Michael Smyth
Photograph by: Ginger Sedlarova, The Province

It’s amazing how the amount of electricity stolen by marijuana growers in B.C. is increasing faster than a hippie’s appetite after a double bong hit.

A new report cited by B.C. Hydro pegs the annual amount of power stolen by marijuana grow ops at an astonishing $109 million.

The report adds some new categories: “illegitimate” power use by marijuana growers who actually pay their bills, and the amount of money B.C. Hydro must spend on upgraded infrastructure to deliver all that power to thousands of grow ops.

Total damage to B.C. Hydro and its customers from marijuana grow ops: $154 million a year, the equivalent of a five-per-cent surcharge on your electricity bill.

B.C. Hydro’s answer to the problem: spend $1 billion on smart meters to stop pot-producing power poachers.

It’s hard to know where to begin explaining how screwed up and illogical this is.

But first, let’s review Hydro’s recent history of estimating marijuana-related power theft.

Grow ops need a lot of electricity to power high-wattage lamps, water pumps, dehumidifiers, security systems and other equipment. Growers often steal electricity, by tampering with Hydro’s existing “dumb meters,” or diverting power from the main supply line.

In 2004, Hydro estimated marijuana power theft at $12 million a year. Then Hydro rolled out its plan to install smart meters.

Hydro estimated power theft at $30 million last August, then $100 million in the spring, and now $154 million from theft and illegitimate use.

A cynic might suspect Hydro was exaggerating grow-op thefts to gain support for its smart meters from suspicious customers.

After all, the original purpose of smart meters is to jack up your electricity bill through “time of use” billing, where you pay more for consuming power at peak periods, such as around dinner time.

Hydro denies the smart meters will be used for time-of-use billing. Instead, the smart meters will be used for things such as catching all those illegal grow ops, it says.

Really?

If Hydro wanted to catch power-stealing pot growers, it could hire a few dozen retired cops to inspect power lines for signs of tampering or jerry-rigging. That would cost a lot less than $1 billion.

Ironically, many marijuana growers like the idea of smart meters, because it means Hydro won’t be sending snoopy meter readers around their houses any more.

“It’s actually better to have the smart meter,” writes an anonymous poster on rollitup.org, a marijuana chat room.

“The guys that check meters won’t have to go in your yard any more, eliminating any chance of seeing or smelling something.”

Other large-scale growers are switching to diesel-powered generators to conceal electricity use. Just last week, Mounties busted a huge grow-op near Hope powered by a dozen gas generators.

And do you really think clever growers won’t figure out a way to bypass the smart meters, just like they bypass the dumb meters now? Google “hack your smart meter” for the answer.

The bottom line: B.C. Hydro is stoking reefer madness. It loves pushing this stamp-out-grow-ops line because that’s its best argument for selling the public on smart meters.

My prediction: Marijuana production in B.C. will continue to soar, while you get gouged on your electricity bill with time-of-use billing.

Premier’s position on senate reform tough to figure out

Abolish the senate? Expand it? Shrink it for other ?provinces?

It’s hard to tell Premier ?Christy Clark’s exact position on senate reform these days after her ?latest confusing performance on the issue.

In Ottawa to promote B.C. shipbuilding last week, Clark began her day saying she would accept Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s vision of an elected senate if B.C. received “seven or 10” new senators.

Later, she said Harper should limit the number of new senators in Ontario and Quebec so B.C. would become “more equal” in the upper chamber.

It’s just the latest ?positional gymnastics by Clark on the senate.

She earlier said Canada should abolish the senate. Then she said she liked ?Harper’s idea of an elected senate, where British Columbia is already grossly under-represented.

What’s the point of giving the senate more clout and legitimacy if it’s already unfair to B.C.?

Time for Clark to brush up on the issue — and figure out where she stands.

Showdown in Abbotsford

Abbotsford’s John van Dongen is bracing for the fight of his political life, after a local city councillor announced he’ll challenge him for the Liberal nomination in the riding.

Veteran councillor Moe Gill said he’s been encouraged by supporters for more than a year to “give it a shot” and try to replace van Dongen in the Liberal stronghold.

As Rodney Dangerfield would say: “No respect!” Van Dongen is a former cabinet minister and 16-year MLA.

Van Dongen told the Abbotsford Times he reached out to Gill and asked to meet with him to discuss the issue. He said Gill responded by sending two representatives to the meeting.

Guess it’s on, huh? It’s the first sign some Liberals will face fresh challenges for their jobs, as rumours of a fall election swirl.

msmyth@theprovince.com