Katelyn Baker
Well-Known Member
Institutions across the country soon will be looking to Colorado State University-Pueblo as a pioneer in marijuana research that will bring together state officials, local governments and others to search for answers in this complicated new field.
The university is set to become the first regional comprehensive university to conduct marijuana research.
As part of the new program, scholars and CSU-Pueblo students will conduct studies to determine the impact legalized marijuana has on Pueblo County and across the state.
What is the social and economic impact of legalized marijuana in Pueblo County and Colorado?
How close can residents be to a grow operation before they smell it?
How much water and power does it take to run a grow operation?
Are people moving here for marijuana?
These are only a few of the questions that CSU-Pueblo hopes to answer.
Since Amendment 64 was enacted in 2014, information on the impact of legalized marijuana in the state has been mostly anecdotal and, oftentimes, political opinion.
Agencies, pro-pot and anti-pot groups are releasing information, but there are no clear studies that eliminate perception and offer more than just an educated guess.
"It will bring positive light to this institution. That doesn't mean that we are pro-recreational marijuana or pro-medical marijuana. We are pro-research," said CSU-Pueblo President Lesley Di Mare.
"For the county and state agencies and the university to be working together, that's powerful. And I am proud to be the president."
Medical marijuana research and impact studies at CSU-Pueblo received a boost on June 13 from Pueblo County, which kicked in $270,000 to the effort.
The university will receive $220,000 for medical marijuana research and $50,000 for four impact studies.
The funding, approved by the Pueblo County commissioners last month, came from the county's marijuana excise tax.
On June 6, Gov. John Hickenlooper signed SB191, which will send $900,000 to CSU-Pueblo for cannabis research.
Rick Kreminski, provost and executive vice president at CSU-Pueblo, said the first of the studies will focus on social and economic impact, buffer zone studies and water and power usage impact.
"The buffer zone would address how far apart grows should be in this area for low THC hemp and high THC cannabis given our wind conditions," Kreminski explained.
Kreminski said the impact studies will overlap.
"Social impacts overlap with what you cost out on the economic side, and water and power also will have some economic impact," he said.
Kreminski said people with doctorates will be coming to the school to conduct research and to manage research labs.
Di Mare said the university also will be working with the state's Department of Public Health, Department of Criminal Justice and Gov. Hickenlooper's Energy Office, which oversees water and power.
"We will be working in concert with our state agencies, which is really important so that people can understand that we are not just doing this in a vacuum; but we are looking at data that they will be able to give us, as well as they're looking at data and research that we will be able to give to those offices," Di Mare said.
"It underscores the governor's interest in this type of research."
Di Mare said the partnership between regional comprehensive institutions and state agencies is rare in studies like this.
"You don't find many of them working directly with the governor's office and the executive branch and these individual agencies, so it does underscore the importance of this to the state of Colorado as well as to Pueblo," she said.
Di Mare said Colorado's Joint Budget Committee and a delegation from CSU-Pueblo were integral in bringing the program to the university.
Kreminski said students will be involved in the impact studies, with the lead coming from faculty.
"Each impact study will be undertaken by a logically different group, but there might be some overlap in who the faculty are," Kreminski said.
Kreminski said the impact studies will involve a lot of people, and he is putting it all together.
Under social impacts, the university will study poverty, jobs, education and determine if people are moving to Pueblo County for marijuana. Also, whether or not people are moving out of the county because of marijuana.
The school also will research whether there is a policy in place to address the social impact of marijuana.
"We also will be looking at the criminal side to it. There are parole violations, DUI-type issues and the legal complexities that law enforcement has to navigate, because some of this is legal and some of this is not legal," Kreminski said.
"There will be a lot on the political-science side as well as in the medical community, including emergency room data and primary care issues.
"It's pretty complex. There's a lot there that we need to unpack."
Kreminski said the impact studies were determined by faculty as well as the Pueblo County commissioners.
Di Mare said the new program will set CSU-Pueblo apart from other schools like it, and it will allow the school to teach based on well-founded research.
"There is too much reliance on anecdotal information instead of research that comes out of universities, so we will have answers for Pueblo and for the state of Colorado," Di Mare said.
"And make no mistake about it, there will be other states looking at us and looking to us for that research and those answers."
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: CSU-Pueblo Research Institute Looks To Marijuana's Future
Author: Anthony A. Mestas
Contact: (719) 544-3520
Photo Credit: None Found
Website: The Pueblo Chieftain
The university is set to become the first regional comprehensive university to conduct marijuana research.
As part of the new program, scholars and CSU-Pueblo students will conduct studies to determine the impact legalized marijuana has on Pueblo County and across the state.
What is the social and economic impact of legalized marijuana in Pueblo County and Colorado?
How close can residents be to a grow operation before they smell it?
How much water and power does it take to run a grow operation?
Are people moving here for marijuana?
These are only a few of the questions that CSU-Pueblo hopes to answer.
Since Amendment 64 was enacted in 2014, information on the impact of legalized marijuana in the state has been mostly anecdotal and, oftentimes, political opinion.
Agencies, pro-pot and anti-pot groups are releasing information, but there are no clear studies that eliminate perception and offer more than just an educated guess.
"It will bring positive light to this institution. That doesn't mean that we are pro-recreational marijuana or pro-medical marijuana. We are pro-research," said CSU-Pueblo President Lesley Di Mare.
"For the county and state agencies and the university to be working together, that's powerful. And I am proud to be the president."
Medical marijuana research and impact studies at CSU-Pueblo received a boost on June 13 from Pueblo County, which kicked in $270,000 to the effort.
The university will receive $220,000 for medical marijuana research and $50,000 for four impact studies.
The funding, approved by the Pueblo County commissioners last month, came from the county's marijuana excise tax.
On June 6, Gov. John Hickenlooper signed SB191, which will send $900,000 to CSU-Pueblo for cannabis research.
Rick Kreminski, provost and executive vice president at CSU-Pueblo, said the first of the studies will focus on social and economic impact, buffer zone studies and water and power usage impact.
"The buffer zone would address how far apart grows should be in this area for low THC hemp and high THC cannabis given our wind conditions," Kreminski explained.
Kreminski said the impact studies will overlap.
"Social impacts overlap with what you cost out on the economic side, and water and power also will have some economic impact," he said.
Kreminski said people with doctorates will be coming to the school to conduct research and to manage research labs.
Di Mare said the university also will be working with the state's Department of Public Health, Department of Criminal Justice and Gov. Hickenlooper's Energy Office, which oversees water and power.
"We will be working in concert with our state agencies, which is really important so that people can understand that we are not just doing this in a vacuum; but we are looking at data that they will be able to give us, as well as they're looking at data and research that we will be able to give to those offices," Di Mare said.
"It underscores the governor's interest in this type of research."
Di Mare said the partnership between regional comprehensive institutions and state agencies is rare in studies like this.
"You don't find many of them working directly with the governor's office and the executive branch and these individual agencies, so it does underscore the importance of this to the state of Colorado as well as to Pueblo," she said.
Di Mare said Colorado's Joint Budget Committee and a delegation from CSU-Pueblo were integral in bringing the program to the university.
Kreminski said students will be involved in the impact studies, with the lead coming from faculty.
"Each impact study will be undertaken by a logically different group, but there might be some overlap in who the faculty are," Kreminski said.
Kreminski said the impact studies will involve a lot of people, and he is putting it all together.
Under social impacts, the university will study poverty, jobs, education and determine if people are moving to Pueblo County for marijuana. Also, whether or not people are moving out of the county because of marijuana.
The school also will research whether there is a policy in place to address the social impact of marijuana.
"We also will be looking at the criminal side to it. There are parole violations, DUI-type issues and the legal complexities that law enforcement has to navigate, because some of this is legal and some of this is not legal," Kreminski said.
"There will be a lot on the political-science side as well as in the medical community, including emergency room data and primary care issues.
"It's pretty complex. There's a lot there that we need to unpack."
Kreminski said the impact studies were determined by faculty as well as the Pueblo County commissioners.
Di Mare said the new program will set CSU-Pueblo apart from other schools like it, and it will allow the school to teach based on well-founded research.
"There is too much reliance on anecdotal information instead of research that comes out of universities, so we will have answers for Pueblo and for the state of Colorado," Di Mare said.
"And make no mistake about it, there will be other states looking at us and looking to us for that research and those answers."
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: CSU-Pueblo Research Institute Looks To Marijuana's Future
Author: Anthony A. Mestas
Contact: (719) 544-3520
Photo Credit: None Found
Website: The Pueblo Chieftain
