Logo image
Back
Location, location, location: Assessing the spatial patterning between marijuana licenses, alcohol outlets and neighborhood characteristics within Washington state
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Location, location, location: Assessing the spatial patterning between marijuana licenses, alcohol outlets and neighborhood characteristics within Washington state

Loni Philip Tabb, Christina Fillmore and Steven Melly
Drug and alcohol dependence, v 185, pp 214-218
01 Apr 2018
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2018.01.004
PMID: 29471225
Featured in Collection :   UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel

Abstract

Alcohol Marijuana Neighborhoods Spatial patterning Washington
•Spatial patterning of marijuana licenses in Washington census tracts is assessed.•Significant spatial patterning of marijuana producers and processors exists.•Marijuana licenses are in poorer census tracts.•Marijuana retailers are co-located in areas with off-premises alcohol outlets.•States legalizing marijuana should consider neighborhood characteristics. The availability of marijuana products is becoming increasingly prevalent across the United States (US), many states are allowing for the production, processing, and retailing of these products for medical and/or recreational use. The purpose of this study is to: (1) examine the spatial patterning of marijuana licenses, and (2) examine the impact of alcohol outlets in addition to other neighborhood characteristics on marijuana licenses within the state of Washington. This cross-sectional observational study examined 1458 census tracts in Washington state from 2017, using marijuana and alcohol data from the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board as well as neighborhood characteristics data from the American Community Survey 2011–2015 5-year estimates. We used exploratory and formal spatial regression methods, including integrated nested Laplace approximation within a Bayesian statistical framework, to address the study aims. Our results indicate there is significant spatial patterning of marijuana producers and processors across the state. We also found that all marijuana licenses are located in poorer census tracts, and marijuana retailers are co-located in census tracts with off-premises alcohol outlets. Our study provides empirical evidence of the relationship between marijuana licenses, alcohol outlets, and neighborhood characteristics, and has important implications for policymakers in other states currently considering legalizing marijuana-products for medical and/or recreational use.

Metrics

13 Record Views
28 citations in Web of Science
27 citations in Scopus

Details

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This publication has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:

#3 Good Health and Well-Being

InCites Highlights

Data related to this publication, from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool:

Web of Science research areas
Psychiatry
Substance Abuse
Logo image