4 I Wednesday, Aug. 4,2010 Synthetic mix used as marijuana alternative By Ivey DeJesus and Kourtney Geers THE (HARRISBURG) PATRIOT-NEWS HARRISBURG A sandwich bag filled with oregano has long served as the punchline for practi cal jokes on unsuspecting parents or gullible roommates. marijuana has certainty come a long way. Sold as herbal incense under names such as K 2, Spice, Genie and Wicked, a synthetic marijuana has legions of smokers around the country rolling it or putting it in their pipes. Banned in eight states, it’s legal in Pennsylvania for now and sold in head shops, at some gas stations and on the Internet. Yet this synthetic and chemically treated substance is potent and potentially dangerous. “Most people aren’t expecting it to be that potent. It’s overpower ing,” said Roger Weaver, who works at Hemp’s Above, a Mechanicsburg shop that carries mostly smoking accouterments. Since the shop started carrying herbal incense a few months ago, sales have been brisk, drawing a cadre of return customers, many lured by the fact that the incense leaves no chemical trace in the bloodstream. “There’s a lot of people who work in sensitive jobs,” said Hemp’s Above owner Brian Edmondson. On a recent afternoon, a woman accompanied by two men entered the shop to buy herbal incense. “It’s legal. If we get caught with it, we won’t go to jail,” she said. Regardless, she would not give her name. “I don’t want my mom to know I’m smoking this (stuff),” she said, settling on a $2O vial. Marcellus Shale drilling yields 1,400 violations By Marc Levy ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER HARRISBURG Companies rushing to drill for natural gas in the rich Marcellus Shale reserve a mile below Pennsylvania have tal lied more than 1,400 violations of state laws since January 2008, according to an environmental advocacy group’s analysis of state data. The Pennsylvania Land IVust Association said 952, about two thirds, of the violations caused or had the potential to cause environ mental damage, from chemical spills to improperly lined sludge pits. The rest were classified as safety or administrative violations. More than half the environmen tal violations involved improper construction of a wastewater pit or improper control of erosion during earth-moving activity, both of which can result in water pollu tion. One in six of the environmen tal violations, or 154, dealt with WOWH FREE 1 st Mo. Rent 4 to 8 max. - 4 bedrm - 4 bath 129 Orange Alley - Super apt. walk PSU More info, call 234-4462 www.specialdwellings.com Total monthly rent $2,600 divided by the number of residents. “Most people aren’t expecting it to be potent. It’s overpowering.” She said it’s worth the money; “If you get caught with pot, you get fined and all sorts of crap.” Edmondson finalized the sale and resumed his place behind the glass case that carries his prod ucts. “I don’t sell junk. What’s in there is the best,” said Edmondson, who has tried the stuff. Tending to a first-time buyer, he suggested the man try the less potent variety. The effects vary by brand from a “meditative” state to something a little stronger. “It has higher plateau and a big ger drop,” Edmondson said. “Once it starts to go it starts fairly quickly and ends fairly quickly. The duration is not quick.” Edmondson won’t sell to anyone under 18. He checks customers’ identification and doesn’t even allow parents to bring their chil dren into the shop. K 2 is the common reference for herbal incense. Edmondson’s shop doesn’t carry the brand K 2, however, because distributors have high minimum orders. He carries mostly Wicked, a brand distributed by King Krypto in Florida, and averages 100 grams in sales a week. Edmondson sells the vials by the gram, ranging in price from $2O to $lOO, and in flavors such as strawberry, mint and blueberry. That means that when smoked, the herbal incense emits a fruity aroma. Still, Edmondson thinks it’s a bad idea to smoke it in public. industrial waste spills while one in The modern-day gas rush has Pennsylvania, West Virginia and 10, or 100, dealt with unspecified poured billions of dollars into the Ohio. Many residents have corn violations of the state’s waterway Marcellus Shale region, which plained the drilling techniques protection law. underlies New York, used are unsafe, but the drilling companies say that’s untrue. A portion of the report sorts the violations by company and divides by the number of wells each com pany drilled, giving a snapshot of the best performers against the worst offenders. The association’s project coor dinator, Elana Richman, said the staff had been reading news reports of the violations and won dered how many more violations were happening. "We felt like there was more out there that we weren’t seeing and we wanted to know what really was going on," Richman said Tuesday. The association filed a Right-to-Know request with the Department of Environmental Protection and received informa tion on spreadsheets. Some of the violations reported in the media were not included in The Marcellus Shale reserve runs under N.Y., Pa., and W.Va WE ARE Penn State and WE READ L O i He pulled one of the vials out of the glass case and read the label: “We are not liable for anything." The synthetic cannabinoids found in herbal incense are reported to be four to five times more potent than THC, the psychoactive substance in cannabis. “Technically, it’s incense," Edmondson said. “It’s not sup posed to be rolled or smoked in a pipe. But what anyone does with it, it’s up to them.” Edmondson said the last trend that brought business like this to his store was salvia divinorum, an herb once used by Mazatec Indians in Mexico to treat diar rhea and headache. Users smoke the plant’s dried leaves to get a high reportedly similar to that of LSD. Edmondson’s shop still carries it, but it's on the wall behind the fea tured glass case of Wicked prod ucts. Salvia gained national attention in 2006 when it was said to be a contributing factor in the suicide of a 17-year-old Delaware boy. Just after Brett Chidester’s death, the Delaware Legislature banned salvia. There seems to be a disconnect between the popularity of herbal incense and the knowledge about it by state police, hospitals, and drug and alcohol service pro grams in Pennsylvania. Most said they haven't encoun tered K 2 or Wicked, while neigh bors Ohio, New York and New Jersey are considering banning it. On Friday, state Rep. Jennifer L. Mann, D-Lehigh, introduced legislation to ban the sale or use of synthetic marijuana in Pennsylvania. She said the drug is so new that no federal or Pennsylvania law exists to give police the right to arrest those who possess the sub stance. <■ Roger Weaver Hemp's Above "By setting clear guidelines on the use and consumption of syn thetic marijuana, we empower our law enforcement personnel to stop the spread of this new threat to our children and communities,” Mann said. Some bans around the country are based on reports of people i . ;f behindblondepark.coi Many people are trying K 2, which has been banned in eight states. The Daily Collegian being sent to hospitals after smok ing the substance. Authorities in lowa are investigating whether an 18-year-old committed suicide after smoking synthetic marijua na with friends. The American Association of Poison Control Centers reports minor to moderate reactions to synthetic marijuana, including fast heart rates, confusion and nausea. None of the 698 poison reports related to synthetic mari juana in 2!) 10 is from Pennsylvania. The woman in Edmondson’s shop said the substance doesn’t generate a uniform effect. "It s different for everybody,” she said. the spreadsheets, a discrepancy the association has been unable to rcsoive with the denartment. it- also do not bv trucks haul- include v r ing vvasu-vwuci away from drilling The association did not take a position on whf Jut the number is too high, inn i •/,0. conservation groups ;hs i-.iorra Club and Clean Water Action - each cited the report in calling for more state inspections m drilling sites. A trade group of companies working in shi- region, the Marcellus Sr-: tie Coalition, said the report shows the Department of Environmental Protection is well-staffed and watching the industry carefully. In Pennsylvania, where drilling is most active, state regulators have issued more than 3,700 per mits in : ,nd 2010 to drill Marcellus Shaie wells, and more than 1.700 have been drilled since 2008 began
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