Officials in Sacramento County, California, have formally declared marijuana cultivation to be a form of water waste in light of the state’s ongoing drought.
So the county isn’t exactly a hub for commercial cultivation operations.
Additionally, the new law also says that only cultivation involving more than nine plants will be considered water waste, according to a local NBC affiliate. Smaller cultivation sites that stay within the limit will therefore still be allowed to water their plants.
Those caught with more than nine plants face a penalty of up to $500 per day.
The County Board of Supervisors is mostly concerned with growers who are flaunting local cultivation limits, such as a grow site where the county sheriff recently removed 1,000 plants being grown illegally. That operation used roughly 6,000 gallons of water a day, the TV station reported.
One county supervisor also cited a statistic from the state that the average marijuana plant uses six gallons of water per day.
