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***Plainsman1963*** · 05-04-2006, 02:08 PM

Hahn pitches industrial hemp
05-02-06 | WiscNews.Com | Paul Ferguson

Who would imagine that Rep. Gene Hahn, the conservative state representative from rural Cambria, is perhaps the biggest supporter in the Assembly of legalizing marijuana?

Well, it's quite a stretch to say Hahn is a supporter of legalizing perhaps the biggest drug dogging police agencies in the United States. What he is in favor of, however, is industrial hemp, a potentially fruitful product also grown from the cannabis sativa plant. Despite hemp's potential uses, supporters say the material gets a bad reputation because of the close association the plant has with marijuana, the most notable symbol of the nation's drug culture.

The two substances, while seemingly very different, are from the same plant. The chemical nature of any one plant, however, is determined by the genes of that plant and the breeding processes that created it. Some plants get engineered for drug use, others for industrial hemp.

Those in the latter category have a world full of uses, according to supporters. Hahn introduced proposals in 1999 and 2001 aimed at changing the nationwide ban on hemp production. Neither has made the Assembly floor for a vote.

But the 1999 resolution might interest motorists during this $3-per-gallon era of gasoline; it mentions that hemp can be used for automobile fuel, among a host of the more commonly considered uses such as textiles and paper.

Although automobile fuel isn't a primary reason Hahn is pushing industrial hemp, it's one among many, including building materials. In his Madison office, Hahn has a piece of particle board made from hemp fiber, stocked with other grains such as wheat straw and cornstalks and held together with glue made from soybeans. Knock on it, and "you'd swear you're wrapping on a piece of wood," Hahn said.

Who knows? As building prices go up, "I think people will start getting receptive about looking for something else to use," he said.

But why now with a hemp push in Wisconsin? Any measure Hahn introduces would almost certainly die when the state Legislature's session largely wraps up this month. The federal Controlled Substances Act also restricts states from fully legalizing the crop, and it only permits growing industrial hemp under the strictest of rules and with a permit issued by the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Virtually all hemp sold in the United States — which is legal — is imported. Hahn said the National Conference of State Legislatures estimates importing hemp costs industries $120 million annually.

So growing domestic hemp is gaining support nationwide, Hahn believes. Since 1995, lawmakers in 26 states have introduced legislation to legalize industrial hemp to varying degrees, according to his office and Vote Hemp, an organization dedicated to opening markets for industrial hemp. Measures have passed in 14 states.

Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives in June 2005 that would have decriminalized the production of industrial hemp. It defined industrial hemp as the breed of cannabis sativa and any part of such a plant that contains less than 0.3 percent delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, the chemical in marijuana that gives users a "high." Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., of Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District, is one of 11 co-sponsors of the bill, which remains buried in House committees.

Hahn has supportive causes in Wisconsin as well. Organizations including the National Farmers Organization of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Agribusiness Council supported industrial hemp in recent years.

Sides trade salvos

Some farmers like the idea of growing hemp for several reasons, according to Don Hamm, president of the National Farmers Organization of Wisconsin. Hemp could be an alternative crop and a new market possibility, and it can grow on marginal land and serve as a good rotational crop, Hamm said.

Organic farmers in particular support hemp as a rotational crop, because hemp can clean out alfalfa fields for corn planting the following year without using synthetic herbicides. Hahn also said Wisconsin agriculture could support more than one hemp harvest every year.

But while hemp has quite recently been an issue in some states, Wisconsin isn't among them, Hamm admitted. "I haven't really heard much lately because it's been so far on the back burner that it's tough to think that there would be something coming down the line anytime soon," he said.

That's just fine with law enforcement agencies at all levels. Alison Kogut, deputy press secretary for the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, said, "Hemp, kind of like medical marijuana, is often used as a wedge issue to advance the cause of marijuana legalization."

Columbia County Sheriff Steven Rowe said marijuana sellers currently "cut" or dilute purer marijuana with so-called "ditchweed," which has a negligible amount of tetrahydrocannabinols or THC, the psychoactive chemical in marijuana. The cannabis plants used for industrial hemp, even if containing lower levels of THC than standard marijuana, would serve the same effect, Rowe said.

"At this point, unless somebody can really convince me, I think it would be an enforcement nightmare," he said of legalizing hemp production. Rowe also expressed concern about hiding drug-grade marijuana inside hemp fields.

The North American Industrial Hemp Council, a group supporting the use of industrial hemp, has issued a number of reports refuting some of the law enforcement concerns. In one report from 1998, David West, who has a doctorate in plant breeding, wrote that growing marijuana and hemp in close proximity would allow cross-pollination and seeds that would be good for neither use in the future, defeating either objective of a grower.

What's more, getting a high from the limited amounts of THC in industrial hemp would require eating an extraordinary amount of hemp fiber, essentially a high-fiber laxative, or quickly smoking about a dozen cigarettes of low-THC industrial hemp. The side effects of either would deter that behavior, West concluded.

Not everyone buys that argument. Detective Lt. Wayne Smith of the Columbia County Sheriff's Department noted that a 1968 study published in the journal Science showed highs were possible off marijuana that had THC concentrations as little as 0.3 percent, the same grade introduced in the U.S. House bill last summer as the THC limit for industrial hemp.

"The marijuana that people sort of romanticized or think of as harmless ... is the stuff they're talking about growing now for hemp," Smith said.

Legalizing industrial hemp could also require government regulation of the crop, Kogut said. Legalizing possession of some kinds of cannabis but not others would also add substantial cost and time to court systems as crime labs tested all suspected marijuana for the level of THC present in a sample, according to a 1999 memorandum from the Department of Justice to the Assembly Committee on Agriculture that heard Hahn's resolution.

"That'd be a logistical nightmare to try and enforce," Smith said.

Despite the raging debate, Hahn said he's optimistic, expressing hope in a news release that action in other states will encourage action on industrial hemp in Wisconsin. Still, he recognizes the controversy of the issue. "It's an uphill battle," he said.

BillieBudd · 05-04-2006, 08:24 PM

I think that Detective Lt. Wayne Smith of the Columbia County Sheriff's Department is afraid of losing his overtime flying around the county in a helicopter looking for grows...what a dimwit

Tweed Master · 05-04-2006, 08:32 PM

I find it very funny how the arguments opposing Hemp are so...so...stupid. I myself am very confused about the underlying cause of prohibition of cannabis, hemp and marijuana, but I would think that it was indeed money. Anyhow, even if someone could get high from hemp...who...the...f***...cares. These things just get me angry you know? They're arguments are so unbelievable weak...Now don't go talking about me saying "even if someone could get high from hemp...who...the...f***...cares" because I'm generally speaking, not legally. I could say a lot right now, but it would be a waste of time, because everyone here knows this is all ridiculous.

**Sec** · 05-04-2006, 08:39 PM

Quote:

Not everyone buys that argument. Detective Lt. Wayne Smith of the Columbia County Sheriff's Department noted that a 1968 study published in the journal Science showed highs were possible off marijuana that had THC concentrations as little as 0.3 percent, the same grade introduced in the U.S. House bill last summer as the THC limit for industrial hemp.

Since when does someone effectively use a 38 year old study as a reliable source for a medical debate. Why not cite a study done in 1305 showing bloodletting to be effective in treating infections.

Is there nothing published within the past 35 years disclaiming this 1968 study? Medical research has advanced so quickly over the past 80-100 years that anything more than 10 years old is considered to be outdated and unreliable.

05-05-2006, 08:14 AM

Quote:

Hahn introduced proposals in 1999 and 2001 aimed at changing the nationwide ban on hemp production. Neither has made the Assembly floor for a vote.

But the 1999 resolution might interest motorists during this $3-per-gallon era of gasoline; it mentions that hemp can be used for automobile fuel, among a host of the more commonly considered uses such as textiles and paper.

Although automobile fuel isn't a primary reason Hahn is pushing industrial hemp, it's one among many, including

Why Honey... I do believe that nice man said we can drive our cars with the Cannabis Plant!

Hemp For Fuel

...now that even Middle America knows ...how they gonna keep us reliant on our Foreign Oil Addiction???

nerphroll · 05-05-2006, 01:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sec3

Since when does someone effectively use a 38 year old study as a reliable source for a medical debate. Why not cite a study done in 1305 showing bloodletting to be effective in treating infections.

Something a little more recent, though I must say these are not easy to find in the literature...

Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther. 1997 Apr;35(4):155-9.

Concentration-effect relationship of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabiol and prediction of psychotropic effects after smoking marijuana.

Harder S, Rietbrock S.

Department Clinical Pharmacology, University Hospital Frankfurt/Main, Germany.

On the basis of a publication by Cochetto et al. [1981] we performed simulations of the effect-time course (high-rating) after smoking marijuana. The intention was to characterize the concentration-effect relationship of THC and to provide information on how long psychotropic effects (and therefore impairment of cognitive or motoric functions) last after intake of a cannabinoid product. The parameter estimates (+/-SD) of the pharmacokinetic disposition and the pharmacodynamic model (sigmoidal Emax model) after smoking 1 marijuana cigarette containing 9 mg THC were as follows: T/2 alpha = 5 minutes (+/-1.2), T/2 beta = 75 minutes (+/-23), Teq (equilibrium half-life with the effect site) = 29 minutes. (+/-2), ECe50 = 7.2 ng/ml THC (+/-0.5), E0 (baseline high rating) = 18% (+/-2.0), Emax (amplitude of the high rating) = 23% (+/-2.5), Hill coefficient = 9.0 (+/-3.0). On the basis of this curve fit, the effect-time course after repeated smoking (5 joints) in different intervals (120, 60, and 30 minutes) and for different dose strengths 9 mg (standard joint), 3 mg (weak joint) and 1 mg (agricultural hemp) were simulated. The duration of the effect after 1 dose of 9 mg is about 45 minutes. After the last cigarette, recovery (decline < 50% Emax) will last about 100 minutes. A dosing interval of 1 h leads to a continuous "high", and recovery will last about 150 minutes after the last joint. Smoking the weak dose strength (3 mg) every hour will result in a short plateau of the maximal effect (about 20 minutes) and a decline after the last joint within 1 h. Only repeated smoking every 30 minutes will lead to a prolonged plateau phase with a recovery time of about 80 minutes. Using hemp with a low THC content (1 mg), dosing intervals of 2 h and 1 h will not provoke a psychotropic response due to THC. Smoking every 30 minutes will probably lead to a short-term moderate response. In conclusion, our simulations show that dose and dosing interval are determinants of the duration of the psychotropic effects of THC. These simulations may be beneficial for the interpretation of THC levels, e.g. associated with accidents or traffic violations. Furthermore, misuse of natural hemp with a low THC content seems unlikely.
__________________________________________________ _____________
Anyway, I can see the opponents' point. I mean, just look at ethanol used for automobile fuel. People can't get enough of it, stealing from their neighbors' gas tanks just for a sip of that sweet booze. But alcohol isn't harmful. It just kills tens of thousands of people per year, both drinkers and the innocent people they plow on the road. Good thing it's illegal. Oh wait, it's not.
I swear sometimes it does feel like we're living in 1305 sec3. All this fuss over some f'ckin hemp?

**Sec** · 05-05-2006, 03:11 PM

Wait a minute!
Hold on!

Maybe he's got something here. Instead of kids wasting time on video games all day, now they can sit around and waste their time trying to get high off industrial hemp.

Yep, set the timer. Has 30 minutes gone by yet? Time for another joint.

IMO if someone has the time to get high off industrial hemp, they aren't a productive member of society anyway.

Thanks for the info Nerphroll. I admit I had to read it several times to get it, at least I hope I got it. I'm not a scientist and unaccustomed to the scientific jargon.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mamabudz

Why Honey... I do believe that nice man said we can drive our cars with the Cannabis Plant

We can now drive our cars with corn too, but that hasn't reduced the price of fuel at all. The State gov't suspended all but 1 cent of the gas tax on ethanol for (I think) a year to promote the use of ethanol. That year was up last month. The price of ethanol did not rise to reflect the extra taxes the fuel companies must now pay on the sales of ethanol.

That tells me that the gas companies didn't really need the tax break and only pocketed an extra 23 cents per gallon for that year as extra profit.

Which brings me around to industrial hemp. IF they are able to make fuel from hemp, that doesn't mean that fuel prices will decline at all.

Tweed Master · 05-06-2006, 03:59 AM

Well, about the whole corn can provide fuel for our cars...Check out Bio.org

I have seen video's where a man is describing their progress in terms of building the plants that can produce ethanol from plants and things of that nature. We can now use left over stalks from corn and everything to make ethanol. They have produced man-made ezymes that can break down the carbohydrates in the left over plants, leaving glucose, I believe. So it is in progress. A few years a believe. So yeah...I'm not up for looking it up and providing links at the time, but if you guys want me to, I shall later.

**Sec** · 05-06-2006, 04:20 AM

They are also making biodiesel from canola, but discussing canola and corn is deviating from the original topic of this thread which is hemp farming.

Little Nicky · 05-06-2006, 03:24 PM

Attempting to grow our fuel is a waste of time and resources. The only viable LONG TERM solution is hydrogen. Wasting land to grow a fluid to put in your SUV while it could be used to grow FOOD for an increasingly hungry world is bad land management.

05-04-2006, 02:08 PM	#1
*Plainsman1963* Administrator Join Date: Jul 2002 Posts: 5,374 Grams: 36,208.42 Groans: 40 Groaned at 17 Times in 11 Posts Thanks: 619 Thanked 1,364 Times in 685 Posts Stock Portfolio Total Value: 0.000 Gain/Loss: -1.000%	WI: Hahn pitches industrial hemp Hahn pitches industrial hemp 05-02-06 \| WiscNews.Com \| Paul Ferguson Who would imagine that Rep. Gene Hahn, the conservative state representative from rural Cambria, is perhaps the biggest supporter in the Assembly of legalizing marijuana? Well, it's quite a stretch to say Hahn is a supporter of legalizing perhaps the biggest drug dogging police agencies in the United States. What he is in favor of, however, is industrial hemp, a potentially fruitful product also grown from the cannabis sativa plant. Despite hemp's potential uses, supporters say the material gets a bad reputation because of the close association the plant has with marijuana, the most notable symbol of the nation's drug culture. The two substances, while seemingly very different, are from the same plant. The chemical nature of any one plant, however, is determined by the genes of that plant and the breeding processes that created it. Some plants get engineered for drug use, others for industrial hemp. Those in the latter category have a world full of uses, according to supporters. Hahn introduced proposals in 1999 and 2001 aimed at changing the nationwide ban on hemp production. Neither has made the Assembly floor for a vote. But the 1999 resolution might interest motorists during this $3-per-gallon era of gasoline; it mentions that hemp can be used for automobile fuel, among a host of the more commonly considered uses such as textiles and paper. Although automobile fuel isn't a primary reason Hahn is pushing industrial hemp, it's one among many, including building materials. In his Madison office, Hahn has a piece of particle board made from hemp fiber, stocked with other grains such as wheat straw and cornstalks and held together with glue made from soybeans. Knock on it, and "you'd swear you're wrapping on a piece of wood," Hahn said. Who knows? As building prices go up, "I think people will start getting receptive about looking for something else to use," he said. But why now with a hemp push in Wisconsin? Any measure Hahn introduces would almost certainly die when the state Legislature's session largely wraps up this month. The federal Controlled Substances Act also restricts states from fully legalizing the crop, and it only permits growing industrial hemp under the strictest of rules and with a permit issued by the Drug Enforcement Administration. Virtually all hemp sold in the United States — which is legal — is imported. Hahn said the National Conference of State Legislatures estimates importing hemp costs industries $120 million annually. So growing domestic hemp is gaining support nationwide, Hahn believes. Since 1995, lawmakers in 26 states have introduced legislation to legalize industrial hemp to varying degrees, according to his office and Vote Hemp, an organization dedicated to opening markets for industrial hemp. Measures have passed in 14 states. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives in June 2005 that would have decriminalized the production of industrial hemp. It defined industrial hemp as the breed of cannabis sativa and any part of such a plant that contains less than 0.3 percent delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, the chemical in marijuana that gives users a "high." Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., of Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District, is one of 11 co-sponsors of the bill, which remains buried in House committees. Hahn has supportive causes in Wisconsin as well. Organizations including the National Farmers Organization of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Agribusiness Council supported industrial hemp in recent years. Sides trade salvos Some farmers like the idea of growing hemp for several reasons, according to Don Hamm, president of the National Farmers Organization of Wisconsin. Hemp could be an alternative crop and a new market possibility, and it can grow on marginal land and serve as a good rotational crop, Hamm said. Organic farmers in particular support hemp as a rotational crop, because hemp can clean out alfalfa fields for corn planting the following year without using synthetic herbicides. Hahn also said Wisconsin agriculture could support more than one hemp harvest every year. But while hemp has quite recently been an issue in some states, Wisconsin isn't among them, Hamm admitted. "I haven't really heard much lately because it's been so far on the back burner that it's tough to think that there would be something coming down the line anytime soon," he said. That's just fine with law enforcement agencies at all levels. Alison Kogut, deputy press secretary for the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, said, "Hemp, kind of like medical marijuana, is often used as a wedge issue to advance the cause of marijuana legalization." Columbia County Sheriff Steven Rowe said marijuana sellers currently "cut" or dilute purer marijuana with so-called "ditchweed," which has a negligible amount of tetrahydrocannabinols or THC, the psychoactive chemical in marijuana. The cannabis plants used for industrial hemp, even if containing lower levels of THC than standard marijuana, would serve the same effect, Rowe said. "At this point, unless somebody can really convince me, I think it would be an enforcement nightmare," he said of legalizing hemp production. Rowe also expressed concern about hiding drug-grade marijuana inside hemp fields. The North American Industrial Hemp Council, a group supporting the use of industrial hemp, has issued a number of reports refuting some of the law enforcement concerns. In one report from 1998, David West, who has a doctorate in plant breeding, wrote that growing marijuana and hemp in close proximity would allow cross-pollination and seeds that would be good for neither use in the future, defeating either objective of a grower. What's more, getting a high from the limited amounts of THC in industrial hemp would require eating an extraordinary amount of hemp fiber, essentially a high-fiber laxative, or quickly smoking about a dozen cigarettes of low-THC industrial hemp. The side effects of either would deter that behavior, West concluded. Not everyone buys that argument. Detective Lt. Wayne Smith of the Columbia County Sheriff's Department noted that a 1968 study published in the journal Science showed highs were possible off marijuana that had THC concentrations as little as 0.3 percent, the same grade introduced in the U.S. House bill last summer as the THC limit for industrial hemp. "The marijuana that people sort of romanticized or think of as harmless ... is the stuff they're talking about growing now for hemp," Smith said. Legalizing industrial hemp could also require government regulation of the crop, Kogut said. Legalizing possession of some kinds of cannabis but not others would also add substantial cost and time to court systems as crime labs tested all suspected marijuana for the level of THC present in a sample, according to a 1999 memorandum from the Department of Justice to the Assembly Committee on Agriculture that heard Hahn's resolution. "That'd be a logistical nightmare to try and enforce," Smith said. Despite the raging debate, Hahn said he's optimistic, expressing hope in a news release that action in other states will encourage action on industrial hemp in Wisconsin. Still, he recognizes the controversy of the issue. "It's an uphill battle," he said. __________________ "America is at that awkward stage. It's too late to work within the system, but too early to shoot the bastards." - Claire Wolfe Posting Guidelines

05-04-2006, 08:32 PM	#3
Tweed Master New Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 58 Grams: 973.55 Groans: 0 Groaned at 0 Times in 0 Posts Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Stock Portfolio Total Value: 0.000 Gain/Loss: 0.000%	I find it very funny how the arguments opposing Hemp are so...so...stupid. I myself am very confused about the underlying cause of prohibition of cannabis, hemp and marijuana, but I would think that it was indeed money. Anyhow, even if someone could get high from hemp...who...the...f*...cares. These things just get me angry you know? They're arguments are so unbelievable weak...Now don't go talking about me saying "even if someone could get high from hemp...who...the...f...cares" because I'm generally speaking, not legally. I could say a lot right now, but it would be a waste of time, because everyone here knows this is all ridiculous. __________________ Ahhh...That sweet...sweet tweed.*

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05-04-2006, 08:24 PM	#2
BillieBudd Jr. Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 119 Grams: 1,933.44 Groans: 0 Groaned at 0 Times in 0 Posts Thanks: 13 Thanked 41 Times in 28 Posts Stock Portfolio Total Value: 0.000 Gain/Loss: 0.000%	I think that Detective Lt. Wayne Smith of the Columbia County Sheriff's Department is afraid of losing his overtime flying around the county in a helicopter looking for grows...what a dimwit

05-06-2006, 03:59 AM	#8
Tweed Master New Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 58 Grams: 973.55 Groans: 0 Groaned at 0 Times in 0 Posts Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Stock Portfolio Total Value: 0.000 Gain/Loss: 0.000%	Well, about the whole corn can provide fuel for our cars...Check out Bio.org I have seen video's where a man is describing their progress in terms of building the plants that can produce ethanol from plants and things of that nature. We can now use left over stalks from corn and everything to make ethanol. They have produced man-made ezymes that can break down the carbohydrates in the left over plants, leaving glucose, I believe. So it is in progress. A few years a believe. So yeah...I'm not up for looking it up and providing links at the time, but if you guys want me to, I shall later.

05-06-2006, 04:20 AM	#9
Sec Super Moderator Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 6,487 Grams: 45,745.83 Groans: 18 Groaned at 30 Times in 25 Posts Thanks: 737 Thanked 1,632 Times in 1,006 Posts Stock Portfolio Total Value: 0.000 Gain/Loss: 0.000%	They are also making biodiesel from canola, but discussing canola and corn is deviating from the original topic of this thread which is hemp farming.

05-06-2006, 03:24 PM	#10
Little Nicky Banned Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 229 Grams: 27.60 Groans: 0 Groaned at 0 Times in 0 Posts Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Stock Portfolio Total Value: 0.000 Gain/Loss: 0.000%	Attempting to grow our fuel is a waste of time and resources. The only viable LONG TERM solution is hydrogen. Wasting land to grow a fluid to put in your SUV while it could be used to grow FOOD for an increasingly hungry world is bad land management.

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