Watch CBS News

Humboldt County Pot Bust Finds Large Amounts Of Environmental Damage

EUREKA (AP) - Authorities have arrested 16 people and found great environmental damage after raiding a marijuana grow on a rural Northern California property.

A Humboldt County Sheriff's statement says deputies found on Tuesday hundreds of marijuana plants, weapons and more than $10,000 in cash on the 160-acre property in Bridgeville, southeast of Eureka.

The statement says evidence suggests the suspects were selling marijuana for profit.

Officers also discovered clear cutting of trees, illegal roads cut into the hillside, and a pump illegally diverting water from a creek. The creek is under federal protection because it contains steelhead trout.

Officers found another grow in a neighboring parcel, where sewage was sent to the creek.

The people arrested hailed from Las Vegas, New York, Chicago, the San Francisco Bay area and Charlotte, NC.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.