Hemp and Climate Change
Can cannabis / hemp save the planet? Here we look at five ways hemp and climate change are interlinked.
Earth Day, on April 22, comes just two days after the cannabis holiday of 420 and amid Cannabis / Hemp Awareness Month. Earth Day is a day for people to demonstrate their support for environmental protection, with a key issue being climate change. At first glance, hemp and climate change may not appear to have a lot in common. However if we take a closer look, there are actually many ways cannabis / hemp and climate change are linked. The fast-growing plant offers many benefits in terms of health (CBD, THC, THCV, CBN, CBG, to name just a few wellness compounds!), as well as sustainable products and building materials. Hemp plants also suck CO2 out of the air and toxins out of the soil. Let’s take a look at five ways hemp can help save the planet:
1. Hemp and Climate Change / Carbon Absorption
First of all, hemp is one of the fastest growing plants on the planet. Hemp can grow more than 12 feet in 100 days! Amazingly, research shows it may be twice as effective as trees at absorbing and locking up carbon. Cannabis and hemp plants are known to absorb significant amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere during photosynthesis. This process can help mitigate the effects of climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Research suggests that hemp is twice as effective as trees at sequestering carbon. Two and a half acres of hemp absorb 8 to 22 tons of carbon per year, more than any woodland of that size. This shows the positive results of the link between hemp and climate change.
2. Hemp and Sustainable Agriculture:
Cannabis and hemp can be grown using sustainable agricultural practices such as organic farming, crop rotation, and water conservation. This can reduce the use of harmful pesticides and fertilizers and help prevent soil degradation and erosion. Rare Cannabinoid Company and Hawaiian Choice CBD use Hawaiian CBD extracted from premium hemp plants grown using sustainable agricultural practices on the slopes of Haleakala on Maui.
3. Alternative to Non-Renewable Resources:
Cannabis and hemp can be used as a substitute for non-renewable resources such as fossil fuels and wood. Hemp fiber can be used to make paper, textiles, and construction materials, while cannabis can be used to produce biofuels and bioplastics. By reducing non-renewable resources, this is a great win for hemp and climate change.
4. Hemp Can Help Damaged Soil:
Hemp can help to replenish nutrients in soil by cleaning up environmental toxins through a process called bioremediation. Hemp has even been called a “miracle crop” thanks to its ability to purify soil of pollutants including pesticides, metals, solvents, crude oil and other hazardous products. Please note that due to hemp’s ability to suck up toxins, it is extremely important to check that all CBD, THC, and cannabinoid oils for human consumption are third-party lab tested and free of all hazardous products. (Hemp grown in unclean soil is fine for textiles and hempcrete / concrete made from hemp, and other items that are not ingested orally or used topically.)
5. Hemp and Climate Change / Plugging Old Oil Wells
Another big factor of hemp and climate change is hemp’s potential to absorb harmful gases leaking from oil, uncapped oil wells. There are more than three million abandoned oil and gas wells across the United States, according to Lancaster Farming Industrial Hemp Podcast. Open to the air, they release gases into the environment. Showing how hemp and climate change come together, hemp has been used to plug these wells and absorb the harmful gasses.
Negative impacts of hemp / cannabis on the environment?
However, it is important to note that the production and use of cannabis and hemp also have potential negative environmental impacts, particularly if not managed properly. For example, indoor cannabis cultivation can consume large amounts of energy, and improper disposal of cannabis waste can lead to pollution of waterways and harm wildlife. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure that cannabis and hemp production is done in a sustainable and responsible manner to maximize their potential benefits for the planet.
This Earth Day, let’s continue to explore the positive links between hemp and climate change and continue to expand this incredible plant’s reach across our planet.