There could be smoke in the air when cannabis is legalized in October, but the Town is prepared to handle the haze. In light of impending legalization, Okotoks town council approved a public consumption of cannabis bylaw, smoking bylaw, and amendments to the community standards bylaw at its June 25 meeting. Both medical marijuana and tobacco smoking will be subject to the new smoking bylaw, said municipal enforcement manager Kelly Stienwand. “We’re one of the few communities in Alberta that did not have a smoking bylaw already in place, and it was on our backburner,” said Stienwand. “It was coming, but it was set to the back knowing that cannabis could have an impact on it. “So we’re a little late bringing the smoking bylaw forward. It does fit in nicely.” The bylaw imposes a 10-metre non-smoking boundary outside the doors to Town of Okotoks facilities and a 10-metre boundary from all public pathways, public sidewalks, or from any children under the age of 18 who are not in the direct custody, care or control of the smoking adult, he said. It also includes a provision from the bylaw passed in 2008, which prohibits smoking in a motor vehicle with minors present, he said. “The intent and the spirit of this bylaw is to address open space and would not have any impact on private-owned property,” said Stienwand. “We’re thinking about our pathways, open spaces, that are frequented by families.” He said a common concern or complaint heard in municipal enforcement is the discomfort citizens feel when they’re walking along a sidewalk or pathway behind someone who is smoking – particularly when children are present. “We’re not suggesting you can’t smoke, it’s just suggesting you’re going to have to step off the pathway and provide that courtesy for the citizens in our community who choose to not smoke,” said Stienwand. To address resident concerns about marijuana smoke travelling from neighbours’ houses into their own backyards or homes, an amendment to the community standards bylaw included a new “nuisance odour” clause. It came as a result of the public survey surrounding cannabis legalization, in which 62.6 per cent of respondents indicated the Town should be able to respond to complaints of excessive smoke from cannabis in residential areas. According to the bylaw, “no person shall cause, commit or engage in activity that allows any nuisance odour to originate from a premises or a residential building that interferes with the lawful enjoyment of other persons’ property.” Stienwand said it would be handled similarly to noise complaints currently enforced through the community standards bylaw. When peace officers respond to complaints of a loud party, they make a decision as to whether the noise level is excessive, he said. Generally, municipal enforcement would not respond to people legally consuming cannabis on private property, but if the odour becomes excessive it may warrant a response, he said. “We trust our officers to make those assessments at the scene to say, ‘This just isn’t reasonable. What would the community ask us to do in this case?’” said Stienwand. It will be important for neighbours to have respectful conversations around cannabis use and work through concerns or issues as they arise as well, he said. The odour nuisance came as good news to Okotoks resident Marleen Crucq, who said her family has already experienced issues with neighbours smoking marijuana. “It’s been so bad we have to close our windows and we can’t go on our deck,” said Crucq. “We’ve tried to talk to them and they don’t care. “We don’t think it’s acceptable that we should have to go in our house and shut our windows, and then the smoke comes in and it’s very heavy and it makes us kind of nauseous.” She said her family prefers to see cannabis consumption restricted to inside the homes of those who wish to smoke. “It really interferes with us being able to breathe clean and safe air, and we also think there should be heavy fines, which I’m glad to see there are proposed, for anyone not respecting others’ rights to breathe clean air,” said Crucq. There is a $250 fine for those who consume non-medical marijuana in public or for those who act against the smoking bylaw or odour nuisance portion of the community standards bylaw. Subsequent offences carry fines from $500 to $1,000. According to the public consumption bylaw passed on June 25, cannabis will be treated like alcohol and restricted from public consumption, outside of designated areas at special events pending an application approved by the Okotoks CAO. The only exception to the bylaw would be medical marijuana use. The consumption and retail sale of cannabis will become legal on Oct. 17 under the federal Cannabis Act. The Act aims to prevent youths under the age of 18 from accessing marijuana, protect public health and safety by establishing quality requirements, and deter criminal activity by imposing serious criminal penalties for those operating illegally - including up to 14 years in prison. The act allows adults over 18 years of age to possess and share up to 30 grams of marijuana, purchase cannabis from a licenced retail store, grow up to four plants within their homes, and make homemade edible cannabis products. Mayor Bill Robertson said he’s pleased with how the Town and council have responded to cannabis legalization, which he said was an issue “hoisted upon” municipalities by the federal government. “I think it is certainly a moving target,” said Robertson. “We’ll be watching what other communities are doing and there will be amendments and so on coming forward.”
