Humboldt Sheriff's Department Busts Pot Growers with Google Earth

Todd Fulton, a deputy in the Humboldt County, Calif., sheriff’s department, said his agency is also using Google Earth as one piece in its marijuana interdiction activities, albeit a small one. "We’ll use GPS (devices) and transfer the GPS data over to Google Earth," Fulton said, "to get an idea of the terrain we’re dealing with."

That’s particularly useful in a region like Humboldt County–one of the largest marijuana-growing regions in the United States–given that it consists of millions of acres of rough, hilly terrain. So being able to use Google Earth to do something that previously might have required flying around in a helicopter is much more efficient, Fulton suggested.

crossed.wordpress.com/2007/09/16/72/