PROFILE

Van Butsic
Co-Director
Assistant Cooperative Extension Specialist and Adjunct Professor
UC Berkeley Environmental Science, Policy, & Management
portrait photograph
Van Butsic studies the geographic spread of cannabis agriculture using remote sensing techniques and econometric modeling.
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Publications

photograph of a circular lined pond, full of water, on a forested slope

Water demands of permitted and unpermitted cannabis cultivation in Northern California

2023

Dillis, C., Butsic, V., Georgakakos, P., Portugal, E., Grantham, T.

Environmental Research Communications

Water use on unpermitted farms varies by watershed. With scenario modeling, we project the impacts of compliance with water extraction and off-stream storage.

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After legalization: Cannabis, environmental compliance, and agricultural futures

2023

Polson, M., Bodwitch, H., Biber, E., Butsic, V., Grantham, T.

Land Use Policy

There are many barriers to participation in California's regulated cannabis industry. Is there a way to achieve environmental objectives, farmer compliance, and an equitable transition away from illegal markets?

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Policy Findings & Recommendations Regarding California Cannabis: Farming, Regulation and the Environment

2022

Polson, M., Butsic, V., Dillis, C., de Genova, H., Grantham, T., Herrera, L.R., Hossack, J., Laudati, A., Martin, J.V., Parker-Shames, P., Petersen-Rockney, M., Sorgen, J., Starrs, G.

This report presents multiple pathways for consideration by state and local governments in their efforts to improve cannabis cultivation policy.

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photograph of a charred cannabis farm after a wildfire

The threat of wildfire is unique to cannabis among agricultural sectors in California

2022

Dillis, C., Butsic, V., Moanga, D., Parker-Shames, P., Wartenberg, A., Grantham, T.

Agroecosytems

Where should we grow? Explore the vulnerability of California's cannabis agriculture to wildfire.

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Photo of poisonous baits, an example of how cannabis production impacts the environment.

Cannabis and the Environment: What Science Tells Us and What We Still Need to Know

2021

Wartenberg, A. C., Holden, P. A., Bodwitch, H., Parker-Shames, P., Novotny, T., Harmon, T. C., & Butsic, V.

Environmental Science & Technology Letters

Explore environmental impacts of cannabis production and how evidence-based policy can reduce harms.

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Photograph of irrigation infrastructure on a cannabis farm. Includes storage tanks, pipes and fertilizer

Cannabis farms in California rely on wells outside of regulated groundwater basins

2021

Dillis, C., Butsic, V., Carah, J., Zipper, S.C. and Grantham, T.

Environmental Research Communications

Well water irrigates California’s top-producing cannabis farming regions. Why? What are the impacts?

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Photo of cannabis plants in an indoor farm greenhouse being cut by an inspector due to non-compliance with regulation.

Why comply? Farmer motivations and barriers in cannabis agriculture

2021

Bodwitch, H., Polson , M., Biber, E., Hickey, G. M., Butsic, V.

Journal of Rural Studies

Despite legalization, illicit cannabis production continues in California. Surveys reveal that small farmers face outsized burdens to compliance.

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The spatial overlap of small-scale cannabis farms with aquatic and terrestrial biodiversity

2021

Parker-Shames, P., Choi, C., Butsic, V. , Green, D., Barry, B., Moriarty, K. , Levi, T., Brashares, J. S.

The Society for Conservation Biology

What are ecological impacts of cannabis legalization? To find out, we mapped the first season of legal cannabis farms in Josephine County, southern Oregon.

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outdoor grow within hillside forest

Shifting geographies of legal cannabis production in California

2021

Dillis, C., Biber, E., Bodwitch, H., Butsic, V., Carah, J., Parker-Shames, P., Polson, M. and Grantham, T.

Land Use Policy

How has legalization shaped patterns of farm location, size, land ownership, and regulatory compliance in California?

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Photo of Klamath River and forested hills where cannabis cultivation can impact water flows

Water storage and irrigation practices for cannabis drive seasonal patterns of water extraction and use in Northern California

2020

Dillis, C., McIntee, C., Butsic, V., Le, L. Grady, K., & Grantham, T.

Journal of Environmental Management

What cultivation practices help cannabis farmers store enough water to eliminate surface water diversions during California’s dry growing season?

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Photograph of a small farm with rows of vegetables, such as lettuce, mixed with cannabis plants.

Characteristics of farms applying for cannabis cultivation permits

2019

Schwab, B., Wartenberg, A. & Butsic, V.

California Agriculture

Are California’s cannabis regulations leading to industry consolidation and larger farms?

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Aerial image of a cannabis grow operation with outdoor plots, greenhouses and infrastructure within a forested area.

Perceptions of cannabis among Humboldt County timberland and ranchland owners

2019

Valachovic, Y., Quinn-Davidson, L., Stackhouse, J. and Butsic, V.

California Agriculture

What are the impacts of cannabis legalization on traditional rural livelihoods?

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Macro-scale photograph of cannabis plant with webs of spider mites, a common pest.

First known survey of cannabis production practices

2019

Wilson, H., Bodwitch, H., Carah, J., Daane, K., Getz C., Grantham, T. E., & Butsic, V.

California Agriculture

Cannabis legalization opens opportunities to study and share best practices. Our survey of growers reveals starting points.

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Satellite image of recently expanded cannabis farm into forests and meadows.

The emergence of cannabis agriculture frontiers as environmental threats

2018

Butsic, V., Carah, J., Baumann, M., Stephens, C. & Brenner, J.C.

Environmental Research Letters

How does California’s rapid expansion of cannabis agriculture into "frontiers" of sensitive habitat compare to regulatory investments? What does this portend for global cannabis frontiers?

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Photograph of a worker hauling long, coiled lines of plastic irrigation pipe and bags of waste out of a partially cleared conifer forest.

Cannabis, an emerging agricultural crop, leads to deforestation and fragmentation

2017

Wang, I.J., Brenner, J.C. and Butsic, V.

Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment

A booming cannabis industry expands agriculture into forest habitat. Science offers methods to understand impacts and shape policy.

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A watercolor painting with imprints of cannabis leaves over green and purple patches.

Inside the Emerald Triangle: Modeling the Placement and Size of Cannabis Production in Humboldt County, CA

2017

Butsic, V., Schwab, B., Baumann, M. & Brenner, J.C.

Ecological Economics

What factors influence the location and size of cannabis cultivation sites?

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satellite photo of grow sites and roads encroaching into forests and fragmenting the landscape

Cannabis agriculture and the environment: a systematic, spatially-explicit survey and potential impacts

2016

Butsic, V. & Brenner, J.C.

Environmental Research Letters

Spatial patterns of cannabis grow sites reveal environmental impacts of an expanding industry.

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