By John McCabe

Industrial hemp farming needs to be legalized in the U.S. It would help the environment, wildlife, rivers, lakes, and the soil.

It would reduce our dependence on petroleum while cleaning the air.

It would localize economies, create jobs, and form a more sustainable human culture.

An end to the prohibition on industrial hemp farming in the U.S. would give struggling family farmers another crop to grow in rotation with other crops. It is a crop that already has a growing market that is now being served by Canadian farmers, who keep growing more and more hemp every year as the international demand for hemp keeps increasing.

People should understand that:

America is the number one importer of hemp materials, including food, fabric, fiber, and industrial oil and resin.

Industrial hemp farming is not legal in the U.S. This remains so while every country from Australia to Canada, England to France, Germany to Poland, and China to Japan allows farmers to grow industrial hemp.

Hemp cellulose can be used to make cellulosic ethanol, which burns cleaner and with more power than starch (corn) ethanol. Using hemp ethanol for gasoline cars would be a tremendous benefit to the environment as the hemp plant also absorbs greenhouse gasses while it grows.

Another crop that can be used to make cellulosic ethanol is America's number one crop: landscape clippings. Yes, America produces more landscape clippings (as in lawn and hedge trimmings) than any other plant substance. Currently much of this is treated as trash and is taken to landfills. It should be taken to ethanol distilleries. The leftovers should be composted into farmland to build the soil.

Hemp seed oil can be used for diesel engine fuel. It is greatly safer than petroleum diesel fuel. Petroleum diesel fuel produces heavy particulates, which contribute to lung cancer, emphysema, asthma, and heart disease. Using hemp oil (or any plant oil) for diesel fuel (instead of petroleum) would protect the lungs of both humans and animals.

Diesel engines running on 100% plant oil are safer for the environment than electric vehicles, including hybrid vehicles. Plug-in electric vehicles rely on the electricity companies, which largely create electricity using coal, which pollutes the air and puts mercury into the atmosphere.

Hemp resin and fiber can be used to make biodegradable fiberglass. This is already being done.

Many automobile and truck manufacturers already use hemp fiber in some fabricated car parts, including dashboards, floorboards, carpeting, insulation, and seating.

Hemp plywood made from hemp fiber and hemp resin is four times stronger than plywood made from trees, and is less susceptible to rot and insect infestation. Using hemp for plywood would save our forests.

Hemp fiber can be used to make biodegradable air and water filters. These are currently being made with petroleum extracts, and are not biodegradable.

Hemp can be used to make biodegradable plastic, unlike the permanent plastics being made using petroleum extracts.

Hemp canvas shopping bags are sturdier and last longer than shopping bags made from cotton.

Growing hemp fiber for clothing is safer for the environment than cotton.

Hemp fabric for awnings and patio umbrellas last longer than awnings made from cotton. This is because hemp doesn't degrade as fast under Sun light.

Hemp pulp can be used to make paper, which would help us save our forests, and the wildlife and rivers dependant on them. We are all dependant on forest for oxygen and water.

The process to create hemp paper is less intensive than the process to create paper from trees, and is safer for the environment. Hemp can be bleached with peroxide, which breaks down into oxygen and water. Wood pulp is bleached using chlorine-based bleaches, which creates dioxin, which is one of the most toxic chemicals being created by man.

Hemp paper is stronger and lasts longer than tree paper.

Cold-processed hemp seed oil is the highest grade of nutritional oil. It contains a healthful balance of essential fatty acids, and is especially rich in Omega-3 fatty acids. More Omega-3 than flax oil.

Hemp seeds are rich in amino acids, which our bodies use to make protein. Hemp seed powder can be used in a variety of foods.

Oh, and hemp can't get you high. If you smoke it, it will give you a headache. Eating hemp foods does not trigger a positive drug test.

For the most current legal issues relating to hemp farming, access: http://www.VoteHemp.com.

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