The cost of roadside testing is part of the overall $1.4-million approved budget to police pot in 2018.

Edmonton police project that roadside saliva testing when pot is legalized will cost $300,000 annually, though the actual testing devices have not yet been approved for use in Canada.

"It's a high cost but it's necessary if you want to test that specific enough to differentiate between different drugs," said Supt. Al Murphy from the police service's legalization of cannabis committee.

"It's an unfortunate necessity of this, but I think it would be expected of us to have tests that are appropriate and acceptable by the courts."

Jeanette VanderMarel is co-founder and president of Good & Green, a late-stage applicant for a federal license, and co-founder of The Green Organic Dutchman.

In the 19th century it was gold rushes in British Columbia. In the 20th century it was the discovery of oil in Alberta. In the 21st century, it will be the growth of cannabis across Canada.

For good and bad, Canada has been shaped by a series of singular, transformational events. In each case, the economic boom and ensuing social impact has challenged Canadian society and tested the ability of governments and courts to recalibrate policies, laws and expectations.

Toronto lawyer Annamaria Enenajor has launched a campaign urging the government to "right history's wrongs" by expunging personal possession charges.

Last week, two international media outlets published articles about the notable absence of amnesty in the Canadian government's plan to legalize cannabis.

“Canada plans to legalize weed – but will those convicted of crimes get amnesty?” asked The Guardian. Al Jazeera posed a similar question in its headline: “Can Canada undo ‘injustice’ of cannabis possession convictions?”

The Cannabis Act’s ban of certain cannabis products will leave a consumer void and allow the black market to thrive, the CEO of a Canadian cannabis company told a Canadian Senate hearing during testimony last week.

Josh Campbell is the head of dosist, a company that has released a disposable, dose-controlled cannabis pen that is selling like hotcakes in California. But in Canada, concentrates and edibles won’t be available for at least a year, and it’s not known not when a product like Campbell’s will be allowed.

Leafly spoke to Campbell after his testimony in front of the Senate’s Standing Committee von Social Affairs, Science, and Technology.

Government hopes to have some materials ready by the end of June.

The P.E.I. government is looking for a company to create a cannabis education campaign.

The province has put out a request for proposals and hopes to hire a company within the next few weeks. Finance Minister Heath MacDonald said the province is looking for education materials that focus on health and safety awareness.

"We want to ensure that we're taking the steps in the right direction to ensure that people are aware, especially our youth, of the effects of cannabis. Positively, negatively, regards to whether it's medicinal or recreational," said MacDonald.

“Canadian youth between the ages of 15 and 24 are among the highest users of cannabis in all developed countries.”

Whether making headlines, sprinkled throughout Senate hearings, or tossed around in idle chatter, it’s the one line that is dominating the dialogue on the effect of recreational-cannabis legalization on young Canadians.

Those opposed to Bill C-45, the Cannabis Act, relentlessly abuse the factoid to conjure images of brain-dead teenagers hovering around piles of “high potency” bud, moving on to heroin when the weed fix won’t cut it.

Proponents of legalization, on the other hand, are using it as a cry for help, blowing the whistle on a system that is “clearly not working”.

The Yukon minister in charge of marijuana says the government hopes to displace more of the illegal market by setting the base price for pot at $8 per gram.

John Streicker, the minister responsible for Yukon Liquor Corp., says in a news release that the government has secured its sole retail location and entered into a second supply agreement. 

Streicker says those actions will ensure Yukon residents have access to cannabis when it becomes legal.

When Canada's finance ministers met last December, they pegged the cost of marijuana at about $10 per gram and the federal government agreed to give provinces and territories 75 per cent of the tax revenues.

Due to impending marijuana legalization in Canada, an amendment update to Cochrane’s smoking bylaw was a hot topic at the last regular session of town council. Jaylene Knight, the town's manager of legislative services, gave a non-decisive, information-only presentation to council on behalf of administration. “Legislative Services is working with Communications to develop a public engagement plan and communications strategy to ensure the public is consulted and feedback incorporated before the bylaw amendments are finalized,” said Knight in her presentation to council.

“This project will be added to the Let’s Talk Cochrane website and all public engagement opportunities will be advertised.”

Ontario’s chiefs of police are again sounding alarm bells about the impending legalization of recreational cannabis, saying federal funding for police operations may not go far enough to cover increased costs.

At a news conference held by the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police in Toronto on Tuesday, Ontario Provincial Police Chief Supt. Chuck Cox said it’s fair to assume based on other jurisdictions’ experiences that drug-impaired driving will go up once recreational pot is legal, and police will need to train more officers to detect drug impairment.

That, Cox said, can be costly.

City planners in Prince Albert say it is “crunch time” for local legislation as the legalization of cannabis in Canada grinds closer.

The city's next steps were rolled out in front of city’s council's executive committee Monday night. Craig Guidinger, director of planning and development, said legalization will use a top-down approach largely dictated by the federal and provincial governments, but there are still a few items municipalities will have the ability to tweak. Guidinger said city planners are still conducting research and reviewing best practices using information from the provincial cannabis survey to prepare draft regulations, but nothing has yet been set in stone.