Are Prince Harry and Meghan Markle really bothered by their stinky neighbours?

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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

It’s unclear if the Sussexes are still California dreamin’ given their lavish home’s proximity to a massive (and legal) cannabis farm, a facility that has turned up the noses and raised the hackles of nearby residents complaining about the stink.

Prince Harry, 36, and Meghan Markle, 40, got to nesting in their “cozy,” nine-bedroom, 16-bathroom US$14.7 million ($18.5 million) home in Montecito, Calif. last summer, Variety reported at the time. (PHOTO BY CHRIS JACKSON/GETTY IMAGES)

The pungently pervasive smell was reportedly enough for Gregory Gandrud, 60, to tell the Sunday Mirror that, after being hit hard by the stank, causing him to lose his train of thought, he had to stop driving and pull over to the side of the freeway. “It doesn’t make you high, but it’s not what you want driving at 70 mph,” Gandrud told the publication.

 

Medical marijuana has been legal in California for 25 years and adult-use weed got off the ground about two decades later.

Complaints have reached the Santa Barbara Coalition of Responsible Cannabis (SBCRC) and Cannabis Association for Responsible Producers, who have apparently assured residents that “odour control systems” will be installed to dampen the dank.

The SBCRC describes itself as “an advocacy and community education organization whose objectives and purposes are to promote the well-being and interests of neighbourhoods, communities, industries, businesses and individuals affected by commercial cannabis cultivation.”

Of course, sunny California is hardly the only region to have raised a stink over the smell of weed.

Steadfastly insisting it is not a prohibitionist” coalition, but, rather, one that “encourages cooperative and neighbour-friendly cannabis businesses,” the group reports it wants to see the same reasonable standards put on cannabis as other California counties with legal weed, including “sealed greenhouses, carbon air filtration and reasonable, neighbour-friendly density.”

 

It’s a busy group, with its website reporting recently that cannabis farmers and the group struck a deal to address odour issues in Carpinteria, the group withdrew an appeal after odour concerns were resolved and a cannabis grow in Santa Ynex agreed to regulate and study its odour emissions.

Of course, sunny California is hardly the only region to have raised a stink over the smell of weed. In fact, a Michigan town went so far as to enlist a Nasal Ranger to sniff out smelly pot plants, two years ago residents of Stoney Creek, Ont. voiced their concerns about an unlicensed cannabis grow operation that set up shop nearby and a small legal grow in New Brunswick faced considerable oppositions from its neighbours.

According to Ceres, “creating a super controlled environment with advanced climate controls is a major trend in the cannabis greenhouse industry. It enables growers to keep odorous air inside, while still providing precise environmental control and sufficient air movement. Back-up ventilation systems with carbon scrubbers can be much smaller, allowing for initial and ongoing savings.”

 

As it stands, it’s not known if the Sussexes are bothered at all by their odorous neighbours, both having reportedly consumed cannabis in the past, with the latter earning a Prince Charles-ordered stint in rehab at age 17, notes The Daily Mail.

 
Indeed, The Sun reports that pre-Sussex, Markle planned to include joints in the guest gift bags during her nuptials to Trevor Engelson a decade ago.

And even if the somewhat-Royal couple is not interested, they could likely access “Royally Grown,” a weed brand that includes drops, oils, supplements and recovery tinctures courtesy of Tyler Dooley, whose father is Markle’s half-brother.

Dooley had previously released the cultivar, Markle Sparkle. And baby Archie’s birth was enough for him to add Archie Sparkie to the list.

 

 
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