The number of grow-ops in Surrey may be dropping, but the level of drug-related gang violence certainly isn't.
Early Tuesday morning, as Vancouver radio stations reported on Mayor Dianne Watts' comments that the number of grow-ops in the city had dropped by 82 per cent, a man was ambushed as he got out of a rental car near 144 Street and 92 Avenue. At least one gunman critically wounded him, and then stole his rental car.
The car was later found ablaze a short distance away in North Delta, with two men seen fleeing from it. One of those men was arrested. Police say the shooting was directly related to the drug trade.
This is just the latest in a series of targeted attacks involving people in the drug trade, taking place in Vancouver, Surrey, Langley and other parts of the Lower Mainland.
One particularly brazen incident in this latest phase of targeted shootings – which resemble the gang wars in Chicago over the control of alcohol in the late 1920s and early 1930s – involved the murder of a man while he was sitting in a restaurant at the Wall Centre in downtown Vancouver.
Among the guests at the adjacent hotel at the time were members of the U.S. national women's soccer team, who were in Vancouver for a tournament to determine which two North American teams would go to the 2012 Olympics.
Like many residents who have had grow-ops for neighbours, I was pleased to hear Watts' comments. The Surrey Electrical Fire Safety Program, which started as a demonstration project in 2005, and was expanded in 2007, has been a key factor in shutting down grow-ops, as fire inspectors used their ability to conduct such inspections to shut down active grow-ops.
Fire Chief Len Garis deserves credit for spearheading this effort and making the city safer. It is also important to note that the program has led to a decrease in residential fires linked to grow-ops.
Watts said that more than 1,000 grow-ops had been shut down. Particularly pleasing is that a few of the closures eventually led to seizure of the properties and their sale under forfeiture legislation. Taking away assets of drug traffickers is hitting them where it hurts, because they are in this business solely to make a lot of money and not pay any taxes.
It is instructive to remember that the U.S. government finally managed to get Al Capone, the Chicago mob boss, in prison on a charge of not paying income taxes.
However, when one grow-op shuts down, another springs up. There may be fewer of them in Surrey, but the supply of marijuana hasn't noticeably diminished. Drug wars in places like Mexico have left thousands of people dead, and the fight over control of the trade in the Vancouver area seems to be once again reaching the crescendo that we saw in early 2009.
All levels of government need to develop a co-ordinated approach to this issue, and all options need to be on the table. Should marijuana be regulated and sold in government outlets? When prohibition ended in the U.S. in 1933, it took mobsters out of the liquor business, but with their profits, they found many others to go into.
The federal, provincial and local governments all have a role to play in this issue. Surrey may be somewhat safer due to the electrical inspections, but Surrey youth are still getting into gangs. Some of them are dying, while others are wounded in shootings like the one on Tuesday. Still others destroy the lives of many innocent people, including their own families.
This is a comprehensive issue that needs full attention, and a willingness to look at innovative ideas. The electrical safety inspections were an innovative idea, and have been successful.
Are there more such ideas on the horizon to help end the drug wars and perhaps save the lives of some young people?
Frank Bucholtz writes Thursdays for the Peace Arch News. He is the editor of the Langley Times.