While it may not be traded on Wall Street any time soon, marijuana has become a booming cash crop.

CNBC goes behind the scenes to explore the inner workings of this secretive industry, focusing on Northern California's Emerald Triangle, now the marijuana capital of the U.S.

In this scenic pocket of America, the pot business, much of it legal under state law, now makes up as much as two-thirds of the local economy. Northern California’s Mendocino County - A picture postcard of the far west and the site of a controversial, profitable and increasingly violent criminal enterprise... the marijuana trade. Officials estimate it accounts for up to two-thirds of the local economy and generates up to $1 billion a year.