Indoor marijuana growth does not come without its disadvantages, and one of those is the amount of energy that it consumes. In fact, one scholar is saying that states should think about putting energy regulation in place. This will help to regulate the greenhouse gases involved as well as the energy used in the industry as a whole.
“Given that this is a new ‘industry’ that is going to be pretty highly regulated, I felt like the state and local policymakers have a unique opportunity to incorporate energy usage and climate assessments into their state marijuana licensing fees,” says Gina Warren, a professor at the Texas A&M University professor and author of the paper “Regulating Pot to Save the Polar Bear: Energy and Climate Impacts of the Marijuana Industry.”
In a 2012 study regarding cannabis production and carbon emissions, one researcher noted that both illegal and illegal pot uses over $6 billion dollars worth of electricity every single year. This alone amounts to over 1% of electricity usage in the US. In intensive production states, such as California it was as high as 3%.
High intensity lights, the dehumidification equipment and the space heating and cooling all add to the energy sucking of the cannabis business. Even though this most applies to indoor grows, outdoor grows also have their consequences. As pot becomes more legal and more mainstream, outdoor producers will also need to obey environmental laws.
According to reports, the indoor marijuana production industry has already consumed large amounts of energy and as legalisation increases, so will this trend so something will need to be done about this situation.