420
Founder
Rep. Bill Herbkersman believes he has found a way to replenish South Carolina's farming industry, re-establish textile mills and do the environment some good in the process.
It's just not quite legal yet.
Herbkersman, R-Bluffton, is proposing a committee to study whether South Carolina should pursue "authorization of the cultivation and production of industrial hemp."
The challenge, he said, will be to convince lawmakers there's a significant difference between industrial hemp and its cannabis cousin, marijuana - and that the potential benefits are worth a deeper look.
Sen. Bill Mescher, R-Pinopolis, has filed a bill to legalize medical use of marijuana, citing the painful death of his first wife 20 years ago from cancer.
Hemp is a type of cannabis that is cultivated to maximize the quality of the plant's seeds and fiber and to limit the amount of THC, the ingredient that gets marijuana users "high."
Marijuana generally is produced from leafier variations of cannabis cultivated to maximize their THC content.
The federal Controlled Substances Act, however, doesn't distinguish between hemp and marijuana: Growing cannabis of any kind requires a special permit from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
So if the industrial hemp study committee were to decide that farmers across the state should be able to cultivate the crop, South Carolina would need to get the DEA's permission.
Other states either are studying the issue or already have acted. Oregon, for instance, allows hemp farming with a state license.
Herbkersman's resolution is modeled after North Carolina legislation, approved in August, that established a study committee there.
Herbkersman sees plenty of potential for the industrial hemp crop:
Bolstering the farm-based economy by providing a new crop to offset tobacco declines.
Reinvigorating the textile industry in the state, creating jobs and building the economy when South Carolina hemp is used to produce textiles, paper, rope, building materials, food, medicine, soaps and more.
Improving the environment and reducing dependence on foreign-based fossil fuels by capitalizing on hemp's potential as a renewable fuel source. Steven Mardell has been making a living off of hemp for 10 years, selling apparel and other hemp-based items at his Hilton Head Island store, The Hemp See and High Tide Beads.
It's time for people to re-educate themselves about the United States' - and South Carolina's - extensive hemp history, Mardell said. "Just the fact that South Carolina is trying to make a move toward nature again is huge."
Herbkersman has the support of Rep. Bill Witherspoon, R-Conway, chair of the Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs committee.
But they have a lot of convincing to do.
"It's not on the radar right now," said David Branham, director of commodity relations at the South Carolina Farm Bureau.
Among the questions Branham said farmers would have: how South Carolina would create a storage and distribution system for the new crop when the state's farming industry is designed now for wheat, corn and soybeans.
But, if hemp is shown to be a profitable, viable crop, he said, farmers will be interested.
Herbkersman said the committee also would need to address law enforcement concerns regarding marijuana smokers using legalized hemp to cover up or support their illegal drug habit.
But, he said, "that's what study committees do."
Source: Savannah Morning News (GA)
Copyright: 2007 Savannah Morning News
Contact: letted@savannahnow.com
Website: SavannahNow
It's just not quite legal yet.
Herbkersman, R-Bluffton, is proposing a committee to study whether South Carolina should pursue "authorization of the cultivation and production of industrial hemp."
The challenge, he said, will be to convince lawmakers there's a significant difference between industrial hemp and its cannabis cousin, marijuana - and that the potential benefits are worth a deeper look.
Sen. Bill Mescher, R-Pinopolis, has filed a bill to legalize medical use of marijuana, citing the painful death of his first wife 20 years ago from cancer.
Hemp is a type of cannabis that is cultivated to maximize the quality of the plant's seeds and fiber and to limit the amount of THC, the ingredient that gets marijuana users "high."
Marijuana generally is produced from leafier variations of cannabis cultivated to maximize their THC content.
The federal Controlled Substances Act, however, doesn't distinguish between hemp and marijuana: Growing cannabis of any kind requires a special permit from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
So if the industrial hemp study committee were to decide that farmers across the state should be able to cultivate the crop, South Carolina would need to get the DEA's permission.
Other states either are studying the issue or already have acted. Oregon, for instance, allows hemp farming with a state license.
Herbkersman's resolution is modeled after North Carolina legislation, approved in August, that established a study committee there.
Herbkersman sees plenty of potential for the industrial hemp crop:
Bolstering the farm-based economy by providing a new crop to offset tobacco declines.
Reinvigorating the textile industry in the state, creating jobs and building the economy when South Carolina hemp is used to produce textiles, paper, rope, building materials, food, medicine, soaps and more.
Improving the environment and reducing dependence on foreign-based fossil fuels by capitalizing on hemp's potential as a renewable fuel source. Steven Mardell has been making a living off of hemp for 10 years, selling apparel and other hemp-based items at his Hilton Head Island store, The Hemp See and High Tide Beads.
It's time for people to re-educate themselves about the United States' - and South Carolina's - extensive hemp history, Mardell said. "Just the fact that South Carolina is trying to make a move toward nature again is huge."
Herbkersman has the support of Rep. Bill Witherspoon, R-Conway, chair of the Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs committee.
But they have a lot of convincing to do.
"It's not on the radar right now," said David Branham, director of commodity relations at the South Carolina Farm Bureau.
Among the questions Branham said farmers would have: how South Carolina would create a storage and distribution system for the new crop when the state's farming industry is designed now for wheat, corn and soybeans.
But, if hemp is shown to be a profitable, viable crop, he said, farmers will be interested.
Herbkersman said the committee also would need to address law enforcement concerns regarding marijuana smokers using legalized hemp to cover up or support their illegal drug habit.
But, he said, "that's what study committees do."
Source: Savannah Morning News (GA)
Copyright: 2007 Savannah Morning News
Contact: letted@savannahnow.com
Website: SavannahNow
