Private homes emerge as the strongly preferred venue for recreational cannabis use in newly released survey results from the British Columbia government. More than 90 per cent of respondents confirm that they typically use non-medical cannabis in their own homes, while 46 per cent also use it in other people’s homes. A smaller proportion — 35 per cent — report smoking or ingesting cannabis in outdoor public spaces.
As part of the second survey that the BC Cannabis Secretariat has conducted since the drug was legalized across Canada in October 2018, nearly 25,000 provincial residents were queried via telephone between August and October 2021 to compile one of the largest samplings to date of general consumer and non-consumer practices. The 8,473 or 34 per cent of initial respondents who self-reported as cannabis users were then invited to answer a more detailed online questionnaire, and findings are drawn from 2,420 subsequent participants.
“The BC Cannabis Use Survey provides valuable information on the role of cannabis in the lives of people living in British Columbia, including how they use it, where they get it, how it impacts their lives and the extent that they engage in potentially risky behaviours such as frequent or heavy cannabis use or driving shortly after using cannabis,” the preamble to the survey results states.
Of interest to the property and facilities management sectors, fewer than 3 per cent of respondents report having used non-medical cannabis in indoor public spaces, the workplace or at school. However, more than half (53 per cent) of younger consumers, aged 19 to 24, used it in outdoor public spaces.
Licensed retailers have gained market share since 2018, with 71 per cent of respondents reporting they purchased non-medical cannabis from either a licensed private store or a government-operated BC Cannabis outlet. Meanwhile, 17 per cent purchased cannabis from an unlicensed venue, down from 56 per cent before legalization, and 9 per cent purchased from an illicit dealer, down from 16 per cent prior to 2018.
Nevertheless, unlicensed online dealers may be adding to the package delivery traffic in residential buildings since they’ve experienced an uptick in business, with 9 per cent of survey respondents using their services. More recreational cannabis users are also growing their own plants — 14 per cent in 2021 versus 9 per cent in 2018 — although that may be a more common practice for homeowners than renters since 18 to 20 per cent of respondents age 45 or older reported doing so versus 13 per cent of those aged 25 to 44 and 7 per cent of those aged 19 to 24.
Survey results show there are generally more cannabis users now than prior to legalization. The B.C. government pegs it at 32 per cent of British Columbians, up from 28 per cent at the onset of legalization in 2018. Among users, 27 per cent of men and 20 per cent of women reported daily use; while 29 per cent of men and 24 per cent of women reported using it one or more times per week. Women were most apt to be infrequent users with 39 per cent partaking less than 12 times a year.
More consumers don’t necessarily translate directly into smoke and odour-related issues since results show more consumers are ingesting recreational products or applying medical products in the form of ointments and tinctures. Still, 81 per cent of respondents smoked cannabis and more used cannabis cartridges or vape pens in 2021 (42 per cent) than in 2018 (36 per cent).
The survey does not include any exploration of fire safety risks, but it does pose questions about other risky behaviour related to cannabis consumption, including: using it in combination with other drugs; using it while pregnant or breast feeding; and operating a motor vehicle while impaired or travelling as a passenger with an impaired driver. Conclusions to the survey results also reiterate that there are still “data gaps” to fill.
“Most people who use cannabis reported reducing their use of alcohol or other substances (e.g., pain relievers), which highlights the need for further research into the scope and potential outcomes from using cannabis as a substitute. There is also a need for other sources of data on potential changes in cannabis-impaired driving, such as data on collisions and hospitalizations,” it states. “As the market continues to evolve and stigma around cannabis use slowly fades there is a need for regular monitoring and evaluation to effectively assess public health and safety impacts of cannabis use.”
