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Idaho State Police may get tests to tell hemp and pot apart
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho State Police may get the funding to purchase equipment that would allow investigators to distinguish hemp from marijuana after a high-profile case in the state grabbed headlines and prompted a federal lawsuit.
The state legislature’s Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee on Friday approved about $240,000 for three testing devices for crime labs in the cities of Meridian, Pocatello and Coeur d’Alene, the Idaho Statesman reported. The funding must be approved by the House and Senate.
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I'm not all that familiar with the differences between hemp & pot as they are both biologically the same: Cannabis sativa. Hemp is supposed to have a minimal amount of THC, the main psychoactive compound found in pot. But $80K per testing station doesn't cut it in my estimation, being familiar with the type of lab instrumentation required to extract & analyze samples & compare them with standard samples. There are likely simplified tests that don't need all the expensive instrumentation that a full lab would require. But then there is the question of the cost of operator training. These kinds of analyses require experience & supervision in order to meet the legal standards that would come up in court.
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho State Police may get the funding to purchase equipment that would allow investigators to distinguish hemp from marijuana after a high-profile case in the state grabbed headlines and prompted a federal lawsuit.
The state legislature’s Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee on Friday approved about $240,000 for three testing devices for crime labs in the cities of Meridian, Pocatello and Coeur d’Alene, the Idaho Statesman reported. The funding must be approved by the House and Senate.
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I'm not all that familiar with the differences between hemp & pot as they are both biologically the same: Cannabis sativa. Hemp is supposed to have a minimal amount of THC, the main psychoactive compound found in pot. But $80K per testing station doesn't cut it in my estimation, being familiar with the type of lab instrumentation required to extract & analyze samples & compare them with standard samples. There are likely simplified tests that don't need all the expensive instrumentation that a full lab would require. But then there is the question of the cost of operator training. These kinds of analyses require experience & supervision in order to meet the legal standards that would come up in court.