Cannabis Resin
Although cannabis became legal here in Canada in October 2018, many cannabis products and derivatives remained illegal. One such derivative is cannabis resin, more commonly known as “shatter.”
Shatter is typically sold in packages containing one gram of the drug; some of these packages make medicinal claims that are not backed up by any scientific or regulatory body. It typically appears as an amber, translucent, brittle solid that resembles toffee. Users often break off small pieces of shatter and place them into a vaporizer, which heats the drug and allows its vapours to be inhaled.
+ HOW IS SHATTER PRODUCED?
Shatter is produced by using flammable substances such as butane to extract THC from cannabis plants. (Shatter is also known as “BHO,” or butane hash oil.) [1] The process is dangerous because the extract has to be placed on a heat source to get rid of the butane, converting it into a gas vapour that is easily ignited. Even sparks from light switches or cellphones could be enough to ignite the gas. [2]
+ WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS OF SHATTER?
The active ingredient in cannabis and its derivatives is tetrahydracannabinol (THC), which can users users to experience euphoria and alterations in vision and judgment. [3] While the dried cannabis that is often rolled into cigarettes has a THC content of between 12 and 15 per cent, shatter can have a THC content of up to 90 per cent. [4] That level of THC can cause much more severe effects, including paranoia, anxiety, panic attacks, hallucinations and violent behavior. [5]
+ HOW PREVALENT IS SHATTER IN ALBERTA?
ALERT began seeing cannabis resin show up in investigations as early as 2012, though some early references may have been referring to other cannabis derivatives such as hashish. Since then, ALERT has made several substantial seizures of the drug throughout Alberta, including: 2.3 kilograms in Red Deer (July 2018) [6]; 2.73 kilograms in Edmonton (June 2018) [7]; and 3.4 kilograms in Calgary (June 2017) [8]. As part of Project Arbour, an investigation into drug trafficking in Calgary that concluded in February 2018, ALERT investigators found and dismantled a shatter production lab that was operating out of a home in the Cougar Ridge neighbourhood. [9]
