California Plans For Pot Expansion

Although current California legislation still prohibits recreational marijuana use, the state has been at the forefront of the cannabis industry since relaxing its laws to allow residents to use marijuana for medical reasons. However, as the push for full-scale legalization picks up momentum, the state's lawmakers have struggled to determine just how the industry should be allowed to grow.

In many California cities, dispensaries have been forbidden while in others a plethora of marijuana facilities, both legal and illegal, have sprung up. To streamline the industry and give growers a place to expand, Arcata, a northwestern city, is

a Medical Marijuana Innovation Zone.

The zone will be wholly dedicated to the production of marijuana, something that is believed to be a first in the US. By giving pot growers a place apart from California's residential neighborhoods to cultivate their crops, Arcadia City Council officials hope to carve out their town's role in the growing industry.

Arcata's decision to create a specific zone for marijuana cultivation could serve as a blueprint for other states struggling with the issue of how to regulate the cannabis industry. When the land has been specifically designated for marijuana production, it gives local officials a chance to impose rules on growers in regard to land use rather than drug policy. That means pot regulation can be carried out on a local rather than state level.

Not only will Arcata's marijuana zoning plan help revamp California's pot industry, it's also expected to bring in big bucks for the local economy. Arcata and its local businesses stand to profit from the pot industry in the coming years, especially if California legalizes recreational marijuana as well.