Pot Growers In Sacramento Will Need A Lot Of Electricity. SMUD Wants To Help (CA – Cannabis Cultivation)
The Sacramento Bee (October 23, 2017) It takes a lot of juice to grow pot indoors, so Sacramento’s major electric utility is gearing up for the heavy demands of recreational marijuana growers come January. That’s when growing cannabis for non-medical purposes becomes legal in California, though cities and counties retain some control.
http://www.sacbee.com/news/state/california/california-weed/article180329521.html

Marijuana Business Ban On Contra Costa Supervisors’ Agenda (CA – Cannabis Ban)
East Bay Times (October 23, 2017) An ordinance limiting all commercial marijuana operations in unincorporated areas of Contra Costa County could be approved Tuesday by the Board of Supervisors. The ordinance, though, could be temporary pending the anticipated placement on the November 2018 election ballot of a countywide cannabis tax initiative, which would help pay for regulation of commercial cannabis activities in Contra Costa.
http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/10/23/marijuana-business-ban-on-contra-costa-supervisors-agenda/

Survey: Strong Support For Medical Marijuana Sales In Concord (CA – Medical Cannabis)
East Bay Times (October 23, 2017) Despite a recent survey indicating strong support for allowing medical marijuana sales in Concord, city leaders may ban all commercial cannabis activities. Polling firm Godbe Research found that 69 percent of respondents support medical marijuana sales and about 51 percent favor recreational pot sales. Sixty-three percent or more of survey participants support allowing medical cannabis dispensaries in industrial areas of the city and near the police department, which is on Galindo Street.

Survey: Strong support for medical marijuana sales in Concord

Does California Have Enough Water For Marijuana Hot Spot In Desert? (CA – Cannabis Industry)
News Deeply (October 23, 2017) On the farthest edge of California’s Mojave Desert, a tiny outpost known as Nipton has waited a century for its boom to come. First it was the promise of gold and silver riches from a handful of mining claims. Then came cattle ranching and a railroad stop on a new line between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles.
https://www.newsdeeply.com/water/articles/2017/10/23/does-california-have-enough-water-for-marijuana-hot-spot-in-desert

How Will California Handle The Regulatory Challenges Brought On By Recreational Marijuana? (CA – Regulatory Cannabis)
MG Retailer (October 23, 2017) The hippie dream has become a regulatory quagmire in California. As growers prepare to produce recreational bud on a large scale, the state and its local municipalities are still trying to figure out exactly how the market will be regulated. This has left many current growers concerned as to whether their established business model will comply with new regulations and has hampered participation in the state’s licensing program.
https://mgretailer.com/how-will-california-handle-the-regulatory-challenges-brought-on-by-recreational-marijuana/

The Benefits Of Cannabis Consumption Lounges (CA – Cannabis Lounges)
Cannabis Now (October 22, 2017) On Nov. 8, 2016 California voters decided they were ready for recreational cannabis. What many who cast their ballots in favor of legal access may not have realized is that their decision would not fully come into effect until January 2018, when licenses for recreational adult cannabis can be acquired by pre-existing as well as new dispensaries and collectives. In preparation of the impending changes in legislation and in anticipation of a growth of patronage, many dispensaries have made the necessary changes for compliance ahead of time.
https://cannabisnow.com/benefits-cannabis-consumption-lounges/

4 Top Marijuana Stocks To Buy In 2018 (USA – Cannabis Stocks)
Madison (October 23, 2017) There have been few industries, if any, hotter than legal marijuana over the past couple of years, and investors have taken notice. The vast majority of marijuana stocks have witnessed their valuations double or triple over the past year. The obvious reason for this bullishness is growth in the underlying sales of legal weed. ArcView, one of the premier cannabis research companies, noted growth in the North American market of 30% in 2016 to $6.9 billion.
http://host.madison.com/business/investment/markets-and-stocks/top-marijuana-stocks-to-buy-in/article_f7e0db62-3e7a-56f5-824f-52f0c011ac0d.html

4-Year Degree Studying Pot Isn’t Half-Baked Idea For Stoners (USA – Cannabis Industry)
Las Vegas Review Journal (October 23, 2017) When Alex Roth’s mother sent him an article announcing a new degree program being offered at Northern Michigan University, the sophomore immediately switched his major. Roth is now majoring in cannabis. The program, Medicinal Plant Chemistry, is the first program to offer a four-year undergraduate degree focusing on marijuana, according to Brandon Canfield, the associate professor of chemistry who started the program.
https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/nation-and-world/4-year-degree-studying-pot-isnt-half-baked-idea-for-stoners/

By Prohibiting MMJ Access, Lawmakers Complicit In Opioid Epidemic (USA – Cannabis Industry)
Ganjapreneur (October 23, 2017) The opioid overdoses death toll is staggering – reaching 64,070 in 2016 – and at least one estimate suggests opioids could kill a half-million Americans in the next decade. According to the Centers for Disease Control, deaths from “synthetic opioids excluding methadone” more than doubled from 9,945 in Jan. 2016 to 20,145 in Jan. 2017. So-called “natural and semi-synthetic opioids” also killed more people from year-to-year. In Jan. 2016, such products (i.e., pharmaceuticals) killed 12,726 Americans; in Jan. 2017, that number increased to 14,427.
https://www.ganjapreneur.com/by-prohibiting-mmj-access-lawmakers-complicit-in-opioid-epidemic/

The Marijuana Evolution Of Senator Orrin Hatch (DC – Cannabis Industry)
Marijuana Moment (October 23, 2017) All of a sudden, a Mormon Republican senator from Utah is one of Congress’s leading champions for medical marijuana. In the days since that Senate floor speech, Hatch has spoken about medical cannabis at seemingly every opportunity. In tweets, press releases, committee hearings and videos, the senator and his staff have consistently maintained a focus on marijuana issues.
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/marijuana-evolution-senator-orrin-hatch/

Berks Medical Marijuana Dispensaries: As One Moves Out, Another Wants To Move In (PA – Medical Cannabis)
Berks BIZ (October 23, 2017) As one medical marijuana company drops its plan to open a dispensary on North Fifth Street Highway in Muhlenberg Township, a competitor wants to move into the available location. On Saturday, township commissioners gave conditional approval to Harvest Inc.’s request to change its location from its original location at 2701 N. Fifth St. Highway to 3225 Fifth St. Highway, where Franklin BioScience-Penn LLC was awarded a licensed to operate.
http://www.lvb.com/article/20171023/BERKS/171029954/berks-medical-marijuana-dispensaries-as-one-moves-out-another-wants-to-move-in

Maine Author Pens Children’s Book Normalizing Cannabis (ME– Cannabis Industry)
Ganjapreneur (October 23, 2017) A Maine author has published an illustrated, rhyming, children’s book about cannabis titled “What’s That Weed?” attempting to normalize cannabis use by families. Russ Hudson, who also works as a cannabis industry consultant, said that he wrote the book to quell the fears of the public and help parents teach their children “the truth about marijuana.”
https://www.ganjapreneur.com/maine-author-pens-childrens-book-normalizing-cannabis/