Processed Marijuana and Meth Seized on NFS Lands

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NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM LANDS (NFS) - More than 193 million acres - 155 National Forests - 20 National Grassl<strong>and</strong>s - 383,000 miles of road - 500 million visits per year - Multiple use concept - 50% of western water supply - 550 law enforcement officers <strong>and</strong> Special agents - 35,000 employees nationwide - 9% of CONUS -9 Regions 4 USDA Forest Service Law Enforcement <strong>and</strong> Investigations
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The production <strong>and</strong> manufacture of illegal drugs on National Forest System (NFS) l<strong>and</strong>s for the year 2005 reached unprecedented levels over any prior year on record. This year marked the first t time in history that seizures of domestically produced marijuana exceeded one million plants nationally. Seizures for 2005 were up a staggering 49% to a total of 1,112,002 plants from the previous year total of 744,276 plants. In the state of California alone, the seizure of 802,407 plants on NFS l<strong>and</strong>s eclipsed all previous s NFS seizures nationwide. Seizures on NFS l<strong>and</strong>s in Arizona exceeded 115,000 plants for the first time, ranking the state third among the top ten for seizures, closely following California <strong>and</strong> Kentucky as the states who consistently rank first <strong>and</strong> second with seizure levels in excess of 100,000 plants. Most of this increase can be attributed to the proliferation of foreign Drug Trafficking Organizations (DTO’s), mostly Mexican in origin, who now operate throughout the United States. The Nation’s s public l<strong>and</strong>s have become a haven for this illegal activity due to the relatively few law enforcement personnel <strong>and</strong> vast <strong>and</strong> often remote tracts of sparsely or uninhabited l<strong>and</strong>s. Frequently using illegal aliens residing in the United States, or recently smuggled across the border, these Mexican criminal groups establish, maintain <strong>and</strong> protect an increasing number of these cl<strong>and</strong>estine operations. o Cartel growers have recognized the advantages of conducting business within the borders of the United States, including a reduction in the chance of seizure of drugs previously transported across the border, ready <strong>and</strong> convenient access to local drug markets, <strong>and</strong> the tremendous profitability of higher grade domestically grown marijuana. Considering a typical outdoor grown crop of 5000 plants, with a street price averaging $4000 per pound for sinsemilla, the traffickers can return approximately $20 million in a single growing cycle. While any illicit drug operation has the potential to affect the health <strong>and</strong> safety of persons <strong>and</strong> the environment, these large scale commercial operations pose a significant <strong>and</strong> elevated threat to local residents, forest visitors, agency personnel, the l<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> associated natural resources. <strong>and</strong> most importantly, national security. Encounters with armed individuals are common <strong>and</strong> routinely associated with DTO controlled operations. DTO’s have been linked to terrorist organizations <strong>and</strong> pose a substantial <strong>and</strong> increasing threat to national security. 5 USDA Forest Service Law Enforcement <strong>and</strong> Investigations
Page 1 and 2: NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM DRUG ENFORCE
Page 3: FOREST SERVICE COUNTERDRUG MISSION
Page 7 and 8: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Office of Nat
Page 9 and 10: ERADICATED MARIJUANA on NFS LANDS 1
Page 11 and 12: TOP TEN NATIONAL FORESTS for ERADIC
Page 13 and 14: PROCESSED MARIJUANA and</st
Page 15 and 16: TIME SPENT ON COUNTERDRUG ACTIVITIE
Page 17 and 18: CURRENT NFS COUNTERDRUG INITIATIVES
Page 19 and 20: REGIONAL HIGHLIGHTS OF DRUG RELATED
Page 31 and 32: MILITARY SUPPORT to NFS COUNTER DRU
Page 33 and 34: NATIONAL GUARD SUPPORT 7,000 6,000
Page 35 and 36: NFS REGIONAL DRUG ENFORCEMENT STATI
Page 37 and 38: MARIJUANA PLANTS ERADICATED <strong
Page 39 and 40: METH LABS and DUMP
Page 41 and 42: MARIJUANA PLANTS SEIZED in CALIFORN
Page 43: FOREST SERVICE DRUG ENFORCEMENT CON

Processed Marijuana and Meth Seized on NFS Lands

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