End Cannabis Prohibition Jersey
Recommendations
for Reform.

Cannabis Industry.

How can hemp improve our environment?

Is hemp the future of sustainable economies?

As one of the fastest-growing biomass crops in the world with numerous biodegradable end products, cannabis has great potential to benefit the environment:

"If all fossil fuels and their derivatives, as well as the deforestation of trees for paper and agriculture, are banned from use in order to save the planet and reverse the greenhouse effect:

Then there is only one known renewable natural resource able to provide the overall majority of our paper, textiles and food, meet all the world's transportation, home and industrial energy needs, to reduce pollution, rebuild the soil and clean the atmosphere — all at the same time — our old stand-by that did it all before: cannabis."

Jack Herer, The Emperor Wears No Clothes, 1993.

Recommendation:

  1. In order to help develop a sustainable economy, Jersey should actively promote the use of hemp alternatives to a wide range of consumer products in the Island.

Regenerative agriculture & carbon sequestration.

The environmental potential of hemp cultivation was identified by Government in the report on Carbon sequestration and the role of soil and crops published in October 2020.

"One hectare of industrial hemp can absorb 22 tonnes of CO2 per hectare. It is possible to grow 2 crops per year so absorption can be doubled. Hemp's rapid growth (grows to 4 metres in 100 days) makes it one of the fastest CO2-to-biomass conversion tools available, more efficient than agroforestry."

The Role of Industrial Hemp in Carbon Farming,
GoodEarth Resources, Parliament of Australia.

Hemp is also "versatile in extracting many different kinds of chemicals from the soil", including PFOS/PFAS.

The use of hemp for regenerative agriculture, phytoremediation and carbon sequestration is now promoted in the Island by The Carbon Farm.

Recommendation:

  1. The Government of Jersey should champion regenerative hemp cultivation to revitalise our soil and offset our carbon emissions.

Building with hempcrete.

The woody core of the stem of the hemp plant can be mixed with lime and water to make hempcrete, a non-load-bearing construction biomaterial that is "fireproof, transmits humidity, resists mould, and has excellent acoustic performance".

Hempcrete is also carbon negative, absorbing carbon dioxide from the air as it sets.

Recommendation:

  1. The use of hempcrete in the Island should be investigated for its potential as a carbon negative alternative to concrete in the construction trade.