U.S. detects more coca being grown
Despite widespread spraying of defoliants financed by the U.S., total acreage of coca cultivated in Colombia rose 19% in 2006 compared with 2005, according to an annual survey by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.
The report stresses that much of the gain may be attributed to an expansion of the area included in the survey, which is done by satellite, airplane and on the ground.
For the record:
12:00 a.m. June 6, 2007 For The Record
Los Angeles Times Wednesday June 06, 2007 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 42 words Type of Material: Correction
Cocaine production: A news brief in Tuesday’s Section A incorrectly stated the increase in acreage cultivated with coca plants in Colombia last year. Cocaproducing acreage rose 9% over the previous year, not the stated 19%, according to an annual White House-sponsored survey.
The White House said the increase was due partly to “rapid crop reconstitution,” the use of smaller plots in more remote areas and farmers’ increasing use of national parks, where aerial spraying is forbidden.
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