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<\/p>\nWestminster is one of the latest Orange County cities to ban the recreational sale and distribution of whippets \u2014 nitrous oxide \u2014 to people looking to get high off the gas.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The change seeks to offer a clearer definition of where and to whom whippets can be sold in an attempt to limit usage to be in purely professional settings. This may include medical, automotive or commercial food production operations.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Editors\u2019 Note: This dispatch is part of the Voice of OC Collegiate News Service<\/a>, working with student journalists to cover public policy issues across Orange County. If you would like to submit your own student media project related to Orange County civics or if you have any response to this work, contact admin@voiceofoc.org.<\/p>\n Orange County is the first county in California to explicitly ban the sale of whippets for recreational use.\u00a0<\/p>\n While the state does have a regulation limiting recreational purchase of whippets, there\u2019s loopholes that allow the odorless inhalant to be sold at retail shops, according to local officials.\u00a0<\/p>\n Several cities, like Costa Mesa<\/a>, Fullerton<\/a>, Stanton<\/a> and Santa Ana<\/a>, have already taken steps to crack down on whippet sales in their towns.<\/p>\n Westminster\u2019s ban was first approved in an initial vote on April 22, and a final approval was given \u00a0during the council\u2019s meeting on May 13, with the new whippet ban ordinance expected to kick in 30 days after that.\u00a0<\/p>\n The proposed ban was first discussed during a meeting on March 11.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t see a common sense need for a sale of this product, for instance, at a smoke shop,\u201d Councilmember Carlos Manzo said during discussion of the ban in March. \u201cThose types of customers are going to be using it for nefarious reasons.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Westminster city leaders said they are seeking to fill in gaps between state regulations.\u00a0<\/p>\n Ryan Salz, a city staff member who works within the city manager\u2019s office, said the city is pursuing the ban to promote public safety.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s serious negative health effects that can be caused by the [recreational] use of nitrous oxide, such as blood clots, neurological damage, asphyxiation, paralysis and even death,\u201d Salz said at the council\u2019s March meeting.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cCalifornia state law does regulate the sale and distribution of nitrous oxide, but it doesn\u2019t go far enough in some areas.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Recreational nitrous oxide, also referred to as \u201cNOS\u201d or \u201cgalaxy gas,\u201d can be inhaled to create a high \u2014 which can lead to neurological and psychiatric complications, including nerve damage and psychosis if abused, according to the Yale School of Medicine<\/a>.<\/p>\n While some people use nitrous oxide to get high, it\u2019s also commonly used in professional settings.\u00a0<\/p>\n The gas is used in culinary settings to make whipped cream, and it\u2019s also used as a medical and dental anesthetic and for vehicle performance \u2014 all exceptions carved out in Westminster\u2019s whippet ban.\u00a0<\/p>\n The city is following a trend set by the Orange County Board of Supervisors, who voted to ban the sale of nitrous oxide in unincorporated areas last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n