Deadly wildfires threaten thousands of acres of pot farms in California
Hezekiah Allen
âWeâre expecting some pretty significant property damage â  California Growers Association Executive Director Hezekiah Allen  told Chron. âAs damage numbers emerge  itâs going to be pretty stunning on all fronts  and certainly our membership has been directly impacted.â
Reached via phone   Allen  said that a number of  his  members have lost homes and their farms to the fire already  others were not so optimistic about returning after evacuating.
"We've got a few other folks that said they would be shocked if it were still there when they got home "  Allen  said.
"What do you do when you lose your business to a fire? We can't get insurance or aid from FEMA â we don't have access to those programs  we can't get loans  " Allen  said.
While pot is technically legal in the state of California  purchasing it for recreational purposes is not quite there yet. The state has until January to set up its regulations  which could mean that there may be a potential shortage of regulated pot to hit store shelves when the time comes.  Allen  is confident there will still be some weed when recreational dispensaries open  however.
"There won't be a shortage of crop. Whether or not theres a shortage of licensed  regulated crop â it's tough to say " said  Allen .
 Allen  says the CGA and  its  community members plan to set up a crowdfunding effort in the wake of the fires  which is one of their only options considering they can't get relief from federal programs. Hell  cannabis businesses still can't even open up a bank account  leaving growers with very limited choices on how they can recuperate their losses from this natural disaster.
âWeâre expecting some pretty significant property damage â   [TGT] told Chron. âAs damage numbers emerge  itâs going to be pretty stunning on all fronts  and certainly our membership has been directly impacted.â
Reached via phone    [TGT] said that a number of   [TGT]   members have lost homes and their farms to the fire already  others were not so optimistic about returning after evacuating.
"We've got a few other folks that said they would be shocked if it were still there when they got home  [TGT] said.
"What do you do when you lose your business to a fire? We can't get insurance or aid from FEMA â we don't have access to those programs  we can't get loans   [TGT] said.
While pot is technically legal in the state of California  purchasing it for recreational purposes is not quite there yet. The state has until January to set up its regulations  which could mean that there may be a potential shortage of regulated pot to hit store shelves when the time comes.   [TGT] is confident there will still be some weed when recreational dispensaries open  however.
"There won't be a shortage of crop. Whether or not theres a shortage of licensed  regulated crop â it's tough to say " said   [TGT]  .
  [TGT] says the CGA and   [TGT]   community members plan to set up a crowdfunding effort in the wake of the fires  which is one of their only options considering they can't get relief from federal programs. Hell  cannabis businesses still can't even open up a bank account  leaving growers with very limited choices on how they can recuperate their losses from this natural disaster.