Laws say plant as illegal as growing marijuana.
But officials aren't sure they can overcome the legal obstacles that have stopped farmers in several other states from getting into the very profitable business of growing hemp fiber. The biggest obstacle, said Merwin Lynch, president of the small community 45 miles southwest of Window Rock, is federal laws that lump hemp in the same category as marijuana. Lynch said several farmers in Wide Ruin with the help of groups that support hemp growing in the United States, plan to plant their first crop in early May if tribal officials approve. However, Navajo Nation President Albert Hale is awaiting a legal opinion from the tribe's Justice Department, expected to be issued this week, before giving his approval. Officials for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said Friday that any attempt by Wide Ruin farmers to plant hemp would violate federal prohibitions against growing any members of the cannabis sativa family for purposes other than research.