At this month’s MRC meeting on May 15, the subject of public cannabis consumption was broached, with an eye to the warmer weather and the various outdoor “activities” it might bring. Officials have consulted with local police since legalization took place last year and have agreed to make any bylaws regulating public consumption region-wide. They also pledged to not pass any of their own resolutions until the CAQ government rolls out its legislation.
Bill 2, “An Act to tighten the regulation of cannabis” is currently being discussed in the National Assembly and the government has signalled that it hopes to pass it into law by mid-June. The bill would make Quebec far and away the most restrictive jurisdiction in the country by increasing the minimum age for use to 21 from 18. Québec is already the only province to ban home growing, and until earlier this month, Bill 2 would have also banned public consumption outright.
The government has softened their stance on the issue, calling a ban unenforceable. Ultimately it will be the municipalities who decide what, if any, restrictions should be made law. The Equity has reached out to several mayors and the warden regarding the issue, and the overwhelming consensus is to ban public consumption, treating cannabis just like alcohol.
Pontiac wouldn’t be alone, as many other provinces and jurisdictions within Quebec have already restricted cannabis consumption to private residences. Since most landlords already ban smoking, many renters in these areas have nowhere to light up legally.
Is it really necessary to burden local police with this kind of petty, unenforceable bylaw infraction? Can adults negotiate social boundaries without the full weight of the law behind them?
For context it might also be useful to examine why this region restricted the public consumption of alcohol in the first place. An article retrieved from The Equity’s archives reveals that in 1998 Bristol passed the first bylaw restricting public alcohol consumption, among other things, with the rest of the municipalities following suit shortly.
The article notes that many complaints had stemmed from people boozing and loitering in parking lots and parks, along with the tomfoolery and violence that came with it.
It’s unclear that if the current council leaves the laws as they stand, there will be groups of rowdy stoners overrunning public spaces this summer, hurling bottles and starting fights. In the months following legalization there hasn’t been a wave of marijuana-fuelled assaults, or complaints of skunky clouds billowing from pedestrians on Main Street.
Many other jurisdictions have opted to treat cannabis like tobacco, with additional restrictions on consumption outside schools, in vehicles and in parks.
Sure, being subjected to cannabis smoke while in public with your family isn’t pleasant but then again, the same goes for someone smoking a cigar. Events like concerts and fairs are still allowed to restrict smoking as they please, so how often are Pontiacers beset by glassy-eyed reefer heads in public anyway?
Perhaps it would be best if local officials waited to see if hordes of scruffy pot smokers are indeed clamoring at the gates, waiting to invade the Pontiac’s nostrils and public spaces, before adopting these unnecessary restrictions.
Caleb Nickerson
