Editor’s Note: This letter didn’t make it into this week’s edition. Because it references next Tuesday’s April 14 commissioners’ meeting, we’re posting it online now.
Dear Editor:
The sky is falling! The sky is falling! OK, it’s not falling. But if the right hallucinogenic drug is taken, you might believe it is falling. I am standing on my soapbox to tell you about how the Front Range voters in 2022 managed to drop a time bomb on us. A sneaky provision of Proposition 122 will take effect here in Rio Blanco County in July 2026.
Along with decriminalizing four psychedelic drugs, the state is also licensing the manufacture of the drugs. Psilocybin (magic mushrooms), psilocyn, ibogaine, mescaline, and dimethyltryptamine (DMT) are still Schedule 1 Federal regulated substances. Outside of Oregon and Colorado, they are illegal without a prescription. The Feds consider them to be of little to no use in the medical field, with a high risk of abuse. In other words, they are, for most of the population, recreational drugs.
The state has already licensed some “Natural Medicine Health Centers.” They will soon facilitate the use of those four drugs. The drugs will be used on the premises under the guidance of “trained” facilitators. If that concept seems fuzzy, think 19th-century legal opium dens in San Francisco.
You may say, “That is a Front Range problem.” Think again, healing centers have already been approved in Basalt, Aspen, Montrose and New Castle. There is NOTHING to stop the state from approving a license in Rio Blanco County. Prop 122 made sure that local governments can’t ban it like marijuana. If we are to discourage these facilities, local zoning and ordinances must be in place now, BEFORE a license application. The Town of Meeker has already enacted zoning that restricts these facilities to Industrial-zoned land only. RBC commissioners will soon be considering a similar code. I applaud them for acting. I am unaware of any efforts in Rangely, but I would encourage them also.
I feel that these codes do not go far enough in removing the welcome mat from RBC. We need to add provisions protecting citizens’ safety. We need to address DUI enforcement, landfill contamination, and limit hours of operation. I feel that requiring 24/7 security monitoring with local law enforcement being notified of break-ins would be something to consider. Requiring fire sprinklers would help prevent contaminated smoke. If you, like me, want the welcome mat removed from Rio Blanco, contact your local government or attend the April 14 BoCC public hearing. Make your voice heard. Unlike the state legislature, they will listen.
Ed Peck
Concerned Meeker resident
AKA Chicken Little
