Cambodia – Prospect for a budding industry

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Cannabis plants grow in the ‘vegetation room’ at a Johnstown’s medical marijuana cultivation facility this year in New York. Drew Angerer/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Afp

Cannabis plants grow in the ‘vegetation room’ at a Johnstown’s medical marijuana cultivation facility this year in New York. Drew Angerer/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Afp
With Cambodia’s traditional cash crops struggling to compete in global supply chains, the Kingdom could carve out a lucrative niche in commercial cannabis harvesting and exports – provided it acts fast to take advantage of the falling legal barriers, a Cambodia-based American innovator has argued.
Jim Plamondon, a former technical evangelist for Microsoft, said cannabis, the flowering plant that produces marijuana, was a potential goldmine for the Kingdom’s agricultural sector, which employs two-thirds of the country’s workforce.
He said US elections earlier this month were a tipping point, with more than half of the 50 US states having now legalised marijuana for medical use, such as treatment of glaucoma, and seven states legalising it for recreational use.
Cannabis legislation by the US federal government is now widely seen as inevitable, he said, which would remove the main barrier to international legislation and trade. And if the US allows marijuana imports, first movers in the market stand to reap billions.
“The key point is that after the November elections in the US, [full legalisation] is inevitable,” Plamondon said yesterday, adding that if the Kingdom acted now, it could build a world-class cannabis supply chain for export in about five years.

 
Full Article: 
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/prospect-budding-industry

South Africa on track to Legalize Medical Cannabis

by James Bunn
South Africa on track to Legalise Medical Cannabis
South Africa on track to legalize medical cannabis (Source: Pixabay/Wikimedia)
 
South Africa may legally regulate medical cannabis as soon as April 2017.
The South African Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Health has said that the government will amend the Medicines and Related Substances Act 1965 (MRS Act). Under the reformed legislation, cannabis – known locally as “dagga” – will be downgraded from a banned Schedule 7 drug to a Schedule 6 drug, meaning it can be prescribed. The revision of the law is to be drafted by late January 2017 and may be implemented by April 2017, according to South Africa’s News24.
 
Full Article: 
http://www.talkingdrugs.org/south-africa-set-to-legalise-medical-cannabis
 
 

Puerto Rico Ends Cannabis Drug Testing in Public Sector

BY
puerto rico cannabis drug testing
 
America has seen more cannabis reform in the last few weeks than in its entire history. As November 8th approached, all eyes were on the states looking to legalize recreational or medicinal pot, and most of them did not disappoint.
But the end of prohibition is not just being enjoyed on the U.S. mainland. Puerto Rico continues to show empathy for its citizens, this time by issuing an Executive Order that government employees will no longer be drug tested for cannabis — effective immediately.
 
Full Article: 
http://www.marijuana.com/blog/news/2016/11/puerto-rico-ends-cannabis-drug-testing-in-public-sector/

Hempcrete founders look to go global with tiny house design

MERIBETH DEEN / Bowen Island Undercurrent
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A rendering of the vision for the house upon completion. 
 

Sixteen years after delving into the world of natural building, Jayeson Hendryson and Kim Brooks say they are in full-on research and development road, and preparing to take their business to a whole new level.

This past week, the couple unveiled their plans for a “tiny hemp house,” one of which is currently under construction on their Bowen Island property.

The house is based on a smaller one they built for a mushroom farmer in Alberta. The current design is 530 square feet, with two loft-style bedrooms, built onto a metal skid that allows the house to be moved from place to place.

The walls, of course, are made from “hempcrete,” a material created by Hendryson, inspired by the couple’s quest for a “benign building material.”

“We used to live in a conventionally built house that had mold in the walls and I came down with pneumonia,” says Brooks. “So that was one issue. We also wanted something non-toxic, something that would last. And I hate rats, so we wanted something that was pest-proof – (lime is a primary ingredient in hempcrete, and it is toxic to rats and other pests, so they don’t bother with it. ) if rats or carpenter ants eat this stuff they die…”

Full Article:

http://www.bowenislandundercurrent.com/news/hempcrete-founders-look-to-go-global-with-tiny-house-design-1.2475995
 

McLean Hospital Medical Marijuana Study: 42 percent reduction in opioid use

Christopher Peterson

 
“We saw a 42 percent reduction in opioid use,” reported Gruber. “This is significant, particularly for those of us in Massachusetts and other areas of the country where the opioid epidemic is ravaging so many. This preliminary finding certainly warrants deeper and broader investigation.”
 
Full Article: 
http://www.mcleanhospital.org/news/2016/10/18/mclean-hospital-study-finds-medical-marijuana-use-may-improve-cognitive-performance

Legal Weed In Vegas Soon?

By Zachary Babin
Image result for Cannabis
 
Democratic state Sen. Tick Segerblom envisions a pedestrian-centric outdoor entertainment district focused on giving visitors a new kind of “only-in-Vegas” experience centered around pot.
“It’s somewhere you do things you wouldn’t normally do,” said Segerblom, who’s so supportive of marijuana in Nevada that he sponsored a failed bill in 2015 to allow sick dogs and cats to use it. “Have fun, party, do things you wouldn’t do at home. Take a picture and brag about it.”
 
Full Article: 
http://www.cannabisradio.com/news/legal-weed-in-vegas-soon/

ESPN Survey: Two-thirds of NFL players say legal pot equals fewer painkillers

Kevin Seifert NFL Nation
Image result for Survey: Two-thirds of NFL players say legal pot equals fewer painkillers
 
In the survey, 61 percent of players said they believed fewer players would take pain-killing shots such as Toradol if marijuana were a legal option. Toradol is the most common anti-inflammatory taken by NFL players, and 64 percent of the survey’s respondents said they had taken an injection of it or another pain killer.
Marijuana has less known side effects than Toradol, and 41 percent of players surveyed thought it would control pain more effectively. Nearly 60 percent are worried about the long-term effects of chemical painkillers, and 42 percent believe they have had a teammate become addicted to chemical painkillers.
 
Full Article: 
http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/17951858/nfl-players-legal-pot-equals-fewer-painkillers

Dutch Students Build Bridge Out of Hemp and Flax Fibers

STU ROBARTS

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The “biobridge” in the Netherlands is built using hemp and flax fibers in place of alternative materials such as steel, concrete or carbon fiber.  Photo credit: New Atlas
 
Dutch students in the Netherlands have built a 46-foot-long footbridge out of hemp and flax fibers to demonstrate a use of more sustainable construction materials. Known as the “biobridge” the project was the result of a partnership between TU Delft, Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e), University of Twente and University of Wageningen.
 
Full Article: 
http://www.forconstructionpros.com/news/12275064/dutch-students-build-bridge-out-of-hemp-and-flax-fibers