Planning Group Unanimously Recommends Against Proposed County Cannabis Expansion Program

SAN DIEGO, CA -- Citing unavoidable risks to East County's environment posed by San Diego County's proposed cannabis expansion ordinance, the Crest Dehesa Granite Hills Harbison Canyon Community Planning Group voted unanimously to advise the County against adoption of its "Socially Equitable Cannabis Program." The risks and negative community impact were identified in the County’s own Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR).

The Planning Group represents four largely rural, residential communities spread across 33 square miles in East San Diego County and serves in an advisory capacity to the County on land use and planning matters.

“The County’s own environmental review makes clear this program would bring significant and unavoidable impacts, particularly odor, water supply strain, traffic, and noise,” said Ron Nehring, Chairman of the Planning Group. “The negative impacts fall most heavily on rural residential communities like ours, where roads are narrow, water resources are limited, and homes are often adjacent to agricultural or semi-industrial zoning.”

Nehring noted commercial cannabis production and related operations are currently prohibited in unincorporated San Diego County, aside from a small number of legacy facilities, and that the proposed program would expand cultivation, distribution, retail sales, and consumption into areas where such uses have not previously been allowed.

“Our communities have not had this issue come before us in recent years,” Nehring said. “That makes it all the more important to look carefully at what this policy would mean before it’s adopted, rather than reacting after the fact.”

In its resolution, the Planning Group formally opposed adoption of the proposed program. However, recognizing that the Board of Supervisors may move forward regardless, the Planning Group urged the County to adopt the most restrictive alternative identified in the DEIR, known as Alternative 4, which prohibits outdoor cultivation and reduces overall environmental and community impacts.

“If the County is determined to proceed, then at a minimum it should adopt the most restrictive option available,” Nehring said. “Alternative 4 is the County’s own environmentally superior alternative, and it does a better job of limiting harm to unincorporated communities.”

The Planning Group emphasized the need for stronger protections for rural neighborhoods, including larger buffer distances, enforceable odor controls, limits on the concentration of facilities, and meaningful community oversight.

The Crest Dehesa Granite Hills Harbison Canyon Planning Group’s action adds to growing concerns raised by other unincorporated communities across San Diego County regarding the scope and impacts of the proposed cannabis program.

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