New health data on Colorado’s legal era, Scotts Miracle-Gro hydroponic sales booming, Alaska social smoking, THC math puzzle and more

Feb. 1: New health data on Colorado’s legal era, Scotts Miracle-Gro hydroponic sales booming, Alaska social smoking, THC math puzzle and more [The Cannabist] [thecannabist.co] | [@cannabist] | [fb/cannabist] [Colorado data: Fresh report looks at cannabis health effects, trends] Monitoring potential public-health outcomes was a top priority for state health officials after Colorado implemented its recreational marijuana law in 2014. Three years into regulated sales of recreational cannabis, the Retail Marijuana Public Health Advisory Committee says calls to poison control and marijuana-related emergency room visits are down, even though overall consumption of pot remains steady — signs that existing policy and education efforts may be working. --------------------------------------------------------------- SUBSCRIBE: Did you catch this newsletter on the web or get it via a friend? [Click here to get these updates in your inbox]. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Scotts Miracle-Gro reports success in hydroponics, no plans to slow down] Scotts Miracle-Gro’s wade into the waters of the emerging cannabis industry via hydroponics has already accounted for a “big jolt” in overall sales. And the lawn-and-garden giant isn’t changing course after the results of the 2016 state and federal elections, the company’s CEO said, adding that the “size of the prize in hydro” for Scotts may be even bigger than previously thought. [Could you soon be able to light up in Alaska pot shops?] Alaska brothers James and Giono Barrett have a dream: that some of the scores of cruise ship passengers who crowd Juneau’s streets each summer will one day use their shore excursions to kick back and light up a joint in a pot store lounge. Regulators could decide soon whether to make that happen. At a meeting this week, they will consider allowing marijuana retail stores statewide to provide separate areas of their businesses for onsite consumption. [Vermont looks again at legalizing recreational cannabis] A bipartisan bill has been proposed in the Vermont House that would make it legal for adults to possess and grow small amounts of marijuana. The proposal would remove all civil and criminal penalties for adult possession of up to 2 ounces of marijuana and for the cultivation of a total of two mature marijuana plants and seven immature plants. [Jeff Sessions approved by Senate Judiciary Committee to advance to full Senate confirmation vote] The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 11-9 today along party lines to advance the nomination of Sen. Jeff Sessions as attorney general. He is expected to be confirmed by the full Senate by the end of the week. Republicans, who need only a majority vote to approve him, control 52 of the Senate’s 100 seats, and Democrats have thus far failed to convince anyone on the other side of the aisle to oppose Sessions. [Legislators, regulators press need for urgency on California marijuana laws] A year may seem like a long time to wait for weed. And there were rumors that implementation of commercialization could get delayed a year until 2019. But the rollout of California sales of recreational marijuana is still on target, welcome news for an emerging market valued at $7 billion. “It is moving in the right direction,” said Sen. Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo, who convened an informational hearing Monday to question state agencies about their readiness to regulate. “There’s been a lot of skepticism.” [What does ‘usable’ marijuana mean? One patient asks state Supreme Court to define] A medical marijuana patient is asking the Montana Supreme Court to rule whether the state can prosecute him and other patients for possessing more than an ounce of marijuana flower, even if the plant is not yet dry. Steven Penning filed the request earlier this month after a district judge denied his motion to dismiss a marijuana possession charge. Penning argued that the marijuana plants he had grown and harvested were not usable because they were not yet dry. [Reefer, cannabis, pot or weed? What marijuana search terms Californians are currently using] Marijuana is known by many names, but some terms are more popular than others depending where you live. Using Google Trends, the Eureka Times-Standard compared Californians’ search habits over the past week for some of the more commonly used marijuana terms: cannabis, weed, marijuana and pot. [Tennessee GOP lawmaker fights to ban decriminalization] A Republican lawmaker has filed a bill to repeal any city ordinances that would reduce the penalty for people who possess small amounts of marijuana. The bill would override ordinances passed last year in Nashville and Memphis. [Virginia decriminalization bills draw heavy opposition] Virginia legislators have introduced more than a dozen marijuana-related proposals this session, but a Senate committee last week killed two bills to decriminalize the substance, and a House bill likely will die this week. Sen. Dick Black, R-Loudoun, an opponent of legalization, said, “I can see a slippery slope. I do not want to see this country go back where it was in the ’60s and the ’70s because believe me it was not pretty.” [Illegal Craigslist pot deal goes tragically wrong, according to Michigan police] Two men are charged with murder and armed robbery in the shooting deaths of two men found in a car outside of a Michigan Wal-Mart store. Michigan State Police say a deal to sell marijuana that was arranged via Craigslist led to the shooting deaths in Caledonia Township. [Utah bill allowing universities to study medical marijuana moves forward] A Utah proposal that would allow universities to study medical marijuana has cleared its first committee meeting. The CEO of the Utah Medical Association spoke in favor of the bill, saying more scientific studies are needed before marijuana can be considered a medicine. [A math problem your teacher never assigned: How to calculate the amount of THC you’re toking in a joint] A reader has a curious cannabis question: “If I smoke two puffs off a joint that contains a gram of Kush that is rated 15 percent THC, how much THC did I just ingest in my body, and what unit of measurement is used? If it was 4:20 p.m. and I decided to smoke half of it, how much THC then?” Our Ask The Cannabist columnist Susan Squibb is up for the challenge: Let’s do some calculating! --------------------------------------------------------------- You are receiving this newsletter because you signed up at The Denver Post. Please add "members@mail.denverpost.com" and "members@direct.denverpost.com" to your trusted senders list. To unsubscribe from this mailing, [click here.] To change your e-mail preferences, [click here]. To view this newsletter on the web [click here.] The Denver Post 101 West Colfax Ave. Denver, CO 80202