OVER 100 POT GROW-OPS NIPPED IN BUD IN 3 MONTHS

Municipality Has Been Checking Hydro Bills for More Than Normal
Amounts of Power Use

More than 100 marijuana grow operations in Langley Township have been
nipped in the bud in three months by examining home electricity bills.

Langley is one of 15 B.C. municipalities registered with B.C. Hydro to
receive bills for homes using more than normal amounts of juice.

Grow-ops use an enormous amount of power. Across B.C., Hydro says six
per cent of all residential power consumption is used for growing bud.

"Grow-ops are much more widespread than people think," Langley
Township Fire Chief Doug Wade said yesterday.

"They're in your neighbour's house. They're on farms and in
residential mom-and-pop operations. We've found people with federal
[marijuana] licences growing extra for friends."

Eight operations have been taken out every week since the inspection
program began in June.

Private residential bills are allowed to be shared with municipalities
under a 2006 provincial safety law that said faulty wiring was likely
to result in blazes.

Upon receipt of the information, the suspected house is visited by a
team, which includes police and a fire inspector.

A 24-hour inspection notice is posted. However, by the time crews
return to carry it out they usually find most of the equipment gone.

"We believe they have developed specialized moving teams," said
Wade.

He said almost every operation has electrical problems needing
attention, sometimes serious ones.

"We are making our community safer," he said.

Surrey, which conceived the inspection procedure, said last week 65
per cent of grow-ops have been closed.

"They are not welcome," said Mayor Dianne Watts.

Surrey hopes to inspect all 1,000 sites in the city by year
end.

Other Lower Mainland cities in the inspection program include
Richmond, Abbotsford, Pitt Meadows, Chilliwack, Vancouver, Mission,
Harrison Hot Springs, Coquitlam, Delta and West Vancouver.

Hydro spokeswoman Gillian Robinson said the power goes to keeping
1,000-watt light bulbs burning constantly.

The amount of power going to illegal grow-ops is enormous: 52,440
gigawatts are used by B.C. residential customers annually.

Grow-ops use three to 10 times as much electricity as the average
household.

Power can be bought legally -- or stolen by bypassing Hydro
meters.

Hydro inspectors have shut down 1,500 bypass operations in the past
three years.

B.C. fire chiefs say it's time to restrict sales of equipment used for
the hydroponic operations.

B.C. has 50 times as many sales outlets as Washington state, and 30
times as many as Alberta.

Surrey has submitted a resolution to the Union of B.C. Municipalities
civic convention in Vancouver next week. The resolution would require
that hydroponic equipment only be sold to licensed retailers or people
with a valid electrical permit.