract

Industrial hemp industry gets kick-start from oil extract

Industrial hemp conjures images of rope, seeds for your morning smoothie and the quirky Dr. Bronner's soap, but farmers have discovered an unexpected and potentially lucrative use for the crop: Oil billed as treatment for everything from cancer to autism.

The oil offers a much higher return on investment than converting hemp into more conventional products, growers say.

But while advocates see unlimited potential in industrial hemp, serious challenges remain for the sometimes maligned and often misunderstood plant whose fate is complicated by the national politics of marijuana, its intoxicating cousin.

"The confusion around it has been frustrating," said Eric Steenstra, executive director of the Hemp Industries Association, a national group that advocates for the legalization of the crop. "Hemp and other varieties of cannabis have been tied together since day one in terms of policy."

Still, in Oregon -- one of about a dozen states with active industrial hemp programs -- the industry is taking hold, with 77 people licensed to grow hemp this year compared to 11 last year.

The crop covers an estimated 1,200 acres of farmland -- relatively small when compared to Oregon's overall agriculture industry but notable given the crop's novelty.

Most producers plan to send at least some of their harvest to processors to extract a non-psychoactive component called cannabidiol, or CBD – a sought-after byproduct for baby boomers looking for relief from aches and pains and parents desperate to treat their children's epilepsy.

"The only way that we can compete in the hemp industry right now is high-CBD hemp because that can be monetized at the end of the day," said Jerry Norton, a longtime hemp advocate who is growing the crop on about 100 acres in the Willamette Valley. "There is a big demand for it."

Yet while the state's booming – and regulated – market for marijuana takes shape, the long battle for industrial hemp's legitimacy continues to play out.

Federal legislation two years ago, for instance, cleared the way for limited research and pilot programs run by universities and state agriculture agencies, but the new law is vague on permission for general commercial production. Federal restrictions also have made it difficult for producers to get seeds legally.

And legal experts say shipping oil made from hemp falls in a legal gray area. That's because the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration generally views industrial hemp the same way it does marijuana: as a controlled substance.

Hemp and marijuana are different types of the same species, Cannabis sativa. Hemp has one key distinction: It lacks marijuana's most coveted component: THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol.

In hemp's case, the gene that fires up marijuana's high THC production is essentially turned off. So while hemp's stalks provide fiber for textiles and its nutty seeds can be added to yogurt, the plant is a lousy choice for people seeking marijuana's high.

By law, hemp may contain no more than 0.3 percent THC. "You could smoke the whole field," said Norton, surveying his leafy crop in Marion County. "You're not going to get high."

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, in consultation with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Food and Drug Administration, issued a statement this summer saying commercial hemp growers in states with pilot research programs would be protected from prosecution.

But the federal government also spelled out limits -- including prohibiting sending hemp to states that don't allow its production and marketing -- that could pose a challenge to hemp businesses planning to export products like CBD oil.

Amy Margolis, a Portland lawyer who represents marijuana business owners, said she would urge anyone selling hemp out of state to proceed "very cautiously."

"Until there is clarity," she said, "I would not be comfortable sanctioning a commercial business that sells interstate hemp products."

Read a lot More

 

[Aota1]

The Oregon Liquor Control Commission and Metrc™ have approved MJ Freeway of Denver, Colorado as a validated software provider whose products are compatible for integration with the Oregon Recreational Marijuana Program Cannabis Tracking System (CTS).

Validated providers have developed software products to allow OLCC recreational marijuana licensees to electronically transmit inventory and sales data into the CTS, a time-saving step that eliminates the need for additional updating by manual data entry.

Other approved companies include: OMMPOS of Astoria, Oregon, Flowhub of Denver, CO, Greenbits of Portland, OR, Odava of Portland, OR, Adilas of Salida, CO, WeedTraQR of Seattle, Washington, BioTrackTHC of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Leaf Logix Technology of Roswell, Georgia.

All licensees in Oregon’s Recreational Marijuana system are required to use the CTS. Licensees are not required to use POS or inventory management software and can enter their CTS data manually. The OLCC is not endorsing these software solutions.

The validation process only confirms the software provider’s ability to perform the specific functions identified, it does not validate the accuracy or quality of the data being uploaded. Licensees are responsible for ensuring their inventory and sales data is accurate in Oregon’s CTS even if using a validated software product.

A link to the full list of 3rd party solution providers, and their contact information, can be found on the Metrc Oregon website.
Metric Oregon http://www.metrc.com/oregon

We're about to switch to greenbits from mj freeway, which has been a terrible system to deal with. I can't believe they're still so bad after being in business for 5+ years

 

[Robrites]

I don't know if these eat Weed or not...Best to keep an eye out...

I don't know if these eat Weed or not...Best to keep an eye out...

The Oregon State University Extension Service has issued a pest alert regarding the presence of true (common) armyworms in Willamette Valley grass seed crops.

The service wrote that large numbers of the pest have been spotted in tall fescue and orchardgrass seed fields in the past two weeks in both the south and north Willamette Valley.

The pest, Mythimna unipuncta, also has been seen on sudan grass planted as a cover crop between nursery stock rows.

“Extensive damage may result if the population is not treated,” the alert states. “Large numbers of larvae feed so voraciously that mass migrations of larvae can occur within a field and to adjacent fields very quickly.”

Armyworm outbreaks occur suddenly, the alert states, and in large numbers. In the alert, extension personnel Amy Dreves, Nicole Anderson and Clare Sullivan compared the pest to the new winter cutworm, which erupted in grass seed fields last summer.

According to an extension publication issued in February, cutworm damage is less uniform than armyworm damage, but both pests move en masse, potentially inflicting widespread damage to new growth in late summer and early fall.

The armyworm, like the cutworm, also inflicts damage sporadically. The last time an armyworm outbreak occurred in the Willamette Valley was 2004-2006, according to the alert. In that outbreak, the pest also was found in Southwest Oregon near Myrtle Point, and damaged grass pasture and corn in that area, according to Dreves.

In grass seed crops, the pest damages new growth by feeding on leaves and stems, leaving notched leaves and jagged leaf edges, according to the alert. Armyworms, like cutworms, can cause extension defoliation of plants over broad areas.

The alert advises growers to scout for the pest in and around crowns where birds are feeding and to dig around in the thatch of a plant and at its base. The pest feeds at night and curls into a C shape in the day in areas where it can avoid daylight.

The pest is not well adapted to light and needs moisture, according to the alert.

“We expect larval activity may slow down for a short period of time,” the Aug. 29 alert states. “However, activity will likely pick back up.”

The pest looks similar to winter cutworm, but the true armyworm is more smooth-bodied, tan-to-brown in color, about 0.5 to 1.5 inches long, with several alternating dark and light stripes and yellow-orange bands.

The alert states that several pesticide products are labeled for armyworm control, and that insecticides are most effective when applied while larvae are small.

“There is little benefit to spraying when the (larval) pest is full grown,” the alert states. “We recommend spraying at night, and rotating chemistries if more than one application is needed.”

http://www.capitalpress.com/Oregon/20160830/armyworms-invade-willamette-valley-grass-seed-fields

 

[Robrites]

Oregon imposes fine in marijuana-related fraud

Oregon imposes fine in marijuana-related fraud

Oregon regulators have fined a Happy Valley man for allegedly bilking an investor out of about $80,000 for a bogus marijuana-related enterprise.

The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services ordered Todd C. Grange to pay $60,000 in fines for violating state securities law.

It's the second time the agency has imposed fines in a marijuana-related securities fraud investigation. In July, the state ordered Tisha Siler, CEO of a Northeast Portland pot dispensary called Cannacea, to pay $40,000 in fines for multiple violations of state securities law, including selling securities without a license. Siler appealed the order; the appeal is pending.

In the latest case, the state concluded that Grange took thousands from a Colorado investor for a marijuana business called THC Pharmaceutical, which the state described as a "sham public offering."

Grange could not be reached for comment. He has a previous theft conviction in Washington state. State documents show the company website offered investors the chance to convert $10,000 into $150,000.

The state also determined that Grange's claims to have raised $9 million from 27 investors and that the company had been in business for at least five years were false. Investigators concluded that THC Pharmaceutical was never incorporated in Oregon.

"This is a classic case of a fraudster going out there and pitching an investment that is clearly too good to be true using the hot new industry as the hook," said Jake Sunderland, a spokesman for the agency. "Sometimes it's oil. Sometimes it's gold and sometimes it's silver. In this case, it's marijuana."

Grange told the investor, identified in the state file as Jack Salazar of Pueblo, Colorado, that a $25,000 investment would result in about $1 million in shares.

The company, the investor was told, was merging with a publicly traded one. Salazar in 2014 sent money to the bogus company's Milwaukie mailing address, according to the state's order. The investor "never received any shares in any entity affiliated with THCP."

"In fact, there is no evidence whatsoever that THCP planned to merge with any publicly traded company," the order states. "What is more, such a merger would be impossible because THCP did not exist."

A state investigator, Chris Aldrich, concluded that the company was essentially "a pyramid scheme wherein persons are enticed by high returns that will be paid within a very short period of time."

"There is no evidence to support that THCP is anything but an internet website which solicits funds," Aldrich wrote in an affidavit included in the state's file.

The state can issue a proposed order spelling out the wrongdoing and imposing a fine. The parties can either negotiate a resolution, which typically involves agreeing to a set of findings and paying a fine and restitution, or the case goes before an administrative law judge.

In this case, Grange appealed the state's order but then dropped out of the process, officials said. Restitution to victims can only be included in a negotiated settlement.

 

[Robrites]

'Weed tornado' sweeps through southern Oregon marijuana grow (video)

'Weed tornado' sweeps through southern Oregon marijuana grow (video)

[YOUTUBEIF]gmjz7BJJ4Y0[/YOUTUBEIF]

When an employee of an outdoor marijuana grow in southern Oregon reported a massive marijuana plant had been ripped from the ground and tossed 15 feet in the air late Wednesday, his boss Michael Johnson was dubious.

"It was such an unbelievable thing he told me," said Johnson, chief operating officer at Siskiyou Sungrown. "It was very strange."

This being a new era of regulated marijuana production in Oregon, such a disturbance would have been recorded on one of the security cameras trained on the grow site. So Johnson turned to the tape and was stunned to see what looked like a small twister whip through the Williams grow site.

The Oregonian/OregonLive forwarded the short clip to the National Weather Service in Medford and asked the experts to weigh in.

Turns out, it wasn't a tornado that kicked up a mess at Siskiyou Sungrown but a dust devil, or whirlwind, described on the National Weather Service website as a "small, rapidly rotating wind that is made visible by the dust, dirt or debris it picks up." They tend to occur in clear, dry and hot conditions.

Shad Keene, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said dust devils are relatively common in southern Oregon.

"I did see some of the damage on the video," he said. "If it was a tornado of any significance, it would have caused more damage."

 

[Robrites]

Special Weather Statement

Special Weather Statement

TEMPERATURES WILL FALL QUICKLY AFTER SUNSET TONIGHT AS SKIES CLEAR
OUT. LOW TEMPERATURES WILL BE IN THE LOWER TO MID 30S OVER CENTRAL
OREGON...THE JOHN DAY RIVER BASIN...THE BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON AND
PARTS OF WALLOWA COUNTY. LOW TEMPERATURES WILL RANGE FROM 25 TO 33
DEGREES OVER THE EAST SLOPES OF THE OREGON CASCADES AND THE OCHOCO-
JOHN DAY HIGHLANDS. THESE TEMPERATURES WILL BRING THE POSSIBILITY FOR
PATCHY FROST IN THE NORMALLY COLDER LOCATIONS...BUT ARE NOT EXPECTED
TO BE COLD ENOUGH FOR A WIDESPREAD FREEZE IN EITHER CENTRAL OREGON OR
THE JOHN DAY RIVER BASIN. ANY SENSITIVE VEGETATION WITHIN THESE
LOCATIONS SHOULD BE PROTECTED FROM THE COLD LATE TONIGHT AND EARLY
MONDAY MORNING. THE COLDEST TEMPERATURES WILL OCCUR OVER THE HIGHER
MOUNTAIN VALLEYS JUST BEFORE SUNRISE MONDAY MORNING...INCLUDING
SUNRIVER, SENECA, AND MEACHAM. CAMPERS...HIKERS AND OTHER OUTDOOR
ENTHUSIAST SHOULD ALSO BE PREPARED FOR THESE COLD OVERNIGHT LOW
TEMPERATURES.

 

[Robrites]

240 marijuana plants seized from Washington County backyard

240 marijuana plants seized from Washington County backyard

Police seized 240 marijuana plants growing in a Washington County backyard Saturday after following up on a complaint.

Some of the plants were visible from the street when police arrived, said Deputy Mark Povolny of the Washington County Sheriff's Office.

Homeowner Tuyen Ngo, 60, was cooperative and consented to a search of the home, located in the in the 17500 block of West Stark Street near Beaverton. He was issued citations for unlawful possession of marijuana and unlawful manufacture of marijuana.

Most of the plants, which ranged from seedlings to fully mature plants, were seized. Ngo was allowed to choose four to keep, as allowed under Oregon's recreational marijuana law.

 

[GOT_BUD?]

So of 244 plants, he's allowed to keep four. The police sieze the remaining 240. What are the other penalties for the grower? Fines? Jail time? Asset seizure?

I'm unfamiliar with Oregon law, and have been eyeballing the state from a distance for a future move. If the worst thing that happens is the loss of plants, what's to stop someone from doing this on a constant basis?

 

[PDX Dopesmoker]

Penalities for growing more than double your legal limit can be severe, they just haven't been in this case yet.

 

[Robrites]

So of 244 plants, he's allowed to keep four. The police sieze the remaining 240. What are the other penalties for the grower? Fines? Jail time? Asset seizure?

I'm unfamiliar with Oregon law, and have been eyeballing the state from a distance for a future move. If the worst thing that happens is the loss of plants, what's to stop someone from doing this on a constant basis?

"He was issued citations for unlawful possession of marijuana and unlawful manufacture of marijuana."

 

[GOT_BUD?]

"He was issued citations for unlawful possession of marijuana and unlawful manufacture of marijuana."

This is what happens when I wake and bake.

Reading is fundamental.

 

[Robrites]

Oregon agency charged with accrediting pot labs 'on verge of collapse'

Oregon agency charged with accrediting pot labs 'on verge of collapse'

The administrator of a state program charged with making sure marijuana labs are accredited said the Oregon Health Authority has ignored his pleas for resources and that the agency is "on the verge of collapse."

Gary Ward, administrator of the Oregon Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program, detailed the crisis facing the agency in a memo sent last week to the health authority. The accreditation program is a division of the health authority.

He said his agency, which also accredits labs that test drinking water, was initially assured resources to implement state-mandated cannabis testing accreditation, but "so far we have received zero" support from the health authority.

The memo has potentially dire implications for the state's marijuana industry. Starting Oct. 1, new products headed to marijuana dispensary shelves will have to undergo a battery of tests at accredited labs. Those tests will assess potency and look for biological contaminants such as E. coli, residual solvents from the extraction process used to make oil, and dozens of pesticides.

The policy shift transforms Oregon's marijuana labs from an unregulated cottage industry into a central part of the state's regulated market. The state's new testing standards are intended to address pesticide contamination, which remains a concern in Oregon and in other states with legal pot markets.

Ward warned that all work on marijuana lab accreditation -- as well as the agency's work on drinking water -- will come to a halt without additional resources.

"We are on the precipice of collapse of environmental, drinking water and cannabis accreditation because of the lack of resources," he wrote.

A health authority official said the agency would release a statement today in response to Ward's claims.

The crisis facing the agency could have far-reaching consequences not just for Oregon's marijuana industry but for drinking water testing. Ward notes that the agency must assess 17 drinking water labs by January 2017 "or their accreditation will expire and drinking water testing will stop at those labs."

"The public health will be in jeopardy from potential drinking water problems and contaminated cannabis," he wrote.

Ward wrote that his agency previously had support from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality but "recent cadmium air toxics and lead events" in Portland have "curbed their ability to spare" staff time to help.

Marijuana industry representatives said they're alarmed by the state's slow pace at accrediting and approving labs, a situation they fear will lead to large stockpiles of marijuana waiting to be tested.

Beau Whitney, an economist and executive at Golden Leaf Holdings, a company that grows, processes and sells marijuana, worries producers will face a long wait to get their product into the legal market.

"It limits the ability of the market to grow," he said.

So far only two labs have been accredited and licensed by the state. Advocates for the industry say that's not enough to process the volume of marijuana being grown for the regulated market.

Amy Margolis, an attorney who represents marijuana businesses, said the labs are the "gateway" to the entire legal market. Without more of them, the industry's viability is threatened, she said.

"Put aside the fact that we are also talking about drinking water," she said. "If they don't get funding and resources, the entire industry will come to a full stop."

Rodger Voelker, lab director at OG Analytical in Eugene, said staff from the accrediting program spent two days in his lab, reviewing his equipment, protocols and expertise. That on-site review came after the division reviewed hundreds of pages of documents detailing how the lab operates. The lab received its accreditation last week.

"There is no way they can run the program the way that they need to and strive to with limited resources," Voelker said.

It's clear from Ward's memo that the task of accrediting cannabis labs is an enormous and complicated one. He said many labs waited until July to apply for accreditation, leaving just two months to do the work.

"Many of the cannabis labs need significant work," he wrote, adding that much of the work that's being done in labs is "inaccurate." For instance, he wrote that labs are turning out negative results for pesticides in tainted samples.

He said his agency will have to audit labs another two to three times in the next eight months.

"We cannot get it done with current resources," he wrote. "Our work involved so much attention to technical detail that rushing or overloading, in and of itself, reduces the value of our program to the labs and Oregon's reputation as a whole.

"This will be especially true," he continued, "if we lose assessors or myself as the program manager due to the extreme working conditions we face."