lberta was the first province to begin its policy development for cannabis legalization. In June 2016, the government began by commissioning a massive evidence synthesis — the Cannabis Evidence Series — covering five key topics: health effects and harms, medical cannabis, advertisement and communication regulations, experience with legalization in other jurisdictions, and the current Canadian context. It was published in December 2016. This fed directly into the Alberta cannabis framework, which is the beginnings of the proposed legislation that will eventually regulate cannabis production, sales and use.

With marijuana legalization less than two months away, it is unclear whether Abbotsford residents will be able to buy non-medical pot locally on Oct. 17. But they want the option to do so.

As universities across Canada prepare for the legalization of cannabis this fall, one psychology professor says her research shows some students already have ideas to mitigate the potential risks of marijuana use.

Kara Thompson is a psychology professor at St. Francis Xavier University who has studied cannabis.

She said she conducted focus groups last spring with students who use cannabis, and found they had strategies in place to reduce the potential risks.

Sylvan Lake is getting ready for cannabis shops.

With recreational marijuana set to be legalized in October, municipalities have been busy updating their bylaws and business licence regulations in preparation.

Sylvan Lake, like many communities, has decided that distinct licensing requirements be put in place for cannabis retailers.

While Ontario’s Conservative government has made massive changes to their Liberal predecessors’ stern cannabis retail laws, the province is still taking a hard line on public consumption.

The penalties are stiff if Ontarians violate the rules and spark up a public j– up to $1000 for the first offence and $5000 for each subsequent offence. The tough regulations seem to be one of the few things upon which PC premier Doug Ford and former Liberal premier Kathleen Wynne have agreed.

What’s off limits

Everywhere that isn’t a private residence or balcony, including workplaces and motor vehicles. There are some exceptions for medical users with a valid prescription for cannabis.

“But everybody knows that smokin' ain't allowed in school.” – Brownsville Station

Going to college, for most budding young minds, is all about finding your place in the world and getting the education necessary to become a viable part of civil society, one that vastly surpasses the scholastic ranks of your idiot predecessors.

Accomplishing this goal, however, takes conviction, a tremendous amount of focus and, depending on the student’s extracurricular interests and disposition towards inebriating substances, enough mind-ripping marijuana to choke an inbred Russian racehorse with a vicious case of mange.

With recreational marijuana set to become legal on Oct. 17, the Canadian government has approved the first roadside test aimed at stopping drivers who are under the influence of cannabis.

But some experts are questioning whether the Drager DrugTest 5000 will actually be effective in detecting drivers who are impaired by THC — the main psychoactive agent in cannabis. Harrison Jordan, who specializes in cannabis law, is raising several red flags over the test.

Buying pot online in Alberta is going to be a little more complicated than clicking a few buttons on Amazon.

The provincial government updated its retail website this week with information on how online cannabis shopping will work. The website will be the only legal online destination for cannabis shopping in the province once it launches on Oct. 17.

Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission (AGLC) spokesperson Heather Holmen said consultations with Albertans showed their biggest concern about cannabis legalization was ensuring it stays out of the hands of minors. So, the website will include a process to verify buyers are over 18.

When the recreational cannabis market opens across Canada on Oct. 17 there will be a huge chunk of it missing.

Edible products — which are expected to represent more than 50 per cent of dollar value sales in pot purchases when they are legalized — will not be available for at least a year after smokable buds and oils hit the shelves.

But there will be no law stopping buyers from using combustible buds and oils to cook up their own eats.

“People will be free to smoke or bake with their purchases,” says Jo Vos, managing director of Leafly Canada, a cannabis information company that is tracking the legal changes closely.

There’s sure to be cookies, brownies, gummy bears and all that sweet, expected fare.

But the range of edible cannabis products that could be available to Canadians next year may well be on a Betty-Crocker scale.

Indeed, just about anything you can brew, stew, cook or chew could have cannabis content when edibles — and drinkables — join the legalized ranks of pot products in October 2019, a year after combustible products like marijuana buds and hash oils come onto the market.

“You’ll be able to infuse a steak,” says Will Hyde, a marijuana sommelier and a senior subject matter expert with Leafly Canada.