CANNABIS worth almost £500,000 has been seized by police in Lancashire in a drugs crackdown.

Operation Broadley, which will run throughout March, is a regional campaign involving officers executing search warrants at homes across Lancashire as well as carrying out joint work with local authorities and other organisations to identify signs of cannabis cultivation and take action.

Just two weeks into the operation, and Lancashire Constabulary has made 11 arrests and found cannabis with an estimated street value of £440,200.

This brings the total number of arrests so far to 22, with 1,151 plants seized.

In addition to searching homes for cannabis plants, the constabulary is working with utility companies, garden centres, DIY stores, local authorities, fire services and others to identify the signs that cannabis is being grown and take action.

Detective Chief Inspector Tim Leeson, of Lancashire’s serious and organised crime unit, said: “It is now the end of week two of Operation Broadley and we have seized more than 1,000 plants worth a six figure sum on a street level.

This is an important step in our campaign to hit cannabis cultivators hard and end the misery that drugs misuse causes in Lancashire.”

Between October and December, 20,603 cannabis plants were seized from 485 cannabis factories in Lancashire.