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Cannabis legalization has arrived in Michigan’s rural Upper Peninsula, and not everyone is pleased with the pungent smells that come from legal pot. 

According to the Ironwood Daily Globe, the residents of Bessemer, Michigan, a small town close to the Wisconsin border, are so distraught with the smell of their neighbors’ dank that they pushed the local City Council to purchase a pricey odor detector, and are now exploring options to pass a legal ordinance that would punish scent offenders. 

"The city of Bessemer stinks," Bessemer City Councilor Linda Nelson told The Daily Globe. "You can smell marijuana everywhere. We've got people who can't sit in their backyard because the smell from their neighbor is so bad."

The City Council action started when Bessemer Mayor Pro Tempore Terry Kryshak introduced a motion recommending the purchase of the Nasal Ranger brand odor detector. After some discussion, the Council agreed to spend $3,400 in municipal funds on the device and necessary staff training.

The device will be operated by a city Code Enforcement employee, who will seek to sniff out cannabis odor and report any overwhelming stenches as a “blight” offence. Of course, what makes a smell offensive is a subjective decision, with one person’s skunk smelling like the next person’s garden of Eden. And in a court of law, even Bessemer’s nosiest neighbors are unsure if the odor offense will stand up. In response to that uncertainty, the City Council is now working to craft a local ordinance outlawing cannabis nasal pollution.

"It would be a shame to spend money and not have it hold up in court," Mayor Kryshak said.

If you live in Bessemer and you think it might be your home grow or ganja habit that’s causing the community uproar, may we suggest a strategic investment in some bulk vacuum sealing equipment? Sure, it won’t help the environment, but according to a recent study published in Science & Justice, the airtight seals do wonders for smell. After all, anything is better than an angry mob of city council members trying to harsh your harvest season smoke sessions. 

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