International Journal of Drug Policy
Volume 21, Issue 3 , Pages 222-228 , May 2010

Tracing retail cannabis in the United States: Geographic origin and cultivation patterns

  • Janet M. Hurley

      Affiliations

    • Current address: Sports Medicine Research and Testing Laboratory, 560 Arapeen Drive, Suite 150, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, United States. Fax: +1 801 994 9455.
    • ,
  • Jason B. West

      Affiliations

    • Texas AgriLife Research and Department of Ecosystem Science & Management, Texas A&M University System, 1618 Garner Field Road, Uvalde, TX 78801, United States. Fax: +1 830 278 1570.
    • ,
  • James R. Ehleringer

      Affiliations

    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Tel.: +1 801 581 7623; fax: +1 801 581 4665.

Received 13 May 2009 ,Revised 3 August 2009 ,Accepted 7 August 2009.

References 

  1. Bowen GJ, Chesson L, Nielson K, Cerling TE, Ehleringer JR. Treatment methods for the determination of δ2H and δ18O of hair keratin by continuous-flow isotope-ratio mass spectrometry. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry. 2005;19:2371–2378
  2. Bowen GJ, Revenaugh J. Interpolating the isotopic composition of modern meteoric precipitation. Water Resources Research. 2003;39(10):1299
  3. Bowen GJ, Wassenaar LI, Hobson KA. Global application of stable hydrogen and oxygen isotopes to wildlife forensics. Oecologia. 2005;143:337–348
  4. Caulkins JP, Pacula RL. Marijuana markets: Inferences from reports by the household population. Journal of Drug Issues. 2006;36(1):173–200
  5. Denton TM, Schmidt S, Critchley C, Stewart GR. Natural abundance of stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes in Cannabis sativa reflects growth conditions. Australian Journal of Plant Physiology. 2001;28(10):1005–1012
  6. Di Forti M, Morrison PD, Butt A, Murray RM. Cannabis use and psychiatric and cognitive disorders: The chicken or the egg?. Current Opinion in Psychiatry. 2007;20(3):228–234
  7. Ehleringer JR, Bowen GJ, Chesson LA, West AG, Podlesak D, Cerling TE. Hydrogen and oxygen isotopes in human hair are related to geography. In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, 105. 2008;p. 2788–2793
  8. Ehleringer, J. R., West, J. B., & Hurley, J. M. (2007). A marijuana signature program: Report on using stable isotopes in marijuana to predict geographic origin. Washington, DC: Executive Office of the President, Office of National Drug Control Policy (Final Report Contract HHSP23320046100ZC).
  9. Ehleringer, J. R., West, J. B., & Hurley, J. M. (2008). A marijuana signature program phase II: A focus on border-seizure specimens, model evaluation using “Blind-eradication” specimens, and model application to USA “Retail-seizure” Specimens. Washington, DC: Executive Office of the President, Office of National Drug Control Policy (Final Report, Contract HHSP23320076100ZC).
  10. Galimov EM, Sevastyanov VS, Kulbachevskaya EV, Golyavin AA. Isotope ratio mass spectrometry: δ13C and δ15N analysis for tracing the origin of illicit drugs. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry. 2005;19(10):1213–1216
  11. Gonzalez R. Acute and non-acute effects of cannabis on brain functioning and neuropsychological performance. Neuropsychology Review. 2007;17(3):347–361
  12. Hurley, J. M., West, J. B., & Ehleringer, J. R. (in press). Stable isotope models to predict geographic origin and cultivation conditions of marijuana. Science and Justice.
  13. Library of Congress . Marijuana availability in the United States and its associated territories. A report prepared by the Federal Research Division, Library of Congress, under an interagency agreement with the National Guard Bureau Counterdrug Office (NGB-CD). Washington, DC: Library of Congress; 2003;
  14. Liu JH, Lin WF, Fitzgerald MP, Saxena SC, Shieh YN. Possible characterization of samples of Cannabis sativa L. by their carbon isotopic distributions. Journal of Forensic Science. 1979;24(4):814–816
  15. National Drug Intelligence Center . National Drug Threat Assessment 2008. Washington DC: US Department of Justice, National Drug Intelligence Center (Product No. 2007-Q0317-003); 2007;
  16. Rey JM. Marijuana use disorders and DSM-V. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 2008;47(2):121–122
  17. Ritter A. Studying illicit drug markets: Disciplinary contributions. International Journal of Drug Policy. 2006;17(6):453–463
  18. Shibuya EK, Sarkis JES, Negrini-Neto O, Moreira MZ, Victoria RL. Sourcing Brazilian marijuana by applying IRMS analysis to seized samples. Forensic Science International. 2006;160(1):35–43
  19. Shibuya EK, Sarkis JES, Negrini-Neto O, Martinelli LA. Carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes as indicative of geographical origin of marijuana samples seized in the city of Sao Paulo (Brazil). Forensic Science International. 2007;167(1):8–15
  20. West JB, Bowen GJ, Cerling TE, Ehleringer JR. Stable isotopes as one of nature's ecological recorders. Trends in Ecology & Evolution. 2006;21(7):408–414
  21. West JB, Sobek A, Ehleringer JR. A simplified GIS approach to modeling global leaf water isoscapes. PLoS One. 2008;6:e2447
  22. West JB, Hurley JM, Ehleringer JR. The stable isotope ratios of marijuana. I. Carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes describe the growth conditions. Journal of Forensic Sciences. 2009;54(1):84–89
  23. West, J. B., Hurley, J. M., Dudas, F. Ö., & Ehleringer, J. R. (in press). The stable isotope ratios of marijuana. II. Strontium isotopes relate to geographic origin. Journal of Forensic Sciences.

PII: S0955-3959(09)00115-7

doi: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2009.08.001

International Journal of Drug Policy
Volume 21, Issue 3 , Pages 222-228 , May 2010

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