[MohawkARC] FW: Radio airwaves get buzzed from pot

[Paul Bolduc]

Sent: Thursday, June 05, 2014 11:49 AM

Ran across this in USA Today.

Radio airwaves get buzzed from pot By Trevor Hughes,

A few years ago, retired electrical engineer Tom Thompson noticed it 
was getting harder and harder to hear his friends across the country 
talking to him on their ham radio sets. So Thompson built a portable 
antenna system to track down whatever was interfering with his radio
transmission.

The culprit? Marijuana grow operations, whose powerful grow lights can 
emit interference blocking radio broadcasts on the ham and AM spectrums.

The first grower he encountered wasn't pleased to know Thompson, now 
73, could tell what was going on. "He said, 'What are you going to do, 
call the cops?' Thompson said. "And I said, 'Well no, it's a federal matter.

' With 22 states and the District of Columbia allowing medical 
marijuana, and Colorado and Washington permitting recreational use, 
there's been an explosion in the number of people growing their own pot,
much of it indoors.
With that growth has come increasing interference from the grow lights, 
which suck down huge amounts of electricity to shine upon budding 
marijuana plants. Growing pot indoors is usually more secure and gives 
the grower more control over light, water and insects, which results in 
higher-quality plants commanding a premium price.

The interference problems from one type of system have gotten so bad 
that the amateur radio association, ARRL, filed a formal federal 
complaint on behalf of the country's 720,000 licensed ham operators. 
The problems are worse in Colorado and California, said Sean Kutzko, an ARRL
spokesman.

The interference is caused by what are known as "ballasts," electronic 
systems controlling the grow lights. Unless they're properly shielded, 
the ballasts can throw off a wide range of interference. "We're seeing 
numerous cases ... and that's causing us a problem," Kutzko said. "We 
just want to make sure the manufacturers are in compliance with FCC 
laws. The FCC has the power to regulate anything that interferes with 
licensed radio transmissions, such as ham sets, but also cellphones and AM
radios.

Steve, K8SP