SD hemp declares war on therapeutic, "recreational" cannabis growers as FSST tests off-reservation sovereignty

Think pesticide drift is destructive? 

Medicine and a potential revenue source are being put at risk by an experiment that makes Jerusalem artichokes and Belgian endive look like safe investments. South Dakota's budding hemp industry will drive more growers of therapeutic and “recreational” cannabis indoors to prevent pollen drift from destroying crops while boosting energy costs. 

White people who grow industrial cannabis in South Dakota want to double the number of acres as a declaration of war on the tribal communities who yearn to develop economic opportunities and test off-reservation sovereignty.

Meanwhile, the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe is operating its therapeutic cannabis dispensary at full capacity but is limiting patients to an 1/8 ounce of flower to avoid running out of product. The Nation is constructing additional cultivation facilities that will nearly triple its current production and tribal attorney, Seth Pearman says the pursuit of a compact with the state is ongoing. In May of 2021 the Isanti Dakota Oyate purchased a parcel in the heart of the commercial district in Sioux Falls but just recently purchased a long-vacant building in Mitchell.

According to Mitchell Mayor Bob Everson, the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe is planning to transform the large building into a medical marijuana cultivation facility. With two dispensaries approved to operate in Mitchell and three tabled due to pending variances, including Native Nations Cannabis’ proposed dispensary, opening a cultivation facility in Mitchell could be a business opportunity for the tribe and other entities. The maximum number of dispensary licenses in Mitchell is capped at five, while there is no cap for cultivation and manufacturing licenses. [Mitchell Daily Republic]

Tribal sovereignty binds the hands of states competing for federal resources. Under the 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act the Tohono O’odham Nation won its lawsuit with the State of Arizona and in 2017 it opened a casino in Glendale outside its established boundaries.

Hemp pollen drifts long distances on wind, and pollination of females reduces CBD content. Induction of triploidy is a common strategy used by plant breeders to produce sterile cultivars of agricultural crops. [Lauren E. Kurtz, et al.]

If the Neanderthal South Dakota Legislature had any integrity or ethics (they don’t) they would empower the tribal nations trapped in South Dakota to be the sole cannabis industry producers in the state (they won't). 

Learn more at the Aberdeen American News.