MENDOCINO NATIONAL FOREST, Calif. – A six-county effort to attack the problem of illegal marijuana growing on public lands is gaining strength, officials said Friday.

“Operation Full Court Press” is a multiagency, focused operation comprising federal, state and local law enforcement agencies that is working to identify and eradicate illegal marijuana cultivation sites on public lands in and near the Mendocino National Forest, and to conduct reclamation activities on the environmentally affected areas.

The operations are taking place in a six-county area – Mendocino, Lake, Colusa, Glenn, Tehama and Trinity, according to a joint statement from the sheriff's office of those counties.

Officials said Proposition 215 medical marijuana grow sites are not being targeted, as such grows are not the focus of the eradication and reclamation effort on public lands.

Rather, Operation Full Court Press is taking aim at large scale illegal marijuana cultivation, which officials said leads to deforestation, damages wildlife habitats and induces hazardous chemical pollution.

The use of herbicides, pesticides and rodenticides can cause extensive and long term damage to ecosystems and impact public drinking water for hundreds of miles.

Reclaiming the devastated areas on public lands is a key component of the current operations, according to the participating agencies. Removing trash and infrastructure inherent in these sites helps to restore the land to its natural condition. Hundreds of pounds of hazardous debris and trash, including propane tanks and empty pesticide containers, are removed from these sites each year.

A major goal of Operation Full Court Press is making public lands available once again for current and future generations to safely enjoy recreating on public lands and benefiting from clean water and healthy natural resources.

The participating agencies said that while they can confirm that the operations are going on, due to officer safety and security reasons they cannot release any additional information relating to these activities.

The group also asked for the public’s patience and understanding as they conduct the operations and reclaim public lands.

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