On Sept. 9, the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors unanimously supported an ordinance which—if approved upon the second reading on Sept. 30—would prohibit the retail sale of nitrous oxide for recreational use.
Also known as “laughing gas,” nitrous oxide has several legitimate uses, such as an anesthetic for some medical procedures, and in restaurants to make whipped cream.
But because it also causes a brief euphoric “high,” it has been widely abused, particularly by young people. And while state law prohibits its sale to minors—and for the purposes of intoxication—proving that can be a challenge, said Supervisor Kim De Serpa, who authored the ordinance.
“This gap leaves enforcement powerless where retail shops openly sell nitrous,” she said.
Also known as nitro, N₂O, NOS, nangs, whippets, hippy crack and buzz bombs, the gas works when the user inhales it.
According to county officials, it is classified as a dissociative drug that can alter perception, mood and consciousness similar to psychedelics.
It can cause dizziness, disorientation, blurred vision, loss of balance, numbness, nausea, headaches, vomiting, impaired memory, and slowed cognition or motor performance.
Heavy use may also cause chest tightness, impotence and clumsiness. Chronic use can cause vitamin B12 depletion, which can lead to nerve and brain damage, bone marrow suppression, muscle control loss, tinnitus, incontinence, weakened immunity and increased risk of heart attack.
The ordinance, De Serpa said, “is about protecting public health and public safety.”
She pointed to several recent incidents in which drivers were caught under the influence of the gas.
“We’re just seeing more and more of it,” De Serpa said.
During the summer, she said, SCSO investigators received a tip about a gas station in Felton that was selling “shelves and shelves and shelves” of nitrous. Employees later sold products to a minor decoy in a sting operation.
Later, investigators learned that the shop sold more than 900 units in four months, which was enough for 235,000 doses, De Serpa said.
“This is not small-scale,” she said. “It is industrial-level distribution for recreational abuse.”
Similar ordinances have been adopted in Orange, San Mateo and Humboldt counties.
De Serpa said that she expects local cities, along with the counties of Monterey and Humboldt, to follow suit.
Amber Williams, who runs Janus of Santa Cruz—a nonprofit that helps people overcome substance use disorders—said that withdrawal from nitrous oxide is difficult to treat. Two young people have recently gone to treatment for it, she added.
“The more we can ban it and get it out of our community so we can actually treat the other issues we’re already dealing with in substance use disorder services, the better,” Williams said.
Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Lt. Nick Baldridge said the ordinance will help law enforcement close the loophole that allows retail sales.
“This would just allow us to help keep that off the street, help keep our community safe, and take that enforcement action to keep it out of our retail shops in this county to try and limit that access for our youth,” he said.
If adopted later this month, the ordinance will take effect 31 days later.
