Ten thousand marijuana plants and a highly toxic pesticide were found at an illegal growing site in Death Valley, park officials said.
The site was discovered last month during a flyover of Jail Canyon, at the park’s lightly traveled west edge, a National Park Service release said.
The growers, realizing they had been discovered, abandoned the site. The plants were eradicated, and 35 cubic yards of trash was removed, park officials said.
Among the pesticides and other chemicals found at the site was carbofuran, which can kill humans and other large mammals as well as birds and fish.
More than 20 illegal marijuana growing sites have been found in Death Valley National Park in the past decade, the officials said — including a 40-acre site found two years ago at Jail Canyon.
The canyon, 5 miles west of Telescope Peak, can be reached only by footpaths and a rugged route used by off-road vehicles.
People visiting remote areas of the park are advised to inform rangers of “unusual” sightings associated with grow sites, such as tarps, tubing, recent-looking trash and well-traveled trails.
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