Hemp is the most environmentally
sound crop known to mankind. Although hemp has been illegal
to grow in North America for over 60 years, and the U.S. government
has gone to great lengths to associate industrial hemp with
the illegal drug trade and narcotics, we still must recognize
the intrinsic value of hemp to the environment.
Hemp is the highest yielding agricultural crop known, in terms
of raw tonnage, seed production, and biomass. Unlike cotton
and timber production, it is a sustainable resource. The Hemp
plant does not deplete the soil like cotton and many other crops.
In fact, hemp actually leaves the ground in an improved, fertile
condition, because it can eliminate very troublesome perennial
weeds when the plant's long roots penetrate and break the soil.
The global demand for paper will double within the next 25 years.
Unless tree-free sources of paper are developed, there is no
way to meet future demands without causing massive worldwide
deforestation and environmental damage. As opposed to cotton,
one of the worlds most environmentally destructive crops, requiring
39 million pounds of pesticides annually in the U.S. alone,
hemp requires no pesticides, because it produces its own resins
which act as insecticides.
Current debate exists on the international level as to what
the international standard for low-THC industrial level hemp
should be [Who cares?]. The controversy exists among activists
and investors in a burgeoning industry. The question remains,
"Can one make good rope from bad dope?", [Once again
who cares?]. With investors worldwide suddenly scrambling to
exploit hemp's enormous commercial possibilities, the scene
is set for the arrival of hemp in the homes of the American
public.
After a successful 2-year trial period of permitting experimental
hemp cultivation, neighboring Canada repealed hemp prohibition
in 1997. Canada's hemp industry is now poised for rapid expansion.
The U.S. remains one the last industrialized nations on earth
where growing industrial hemp can result in a prison sentence
(1,000,000+ Plants = Death Penalty). |
|
With over 25,000 applications,
no other resource equals the environmental and economic potential
of hemp. This fact is coming back to the attention of our government.
In 1942, the U.S. Department of Agriculture created a film they
called "Hemp for Victory". It conveyed an urgent message
to patriotic farmers directly from the heads of state: "Hemp
for tow lines; hemp for tackle and gear; hemp for countless
naval uses both on ship and shore. Just as in the days when
Old Ironsides sailed the seas victorious with her hempen shrouds
and hempen sails. Hemp for Victory!". Now, just as then,
the need for hemp has risen anew; "Hemp for Victory!"
 |
