Support Hemp Production
A resolution to increase the quality of the world's environment, at the expense of industry.
Category: Environmental
Industry Affected: All Businesses
Proposed by: The Avenging Angels
Description: I propose that all nations should support the production of Hemp. Hemp needs to be recognized as a profitable and environmentally friendly crop.
Uses and Benefits of Hemp:
Hemp is suitable for industrial paper manufacturing, can be used for clothing and shoes, for use as a renewable energy source, and for use in food products.
The increased demand for health food has stimulated the trade in shelled hemp seed while hemp oil is increasingly being used in the manufacturing of bodycare products. Hemp is High in protein and Omega-3 fatty acids.
Hemp due to its tall growth and thick foliage prevents the rising of weeds.
Hemp is such a hardy plant, it can grow easily and abundantly almost anywhere. Hemp can even be cultivated in arid regions with poor soil or in places with a very short growing season. Hemp requires little water or nutrients, and therefore can be grown without chemical fertilizers.
Hemp is an ideal rotation crop for farmers worldwide. It puts down a taproot twelve inches long in only thirty days, preventing topsoil erosion.
The depletion of the ozone layer threatens to reduce soy crops by up to 50%, but hemp is immune to the damages of ultraviolet light.
Hemp's cellulose level is three times that of wood, so it makes superior paper products and yields four times as much pulp per acre as trees. The hemp paper process utilizes less energy and fewer chemicals than tree paper processing and doesn't create the harmful dioxins, chloroform, or any of the other 2,000 chlorinated organic compounds that are byproducts of the wood paper process.
Hemp is a sustainable, annual crop that is ready for harvest just 120 days after going to seed, compared to trees which take tens or hundreds of years to reach maturity. Harvesting hemp doesn't destroy the natural habitats of thousands of distinct animal and plant species.
Therefore I propose that each nation that supports this program set up an advisory board to oversee this program and its financial operation. The advisory board will be comprised of 8 officials and one director of the board. The board will be comprised of other workers to help these 8 officials and to help manage the work of this agency.
The director and these 8 officials will be picked by the government of that nation. The director will have discretion in selecting the employees needed to make the agency run.
The members will be:
2 economists, 2 ecologists, 2 agriculturalists who are knowledgable and haver experience in growing hemp, and 2 biologists.
The advisory board will have the power to provide incentives to farmers that grow or will grow hemp.
The incentives given to farmers who use hemp as a crop can take several forms:
1. Farmers who grow hemp will be given tax breaks. These tax breaks will be based on how hemp the farmer grows, and the maximum tax break will be 45% for a yearly period.
2. Farmers will recieve monthly stipends, and will also be based on how much hemp they grow. The maximum stipend will be $10,000.
The budget should be based on how many farmers are involved in the program, and how much each farmer plans on growing. Farmers in the program will be asked to give a small percentage of their profits to the program. The percentage will be based on economic status of the farmer, and how much profit they are making. This should provide 30 % of the funds for the program, and the other 70% will come from the government, and any outside funding if needed.
Approvals: 24 (Steenia, Master Tom, Seamus McCaffrey, Coolet, Andorista, WZ Forums, The Magdalen Islands, Sargonastan, Aylandlandfive, No Breaks, TPM, Mikeswill, Sticks and Dirt, JS Nijmegen, Libertarianada, Tiber City, Blue Sharks, Cheer and Love, The Dancing Butterfly, Al-Zar, Paridon, Theonopolis, Advent Clandestine, Aleknavicius)
Status: Lacking Support (requires 122 more approvals)
Voting Ends: Thu Dec 23 2004
