John Nores

Who is John Nores?

John Nores has served as a game warden with the California Dept. of Fish and Wildlife. There he co-developed the Marijuana Enforcement Team (MET) and Delta Team, the CDFW's first comprehensive wilderness spec ops tactical and sniper unit, aimed at combatting the marijuana cartel's decimation of California's wildlife resources.

Topics and Timestamps

• 01John Nores is a California game warden who created the Marijuana Enforcement Team (MET) to combat illegal grow operations destroying wildlife habitats
• 02Illegal marijuana cartels operating on public lands are responsible for massive environmental destruction including poisoning water supplies and killing wildlife
• 03Nores co-developed Delta Team, CDFW's first tactical spec ops and sniper unit specifically trained for wilderness enforcement operations
• 04The scale of illegal grows in California is staggering, with thousands of plants cultivated across remote public lands using pesticides banned decades ago
• 05Game wardens face serious danger from armed cartel members protecting grow sites, leading to the need for military-style tactical training and equipment
• 06The intersection of marijuana legalization and black market operations has created a complex enforcement challenge for wildlife agencies
• ▶Nores explains how he created the Marijuana Enforcement Team and why traditional game warden tactics weren't sufficient0:00:00
• ▶Discussion of the scale of illegal marijuana operations on California public lands and the environmental destruction they cause0:15:00
• ▶Nores describes encounters with armed cartel members and the dangers game wardens face during enforcement operations0:30:00
• ▶Explanation of Delta Team's tactical training, equipment, and sniper capabilities for wilderness operations0:45:00
• ▶Discussion of the paradox of marijuana legalization in California not eliminating black market operations1:00:00

The Show

John Nores brings a perspective most people never consider: the environmental catastrophe caused by illegal marijuana cultivation on California's public lands. As a game warden who literally created specialized enforcement units to combat this problem, he's not talking theory. He's talking about what he's actually witnessed in the field.

The core issue is that while California legalized marijuana, massive black market operations still thrive in remote areas, and they're destroying ecosystems at scale. We're talking about thousands of plants being grown on public lands by organized cartels using pesticides that have been banned for decades. These operations poison water sources, kill wildlife, and degrade habitat in ways most people never see or consider.

What makes Nores' work unique is that he recognized game wardens couldn't handle this with traditional enforcement methods. You can't approach an armed cartel grow site like you would a poacher. So he co-developed two specialized teams: the Marijuana Enforcement Team to investigate and document operations, and Delta Team, which is essentially a wilderness tactical unit with snipers and full spec ops training. It's basically the SEAL Team of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The conversation covers the nuts and bolts of enforcement in remote terrain, the actual dangers wardens face, and the sheer scope of the problem. Illegal grows aren't some small operation. They're organized, they're armed, and they're willing to fight to protect their product. Nores talks about encounters with cartel members, the equipment and training needed for these operations, and how the legalization of marijuana in California paradoxically made some enforcement problems worse because it didn't eliminate the black market.

What comes through is that Nores genuinely cares about protecting California's wilderness and wildlife. He's not anti-marijuana. He's pro-conservation. The plants themselves aren't the problem. The industrial-scale illegal operations, the chemicals, the armed criminals, and the complete disregard for environmental damage are the problems. It's a conversation that reveals an entire hidden battle being fought in California's backcountry that almost nobody knows about.

Best Quotes