When the New Mexico Legislature was considering a bill that eventually became the Cannabis Regulation Act, one of the major topics of concern was water use. Ultimately, lawmakers agreed to require cannabis growers to prove they had legal access to water. But one issue that was not addressed, at least not at length, was how much power it would take to operate possibly hundreds of growth operations around the state. A study released in March of this year showed that as states move towards legalizing adult-use cannabis, greenhouse gases and energy consumption have gone up. The study also showed that some of the higher energy-use areas were in the southwest and midwest regions of the U.S. And while state regulators do not have any specific energy restrictions for cannabis growers, two people familiar with New Mexico’s cannabis industry said the state’s climate will likely play a key role in keeping the carbon footprint of cannabis small. The study from earlier this year found that high levels of greenhouse gases and excessive energy use comes from indoor growing, where climate control is reliant on fans, high-powered lights, and manufactured carbon dioxide. Susan Torres, a spokesperson for the state’s Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department, said that even though there are no current restrictions on cannabis energy use, the department will “look for ways to monitor [growers’] energy impact on the state.” “It’s important to note that the industry’s carbon footprint is tied to the electricity mix and New Mexico is already on a path to zero-carbon with the passage of the Energy Transition Act,” Torres said. “New Mexico has already begun to encourage local businesses to install solar panels through initiatives like the Solar Market Development Tax Credit that aims to make solar installations more affordable.”
420 Intel – Marijuana Industry News, 07/27/2021 20:00:00