The Sequoia National Forest is being used by Mexican nationals for a weed farm. Growing marijuana on America's national parks is big business because it offers several advantages for the growers.
Federal land can't be seized, the same way private property can. Plus, there are huge open spaces with tree cover that can be easily planted and maintained by small work crews. Plus, the weed will be sold in the United States, so it doesn't have to be smuggled into the country.
The growing is becoming especially pronounced in Sequoia National Forest, according to authorities.
"These aren't Cheech and Chong plants," said the director of the National Drug Control Policy, John Waters. "People who farm now are not doing this for laughs, despite the fact Hollywood still thinks that. They're doing it to make a lot of money."
Waters says that 10,000 plants were recently found, some of them ranged in height to five feet. All told, 420,000 plants have been eradicated in the forest in the last eight days.
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