WFAA-TV

Police plan to destroy the plants.

GRAND PRAIRIE - After the biggest pot bust on Texas record, Grand Prairie police say they are seeing a new trend, an increase in the demand for marijuana.

Over the weekend, police seized $5 million worth of marijuana on the Grand Prairie-Dallas city line. The DEA found more than 10,000 plants.

In 1997, the Drug Enforcement Agency seized 33,000 pounds of marijuana, which went down to 19,000 pounds in 2001. That number got even smaller in 2005 when agents seized 9,000 pounds. But so far in 2007, that number has grown to 11,000 pounds of marijuana and counting.

"We do know there is a lot of domestic marijuana grown across the country both west, in the heartland, and now here," said James Capra, DEA special-agent-in-charge.

Capra said it's being grown more domestically because of border security in Mexico. The recent bust was on electric company Oncor's property.

"Typically, using someone else's land, whether it is the government's or private land, it is not unusual to see that one thing," Capra said. "We have to concern ourselves with is this now going to be the trend in the metroplex?"

DEA officials said they are seeing more sophisticated operations where irrigation systems are being used to grow the weed. The unusually wet weather recently has actually helped marijuana plant growing.

The 10,000 marijuana plants are expected to be destroyed Tuesday at an undisclosed location.

So far, no arrests have been made in the case, but DEA agents said there are several leads that indicate it was a major operation involving several suspects.

E-mail ddenmon@wfaa.com