DA blasts state for failing to inspect Astoria marijuana business that exploded

Police and fire investigators in Astoria continued Oct. 21 to comb through the wreckage of an explosion likely caused by a legal butane hash oil enterprise amid questions about whether the state did anything to ensure the business met health and safety regulations.

The blast at Higher Level Concentrates - the first involving a legal cannabis enterprise in Oregon - sent two men to a Portland burn unit Oct. 19, officials said. Both were in serious condition, according to a representative of Legacy Emanuel Medical Center.

The business this year submitted a registration application to the Oregon Health Authority but didn't follow through on requirements to complete the registration process.

Clatsop County District Attorney Josh Marquis rebuked the health authority for allowing the business to operate without ever confirming it was meeting the agency's own rules for marijuana processors.

The health authority didn't inspect Higher Level Concentrates, one of 127 processors on its list of businesses that have turned in registration applications.

Health authority officials said none of those businesses have taken the steps to finish their registrations and none have been inspected.

"What I am alarmed about is what the hell was OHA doing for the last couple of years if they are going to authorize an ultra-dangerous processor and not follow up with inspections and verifications?" Marquis asked.

"OHA seems to have fallen down on the job here massively," he said.

A representative of the health authority called the explosion in Astoria "very concerning" and said businesses that are pursuing registration should be following state requirements.

The agency's "expectation is that processors who have applied for registration are complying with OHA's rules, which include using equipment that is safe," spokesman Jonathan Modie said in an email to The Oregonian/OregonLive.

Modie said the agency continues to "adjust to the rapid development of the industry and we're maintaining an adaptable response to ensuring priority focus on public health protection."

Most, if not all, of the businesses on the agency's list probably don't intend to complete their registrations because they plan to seek a separate recreational marijuana license through the Oregon Liquor Control Commission. Oregon's market is transitioning from medical marijuana to one focused on recreational sales.

Making hash oil using butane can be a dangerous endeavor. For years, the activity was unregulated and underground, carried out by home producers who often misunderstand the risks associated with butane.

The gas, a cheap and flammable solvent, is used to extract tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, from marijuana flowers and leaves. It can quickly fill an enclosed space, where something as ordinary as a pilot light can ignite a fireball.

The dangers led to a law, signed earlier this year by Gov. Kate Brown, that makes unlicensed production of marijuana extracts a felony. The provision is intended to target homemade butane hash oil operations. Brown has said public safety is among her priorities in implementing the state's marijuana policy.

The law left existing commercial - yet unregulated - processors in in a gray area as the state transitioned to a fully regulated recreational market. As a stopgap, the state allowed the businesses to apply for an interim registration that protects them from criminal prosecution.

Higher Level Concentrates has applied for a recreational processor license, liquor commission officials said.

So far, the commission has approved six processor licenses.

Marquis, who in 2014 was an outspoken opponent of Oregon's recreational marijuana effort, Measure 91, said law enforcement officials aren't investigating whether Higher Level Concentrates was operating legally.

He said his office and local police are focused on investigating potential arson charges, which involve recklessly causing an explosion that results in serious physical injury.

-- Noelle Crombie

503-276-7184; @noellecrombie

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