Film society sheds light on marijuana industry

With Delaware's first medical marijuana dispensary now operating in New Castle County, Rehoboth Beach Film Society invited the public to a documentary about the legalization of pot in Colorado that gives a glimpse of what the future industry might look like if pot becomes legal in Delaware.

Nearly two dozen people gathered at Metropolitan Community Church of Rehoboth March 16 to watch "Rolling Papers," a documentary that follows the first year of Colorado's marijuana legalization and the resulting cannabis-focused coverage at The Denver Post. "Rolling Papers" was the third event in the society's Delmarva Connections film series.

The film follows Denver Post editor Ricardo Baca, the paper's former music critic who is now editor of "The Cannabist," the Post's marijuana-focused publication featuring everything from marijuana recipes to weed critiques and a stoner parenting column.

In a time of downsizing at newspapers across the country, the documentary shows how otherwise straight-laced journalists were able to attract a new readership through their comprehensive stories about Colorado's recreational cannabis industry.

Delaware decriminalized small amounts of marijuana at the end of 2015, and more than 1,000 Delawareans now hold medicinal marijuana cards. Still, the First State is a long way from the multimillion-dollar recreational industry in Colorado.

Gov. Jack Markell has stated he will not legalize recreational use of pot as long as he's in office, but plans to expand the state's medical marijuana program are in the works.

In a question-and-answer session following the movie, Paul Hyland, program administrator for the Delaware Office of Medical Marijuana, provided updates on the state's medical marijuana program and outlined plans to bring two new distribution centers to the First State.

In addition to First State Compassion Center in Wilmiington, the only place medical-card holders can obtain medical marijuana legally, two additional compassion centers are expected to be established – one in each county.

“We're expecting a larger pool of candidates this time,” he said. “We examine these things not just from one side, but from the business side to background checks.”

Applicants are required to submit proposals to open downstate compassion centers – the state's official term for medical marijuana distribution facilities – by April 13, 2016. Hyland said reviewing the proposals, which are often hundreds of pages long, will take a lot of time, so he expects license awards to come near the end of the summer. He estimated it would take at least nine months for a center to be operational and doesn't expect new centers to be online before 2017.

After watching “Rolling Papers,” a handful of Sussex County residents wanted to know more about how the medical marijuana program in Delaware works.

Mary Ellen and Richard Barrett, who moved to Lewes from Pennsylvania about six months ago, said Mary Ellen suffers from chronic pain. She is interested in trying medical marijuana instead of narcotics to manage it.

“I think this is a better alternative,” she said. However, driving to Wilmington could be difficult, she said, so downstate centers would make the process much easier.

Card-holder and Milton resident Todd Boone criticized the state for opening its only facility in New Castle County, which he said requires him to make a costly 160-mile round trip.

Delaware law states medical marijuana card holders are only permitted to receive 3 ounces of pot every 14 days.

“The law states we were supposed to have one in each county by 2013, so this is just a political thing of them dragging their feet,” he said.

Boone also questioned possible contaminants in the product offered at First State, especially the oils sold at the compassion center.

As shown in the documentary, the industry has been struggling to establish consistency in testing pot products.

"It's not an exact science," Hyland said.

Marijuana products produced at First State Compassion Center are monitored for potency and tested for contaminants in-house, but the state plans to bring a third-party testing facility to Delaware. Hyland said requests for proposals are expected to begin in the fall, Hyland said.

Medical marijuana was legalized in Delaware in 2011 and First State Compassion Center opened in June 2015.

For more information about Delaware's medical marijuana program, go to dhss.delaware.gov/dph/hsp/medmarhome.html.

For more information about the Rehoboth Beach Film Society, go to www.rehobothfilm.com.