Public health ponders restrictions on pot use

There are a lot of unknowns about how marijuana will be consumed when federal legislation kicks in next year.

One of the biggest: Where will users legally be able to use cannabis? It’s a question Ottawa Public Health is considering. It is also speaking to other municipal agencies, and it might expand its consultations to include health and social service agencies and early intervention and treatment agencies.

The city’s health authority does not want pot to be smoked in cannabis cafés similar to the “coffee shops” of Amsterdam. However, it is speaking with local stakeholders “to assess the local implications of cannabis legalization, including the potential for designated spaces for some marijuana users.”

But it’s too early to say what these spaces might be or who would be permitted to use them.

Gillian Connelly, manager of health promotion and disease prevention, said OPH’s mandate is to improve and advocate for health and well-being through prevention, promotion and protection. It opposes creating public places, either indoors or outdoors, where people can consume marijuana and has recommended a comprehensive ban on consumption in workplaces.

“We do not want to create an environment that normalizes it,” said Connelly. “There’s a risk that people will think this is a benign substance. It’s not. There are health risks associated with consuming.”

About half of Grade 12 students in Ottawa and about 15 per cent of adults have used marijuana in the past year, according to surveys.

The December 2017 federal task force report on cannabis legalization and regulation argued that no matter what the source, secondhand smoke is a health hazard and an imposition.

The report also expressed concern that smoking or vaping cannabis in public places can “renormalise” tobacco use and turn back the clock on progress in decreasing tobacco consumption rates.

The report urged that the same restrictions that apply to tobacco and vaping products should also apply to cannabis. But it also noted that there had been discussions about permitting the use of cannabis in designated venues such as lounges, tasting rooms and social clubs.

There was also concern about the lack of private spaces for people such as renters and homeless people. The task force recommended that jurisdictions could, if they wished, designate places for the consumption of cannabis.

The task force added there should be safeguards that prevented the consumption of marijuana alongside alcohol, as well as preventing underage use. Ottawa Public Health has also suggested exploring options to include multiunit dwellings in legislation, so exposure to second-hand smoke is reduced.

It has been working with landlords and property managers to inform them of the benefits of adopting no smoking policies for their buildings and has seen a growing trend in Ottawa of buildings with no smoking policies, said Connelly.