ABSTRACT
The principal response of the New Zealand Police to the illegal cultivation of cannabis since the early 1980s has been to conduct annual cannabis crop eradication operations, currently known as the National Cannabis and Crime Operation (NCCO). This chapter provides some measure of the effectiveness of the NCCO by calculating the cannabis seizure rate of the operation for the years 1998, 2001, 2003, 2006 and 2009. The NCCO regularly detects over 1,000 cannabis plots, destroys over 100,000 cannabis plants and arrests hundreds of offenders, as well as recovering firearms and stolen property. The New Zealand National Household Drug Survey (NZNHDS) interviews a random national sample of people living in households in New Zealand using a Computer Assisted Telephone Interview (CATI) facility. The NZNHDS collects particularly comprehensive data on cannabis consumption when compared to national population drug surveys conducted around the world.
