Growing in international waters

PhenoMenal

Well-Known Member
I'm just curious, if you're a boat in international waters is it legal to grow pot!?!? I'm guessing it's still illegal.
I'm pretty sure there's laws about firearms etc (which has made defending boats against Somali pirates tricky as civilian boats can't be armed, thus needing military defense)
I get seasick just looking at a boat, nor do i have a boat, so this isn't anything i'm pursuing lol, and obviously it'd be a very expensive way to grow, and you'd obviously be breaking laws if you tried to bring it into a country, but i just thought it's an interesting question
 

Huckster79

Well-Known Member
I'm just curious, if you're a boat in international waters is it legal to grow pot!?!? I'm guessing it's still illegal.
I'm pretty sure there's laws about firearms etc (which has made defending boats against Somali pirates tricky as civilian boats can't be armed, thus needing military defense)
I get seasick just looking at a boat, nor do i have a boat, so this isn't anything i'm pursuing lol, and obviously it'd be a very expensive way to grow, and you'd obviously be breaking laws if you tried to bring it into a country, but i just thought it's an interesting question
It is! But one i could only speculate on...
 

PhenoMenal

Well-Known Member
btw i think the fact that we've never heard of it being done before is proof alone that it would be logistically and practically and financially pointless.
 

Nugs1

Well-Known Member
The problem is really weather I'd think. Weather out on the open water is a little different and can get pretty volatile.
Also I think that international laws are maybe held by the UN and the UN doesn't like legal weed.
However, if one had a flat "barge" maybe something that could be towed by a pontoon boat and the weather held up, then you could get away with it... ocean is huge. But like I said weather is really your enemy.
I would maybe do something in southern waters maybe closer to mid Florida and then do it in February so that as soon as you put them out they'd start flowering. Of course that means you'd have to start indoors and risk taking them out to the water.
Fun thought though
 

jasperr

Well-Known Member
You could make a GIANT grow room from a nuclear powered flight deck ship, you could probably do your thing in international waters but as soon as you're into owned waters you have high risk of getting caught. Would be an awesome operation though!
Reminds me of the LSD lab in that missile silo :D
 

redivider

Well-Known Member
I'm just curious, if you're a boat in international waters is it legal to grow pot!?!? I'm guessing it's still illegal.
I'm pretty sure there's laws about firearms etc (which has made defending boats against Somali pirates tricky as civilian boats can't be armed, thus needing military defense)
I get seasick just looking at a boat, nor do i have a boat, so this isn't anything i'm pursuing lol, and obviously it'd be a very expensive way to grow, and you'd obviously be breaking laws if you tried to bring it into a country, but i just thought it's an interesting question
International Maritime law states that whatever flag your boat flies, or is registered under, are the laws governing the inside of the vessel while in the water. while moored to a port different countries have different rules and laws on which laws applies on the boat and which don't.

You could, in theory, build your own super barge and not register it in any country, then tow it out into the middle of nowhere, try to float there in international waters and begin a community where you could grow weed. but you wouldn't be able to sell it. you would not be able to use the proceeds from any sale derived from it to buy anything - because using money that comes from sources deemed illegal by the country that issues the currency the deals are made in - is illegal.

Then there's the logistics of the matter - you probably don't realize how much fuel, water, food and medical supplies a community uses......

I heard there were plans to build a floating utopia free from any countries' laws. it would be like 4-5 oil super tankers, refitted to be a floating community with one farm boat, one industry boat, and 2 living boats. they would remain indefinitely in open water. everything would be funded by bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. Inside your apartment you can do and decide what goes and what doesn't. In the hallways there would be general neighborhood rules similar to a HOA, where the community keeps things tidy and in order. but they are selling it as a 5-star luxury retreat... that's not the type of people who want to move out to the ocean away from big brother..... it's usually gun hoarding, God fearing, Trump loving, government hating, not-college educated folks... those who already live out in the middle of nowhere and smell like dead rat mixed with horseshit.... that's the type of people that would move there.....

They've been working on the idea for over 5 years and still don't have the type of support they would need to buy 4-5 large cruise type vessels and retrofit them to work as a living community...
 

ttystikk

Well-Known Member
The permanent residence filled ship that never docks has been a dream for decades.

Not all are looking to escape drug laws; many are interested in order to escape taxes.

Changes the intended customer demographic a bit, for sure.
 

ttystikk

Well-Known Member
I've kicked the idea of a floating greenhouse around. Turns out there are a lot of advantages, like almost free cooling; just draw water up from deep down and use it as the cooling medium.
 

Subu

Well-Known Member
International Maritime law states that whatever flag your boat flies, or is registered under, are the laws governing the inside of the vessel while in the water. while moored to a port different countries have different rules and laws on which laws applies on the boat and which don't.

You could, in theory, build your own super barge and not register it in any country, then tow it out into the middle of nowhere, try to float there in international waters and begin a community where you could grow weed. but you wouldn't be able to sell it. you would not be able to use the proceeds from any sale derived from it to buy anything - because using money that comes from sources deemed illegal by the country that issues the currency the deals are made in - is illegal.

Then there's the logistics of the matter - you probably don't realize how much fuel, water, food and medical supplies a community uses......

I heard there were plans to build a floating utopia free from any countries' laws. it would be like 4-5 oil super tankers, refitted to be a floating community with one farm boat, one industry boat, and 2 living boats. they would remain indefinitely in open water. everything would be funded by bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. Inside your apartment you can do and decide what goes and what doesn't. In the hallways there would be general neighborhood rules similar to a HOA, where the community keeps things tidy and in order. but they are selling it as a 5-star luxury retreat... that's not the type of people who want to move out to the ocean away from big brother..... it's usually gun hoarding, God fearing, Trump loving, government hating, not-college educated folks... those who already live out in the middle of nowhere and smell like dead rat mixed with horseshit.... that's the type of people that would move there.....

They've been working on the idea for over 5 years and still don't have the type of support they would need to buy 4-5 large cruise type vessels and retrofit them to work as a living community...
Plus living in the middle of the ocean on a floating tin can sounds terrifying..
 

Fubard

Well-Known Member
The problem is really weather I'd think. Weather out on the open water is a little different and can get pretty volatile.
Also I think that international laws are maybe held by the UN and the UN doesn't like legal weed.
However, if one had a flat "barge" maybe something that could be towed by a pontoon boat and the weather held up, then you could get away with it... ocean is huge. But like I said weather is really your enemy.
I would maybe do something in southern waters maybe closer to mid Florida and then do it in February so that as soon as you put them out they'd start flowering. Of course that means you'd have to start indoors and risk taking them out to the water.
Fun thought though
A huge grow room inside a small cargo ship would help against the "weather" aspect, but as others say, how would you get the harvest to land without customs getting in the way? An absolutely massive logistical, and extremely expensive, nightmare and, honestly, if it was viable I would have expected cartels to be doing that sort of thing with assorted substances. Since, afaik, they aren't, then it isn't viable.
 

Nugs1

Well-Known Member
A huge grow room inside a small cargo ship would help against the "weather" aspect, but as others say, how would you get the harvest to land without customs getting in the way? An absolutely massive logistical, and extremely expensive, nightmare and, honestly, if it was viable I would have expected cartels to be doing that sort of thing with assorted substances. Since, afaik, they aren't, then it isn't viable.
The shore is HUGE. Fisherman come in and out 100's of times a day from far out with out being checked by anyone. Getting it back to shore would actually be an easy part from the way I see it... but you are correct about the money issue. Having a large enough ship to do either a deck grow or indoor grow would be astronomical, indoor to me being much more expensive.
You could start early down towards the carribean and then move north as hurricane season kicks in keeping a close eye on it.
I feel like with a decent sized ship and a small crew you could harvest 100's of pounds easily.... Id be interested in how the plants would react to the salty air or if it would make any difference that far out..
 
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