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Ice methamphetamine will continue to be the most significant drug threat in the Northern California HIDTA region. The region may experience an increase in methamphetamine production as Mexican DTOs use organized smurfing groups to circumvent point-of-sale restrictions at local retailers to purchase large quantities of cold medications containing pseudoephedrine.
Major trafficking organizations involved in illicit cannabis grow operations will continue to expand their operations by increasing the number and size of indoor grows sites to meet the rising demand for high-potency marijuana and to capitalize on the high profit margins associated with higher-potency marijuana.
In response to law enforcement marijuana eradication operations, outdoor cannabis cultivators have changed their mode of operations via the timing of their planting/cultivation and harvesting cycles. More outdoor cultivators will shift to earlier planting and harvesting cycles, often using cannabis strains with short maturation cycles, as they attempt to desynchronize periods of crop harvesting with the surge in law enforcement eradication operations. This method of cultivation also enables growers to compensate with additional planting should their grow site be compromised during the season. Public lands in remote areas of the region will increasingly be used for outdoor cultivation, and it is likely that cannabis cultivators will increasingly use weapons to protect their grow sites, including high-caliber assault rifles.
Although some methamphetamine users have switched to cocaine, the demand for ice methamphetamine will remain high. Information pertaining to abusers switching from ice methamphetamine to cocaine and the reasons behind this action is incomplete. More data, primarily from healthcare providers, will need to be obtained in order to determine if this phenomenon is an anomaly based on market fluctuations or an indication of an emerging trend.
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