Is Dust a Major Concern for the Cannabis Industry?

Powder & Bulk Solids explores how awareness of dust-related health and safety issues in cannabis facilities is growing as the industry expands.

John S. Forrester | Oct 14, 2022

Every industry that works with dry, dusty materials encounters a variety of health and safety hazards from airborne pathogens to combustible dust fires and explosions. The cannabis industry is no exception. These hazards will likely receive more attention in the coming months and years after reports emerged this month of the first fatality of a worker in the cannabis industry linked to dust. The US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited and fined a licensed marijuana facility in Massachusetts after an employee died in January following exposure to ground dried marijuana.

A non-profit organization representing occupational and environmental health and safety (OEHS) professionals, The American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), launched the Cannabis Industry Health and Safety Committee several years ago to explore ways to navigate potential hazards in the cannabis industry. The group is supporting government-backed research on cannabis industry hazards and the distribution of best practices for controlling or mitigating the concerns, as well as employer-employee education outreach programs with state and federal entities to increase knowledge of hazards and how to approach them.

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One sign that regulators and fire safety professionals will pay closer attention to combustible dust risks in cannabis manufacturing operations as the industry matures is that Timothy Heneks, director of engineering services for combustible dust consulting firm Dustcon Solutions Inc., sits on the National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) technical committee for NFPA 420, Fire Protection of Cannabis Growing and Processing Facilities. He was named chair of the NFPA 420 Task Group on Drying/Processing in 2022. Another example is that Jason Krbec, sales engineering manager for explosion venting and isolation equipment supplier CV Technology, also serves as a member on the committee.

NFPA started the effort to develop the cannabis industry safety standard in mid-2021 after a previous effort added a chapter specific to marijuana cultivators, processors, and extractors to the 2018 edition of NFPA 1, Fire Code.

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Cannabis Dust Reportedly Kills Worker at Legal Facility

OSHA fined marijuana producer Trulieve $35K after an employee died in January following an incident at a Massachusetts facility.

John S. Forrester | Oct 11, 2022

The first known occupational fatality from cannabis dust occurred at a licensed facility in Holyoke, MA in January 2022, prompting an investigation by the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Local and national news organizations reported this month that the federal workplace safety regulator cited Trulieve Holyoke Holdings LLC for three serious violations and proposed a fine of $35,219 following the death of the employee on January 7.

The worker was grinding cannabis flower and filling pre-rolls in the North Bridge Street facility around 11 p.m. when they “couldn’t breathe” because of “marijuana kief [powdered trichomes],” according to Marijuana Business Daily, citing information from OSHA records. Trulieve identified the deceased person to the publication as Lorna McMurrey. She died several days following the incident.

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